Fearing the Unknown by Brady

Fear is one of the most powerful forces in the universe. I think it would be interesting to chart and graph how much of our daily activity is actually driven by our fears and worry. The funny thing is that most of us are too prideful to admit it when we are crippled by fear because we do not want to show any signs of weakness. So this is when we begin to say things like, “I am just a little anxious or concerned,” rather than confessing full blown fear.

In the last month or so, I have had two experiences where actual fear has come over me without a doubt. One instance was when I was driving back from my church in Waxahachie, and Clint called to tell me that there was a church shooting in Colorado. I asked him what happened and for more details, but he really couldn’t give me much more information. Because I work in a church environment, I had this sense of fear and sadness for the situation at this church. The fear sat with me for a couple of minutes until I had the thought, “when I get home I’ll check out the news and I will be able to make more sense of the situation.” Why is it that so often our fears are driven by the amount of information we know about whatever is terrifying us?

Another example from my personal life where I have experienced fear has come recently from moving to a new ministry at a different church. Most people recognize that changing jobs is one of the more stressful activities in life, but why is this? I believe the largest reason it is so nerve-racking is the fear of the unknown. We aren’t sure how things will turn out and are scared of making wrong choices that will affect our future. I believe this is one of the main reasons people fear death as much we do.

Death is seen by many people in our culture as the ultimate equalizer and as the absolute end of a person. It is also the one thing that no one can experience with a partner. In the movie The Notebook, the final seen gets so many people teary-eyed thinking about how romantic it would be to die in bed with the one and only love of your life. But the truth about that scene is that both Allie and Noah, the main characters in the film, entered into death on their own. There is no standing before God with your husband or wife, pastor, or best friend. To add to our fears, we have never met anyone who has died and come back to tell us about it (unless you buy into Bill Wiese’s book 23 Minutes in Hell).

With all of this fear, there is one thing most people generally do not fear today and that is God. I can’t tell you how many times my youth ask me, “Why does the Bible say we are to fear God?” This is because many Christian circles, especially the one I run in, only teach 1 John 4:8 and that God is love. While this is an accurate description of God, God’s scope is bigger than just this. Jesus addresses many of the fears I have discussed in the Gospel of Luke. In Luke 12:4-7 he says, “‘I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that can do nothing more. But I will warn you whom to fear: fear him who, after he has killed, has authority to cast into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him! Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten in God’s sight. But even the hairs of your head are all counted. Do not be afraid; you are of more value than many sparrows.”

Jesus is saying that we should not fear people who take innocent lives, we should not fear new jobs or situations in life, and we should not even fear death because it is not the end of your story. He is saying that we should fear a God who has the power to control our eternal destiny. This fear is a respect for God, and the respect is shown primarily through how we spend our time on earth. We know that God cares for us because He created us and He is the embodiment of love. Jesus says He even knows the number of hairs on our head. But He is not blinded by this love so much that He can remove His holiness and allow us to have communion with Him when we are in sin. There should not fear the “unknown” things in our life, but we should be frightened by being fully known by the Living God. I know the Bible teaches perfect love drives out fear (1 John 4:18), and it also teaches that it is a terrible thing to be caught in the hands of the Living God when we are due His judgment (Hebrews 10:31). This is a tension as Christians we all must learn to deal with, but whatever we choose to fear, it should ultimately bring reverence to our hearts for the all-powerful, creator God.