Fear. For many, it is an integral part of everyday life – a necessary evil. The world says that a little fear is actually healthy. All the while, such godless indoctrination is leaving people in continual torment, robbing them of peace, and killing their hopes and dreams.

So what is fear, and how should we respond to it?

Fear is perverted Faith. Faith – the Scriptures reveal – is the substance, the confirmation, the proof of the things we hope for (Hebrews 11.1). Conversely, fear is the substance, the confirmation, the proof of the things we do not desire. It is a deadly, negative force – and when exercised, it is very powerful.

No amount of fear should be tolerated in the life of the Believer. Our spiritual genetic makeup was designed to live and respond according to faith not according to fear.

We were created to live in an atmosphere of the presence of God. That is the way God ordered the course of humanity in the beginning, and it is what He has restored humanity to through the redemptive work of Jesus Christ. The Scriptures tell us that God is Love, and those who abide in Love abide in God, and God abides in them (1 John 4.16).

First John 4.18 reveals, “There is no fear in love; but perfected love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.”  The presence of fear in our life produces torment, because we were not designed to embrace fear in any form. Fear is a foreign substance with which our body, soul, and spirit are not equipped to associate.

Our heart and life are made for the indwelling of love, which is God. There is no fear in love, because God is love. When we abide in love, we abide in God, and God abides in us. Perfected, full-grown love in us expels fear and turns it out of doors. As we abide in love – God’s love for us – we will no longer involve ourselves with fear.

Resist Fear
Second Timothy 1:7 announces: “God has not given us a spirit of fear, but a spirit of power, love, and a sound mind.”

Fear does not come from God, it has no part in His Kingdom. Furthermore, the Lord has commanded us in His Word: “Do not fear” – speaking it repeatedly, 365 times throughout the Scriptures. Why are we commanded to not fear?  For one reason, fear tolerated stops our faith from working. More importantly, we should “fear not” because there is no reason to do so – God is already at work in whatever situation we face and will lead us in absolute triumph when we refuse to fear and trust Him completely.

One remarkable example of this principle is recorded in Exodus 14:13-14. Moses and the Children of Israel were up against an impassable Red Sea in front of them, and behind them, a quickly approaching Egyptian army intent on their destruction. In the midst of the terror, the Word of the Lord resounded: “Do not be afraid. Stand still and see the salvation of the LORD, which He will accomplish for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall see again no more forever. The LORD will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace.”

The Children of Israel obeyed the Word of the Lord, and God did what He promised. The Red Sea divided before them, they walked through to the other side, and their enemies immediately perished in their presence – to be seen again no more forever. God fought the fight for the Israelites, and led them through to victory. Their battle was the fight of faith – resisting fear and trusting God completely with their life and their future.

James 4:7 similarly instructs: “Submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.”  As previously mentioned, fear is a powerful negative force. However, it is significantly weak and inferior in comparison to the power of God. The love of God and the Faith of God in the heart of a Believer is intensely more powerful than the force of fear.

When we submit to God (yielding the whole of our heart and mind over to His love and to faith in Him), and resist the spirit of fear, fear will flee from us. Fear has no defence against love and faith.

The situation the Children of Israel faced that day on the edge of the Red Sea was a very real threat. In minutes they were about to meet their doom. Yet, by resisting fear of death and trusting the Lord to deliver them, the fate intended for them was turned instead upon their enemies.