What does the Bible say about Fear?
He leads me …
The Bible mentions two specific types of fear. The first type is beneficial and is to be encouraged. The second type is a handicap and is to be overcome.
As you probably guessed, the first type of fear is fear of the Lord. We are not to be afraid of Him as we would if we were for example confronted by a large animal in the wild. Instead, we have a reverential awe of Him - a reverence for His power and glory. However, at the same time we also have a proper respect for His wrath and anger. In other words, the fear of the Lord is a total acknowledgement of all who God is, which we come to understand through knowing Him and His attributes.[1]
The fear of the Lord can also be defined as ‘the continual awareness that our loving heavenly Father is watching and evaluating everything we think, say, and do’ (Matthew 12:36; Psalm 139:2; Jeremiah 12:3). As Jesus told each of the seven churches in Revelation 1—2, ‘I know your works.’ Nothing escapes His attention.
If we do not have the fear of the Lord, we make decisions based on our limited human understanding (Proverbs 3:5–6). When we incorporate the fear of the Lord into every part of our lives, we make decisions based upon how we gauge His approval, as we see from the examples that He provides throughout the Bible. We live with the knowledge that the Creator of the universe is intimately involved in every part of our life. He sees, knows, and evaluates all our choices, and that we answer to Him (Psalm 139:1–4).
Our respect for God’s majesty causes us to honour Him (Psalm 29:2). Our gratitude for His mercy causes us to serve Him with thankfulness (Psalm 2:11; 107:15). And the understanding that our God of love is also a God of wrath inspires enough fear to help us stay away from evil (Romans 1:18; Proverbs 8:13).[2]
As a result, we can see how fearing God should be encouraged. There I also a good fear that protects us. We see this when we get close to the edge of a cliff where the edge could crumble, or as a child when our feet could not touch the bottom of the pool.
However, the second type of fear mentioned in the Bible is not beneficial at all. It is the ‘spirit of fear’ mentioned in 2 Timothy 1:7: ‘For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind’ (NKJV).
Sometimes when we are afraid, this ‘spirit of fear’ overcomes us. So to overcome this fear we are best to trust in and love God. For ‘There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.’ (1 John 4:18 NKJV). No one is perfect, and God knows this. That is why He has repeatedly encouraged us to stop being fearful throughout the Bible. Starting with the book of Genesis and continuing through to the book of Revelation, the Lord reminds us to ‘Fear not’
For example, Isaiah 41:10 encourages us, ‘Don’t be afraid, for I am with you. Don’t be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand.’ (NLT) Often we have fear about the future and what will happen to us. But the apostle Paul reminds us that God meets all the needs of or His followers - ‘And my God will fully satisfy every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.’ (Philippians 4:19 NRSV).
God tells us throughout the Bible - not to be afraid of being alone, of being too weak, of not being heard, nor of lacking physical requirements.
In Psalm 56:11 the psalmist writes, ‘In God I have put my trust, I shall not be afraid. What can mankind do to me?’(NASB) This is an awesome testimony to the power of trusting in God. Regardless of what happens, the psalmist will trust in God because he knows and understands the power of God. The key to overcoming fear then, is total and complete reliance in God. Trusting God is a refusal to give in to fear. It is turning to God even in the hardest times and trusting Him to make things right. This trust comes from knowing God and knowing that He is good. Once we have learned to put our trust in Him, we will no longer be afraid of the things that come against us.[3]
The Lord will bring the victory if we are determined to change, have chosen to trust Him and not be fearful.
The place to begin is with a decision of the will. We made a decision to come into the kingdom of God. We decided to accept the Lord’s forgiveness and reconciliation. At the time of this decision we were born again and received the gift of life in Christ. This was all accomplished by faith in God’s Word. The same method will work in overcoming any weakness in our lives, like fear. First we decide we want to be an overcomer. Then as we trust the Lord by faith to change us, His power will bring about the change.
What is the best way to get rid of fear or any other feeling that is holding us back? We hand our lives over to the Lord and completely surrender to His will for us. We agree to go anywhere, give up anything and do anything He asks of us. Once we surrender completely to Him, we hear His voice more clearly, and we are progressively set free from anything that has been preventing us from a proper relationship with Him. His calling for us will become clearer too.
Even if we have a call on our life, maybe we are fearful of surrendering to the will of God, because we are afraid He might ask us to do things that we do not want to do, or ask us to give up something that we do not want to give up. We can be sure that if He does this, He will change our heart and give us the ability and desire and love to do whatever it is that He has planned for us to do. He knows what makes us happy and fulfilled a whole lot better than we do. He is primarily the God of love, and as such He wants to work with us wherever He can and not against us.
Remember that He created us and has prepared us by developing our personal interests and understanding. As He said, “I knew you before you were formed within your mother’s womb; before you were born I sanctified you and appointed you as my spokesman to the world.” (TLB) This is followed by, “For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” (Jeremiah 29:11 NLT) This is backed up by Romans 8:28 which reads, ‘And we know that all that happens to us is working for our good if we love God and are fitting into his plans.’ (TLB italics added) And finally, ‘If you want favor with both God and man, and a reputation for good judgment and common sense, then trust the Lord completely; don’t ever trust yourself. In everything you do, put God first, and he will direct you and crown your efforts with success.’ (Proverbs 3:5-6 TLB)
So, what do we have to give up to serve God? Basically we want to give up the things that were already ruining our lives like resentment, fear, smoking, gossip, lust, gluttony, greed, laziness, anger, jealousy, and pride. Praise God that as we submit to Him, He takes these things out of our life and in exchange gives us the fruit of the Holy Spirit - love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. With this comes the refreshing of His Holy Spirit. What an amazing exchange![4]
Dear Reader – If you have found some value in this blog, please feel free to send a copy on to your family and friends. Kind regards, John
[1] What does the Bible say about fear? Got Questions Ministries;
https://www.gotquestions.org/Bible-fear.html
[2] How is the fear of the Lord the beginning of wisdom? Got Questions Ministries;
https://www.gotquestions.org/fear-Lord-beginning-wisdom.html
[3] What does the Bible say about fear? Got Questions Ministries;
https://www.gotquestions.org/Bible-fear.html
[4] What the Bible Says about Fear, Betty Miller, Christ Unlimited Ministries – https://BibleResources.org
