Sid Roth - How to Destroy Fear and Become Satan's WORST Nightmare
Sid Roth: Welcome, Holy Spirit. I surrender this platform totally to You. Have Your way. Jeremy Johnson pastors multiple churches in the LA area. Jeremy, I love the name of your church, Fearless. How did that come into being?
Jeremy Johnson: Yeah, you know what, Sid? I'm going to have to blame that one on my wife. She read a quote as we were coming up with the name of our church that said, "A scared world needs a fearless church," and somehow that quote stuck out to her, from Oswald Chambers, and that's exactly why we're getting a group of people to declare war on fear, and what better place to do it than the darkness of Hollywood and the darkness of LA?
Sid Roth: I agree.
Jeremy Johnson: So the story of Fearless is my story, and that perfect love came and found me at an early age, 17 years old. I made Jesus not only Savior but Lord. It actually happened through two of my classmates getting hit by a drunk driver, head-on car collision. Both died. I was at the funeral, and the mom of one of the kids who passed away knew that I was a believer and asked me to pray. And when I got up to that mic, I could have shared the gospel with my whole class, and I didn't, Sid. I heard...
Sid Roth: Why?
Jeremy Johnson: I heard that spirit of fear yelling at me, and I just sat back down. I said a nice little prayer, and that night one, of my best friends went out and got drunk and high and ended up taking his life at a train because he had no hope, and I remember every day in high school just that voice of fear saying, "You've failed". Every time I would drive over that tracks, it was just a hopeless time in my life at 17 years old.
Sid Roth: But every time you would drive over those train tracks where one of your best friends got killed...
Jeremy Johnson: Yeah. Yeah.
Sid Roth: ...you would be reminded.
Jeremy Johnson: Then about 30 days in, I heard a voice, and it was the Voice of the Lord. It was an audible voice, and I didn't know who it was at the time, but I just knew something was calling me down those tracks, and so when I'd drive over them, 30 days later, I got out of my car, and I walked down the tracks what was probably for miles, and I ended up, I believe, where he took his life because his mom had set up a rosary cross with his name, and I just fell at that cross, Sid. It wasn't in a church. It's wasn't with a pastor. It was that voice that called me down the tracks, and I remember that voice as I wept what felt like for hours because I felt like I had failed God, this God that was my Savior but who was about to become my Lord. And He said, "I am the God of the second chance". And, see, today I'm a pastor of a church not because I woke up one day and said, "Wow, it sounds nice to be a pastor," but I just that day made a choice for the rest of my life. I'm going to take my second chance, and that's led me to win souls all over the world and to set people free from fear.
Sid Roth: Let me ask you, what was the difference from before you heard the Voice of God and after in you?
Jeremy Johnson: Mm. The difference in me is that I realized that God actually saw me. He cared about me, and He was okay that I was broken, and He was okay that I didn't have all the answers, and that perfect love is the thing that kicked fear out. See, it says in the Bible, I John 4:18, I found out since then that, "There is no fear in love". So when love shows up, fear has to leave. In fact, the Bible, God commands, "Fear not". It's a command. He commands us, "Do not be anxious for anything". So He only commands it because fear is not just an emotion. It's a spirit, and He kicks fear out. It's not us that kick fear out, because what happens if you keep facing your fears, and you find a fear you can't face? Your child is sick or your marriage falling apart, those are fears that are difficult to face, but when you follow perfect love, perfect love over your shoulder kicks fear out...
Sid Roth: I hear the words, follow perfect love. What does that mean?
Jeremy Johnson: Perfect love isn't a feeling. It's a person, and His Name is Jesus. He came near, and He met me right there.
Sid Roth: Many of you watching right now are saying, "I wish I heard a voice". Well, Jeremy needed to hear God's voice. Each of us has different needs. Jeremy, real quickly, you speak about a man named Cardboard. What do you mean?
Jeremy Johnson: I met Cardboard on the streets of LA before I would ever pastor in LA. When I was a college student in Bible college, we had a traveling ministry, and we ended up at this event that a church was pulling off in Hollywood, of all places. They blocked off the streets, and they chose us to be the final drama for the night, and then I was going to give a salvation message. Well, when I finally got up there to give the message, over 5,000 people are gathered in the streets of Hollywood. This is wild, and when I get up there, my mic doesn't work. We did all this work, all the... And so you think it's going to come on. You're waiting. You're waiting. The sound guy is freaking out. Nothing happens. Over 30 minutes go by, 40 minutes, an hour, and as you know, people are leaving. They're there for the hot dog, and when it's over...
Sid Roth: Of course.
Jeremy Johnson: ...they're gone. And so I sat on the end of the stage, and I thought God missed it. I thought God made a mistake. "God, You couldn't get the sound on"? And no sound would come on. So I saw McDonald's across the street, and I said, "I don't want one of these lousy hot dogs. I want a Big Mac, large fry and a Coke". And so I went across the street, and when I went over there, I tripped on something that I thought was trash, but it was a person. I tripped on this guy, and he popped out of a blanket, and he said, "Hello, my name is Cardboard". And I thought, "Well, that's a weird name," and I kind of scurried out of there. I wasn't used to LA yet, and I went and got my fry, Coke and drink, and I came out, and I for the first time heard the Lord. And He said just as clear as day, "Give Cardboard your Big Mac, your large fry and your Coke".
Sid Roth: Oh, that's a toughie!
Jeremy Johnson: And I told God, I said, "Get behind me, Satan, in the Name of Jesus". That couldn't be from You, Lord, as these... This conviction got stronger, and I finally gave it to Cardboard. When I did, I woke him up, and as I was walking away, I could just hear him weeping, and I turned around to see what happened, and he began to explain to me. He said, "Who told you to give this to me"? And I said, "Cardboard, you're never going to believe me. Jesus told me to give that to you". And he just wept uncontrollably at... It seemed like for minutes I held him, and eventually he said, "I used to go to that church that puts on that outreach, but I lost my job. I ended up out here, and every year they come out and tell us how much Jesus loves us". He said, "But I don't feel very loved by God, and know what? God is not real. And today I heard a voice, as they were setting up, 'in the middle of the message today, climb to the top of that building and, at the middle of the message, jump.'" So he said, "I climbed up there. I had the hot dog in my hands," and he said, "When I got up there, I came out to the balcony, and you were about to speak". And he said, "Right when you started to speak, your mic cut off. So," he said, "I climbed back in the window because I didn't have the instructions after that". And he said, "I heard another voice that said, 'Cardboard, ask Me for anything.' And I said, 'Okay. If this is You, God, I'm going to be under my blanket, and I want that speaker to bring me a Big Mac, a large fry'"...
Sid Roth: Oh, my goodness!
Jeremy Johnson: ..".'and a Coke.'" See, that day Cardboard gave his life to Jesus, but, Sid, that day I learned something, that the God that I serve, He always sees the one. He doesn't see crowds. I saw 5,000 people, and I thought God missed it, but God didn't miss it. He didn't have us cook hot dogs for the 5,000. He didn't even have me get a sermon ready that I would preach. In fact, I would speak my message without a mic to one guy that had forgotten his name. His real name was Samuel. So funny that he was hearing the voice of the Lord.
Sid Roth: And by the way, that's what Samuel means, hearing God's voice. Now Jeremy's ministry even after this, hit a wall. He was actually ready to give up. Many of you watching us right now, you're ready to give up. Then God said, "Are you done yet"? God showed Jeremy something opposite all his logic and opposite all of your logic, too. Be right back.
Sid Roth: What did God show Jeremy that made the next time he spoke the most supernatural night of his life? Tell me about that.
Jeremy Johnson: Sid, it was so wild. I had this passion to ignite a generation on fire for Jesus, to know the God that I had met, and I couldn't seem to do that. I tried everything that I could think of, and every time I would come to youth ministry as a youth pastor, the youth group would shrink. It was like I was the incredible shrinking church.
Sid Roth: You had what's known as a membership drive. He was driving away the members.
Jeremy Johnson: There you go. And I remember walking out, and the crowd was smaller. There were so many empty seats, and I just walked right back into my office, and I just remember beating on the wall as if I was beating on God's chest, saying, "God, You know my heart". And I heard the Voice of God say, "Are you done yet? Are you done with all your ideas, all your clever sermons"? And I said, "God, I'm so done. I didn't sign up for this. I just want to help people". And God said, "Okay, then let Me take over". So He said, "Rip up your sermon. It's not that good". So I ripped it up, and He said, "When you go out there, I'm going to tell you what to say". And I got the microphone, and when I got the microphone, the Lord said, "Call every sick person on the stage". So I said, "Okay, God, these are teenagers. Not many of them are sick". That night over 30 kids filled the stage in wheelchairs and with sicknesses I had never seen, growths and broken legs, and God said, "Now pray for them". And so that night, instead of a sermon I prayed for 30 kids on a stage. Sid, I can't tell you, but it was wild. Every kid, it's like as I started praying, I didn't even believe what I started. And as I started praying, one kid began to yell that, "Your hand is hot! Your hand it hot"! And I said, "God, it's working. It's working"! So I prayed, and one kid after another, kids were getting out of wheelchairs, throwing... And I'm telling you what, Sid, every kid in the room got saved that night. Every kid got filled with the Holy Spirit. And I remember walking off the stage, and I heard the voice of God say, "Did you like that"? I said, "God, I could do that with two kids. I loved that"! And so God told me, He said, "Okay, if you like that, instead of working this week, I want you to pray. So 8 hours a day, Jeremy, I want you"... And I said, "God, I can't. I'm a youth pastor here. I got a lot of jobs to do," and God said...
Sid Roth: A lot of work.
Jeremy Johnson: "So you're telling Me your church will let you go if you pray"? So I said, "Okay, God". So He said, "Okay, if anyone wants a meeting, have them come pray with you for an hour, and if they still need a meeting, then meet with them". Well, guess what? No one really lasted the hour, and 8 hours a day I would pray. That next week, I came to youth service, and that next week as I was preaching, a young man filled with a demon answered the altar call, and he came to the front, and he then went to the middle of the crowd, and he started dragging a girl out of the crowd. And I didn't know what to do, so I just started praying, started praying the Spirit. Within seconds the kid with the demon was at my feet begging me to stop. Well, there's one thing I didn't do, Sid. I didn't stop. I put my head on his head. He flipped backwards and started squirming all over the front of the aisle, filled with the demon. I said, "Lord, what do I do"? He said, "Well, send him in the back room and have your associate cast it out". So I was so thankful. "Thank You, Jesus". My associate went in the back room. He said instantly, the demon came out of the kid, and I said, "God, why did You have me do that"? He said, "Because he was trying to take over the service where I was going to set people free". And so that night I told all the teenagers, "See? I told you, it's real". Every teenager got saved again that night, and as I was walking back, God said, "Did you like that"? I said, "No, God, I didn't like that, but I'm so glad You're with me". And He said, "Then pray another week". So I said, "God, another week"? So for another week, 8 hours a day, by the second day I noticed the lights were off on my secretary's office, and I looked out, and she was praying, too. And then the next day, 10 teenagers showed up, and they began to pray with me, too. By the end of the week, Sid, we had over 100 teenagers gathered in that room, crying out to Jesus. I'll tell you what, Sid, we didn't need flyers anymore. I didn't need cool, catchy things anymore. We didn't even have to have the free pizza anymore. Kids were coming to Jesus because they met a Jesus who sets free, who heals, who is alive and well and supernatural. That's when God took over our youth ministry.
Sid Roth: Boy, I'll tell you something on what you just said, especially towards the end, it was like the level of the presence of God started rising. He's up to something important. It's time to silence fear. Whether you're a student, have a secular job or a housewife or in ministry, you have an amazingly good destiny. When we return, Jeremy will teach revelation knowledge about the spirit of fear and pray for you to be fear-free, fearless. Be right back.
Sid Roth: Okay, Jeremy.
Jeremy Johnson: Yes?
Sid Roth: What would you say is the devil's greatest fear?
Jeremy Johnson: I believe the devil's greatest fear is a fearless you. The devil is more afraid of you than you are of fear, and really the devil is afraid of you finding out your identity in Christ. The Bible is very clear that, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom". Well, fear is just awe. It's just worship. When we worship God, we have to worship nothing else. When we fear the Lord, we have to fear nothing else. Here's how I say it. Both your worry and your worship enthrone a spirit, and for far too long, I've enthroned the spirit of fear in my worry. But God is saying, "If you'll declare war on fear, and you'll become a son or daughter, and you'll worship Me, then you can dethrone fear and put Me back on the throne". Sid, for a long time, I looked at the brokenness of my life and thought, "How could God see anything great in me"? I brought something on the show that I didn't tell you about, but...
Sid Roth: No.
Jeremy Johnson: ...the Lord told me to bring a puzzle on the show. See, I believe that life is kind of like a 1,000-piece puzzle, and at first it's clean and nice, but after a while, life has a way of dumping out on us, and it's a little bit here and a little bit there, and I've found that many times, I'm trying to go God with my piece. I don't know if you can see that in the camera, but many times, I try to go to God with my piece, and I say, "God, what do You see in this? How could this ever be used? God, I was cut here. I was wounded here. I was abused here. I was walked out on here, and for many years, I've been trying to put the puzzle together and find greatness in it, and it causes fear, fear and anxiety and depression and worry". And the Bible says this, if you give your life to Him, you'll find it, but if you keep it, you'll lose it because I've found that only the master of the piece has the ability to see the picture...
Sid Roth: The whole picture.
Jeremy Johnson: ...at the end while you hold the brokenness. And, Sid, I just feel like for someone out there that is watching this, and you've lost the top of the box. You've lost sight, or maybe you've never even seen...
Sid Roth: The picture.
Jeremy Johnson: ...the picture of what... see, vision gives purpose to pain, and when God begins to show you the vision of what He has from the pieces... See, when you look at a puzzle finished, you never are you really awed by the picture. It's really that you're awed by, that someone would take the time to put 1,000 pieces together, that they had the masterful eye to see wholeness in the brokenness, and that's our God. That's our Jesus. Can I say something to them? If you're watching right now, I just felt like this was for you. This wasn't a part of the moment, but I felt the Lord said, "Bring a puzzle and dump it out on Sid's new table". And maybe you're watching and you feel like this, and you don't know how God could ever use you, and fear keeps lying and lying and lying. Well, I dare you today to declare war on fear and to pursue Jesus and to say, "Jesus, I give You not just the good parts of me, but I give You all of me. I give You the brokenness. I give You the addiction. I give You that pain when I was 5. I give You that death that I went through in my family. I give You my broken marriage," and you watch what the master of the piece is going to do. I just prophesy right now. I prophesy over that person that, at a young age, you went through a trauma. You went through tragedy. I see you out playing with your friends, and someone got hurt, or someone got hit by a car even, and there's trauma that's there. There's triggers that come with simple things. You purposely lock yourself away. The gifts of God in you have been stopped because of you stopping them and allowing the enemy to rule through the throne of your ear, and you speak out what he tells you. And I just declare right now, in Jesus' Name, over your life, I declare every stronghold broken. I declare every chain broken. I declare trauma be healed. God, even use the pain. God, use the scars, use the wounds. See, the thing I want to tell you is that my Jesus, He does not come to make bad people good, but to make dead people live. When I met Him at 17 on those railroad tracks, I didn't go from being bad to good. I went from being dead to being alive, and God wants to give you that same life today. If you're there watching this, and you are riddled with fear, God wants to remove the death and the fear and the anxiety and the depression, and He wants to replace it with joy, life to the abundance, freedom, and all you have to do right there is receive that gift. If you're watching, if you'd pray this prayer with me: "Dear Jesus. Today. Come into my life. Remove all the death. Remove all the fear. Remove the shame. Be my Lord. And my Savior. Here's my life. I hand it to You. Use it. For Your Glory. I want to be fearless. Amen".