The "Four F's" Of The Christian Faith

The Four “F’s” of the Christian Faith

Ps 37:1-7; 39-40

1 Do not fret because of evil men or be envious of those who do wrong;

2 for like the grass they will soon wither, like green plants they will soon die away.

3 Trust in the LORD and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.

4 Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart.

5 Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him and he will do this:

6 He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, the justice of your cause like the noonday sun.

7 Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him; do not fret when men succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes.

39 The salvation of the righteous comes from the LORD; he is their stronghold in time of trouble.

40 The LORD helps them and delivers them; he delivers them from the wicked and saves them, because they take refuge in him.

Opening Illustration: “The Draft”

It used to be that when a young man reached 18 years of age, he would have to register for the draft. I remember going to my local draft board. After filling out the proper forms, I received my classification: 1A! Some years later, after I was married, it was changed to 3A. If one was beset with some mental or physical disability, the classification was 4F, which meant that this person was excused from serving in the armed forces.

My mother-in-law was the company nurse at a firm I was employed with several years ago. She told me about a humorous incident regarding a job application form. There was a place on the form for the applicant to indicate his marital status. The applicant had written, “4F.” Either he read the requested information too fast or he really did feel that he didn’t qualify as a husband.

While being classified 4F would have kept one out of the service of our country, the very opposite is true with regard to the Lord’s army. And that brings me to the sermon for today: The “Four F’s” of the Christian Faith.

1. Fret Not

Psalm 37:1: “Do not fret because of evil men or be envious of those who do wrong…”

This whole Psalm shows the happy state of the godly and the short-lived prosperity of the wicked. It can be summed up in the following: “Don’t fume; don’t worry about the other guy; God is the righteous Judge. He will have the last say. Don’t worry.”

 Worry never solved a problem

 Worry never paid a debt

 Worry never alleviated a pain

 Worry never made an enemy a friend

 Worry never turned a wrong into a right

 Worry is the interest paid by those who borrow trouble—sometimes the troubles of tomorrow—which may never arrive anyway!

The worry cow could have lived ‘til now,

If she only had saved her breath;

She feared the hay wouldn’t last all day,

So she choked herself to death.

Dr. G.C. Robinson of John Hopkins Hospital said, “Personal worry is one of the principle causes of physical ailments which send people to hospitals.” He found that out of 174 patients, 140 were worrying patients. 115 had worries directly related to their physical ailments.

A Christian who is known as being a “worrier” is a poor testimony. By their constant worrying, they are sending out a message—and the message is this: “God is unable to cope with my problems; He’s not big enough or He’s big enough, but my faith is too small. I cannot bring myself to trust His power and willingness.”

How does one break the worry habit?

1) Live one day at a time

2) Lift someone else’s burden that day

3) Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths (Prov.3:5,6).

2. Fear Not

Isaiah 41:10: “Fear not, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God: I will strengthen you, I will uphold you with the right hand of my righteousness.”

Fear is a close relative to worry. They both paralyze. Many folks today are living in bondage to fear, fear of all sorts:

 Fear of death

 Fear of sickness

 Fear of failure

 Fear of poverty

 Fear of being alone

 Fear of germs

Peladophobia: fear of baldness and bald people. Aerophobia: fear of drafts. Porphyrophobia: fear of the color purple. Chaetophobia: fear of hairy people. Levophobia: fear of objects on the left side of the body.. Graphophobia: fear of writing in public. Phobophobia: fear of being afraid.