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Elder Bryce Lowrance

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Mega Fear

18 March 2014

And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid. - Luke 2:8-9

On the same night that Jesus was born, there were some shepherds keeping their flocks in possibly the very same field where David tended his father's sheep as a young boy. These men, no doubt, were veterans of their trade and had faced many dangers from storms to wild animals. But what they were about to face caused them to be sore afraid.

One of the best tactics of a small unit making a surprise attack is to sneak in during the darkest part of the night, set off a flash grenade to blind their enemies, and surround them before they have a chance to defend themselves. What is about to happen to these shepherds is the same thing, but on a much larger scale!

Without any warning, an angel of God suddenly appeared in the middle of the shepherds and was towering over them. Contrary to many art depictions, the angels of the Bible are not "Precious Moments Cupids," but mighty warriors in the Lord's army. Each one is capable of destroying tens of thousands of men singlehandedly! And now, one has instantly appeared like a surprise attack. As if that was not enough, there was also a glorious light haloed around the angel and the shepherds. The deep dark of the night was suddenly replaced by an almost blinding light.

The reaction of the shepherds is translated from three Greek words into two English words - "sore afraid." Basically what this means is "having been made afraid, they were almost in terror." Seeing such a powerful being from God, mixed with their own sense of sin in the presence of the glory of God, the shepherds were helpless and more frightened than any time in their lives.

If we are true to ourselves, and to the Bible, we should have the same sense of fear when we compare ourselves to the holiness and majesty of God. Were it not for grace, this fear would consume us even before the righteous hand of God would judge us.

So what is the answer to this fear? Are we able to overcome such power ourselves? The shepherds certainly could not.

With the Lord's help, we will look at the glorious way in which God drives away our fears in the next blog.

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Tags: angel, christmas, fear, harmony_of_the_gospels, luke, shepherd

Welcome

Brentwood Hills Primitive Baptist Church is a community of believers working together to transform our lives to the image of Jesus Christ. We believe it is our duty and privilege to live the gospel of the doctrines of grace in such a way as to edify the families within our church and other children of God in our community. Through regular worship based on strong Biblical principles, fellowship, admonishment, and outreach, we glory in the grace of the sovereign God working in our lives thereby showing the Spirit of God in the world.

Brentwood Hills was organized in 1906 in Fort Worth, Texas as Laodicea Primitive Baptist Church. You can find much of the history of the church, as well as other churches here: Primitive Baptist History Database

We identify ourselves as an old-line Primitive Baptist church. If you read our Articles of Faith, you’ll see that we hold to such doctrines as the inspiration and inerrancy of the Bible. We recognize the King James Version (KJV) as the only English translation worthy of being called the Bible. We believe in salvation solely by the grace of a sovereign God. We believe that Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God, came to the earth to do the will of His Father, which was to deliver from the sentence of death all those the Father gave Him before the world began. We believe that Jesus fully satisfied the Father by atoning for all the sins of all His people. In time, we believe the Holy Spirit comes to each person that belongs to Jesus and regenerates them. Then (and only then) can anyone have faith, which is a fruit of the Spirit, by which you are able to believe the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ. Whether or not you ever hear the gospel, or believe it if you did hear it, or obey it if you did believe it, rest assured that Jesus will remain forever faithful to you because, if He died for you, He will never deny that you belong to Him.

We believe that everyone for whom Christ died will without fail be raised again from the dead to a glorified life. Even if we are alive when He returns to raise the dead, we shall be changed to a glorified life. All the Redeemed will meet the Lord in the air. Then He will take us to Heaven and there we shall forever be with the Lord. The wicked will be raised at the same time as the righteous, but the wicked shall go away into everlasting punishment along with Satan and his angels. Until that glorious day when Christ returns to raise the dead, He has provided a place for His people to find rest for their souls. This place is the Church. Jesus Christ set-up His church on this earth before His death on the Cross. The church is there for those of His people who have come to believe that God saved them by His Son, Jesus Christ. To believe that Christ “paid it all” gives believers the strongest motivation to serve Him. Once enlightened to this glorious truth, then the child of God should feel an obligation to become and remain an active member of the His church. To serve the Lord in His church makes for one of the great blessings to experience this side of Heaven. It fulfills you to serve in His church and it gives your life purpose and meaning.