Matthew 10:28-31
Life is full of troubles, as we read in Job 14:1 - "A man that is born of a woman is of few days and full of trouble." It is human nature to feel vulnerable and weak in the face of these troubles, which often breeds fear in our minds and hearts.
I want to encourage you today by reminding you that God in heaven cares about where you are today and wants to help you. However, He will only intervene once you let Him by exercising faith.
In our text, it is mentioned that the apostles of Jesus were afraid. They were sent to a crowd that didn't want them and had to navigate Roman soldiers who would have been content to kill them. These men had limited knowledge of the scriptures and were primarily fishermen, farmers, tax collectors, zealots, and thieves.
Now, God has sent them out to thousands with the Gospel message. Undoubtedly, fear ran down their backs. Do you sometimes feel like you're up against the world? These men did. But they needed to go forth in faith!
Jesus begins by encouraging His followers: Don't fear the world; instead, know that the world should fear your God!
Misplaced Fear Is Discouraging
"And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell."
Fear is often misplaced, as it tends to be directed towards the things of this life, such as people, pain, pleasure, and power. However, the 12 apostles would not have been able to follow Christ if they had feared these things. That's why Jesus gave them a better way to think: instead of fearing the things of this world, we should fear the One who has the power to destroy both body and soul in hell. It's important to remember that while the world may be able to harm our bodies, only God has the power to abolish both body and soul. Therefore, when we feel afraid, we should trust in God - "What time I am afraid, I will trust in Thee." (Ps 56:3)
Remember who is truly the greater power and who we are truly accountable to. It is not our peers. It is our holy and righteous God.
Misunderstood Value Is Discouraging
"Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? and one of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father."
Sometimes, we fail to realize the immense value that God places on every soul. Life and death are not to be taken lightly, and this also holds true for God. To emphasize this point, Jesus used a sparrow as an example. Sparrows are small, weak, and easily expendable birds. They are often hunted, killed, roasted, and eaten. These little birds usually stay in flocks for safety, but this rarely stops their enemies from attacking them. Sparrows are often overlooked and considered insignificant by most people.
It is estimated that there are roughly 1.6 billion sparrows in the world. In ancient times, they were seen as cheap. A farthing (1/4 of a penny) could buy two sparrows - so cheap that Luke writes, "Five sparrows sold for two farthings." You could buy four and get one free.
Jesus then draws his disciples' attention to their relationship with their heavenly Father. He says, "One of them shall not fall on the ground without your Father." Your Father attends the funeral of every sparrow. This shows the level of importance that God places on every single creature, no matter how small or insignificant it may seem. It is worth noting the relationship that exists between God and every sparrow.
The sparrow is the most populous bird in the world, with an estimated 1.6 billion of them. Approximately 40% of sparrows die each year, and three to five are born from each mating couple per year. Considering the estimated death rate, 640,000 sparrows die yearly, 53,333 die each month, 1,777 die each day, 74 die each hour, and 1.2 die every minute. And not one of those dies without "Your Father" knowing it. This should remind us how well God knows us and what we are going through.
Meaningful Love Is Encouraging
"But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows."
The very hairs of your head are ALL numbered. Wow! (There are an Average of 100,000 to 150,000 hairs on the human head.)
Hair is a seemingly insignificant part of the body. A few fall out, and no one pays attention. However, God pays attention to each one. On average, a single person loses up to 100 hairs a day. There are 1440 minutes in a day. That means that approximately every 14 minutes, God recounts your hair and the hair of everyone on earth (8.1 billion people).
"Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows."
If God attends the funeral of a sparrow every minute, recounts my hair every few minutes, knew me before I was born (Jer 1), remembers my entire life (Mal 3:16), places my tears in His heavenly bottle (Ps 56:8), and writes my name in His eternal book of life (Luke 10:20), I can't help but believe the scriptures when they tell me, "Ye are of more VALUE than MANY sparrows."
Psalm 139:1-18 says that God knows everything about us, even before we were born. He knows our thoughts, words, and actions. We are fearfully and wonderfully made by Him, and He is always with us.
Conclusion
Today, you might feel like your life is falling apart and your efforts to fix things are not working out. You might be wondering if God cares about you. Well, let me tell you that He absolutely does. He has His eye on you today.
If you haven't accepted Christ, He is the One you need. Your sin has separated you from our Father, and you need to be born again. Repent from your sins and believe in Jesus, calling on Him to be your Savior.
For those who have already accepted Christ, remember that our Father watches over even the sparrows, and you are of more value to Him than many sparrows.
Why should I feel discouraged,
Why should the shadows come,
Why should my heart be lonely,
And long for heaven and home;
When Jesus is my portion?
My constant Friend is He;
His eye is on the sparrow,
And I know He watches me.
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