The pastor at the little church I attend has, on Wednesday nights, been teaching on the Epistle of James, and I find that admirable. James is one of those books that is often avoided by pastors, like the Revelation of John, or the Book of Ezekiel. James is difficult for some to understand, because it is often misinterpreted to mean that salvation comes by good works. Our pastor correctly understands that James teaches that true faith in God produces good works. 

True faith in God also produces obedience. If you have faith… I mean, if you truly have faith in God, you will obey Him. 

The story is told that, during a D. L. Moody revival meeting, a young man stood up and said, “I don’t rightly know if God will save me or not, but I will trust that He will, and I will obey Him.”
Inspired by the testimony, the song leader at that meeting, Daniel Towner, repeated that testimony to his friend John Sammis. Sammis, a preacher, poet, and song writer, then penned the words to the hymn, Trust and Obey. Towner set those words to music. 
Few churches today sing hymns, but I grew up singing them. I remember that one, and I don’t think I ever realized the connection between faith, trust, and obedience. I just never got it. 
Towner and Sammis got it. They understood that it takes remarkable faith to trust God enough to obey Him, especially when you are afraid that He may not save you. 
King David got it, too. His life moved from one crisis to another. He was constantly pursued by enemies. He rarely went to sleep without fear. He composed hundreds of prayerful songs, many of which are preserved in our Bibles in the Book of Psalms. In most, he speaks of his fears. In spite of his fears, David trusted God and obeyed Him. 
Do you possess the faith to trust God? Yes? If so, then you will obey Him. 
Fear Not, just trust and obey. 
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When we walk with the Lord in the light of His Word,

What a glory He sheds on our way!
While we do His good will, He abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey.—

Trust and obey, for there’s no other way

To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.
– Trust and Obey,  John H. Sammis and Daniel B. Towner, 1887

Life is a battle. Sometimes, it is a battle in which we find ourselves against impossible odds. You – alone – against the world. 

Have you ever stood alone again such overwhelming odds? Everywhere you turn, the enemy attacks. You’re surrounded. 

Not only are you outnumbered, but outsized. This is no ordinary enemy; they are giants. 

In this psalm, David, facing his enemies, prays for God to intervene. Specifically, he prays that God would strike his enemies in the jaw and break their teeth. 

The image I conjure in my head is that of a boxer who has knocked his opponent out cold. The enemy is down for the count and God is declared the winner. 

Remember this. If you have surrendered your life to Jesus Christ, then you never face your enemies alone. God fights for you. He knocks out the enemy with a single blow to the jaw. He is always the clear winner. He brings victory to us. He is the Victor. Our deliverer. Our king. 

Fear Not, for God strikes our enemies. 

In the novel Robinson Crusoe, the protagonist saves the life of a native, whom he calls Friday. Friday subsequently swears to be his slave for life. 

This is called a Life Debt. Someone saves a life, and that person becomes their slave. The slave can only feel free only if the debt can is repaid saving his benefactor’s life. Otherwise, he is bound to the savior for life. 

Jesus is indeed our Savior, as we learned yesterday, but more than that, He is our Salvation. What’s the difference? A savior may rescue someone, for instance, a lifeguard pulling a drowning swimmer from the water, and performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation. The rescuer restarts the heart and breathes air into the lungs. Jesus, our Savior, saved us by pulling us from the brink of hell.

As our Salvation, Jesus not only restarts our hearts and fills us with the breath of new life, He gives us His blood. He gives us His breath. He gives us His heart. He gives us His mind. Continually.  Repeatedly. He sustains us. 

He is the air we breath. He is The Life. His very Spirit lives in us. It is to Him that we pledge our lives as slaves, for we can never repay such a Life Debt. He resuscitates us every minute of every day.

Fear Not, for Jesus is indeed our Savior and our Salvation. 

The Lord is my light and my salvation;

Whom shall I fear?

The Lord is the strength of my life;

Of whom shall I be afraid?

Psalm 27:1  NKJV