THE SPIRIT OF FEAR

One of the most notorious criminals of the California gold rush was a robber known as Black Bart. In an eight-year period (1875-1883), Black Bart singlehandedly committed 28 robberies of Wells Fargo stage coaches. Bart always operated alone, his face was always covered, and he appeared and then disappeared mysteriously.

As the years passed, no lawman could catch him and his legend grew and grew until it stirred fear and terror in the hearts of travelers throughout the region. Because no one ever saw his face and the law could not catch him, the legend began to take on a kind of supernatural aura. When he was finally caught in San Francisco in 1883, the man they arrested bore no resemblance to the overheated and terror-inducing legend. His real name was Charles Boles, he was small, timid, and somewhat of a dandy. He was afraid to ride a horse so he took a buggy everywhere. While he carried a shotgun in every robbery, he never loaded the gun. Bart’s reputation as a fearsome bad man far eclipsed his actual deeds.

One of the great struggles of the last days will involve every man, woman and child on the planet. This epic struggle will not be a violent confrontation; it will not be an attack from a foreign nation; it will not be a sudden upheaval of nature. The attack will come from within and will be called fear.

“People will be terrified at what they see coming upon the earth, for the powers in the heavens will be shaken” (Luke 21:26, New Living Translation). The New King James says it this way: “Men’s hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth.”

This avalanche of terror-producing fear will find its climax in the days just before the Lord comes to take the church away. Jesus said in the previous verses that there would be signs in the heavens and the earth. It is quite possible that the severity and magnitude of what the population of earth will see and the inability to understand what is happening will be the genesis of much of the fear. Mankind always tends to be afraid of what it does not understand.

As a follower of Jesus Christ, is this what we have to look forward to, this storm of fear? The answer is YES. In the days before Jesus comes for His church, we will all experience whatever happens on this planet. To be a Christ follower does not remove us from the ebb and flow of normal life.

There are essentially two kinds of fear: good and paralyzing. Good fear is the reverential fear of a holy God. Good fear is the fear of danger. It is not unhealthy to be afraid of not doing your best. This kind of fear is motivational; it presses us to do better, to be more careful, to seek God with all our heart.

The second kind of fear is paralyzing in nature. It’s the kind of fear that rose around the legend of Black Bart. When the fear of the unknown rises, it tends to produce paralysis. We have adopted the word fear into our vocabulary by calling it “phobia” and our landscape is littered with phobias. People talk about fear of flying, fear of water, fear of the dark, and the list could go on.

What is the antidote for negative fear?

First, we need to realize that fear that induces bondage and paralysis is not of God, it is a spirit. “For God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7).

Second, we need to understand that “love casts out fear.”

“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).

I have really struggled to understand this. How does that work—how does love “cast out” fear? The Amplified Bible puts it this way: “Full-grown love turns fear out of doors and expels every trace of terror!” When we are not convinced of the unconditional love of the Father, our lack provides a place for fear to gain a foothold in our life. When we embrace the unconditional love of the Father for us, His children, and we walk in that love, expressing it to those around us, there is no place for fear to get a hold in us.

As I said, I struggled to get an understanding of how love could “cast out” fear.” A few weeks ago sitting in church, my mind began to wander and suddenly I understood how this truth works in us. (Sorry, Pastor John, to admit that occasionally when you are preaching, my mind wanders. Actually, it wanders quite a bit during your preaching…just kidding! This was a one-time occurrence. You believe me, don’t you?)
God wants us to live in an atmosphere of love and confidence, not fear or torment.

“If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us” (1 John 4:15-16 NIV).