Fear

    Doubt

         Unbelief

Introduction:

A. Fear, Doubt, and Unbelief is a three headed monster.

     1. James 1:6-8 (NKJV).

     2. Hebrews 11:6.

     3. Revelation 21:8.

B. But, we can defeat this monster, with:

    1. Faith.

    2. Confidence.

    3. Courage.

    4. Passages to consider:

        a. Philippians 4:13.

        b. Romans 8:31.

   

                                    

I. Getting a look at the monster.

    A. Defining the words.

        1. Fear:

            a. The word in the Bible is from the word phobia.

            b. Lots of people have phobias (i.e. fear of spiders).

            c. The fear we are talking about is not being afraid of

                spiders, snakes, mean dogs, etc.

            d. The fear we are talking about are things concerning

                our christian faith, where we ought to trust in God.

        2. Doubt:

            a. To be uncertain about.

            b. A wavering of opinion or belief.

            c. Lack of trust.

        3. Unbelief.

            a. Believe means: to put confidence in; conviction; trust.

            b. Unbelief is simply the lack of, or the opposite of believing.

   B. Let's look at an example of fear, doubt, and unbelief.

        1. Matthew 14:22-32.

           a. Peter showed faith when he asked if he could come

               out of the boat, and walk on the water to go to Jesus,

               and did walk on the water.

           b. Peter, however, became afraid, and Jesus said "O thou of

               little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt (31)."

 

     2. Discussion questions.

           a. Was there any reason for Peter to doubt, or be afraid?

           b. What caused him to doubt?

           c. What could he have done to keep from doubting?

                                           

  II. Learning how to spot the beast, and overcome him.

       A. Learning from others.

            1. The Bible is full of examples of those who suffered

                fear, doubt, and unbelief.

                a. Israel did not believe they could take the land of

                   Canaan after they heard the report of the spies

                   (Numbers 13:1-14:4).

                b. The army of Israel were afraid to go out and face

                    the giant Goliath (I Samuel 17:1-11).

                c. One man has even been knicknamed "doubter"

                    (Doubting Thomas) (John 20:24-25).

            2. Let's break up into groups and look at these examples

                (or the teacher may use others) and be ready to explain:

                a. Why did they doubt, fear, or have unbelief?

                b. What was the result of their doubt, fear, or unbelief?

                c. How could they have kept from having doubt, fear,

                    and unbelief?

      

                   Use this space for taking notes on your study.

       B. Reporting the findings.

           1. Discuss what your group thought was the: cause, result,

               and possible answer to not giving into doubt, fear, and

               unbelief in each of these examples.

           2. Are there common factors in each of these cases? 

III. Preparing to meet the beast in your life.

      A. We can learn a lot by studying examples in the Bible, but

           we also need to learn to put what we have learned into

           practice in our own lives. 

           1. Below are some situations where you might doubt, fear,

              or have unbelief.

              a. In science class they are teaching that evolution is a fact,

                 and they give what appears to be some pretty good

                 evidence in favor of evolution.

              b. You are with some of your friends at a mall and they

                  are planning on stealing things, and they want you to

                  steal something too.  If you don't, they may not be your

                  friends anymore.

              c. Your mother or father have been diagnosed with cancer.

              d. An uncle that you like very much, but who is not a

                  christian, tells you that the Bible is just a book written by

                  men, and is full of errors, and contradictions.

            2. There are certain things we can use, or do to help us keep

               from having: doubt, fear, and unbelief.

               a. Bible knowledge.

               b. Prayer.

               c. Parents.

               d. Brothers and sisters in Christ.

               e. Notes, papers, and materials on certain subjects.

                               

      B. Break up in your groups again, and discuss how you would

          deal with these situations (or others that the teacher gives you).

          Be prepared to discuss what your group decides, and include

          the following in your discussion.

          1. What passages would you use, and where are they?

              a. You might need to use a concordance.

              b. Or, how else could you find a passage?

          2. Are there sermons you have heard, classes where you have

              studied, or papers you have read that deal with the situation?

              a. What do you remember from these lessons, or papers?

              b. What would be a good idea to do with things that you

                  learn, or papers you read on these subjects, so you can

                  use this information in the future?

          3. How will prayer help?

Conclusion:

A. Fear, doubt, and unbelief are serious threats to christians.

    1. We need to understand what the result of them can be.

    2. We need to know why we fear, doubt, and have unbelief.

    3. We need to know how to overcome it.

B. You are going to face situations in life where you might fear,

    doubt, and have unbelief, but if you are ready for them you

    can keep from giving in to them.