We’re going to start a series on the “F word”: fear. Many people struggle with different kinds of fears and we’re going to look at the Word of God and see what it says concerning fear and how to deal with it. Many people seem to hold onto fear like it’s a badge of honour or something, but fear is not your friend and is really destructive in its nature. Whether it’s fear of flying, fear of spiders, fear of the dark, fear of death, fear of the future, fear of public speaking… whatever fear you may be experiencing you need to know that it’s designed to hold you back from living in your full potential and walking in your destiny. God did not design you to fear.
A study was conducted of 500 adults of different ages, backgrounds, races etc. The study revealed that from this group of people there were about 7,000 different types of fears. I have heard that when a child is born they only have two fears: fear of falling, and fear of loud noises. Somewhere along the line adults can accumulate up to 6,998 more fears than they were born with. It is interesting to note that even though the enemy has been around for 1000’s of years he has only been able to come up with 6,998 fears. He really isn’t as smart as we credit him to be. None-the-less, there are a lot of fears that people have to deal with but their aim and purpose is the same: to paralyze us and hold us back from what God has called us to do.
Synonyms for fear include; anxiety, despair, distress, doubts, panic, phobia, terror, worry or bondage, to name a few. If you’re experiencing any of these then you’re allowing fear to dominate you and it is, in some way, holding you back from fulfilling your destiny, walking in your purpose and experiencing the abandoned life which Jesus came to give (John 10:10). God doesn’t want you to be tormented by fear but His desire is to see you living fearlessly, brave and unafraid.
Fear entered into life right in the beginning, in the Garden of Eden when Adam sinned and hid from God. Then, God went looking for Adam (because He loved him) and God asks Him, “where are you?” to which Adam replies,
Genesis 3:10 New King James Version (NKJV)
“I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.”
This was the first time fear was experienced in history and mankind has been living under the tyranny of fear since; fear of the future, fear of what others might think, fear of disease, fear of the unknown… there are many different kinds of fears that we could experience. None of them is rational and none of them adds value to our lives. Fear is something that we need to let go of and not indulge in. If you give it a foothold, it will take you out.
1 John 4:18 New King James Version (NKJV)
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.
This is a powerful verse! There is no fear in God, who is perfect love! Yes, there’s a healthy fear of God, but that’s a different word altogether. That’s talking about a reverential fear or respect. It’s not talking about being scared of God or being afraid of Him. There is no fear in love. If you’ve got perfect love inside of you, God’s love, then there is absolutely no reason to fear, ever.
The more you meditate on that perfect love, God’s unconditional, perfect love for you demonstrated through Jesus, the more you will start to experience freedom from fear. Not gradually but suddenly. Perfect love banishes fear; it doesn’t dilute it, it eradicates it! You can live free from the bondage of fear and live fearlessly and courageously!