Mensa Otabil - I Will Not Be Afraid (10/01/2025)
Psalm 3, verse 6: I will not be afraid of tens of thousands of people who have set themselves against me all around. Earlier, David had said that he was able to sleep and wake up, although he was faced with a crisis. But in this verse, he is telling us his mindset—what was going through his mind when all this crisis was happening. His son had rebelled against him, most of his leaders had turned against him, and people were saying all kinds of vile things against him, claiming that God had forsaken him. But David said, with all of that happening around him, «I will not be afraid.»
So we hear the kinds of things David was saying to himself. These are not things he is saying to God in prayer; this is something he is declaring to encourage himself. He said, «I will not be afraid.» You can tell what is in a person’s heart when they go through a crisis. People may go through a crisis surrounded by a few enemies—maybe one, two, three, four, or five—and they just lose it totally. David is surrounded by tens of thousands of people, and he said, «I will not be afraid.» You can choose to be afraid, or you can choose not to be afraid. And when you are a Christian and you know the Lord is with you, your choice in a crisis is not to be afraid.
That does not mean that there are not people against you, but it simply means you are more conscious of God’s presence with you. Because you rely on His strength, you are not afraid. So we see that David countered his fear and declared his own attitude. Many times, fear seems to be natural when powerful enemies surround us on every side, but we can be like David; we can say, «I will not be afraid.» Elsewhere, David stated that even though he walked through the valley of the shadow of death, he would not be afraid, as in the 23rd Psalm. That seems to be David’s language when he goes through a crisis: «I will not be afraid. I will fear no evil. I choose not to fear.»
He had to speak to himself to encourage himself. You know, sometimes people go through difficulties, and they’re not faced with the kinds of things David faced. The enemies are not tens of thousands; it could be five, three, or two people—somebody in the office, some family members, or just random people making your life difficult. Then people start talking negatively to themselves, putting themselves down, talking about how what they’re going through is so hard and so difficult, and how they might not live or might die. They talk defeat to themselves in the midst of a battle.
Now, why do you do that? You already have enough enemies; why become your own enemy by speaking negatively to yourself? So David says, «I have enough enemies out there; I’m not going to be one of them. I will not be afraid.» Do you see enemies all around you? You can be like David. Look again; in the midst of all those enemies, there is something you are not seeing: the Lord God Almighty. He is with you in battle. He is called the Lord of Hosts, the Lord of the armies of heaven, the Lord of the host of angels. He is not just there to show off; He is there, ready to fight on your behalf. When you are so conscious that the Lord of Hosts is with you, you can also say with David, «I will not be afraid.»
So though you may not see the angels of God who are for you, they are there; they are with you, and the Lord Himself is with you. You can say, «I will not be afraid.» So today, I encourage you to choose not to be afraid; trust in the Lord. He’ll get you out of whatever situation you are in, and He will bring you out successfully. Let’s share a word of prayer. Say with me: Heavenly Father, though an army of enemies surrounds me, I will not fear. I know You are with me, Lord. In Jesus' name, Amen and Amen. The Lord is with you; don’t be afraid. He’ll give you the victory. I’m Pastor Mensa Otabil. Shalom, peace, and life to you.