There are three primary challenges every human faces, no matter their background, social status, place of birth, upbringing, or more: Fear, Shame, and Guilt. To be sure, there are many more than these three facing all humans, yet these are universal struggles that plague God’s image-bearers every day. To compound the issue, there are no man-made, conjured-up, or earth-bound solutions to these problems. Undoubtedly, experts in various fields strive to alleviate discomfort associated with these blights inflicted upon mankind; still, they come up short.
Sadly, there are no lasting temporal answers for these three issues, but this does not mean hopeless resignation or bitter resentment. Instead, these three scourges, when understood Christianly, terminate at the borderline of Divine love. In the depths of God’s love is an unwavering commitment to redeem that which He made.
And so, in this series, we will examine Fear, Shame, and Guilt, and their biblical, theological, and practical solutions. This article will tackle the first one: FEAR.
Fear
Fear is a quality of a faithless person at worst and of a person struggling with doubt at best. At the heart of fear is distrust. Indeed, there are causes for distrust. However, when it comes to a spirit of fear, the Christian above all people has no cause. One reason among many is that the Object of the Christian’s faith is God, who never fails to keep His promises. God’s very nature is a Promise-keeper.
Biblical.
Fear was among several knee-jerk deviant responses of Adam and Eve after eating from the forbidden tree. Notice their fearful reaction: “And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden” (Gen. 3:8). Hiding. They hid in fear.
Throughout the Bible, we also see fear manifesting in God’s people:
- Abraham, fearing for his life, lies about Sarah, his wife (Genesis 12:10-13).
- Saul’s fear of the people (1 Samuel 15:1-24).
- Peter’s fear for his life (Matthew 26:69-75).
- Disciples fear after the crucifixion (John 20:19).
So, how does the Bible guide us through fear? Love.
In 1 John 4:18, we learn: “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.”
Earlier, we learn from Paul that Christians ought not have a spirit of fear, because it is not from God: “…for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.”
These and more similar passages from the Bible guide our fear. What about from a theological perspective?
Theological.
Fear is part of humanity because we’re sinful and we doubt. We also know that we live in a wicked world full of sinful people, many of whom are not looking out for our interests in quite the same way we are. The downstream impact is that we have arguments, disruptions, chaos, and, at times, warfare — even within. Consequently, we find ourselves walking on eggshells around people and situations we don’t trust — and for good reasons.
However, God is not unpredictable. He’s not this way one day and another way the next. He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. James tells us that every good gift is from above, from God, the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change (James 1:17). Indeed, God is unchanging, He is sovereign, and He is also good. Practically, this means that His world, created by Him, though riddled with sin, is under His authority. Since God is good, we have the promise that all things ultimately work out for good for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. (Rom. 8:28).
Thus, fear is rooted in trusting the wrong things. Things like self, jobs, relationships, money, entertainment, comfort, and so much more. For God to complete His work in us, we must be changed. The process of this change is called sanctification.
Sanctification is not something we produce, but something God creates in us by grace through faith. Thus, faith is the only response to fear.
Practical.
Fear must never lead, but must be told what to do and where to go.
Faith replaces fear.
How does this work itself out?
Opening ourselves to God’s means of grace:
Daily Bible reading
Prayer
Faith
We’ll pick up Shame next…