AFRAID

AFRAID
(By Louis Cook)

Why are you afraid? Jesus asked His disciples in Mk 4:40, and then He answered the question why do you have so little faith? Did they not realize who Jesus was, sleeping in the same boat?

We are often afraid [fearful] of many things in our lives, and like the disciples, we are afraid of death [(Matthew 8:25) And they came to Him and woke Him, saying, "Save us, Lord; we are perishing!"  (NAS95)

There is a long list of times that Jesus stated to His disciples "Do not be afraid." [Luke 1:13, 30, 2:10, 8:50, 12:32, John 6:20] and others. Why must Christ continue to admonish them to not be afraid?

They were afraid of many different things. Herod was afraid of John 6:20. Chief priests/scribes were afraid of Christ [Mk11:18]  Some were afraid of angels [ Lk 1:13]   Chief priests/scribes were afraid of the people [Lk 22:2)

When Jesus came to the boat walking on the water, some thought it was a ghost [afraid] (Mark 6:50) for they all saw Him and were terrified. But immediately He spoke with them and *said to them, "Take courage; it is I, do not be afraid."   From this passage we can see that courage does away with fear.

Fear is a powerful motivator, whether for good or evil.  Many believed in Jesus, even among the religious leaders but would not confess Christ because of being afraid of being put out of the synagogue. [John 9:22]  In Acts 27:24 the Lord told Paul saying, 'Do not be afraid, Paul; you must stand before Caesar; and behold, God has granted you all those who are sailing with you.'

(Daniel 3:16-18) "Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego replied to the king, "O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to give you an answer concerning this matter. "If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire; and He will deliver us out of your hand, O king. "But even if He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we are not going to serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up."  

Because of their faith in God they did not show any fear of losing their lives, obeying God was more important than their lives even to the end. [Rev 2:10]

The real lesson in the scriptures on this subject is that our dependence on God can remove fear. Such statements as "be not afraid" or "do not fear" are spoken by Jesus and others because they understood that there is nothing to be afraid of in our serving the Lord. (Luke 12:4) "I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that have no more that they can do." (NAS95) Jesus these words to His disciples as another method of teaching them to trust in God, illustrated by (Luke 12:5) "But I will warn you whom to fear: fear the One who, after He has killed, has authority to cast into hell; yes, I tell you, fear Him!" (NAS95) We are fearful or afraid of the unknown, the events that haven't happened such as death, but God provides a method of removing that fear when we accept His offer (Luke 12:6-7) "Are not five sparrows sold for two cents? Yet not one of them is forgotten before God. "Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear; you are more valuable than many sparrows." (NAS95) 

In this simple illustration, Jesus makes this statement very personal- God knows the number of hairs on your head (ponder that for a moment) and also knows every thought inside your head. Because of that close relationship with Him "Do not fear". (Luke 12:8-9) "And I say to you, everyone who confesses Me before men, the Son of Man will confess him also before the angels of God; but he who denies Me before men will be denied before the angels of God."

There are many references where God assured His servants that He would be with them (Deut. 31:8, Josh 1:5, 1Chr. 28:20) and makes that commitment to us in (Hebrews 13:5-6) "Make sure that your character is free from the love of money, being content with what you have; for He Himself has said, "I WILL NEVER DESERT YOU, NOR WILL I EVER FORSAKE YOU,"  so that we confidently say, "THE LORD IS MY HELPER, I WILL NOT BE AFRAID. WHAT WILL MAN DO TO ME?"  (NAS95) When we come to understand the full meaning of this instruction, WE also without hesitation[boldly] will state "God is my helper" and understand what that means. We will openly proclaim His infinite power, wisdom, and goodness are real, present, and permanent help in the face of trouble.

Doubts and fears will be put aside and replaced by fearlessness because our minds, thoughts, and judgments will be settled on God's help which produces a resolution to keep His word both in word and in deed even in the midst of opposition and persecution.

There is another side of fear, being afraid-(2 Corinthians 5:10-11) "For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad. Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade men, but we are made manifest to God; and I hope that we are made manifest also in your consciences.  (NAS95)

The primary message in Vs. 10 is that every person WILL stand before the judgement of Christ: then every person will give an account of the actions of our lives [plans, purposes, word, thoughts, and deeds] and ponder that for a moment, nothing will be hidden, all will be open and naked before the Lord. This verse should motivate every one of us to take a personal inventory of our lives, and our relationship with God and man, TODAY. With this scene in mind, immediately make whatever corrections the Lord requires to escape the wrath of God on the sons of disobedience. [Eph 2:2, 5:6, Col 3:6].

The second concern is a desire to save others from this dreadful day of wrath, so Paul states "We persuade men"--  persuade them to prepare for this day, to prepare for heaven. It is not through fear of alarm but by the effort to induce to escape the coming wrath. (2 Corinthians 5:20) 

Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. (Hebrews 10:31) It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

(Matthew 10:28) "Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.

The Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid.