Faith vs. Fear

Remember how Lucy asked Charlie Brown about his fears? Good ole Charlie Brown provides inspiration for a spiritual reflection today.





“Fear is born out of the perception (either real or imagined) that some present or future need(s) will not be met.”

Shortly after the events of 9-11-2001, one of my favorite TV preachers felt inspired to preach a series of sermons on “fear”. This series on fear was absolutely enlightening to me personally, because, it brought to light why fear (or the avoidance of fearful situations) drives the decision making processes of so many people. At that time, the words “terrorist and terrorism” were everywhere, and fear was on everyone’s mind, it seemed, like never before. Our very foundational needs of society, beginning with our physical safety and economic wellbeing were being questioned.

The focus on this blog entry, though, has to do with the fears that permeate our hearts and spirits from time to time. Here are a couple of key points about fear and recognizing its effect in human lives:
1) The only “healthy” fear spoken of in the Bible is the “fear of God”. This type of fear is healthy because it causes us to be aware of the source in which, and from whom all our needs are ultimately met. This type of fear is a reverence, worship, and love type of fear. This type of fear (and the term fear of God) is found from one end of the Bible to the other.
2) Then there is the fear that literally “calls God a liar”. Literally, fear (that God wont or cant do what is in the Scriptures) and faith (in God) are opposites. That is the expression that I have heard several times by many preachers. That’s tough language isn’t it? Let's take a look at some Biblical references concerning faith vs. fear.

Before we look at some Scripture addressing fear, lets look at an observation of King David in Psalms 37:
“I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread”. This speaks of the faithfulness of God in taking care of the necessities of life for the righteous. Similarly, in Matthew 6, Jesus emphasizes the faithfulness of God providing for the needs of those who seek Him first. It is at this point where fear says: this is not true, God wont/cant take care of you. Then fear grows in your heart.

In Luke, Chapter 8 there are two wonderful examples of faith vs. fear: 1) Jesus is asleep in the boat in a storm. The frightened disciples wake Him up and tell Him, “we are about to perish!”. Jesus calms the sea and asks them, “where is your faith?”. 2) In that same chapter, people were lamenting over the death of the daughter of Jairus. Jesus told them:”fear not, believe only, and she shall be made whole”. In a modern day example, we might find people crying out: “save us, save us, our 401k’s are going down or our jobs are going away, or my house is being foreclosed on”. The Lord’s reply might be very similar to what He told the disciples: “why are you afraid, where is your faith?” In other words, what are you putting your faith in? Are you putting your faith in God, or something (or someone else)?

In 1 John 4, the Scriptures even speak of the ultimate state where “perfect love casts out fear, because fear has torment, he that feareth is not made perfect in love”. God is love. Perfect abiding in Him ultimately eliminates fear. This makes sense. If God is loved, worshipped, and glorified in your life, then what in the world are you going to be afraid of? Death? Not hardly, since Jesus overcame death. Pain? Not hardly. Although not pleasant, you have the blessed assurance that it is temporary. Additionally, there is the promise from Jesus that He (and the Holy Spirit) will go through everything with you in order to comfort you, and one day God shall wipe away all tears and there shall be no more death, sorrow, crying, or pain. So should you be afraid of man? Not hardly. He can take your temporary physical life, but not your eternal soul.

This week, Angie and I traveled to the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, FL. I am still troubled by sciatica-like symptoms in my left leg. After two years of medical investigation, there is still no clear cause of this discomfort. While at Mayo, we ran into dozens of folks going through very trying times, while suffering all sorts of physical ailments. One man I ran into was having back spasms so bad he almost fell down a couple of times, when he had just finished an MRI. I was awaiting my turn for the test, and as I talked with this gentleman, I could sense he was a Christian and I said, "you know, one day we wont have this pain anymore". He looked me straight in the eyes and said, "thank you, sir". I think all he needed to hear was a simple word of encouragment at that moment to give him a bit of relief and hope that his need for rest and pain removal would one day be met fully. Remember God's promise from Revelation? One day, all pain, with its associated suffering and fear, will be long gone. Additionally, there is God's promise that He will make all things new. Doesn't that sound good?

Of course, fear for the non-Christian is another issue. Without the comfort and fortification that comes from having salvation through Jesus Christ, fear is often dealt with through alternate means, which are not logical and usually short lived in effectiveness. The bottom line for today’s reflection comes from ages past from Jesus himself, who would ask you and I in our generation, with its fears:

“Why are you afraid, where is your Faith?”

Have a Blessed Day, Everyone! (You too, Charlie Brown)
George