I will trust and not be afraid

The composer of “Amazing Grace” has done it again. God has done it again! By God’s amazing grace in transforming John Newton into a new creation in Christ, He gave our brother John beautiful gifts to pen songs. This hymn, newly filling my heart, is God’s amazing grace to me in today’s suffering.

This week’s “praise interruption” has been God’s wondrous gift in re-focusing me on gospel-centered truths of His Word, echoed in this song, as I approach another scary brain surgery. Perhaps it will be His gift to you, too, in whatever you face.

I will trust my Savior, my God 

Begone, unbelief, my Savior is near,
And for my relief will surely appear;
By prayer let me wrestle, and he will perform;
With Christ in the vessel, I smile at the storm.

(“I will trust and not be afraid,” Newton, J., p. d.)

Who then is this, that he commands even winds and water, and they obey him? (Lk. 8:25 ESV).

I will trust God’s Word

Though dark be my way, since he is my Guide,
’Tis mine to obey, ’tis his to provide;
Though cisterns be broken, and creatures all fail,
The word he has spoken shall surely prevail.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing that was made. In him was life and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it (Jn. 1:1-5 ESV).

The word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the evil one (1 Jn. 2:14 ESV).

I will trust His loving help, all the way through

His love in time past forbids me to think
He’ll leave me at last in trouble to sink;
Each sweet Ebenezer I have in review
Confirms his good pleasure to help me quite through.

In a day of salvation I have helped you (2 Cor. 6:2; Is. 49:8 ESV).

I lift my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth (Ps. 121:1-2 ESV).

Jesus says, “Fear not, I am the first and the last, and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades” (Rev. 1:17-18 ESV).

For because [Jesus Christ] himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted (Heb. 2:18 ESV).

Trusting His sanctifying work in me and journey for me

Determined to save, he watched o’er my path,
When, Satan’s blind slave, I sported with death.
And can he have taught me to trust in his name,
And thus far have brought me to put me to shame?

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 (Heb. 2:14-15 ESV).

By a single offering, he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified (Heb. 10:14 ESV).

I will trust that Jesus already bore every bit of the suffering and punishment I deserve for all of my sin  

Why should I complain of want or distress,

Temptation or pain? He told me no less;

The heirs of salvation, I know from his word,
Through much tribulation must follow their Lord.

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith (Rom. 3:24-25 ESV).

When Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God (Heb. 10:12 ESV).

In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins (1 Jn. 4:10 ESV).

How bitter that cup, no heart can conceive,
Which he drank quite up that sinners might live!
His way was much rougher and darker than mine;
Did Christ, my Lord, suffer, and shall I repine?

In the world you will have tribulation.

But take heart; I have overcome the world (Jn. 16:33 ESV).

Trusting that He will help me endure suffering

Since all that I meet shall work for my good,
The bitter is sweet, the medicine is food;
Though painful at present, ’twill cease before long,
And then O how pleasant the conqueror’s song!

And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life (1 Jn. 5:20 ESV).

Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen (Jude 24 ESV).

Resources to help us trust and not be afraid

Sister in Christ, my battle is intense when suffering is strong, especially with pain or anticipated losses. But I’ve realized our fears often are sourced in the ultimate fear when we drill them all the way down…of death. Oh, sing to my soul of His amazing grace…Who has conquered sin and its resulting end of death? Will we ever have lost Him? Are we lost? Or has He found us?! How sweet the sound!

Let’s both turn to our Lord, asking Him to calm our fears, even as we suffer in our various prolonged agonies. In the midst. Let’s praise Jesus, who suffered unimaginably as He suffered our Father’s forsaking him, bearing the punishment we all deserve for sin…so that we who are His will never have to. Let’s sing to our Father, who promises to bring us home to Himself after death.

Beloved, through singing Christ’s hope of the gospel, He’s comforting us gently, yet so powerfully, into “not be afraid.”

This week’s playlist gift has already helped me rest in this amazing way, even as He helped John Newton in writing the hymn. Hallelujah! Sign up below if you’d like these weekly playlists to come to your email!