Description

This week on the Gospel Lifeline Podcast Neal, Matt, and Robert discuss the issue of Anxiety and what solutions the Bible provides!

Episode Notes

Righteous Hearts Fear the One True God

Books Referenced:

• Courage: Fighting Fear with Fear by Wayne Mack
• Running Scared: Fear, Worry, and the God of Rest by Ed Welch
• 31-Day Devotionals for Life: Anxiety- Knowing God's Peace by Paul Tautges
• Questions on the Heart Level by Julie Ganschow

Why We Use the Bible to Help Us Overcome the Issues in Life

• The heart is dynamic, comprising of what we think, feel, and do.
  1. Think: What we focus on, based on what we take in.
  2. Feel: Emotions we have whether they are real or based on how we are perceiving our circumstances and environment.
  3. Do: Actions we take or the behaviors we exhibit in our day to day living.

• (16) All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, (17) that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. ~2 Timothy 3:16-17~ ***

• Scripture is profitable for:
  1. Teaching- The Bible teaches us who God is and because we know who He is, we can better understand who we are.
  2. Reproof- Through the lens of Scripture we can see what we are doing wrong, thus exposing our wrong heart desires.
  3. Correction- God’s Word not only tells us that we are wrong and that what we are doing is wrong, it shows us the way to fix bad beliefs, wrong desires, and sinful behaviors. It does this by pointing us to the Who can help us correct those issues.
  4. Training in Righteousness- The practical application and implementation of Biblical principles into our daily lives and walk with the Lord.

Solutions to the 4 Main Issues Causing Anxiety:

• Guilty Conscience
  1. (28) Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (29) Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. (30) For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. ~Matthew 11:28-30~
  2. (14) Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. (15) For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. (16) Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. ~Hebrews 4:14-16~

• Wrong Values
  1. Expulsive Power of a New Affection- The Puritan way of taking a Biblical Principle and filling our hearts with that, thus pushing out the sinful or wrong thoughts and perceptions, wrong desires, sinful behaviors, and bad beliefs.
  2. Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. ~1 John 2:15~

• Unbelief/Lack of Trust
  1. The story of Elijah- Please read ~1 Kings Ch. 18 & 19~

• Idols
  1. Biblical Example of Killing Idols: ~2 Kings 23~: We didn’t get a chance to cover this in the episode due to time constraints. We wanted to show you a Biblical example of how to put idols to death. In this passage of Scripture, we see that Josiah took to the destruction of all the idols that were pulling hid people away from what God commanded them to do and out of a relationship with him. So King Josiah did the following to the idols:
     - Burned then (v. 4)
     - He deposed [the idolatrous priests] (v. 5)
     - Brought out the Asherah (One of the gods of Baal) (v. 6)
     - Burned it (v. 6)
     - Beat it to dust (v. 6)
     - Cast the dust of it upon the graves of the common people (v. 6)
     - Broke down the houses (v. 7)
     - Defiled the high places where the priests had made offerings (v. 8)
     - Broke down the high places (v. 8)
     - He defiled (v. 10)
     - He removed (v. 11)
     - He burned (v. 11)
     - Pulled down and broke in pieces and cast the dust of them into the brook (v. 12) 

- Defiled the high places (v. 13)
- Broke in pieces (v. 14)
- Cut down (v. 14)
- Filled their places with the bones of men (v. 14)
- He pulled down (v. 15)
- He burned (v. 15)
- Reducing it to dust (v. 15)
- Burned the Asherah (v. 15)
- Burned the bones from the tombs on the altar (v. 16)
- Defiled it according to the word of the Lord (v. 16)
- Removed all shrines (v. 19)
- He sacrificed all the priests of the high places (v. 20)

Conclusion and Challenge:

• 4 Things to Pray When Overcoming Anxiety:
  1. Confession- Confession is the chemotherapy to put to death the cancer (sin) that causes anxiety. We should confess:
     1. wrong or sinful beliefs
     2. wrong or sinful thoughts

• wrong or sinful desires

1. wrong or sinful behaviors

1. Accept- We need to accept the forgiveness from God that is promised to those who are his children (1 John 1:9). Sometimes we hear peoples saying, “I just can’t forgive myself.” This statement is a worldly statement that a believer can translate to, “I can’t accept God’s forgiveness for my sin, it’s just too bad.” Both of which are wrong beliefs, we need to accept God’s forgiveness, which we have because of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
2. Request- Ask the Lord for the strength and tools to flee from, overcome, and resist the sin present in your life.
3. Replace- Switching out the wrong placed fear of our circumstances, environment, and the people in our lives for a right placed fear in God and his glory and power.

*** Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®),

       copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by

       permission. All rights Reserved.