In his book Future
Grace (p.60-61), John Piper talks
about believing in the promises of God in order to fight anxiety:
When I am anxious about my ministry
being useless and empty, I fight unbelief with the promise of Isaiah
55:11. “So shall My word be which goes
forth from my mouth; it shall not return to Me empty, without accomplishing
what I desire, and without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.”
When I am anxious about being too
weak to do my work, I battle unbelief with the promise of Christ, “My grace is
sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9).
When I am anxious about… (decisions I have to make about the future, facing opponents, the
welfare of those I love, being sick, getting old, dying, getting shipwrecked in
my faith), I battle unbelief with the promise…
Piper battles anxiety (i.e., the fiery missiles of Satan)
with the promises (i.e., the Word) of God.
Amazing. He sums up with: “Let us
make war, not with other people, but with our own unbelief.”
This is the clear battle line for us – faith. Not an abstract, ethereal, hand waving kind
of “faith in faith” vapor, but a specific kind of faith that says, “Do I
believe that the specific promise that God has given in this situation is
true?”
To see how concrete this faith is, check out Hebrews 11:1, “Now faith is the assurance of
things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”
The word assurance is frequently translated “substance” and
means, “that which has foundation, is firm; that which has actual existence, a
substance, real being.”
Now those of us who work around civil engineering associate
the three words “foundation”, “firm” and “substance” with one word – concrete.
So this means that our weapons against the fiery attacks of
Satan- the shield of faith and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of
God - are not merely vague, poetic, religious sounding metaphors. Working together, they form very tangible and concrete weaponry, powerful for the destruction of the fortresses of unbelief.
Now we can have clear demarcation of where our battle
is. It is not just to believe; it
something specific that God has said to believe, and do we trust Him to be true
and make His promise good? Or are we calling Him a liar?
So now, when I feel like a defeated loser, I can fight with
the promise from 2 Corinthians 2:14: "But thanks be to God, who always leads us
in triumph in Christ, and manifests through us the sweet aroma of the knowledge
of Him in every place.” Do I believe
that God will really lead me in triumph, or do I think He is lying?
When I feel worthless, I can battle with the promise that I
am precious to Him and He loves me: "Since
you are precious in My sight, Since you are honored and I love you…” Isaiah
43:4. Do I believe that He really feels
that way about me, or do I think He is lying?
When I am lazy and selfish, I can battle with the promise of
1 Cor 2:9: "Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, and which
have not entered the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love
Him.” Do I believe that God has
staggering rewards for me when I lay down my life and serve, or do I think He
is a liar?
1 John 5:4b really sums up this all up: “ …this is the
victory that has overcome the world—our faith (i.e., our belief in the specific
promises of God).”
Do I think that this is a magic cure for all of our problems? No. But it does point specifically to where the battle is, and what our work is. What is soooo cool about this is that it is
a very active, aggressive resting in God.
That is the right kind of effort and work; not a work of belief in
ourselves and in trying harder, but a fervent struggle grounded in quietness
and trust (Is 30:15), and reliance on God.
“But Moses said to the people, "Do not fear! Stand by
and see the salvation of the LORD which He will accomplish for you today; for
the Egyptians whom you have seen today, you will never see them again forever.” Exd 14:13
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