Top 7 Bible Verses About Being Calm

Top 7 Bible Verses About Being Calm February 25, 2016

Here are seven Bible verses about staying calm in times of trouble.

Second Timothy 1:7 “For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.”

Perhaps the Apostle Paul was admonishing Timothy and reminding him that God doesn’t give us a spirit of fear but of love and self-control but why does Paul mention fear? The very next verse may give us a clue because Paul tells Timothy, “do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God” (2nd Tim 1:8). Perhaps since Paul was writing this from a Roman dungeon and his awaiting execution, the church knew this and started asking Timothy about it. It may be more likely that Timothy was undergoing some persecution and pressure from the Jews and/or the Romans to not speak about the gospel because of what happened to Paul. The point is that God doesn’t give us a spirit of fear but one of power and love and self-discipline.

Isaiah 43:2 “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.”

This depicts an image of the nation of Israel going through the wilderness experience, including their passing through the Red Sea. Those deserts could feel like they’re walking through fire but “the flame,” perhaps meaning the sun, wouldn’t scorch them because of the presence of God as it says in Exodus 13:21, “And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them along the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, that they might travel by day and by night.” Deserts get cold at night and burning hot during the day so God’s cloud gave them shade in the day and the “pillar of fire” gave them light and perhaps warmth at night.

Psalm 16:11 “You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”

The psalmist relied on the Lord God for his path in life. The Lord made it known to him and that path leads to eternal life through Jesus Christ alone (Acts 4:12). Jesus never mentioned any other paths to God because there is only one way, one path, and one truth that brings eternal life (John 14:6). It’s not narrow-minded; it’s just that “the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few” (Matt 7:14), and it is the only “the gate” and “the [only] way” that leads to the Life.

There-is-no-fear-in-love (2)

John 14:27 “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”

The peace that believers have with God (Rom 5:1) is because they have made peace with God and “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death” (Rom 8:1-2). The peace that Jesus spoke of was a peace that remained, unlike the peace the world gives, which is passing away. Worldly peace usually doesn’t last very long.

Romans 8:15 “For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!”

In the most intimate means possible, Paul describes the adoption process of the children of God and brings it to the conclusion that they can cry out to God as their Father, even as a child cries, “daddy.” What father wouldn’t respond to such a cry as that and if an earthly father would do good for their children, think how much more our good Father in heaven will do for those children of His (Matt 7:11)? Fathers will always be their children’s father so that relationship will never changes so there’s no reason to fall back into fear once God’s placed you into His family.

First John 4:18 “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.”

I heard John MacArthur give a great example of “there is no fear in love.” It was when a child was drowning and the father jumped in with no regard for his own life. His great love for his child was far greater than his love for his own life. He never gave it a second thought about jumping into the water. There was no fear of losing his own life when he saved his child from drowning. We who are in Christ have been “perfected in love” by Jesus Christ (2nd Cor 5:21). There is no more reason for us to fear anymore.

Hebrews 2:14-15 “Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery.”

The Scriptures say that the grave couldn’t hold Him because He was without sin and because Jesus was without sin, “God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it” (Acts 2:24). He destroyed the destroyer, which is “the one who has the power of death.” He destroyed death at its own game. He’d conquered the Devil and He conquered the grave so that we can too (John 3:16). The serpent’s head has finally been crushed (Gen 3:15).

Conclusion

The psalmist wrote in Psalm 78:14 that “In the daytime he led them with a cloud, and all the night with a fiery light” and today God is still lighting the path during the day and providing guidance at night and making known His path to His children. There is a sense of calmness for the believer because they have been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb of God and have escaped the coming wrath of God upon all who refuse to believe and so my prayer is that you who read this will repent and believe (if not already), so you won’t have to have “a spirit not of fear but of power and love” (2nd Tim 1:7).

Article by Jack Wellman

Jack Wellman is Pastor of the Mulvane Brethren Church in Mulvane Kansas. Jack is also the Senior Writer at What Christians Want To Know whose mission is to equip, encourage, and energize Christians and to address questions about the believer’s daily walk with God and the Bible. You can follow Jack on Google Plus or check out his book Teaching Children the Gospel available on Amazon.


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