When God created the world, there was no fear. In fact, fear indicated something was amiss in His very good creation: “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid,” the man said (Gen. 3:10).
Before sin, man had nothing to fear – certainly not from God, in whose image He was lovingly created. Then sin came, and death through sin. Because we are guilty of sin, our relationship with God also changed: to be in the presence of One that holy became like getting too close to the sun.
We see this every time Jesus did something that manifested God’s power before us sinful people. Fearing death was obvious: yet witnessing Jesus’ power over it also caused fear.
The disciples feared for their lives when their boat was caught in a terrible storm. Yet, when Jesus calmed the storm, the disciples “were filled with great fear and said to one another, ‘Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?’” (Mark 4:41).
When Jesus saw the funeral procession for a widow’s only son, His compassion moved Him to undo sin’s awful effects by raising the young man. The crowd’s response was telling: “Fear seized them all, and they glorified God” (Luke 7:15).
The religious leaders feared what Jesus did, too. After Jesus cleared the money changers from the temple, the chief priests and the scribes “feared him, because all the crowd was astonished at his teaching” (Mark 11:18). When more people than ever believed after Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, they feared the Romans would destroy their nation unless they found a way to kill Jesus first (John 11:45-53).
As long as there are sin and death, fear is inevitable. Yet, when we choose to fear God, He then tells us, “Do not be afraid”. If we will humbly submit ourselves to Him, truly following His way instead of deciding for ourselves what is good and evil, then He will show us who He really is. God is love, and His perfect love casts out fear (I John 4:7, 18). On the other hand, we can fear change more than God, refusing to submit to His will because of how it might disrupt what we want. Yet, sin always leads to death. So, we must decide: whom shall I fear?
There are so many reasons to be afraid right now. Because we are with Jesus, we do not have to be. Check out our sermon series “Do Not Be Afraid” to learn more!