How can we overcome our fear?
(Matthew 8:10-13; 15:22-28; Mark 7:24-30; Acts 10:8-34) Blog 10-16 Dec. 2023
Prepared by Richard A. Marin: Present Truth PO Box 700, Fallbrook CA 92088-0700 USA
REVIEW: Just as God has reached out to us, we are to reach out to others. Church members prepare for mission by praying, counseling together, organizing, & agreeing on a Bible-based plan. God works with them to reach all classes of society in all parts of the world. This brings disciples into his church who fellowship together and continually desire to learn more about God.
Gospel Extension
1. How far did Jesus commission his disciples to extend their ministry? Jesus told his disciples to preach the gospel “unto the uttermost part of the earth” (Mar. 16:15; Acts 1:8).
2. To what regions closer to home did Jesus commission his disciples to witness? Jesus told his disciples to witness in Jerusalem, Judea, & Samaria before going to the uttermost part of the world (Acts 1:8).
3. What difficulties did the disciples have in witnessing in Jerusalem and Judea? Although filled with the Holy Spirit, doing miracles, & blessed with thousands of converts, the disciples were threatened, imprisoned, beaten, & killed by the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem & Judea (Acts 4:21; 5:18, 40; 7:58; 8:1-3).
4. What difficulties did the disciples have in witnessing in Samaria? Although filled with the Holy Spirit, doing miracles, & blessed with attentive hearers, Philip, the deacon, together with Peter & John had to deal with Simon the sorcerer who for years had bewitched the people of Samaria (Acts 8:9, 22-23).
5. How did the Gospel first extend beyond Judea and Samaria? God told Philip to go south to the desert in Gaza where he evangelized the Ethiopian eunuch who carried the Gospel to his foreign homeland (Acts 8:35-37).
6. Who did God especially call to be a missionary to the Gentiles? God called Paul to be an apostle to the Gentiles (Acts 9:10-16; Gal. 2:7-8).
7. What difficulties did Paul have in witnessing to the gentiles? Although filled with the Holy Spirit, doing miracles, & blessed with converts, Paul experienced threatenings, imprisonment, beatings, stoning, shipwreck, hunger, & cold (2 Cor. 11:23-28).
8. What should we expect when carrying the Gospel to foreign cities? We should expect threats, persecution, mob riots, privations, & the opposition of evil spirits (Acts 8; 14; 16; 19; 21).
Gentile Cities
9. What did Jesus try to teach his disciples when he took them to the foreign cities of Phenicia? Jesus wanted his disciples to overcome their prejudice against non-Jews (Matt. 15:21-28; Mark 7:24-30).
10. What upset the disciples in Phenicia? The disciples were upset because a Syrophenician women kept asking Jesus for mercy (Matt. 15:22-23; Mark 7:27-30).
11. How did Jesus show the disciples that they should show mercy to those they despised? First Jesus pretended to ignore the Syrophenician woman as a demonstration of the disciples attitude toward foreigners, then he healed her daughter showing them that even foreigners can believe & be saved (Matt. 15:23-28; Mark 7:25-26).
12. How did the Syrophenician mother show her great faith? By persistently asking for mercy & acknowledging her unworthiness the Syrophenecian mother showed her great faith (Matt. 15:22-23; Mark 7:25-26).
13. What other prominent pagan also showed great faith in Jesus? The Centurion with a sick servant also showed great faith in Jesus (Matt. 8:8-10).
14. What prominent disciple needed repeated lessons to teach him not to regard foreigners as unclean? Peter needed a triple vision & the voice of the Holy Spirit to teach him that he should call no one common or unclean, for God is no respecter of persons (Acts 10:8-20, 28, 34).
Our Mission to Foreign Cities
15. What motivated Jesus to reach out to the multitudes? It was Jesus’ love & compassion for humanity that led him to help the multitudes (Matt. 9:36).
16. When Jesus saw the multitudes scattered and fainting, for what did he tell us to pray? Jesus told us to ask God to send more workers to help gather people to himself (Matt. 9:37-38).
17. What attitudes of ours hinder God’s mission to foreign cities? Our fear of strange places, persecution, & privation is one factor that hinders outreach to foreign cities. Our lack of love for the Lord & for our fellow men is another. And our lack of faith in God’s resources is a third (Matt. 6:30; 10:25-31; Luke 18:8).
18. How can we overcome our fear, lack of love, and lack of faith so foreign cities can be reached? Only by looking unto Jesus, the Author and finisher of our faith who suffered, bled, & died that we might live will we be enabled to reach out to foreign cities (Heb. 12:1-3).
19. If God desires people in foreign cities to believe on him, what will we carry to those cities? Since faith comes by hearing the Word of God, we must carry Bible truth to inspire faith in foreign cities (Rom. 10:13-17).