Three Kinds of Fear
When I think about my life’s events since childhood, I realize that fear has been with me all my life. Consider the typical life of a child: a toddler fears his mommy or daddy won’t come back when they leave, even for just an evening. A child often fears the dark when going to bed at night. As a teen, fear of not fitting in with peers or being laughed at is very real. Fear grips the heart of young wives at times when they begin to wonder if their husband may not love them as he used to or that their marriage might take a terrible turn. Young mothers fear having children and wonder how will they protect them, teach them correctly, or make right choices for them. Sending children to school brings a whole new set of fears. The fears only grow as those children leave the nest to seek their own futures.
We somehow think that once our children are out of the home, our fears will lessen. Nothing could be further from the truth.
As a grandmother, and now a great- grandmother, I continue to experience even more fears! As with any battle, I HAVE learned to turn to the Word of God – where truth is found!
It is interesting to note that fear originated with sin. Genesis 3:9-10: “And the Lord God called unto Adam and said unto him, Where art thou? And [Adam] said, I heard Thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid…” This confirms my belief that as long as I live in this sinful world and in my flesh, I will experience fear.
However, I have discovered there are three areas of fear.
Constructive Fear - A God-given fear that alerts us to harm and danger. A fear of snakes or riding on icy roads would be this type of fear. A fear of fire is a good thing, if we deal with it in the right way. Fear of being run over will prompt us to keep our children from running in the streets. It is good to have this constructive type of fear to avoid danger, make proper decisions, and even save lives. Scriptural examples of this are:
When Moses threw down his rod in obedience to God’s command, it became a serpent, “and Moses fled.” Obviously, he showed natural fear of the serpent.
I Samuel 19:10 says that Saul “smote the javelin into the wall and David fled, and escaped into the night.” David feared for his life, so he ran to escape King Saul’s attempt to kill him.
In Daniel 5:6, we read that Belshazzar saw a hand writing upon a wall. This was obviously a disturbing sight, and Belshazzar’s “joints of his loins were loosed…and his knees smote one against another." He feared this inexplicable event.
In each of these examples, we understand the human fear that would be a natural reaction. Based on the fact that fear came as a result of the sin in the garden, I don’t believe fear in and of itself is sin. God has instilled this fear in humans so that we are able to protect ourselves. This fear is NOT a curse as a result of sin, but shows His thoughtful love for His own. What a merciful God! However, the way we handle fear is where the problem lies.
Destructive Fear – A controlling fear that may cause anxiety, depression, irrational behavior, even negative health issues and most certainly robs us of our joy.
There is a huge variety of destructive behaviors that stem from phobias (unreasonable fears of unknowns) and imaginations. Things like Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (which is a result of some extremely fearful incident) and generalized anxiety disorders are common. These fears may even paralyze a person from having a normal life!
But it is possible to receive victory through God’s Word. Remember the shepherds on the hillside were “sore afraid” when the angel appeared to give them news of the Messiah’s birth. But they were told - as we often are - “Fear not!” (Luke 2:9-10). Why? Because God was in control! Here are just a few of my favorite examples of this:
Genesis 15:1 - To Abraham - “Fear not Abraham, I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward”.
Genesis 26:24 – To Isaac - “Fear not, for I am with thee and will bless thee…"
Exodus 14:13 – To Moses and the Israelites - “Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord.”
Joshua 1:9 – To Joshua - “Be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed, for the Lord thy God is with thee withersoever thou goest.”
Isaiah 41:10 – To Israel - “Fear not for I am with thee; be not dismayed, for I amThy God. I will strengthen thee, yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with theright hand of my righteousness.”
Many times throughout the Psalms, David expressed his own fear; but he always reflected on what God had done and what God’s Word promised. Jesus even asked his own disciples why they were so fearful when in the ship in the midst of the storm. Because we find so many verses and so many people throughout the Scriptures who are told to “fear not,” I have to assume everyone battles this emotion and is troubled about how to correctly deal with fear. The Scriptures definitely give the answers!
(I do believe that in some cases, professional medical help is needed ALONG WITH Biblical help. There are tips to be gained for situations involving depression, anxiety, panic attacks, etc. But our main purpose here is to address that fact that we as believers can get victory over fear through the power of applying God’s Word to our lives.)
I love the “Four Stabilizing Truths” that Jim Berg and Ken Collier have offered to help believers handle troubles, and yes, fear:
God’s LOVE for me is unchanging. – Jer. 31:3; Rom. 8:35-39
God’s PURPOSE for me is Christlikeness. – II Cor. 3:18; Eph. 4:11-13
God’s WORD to me is the final, right answer. – II Tim. 3:15-17; Deut. 6:6-9
God’s GRACE for me is sufficient. – II Cor. 12:9; Heb. 4:15-16
Although I have listed just two verses which apply to each truth, it would be a huge blessing to find other verses to apply to each of them, write them out, and memorize them. Remember, God’s Word is a weapon to the enemy!
Let’s then look at the third aspect of fear:
Fear of the Lord. God commands us in His Word that we are to have this kind of fear! Psalm 34:9 - “O fear the Lord ye His saints…” The Hebrew root of the word fear indicates that is primarily a definition of reverence and awe. Further study shows that there are many benefits of “fearing the Lord.” Here are just a few:
Proverbs 1:7 – “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.”
Psalm 19:9 - “The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever.”
Psalm 111:10 – “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do his commandments.”
Proverbs 14:26-27 – “In the fear of the Lord is strong confidence…The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life…”
Proverbs 10:27- “The fear of the Lord prolongeth days:”
Proverbs 19:23a – “The fear of the Lord tendeth to life: and he that hath it shall abide satisfied;“
Obviously, one who fears the Lord must first be born again, having accepted God’s gift of salvation through His Son, Jesus Christ, according to God’s Word. But then, the Scripture often equates fearing the Lord to keeping God’s commandments –obedience to His Word. As we continue to learn and obey God’s Word, then we will be walking with the Lord in everyday life. Recently, I was thrilled as I read Psalm 112. Verse 1 says “Blessed is the man that feareth the Lord, that delighteth greatly in His commandments.” As I read further in the Psalm, I discovered more about the one who fears the Lord - his benefits, characteristics, duties and rewards.
His generation shall be blessed. – v. 2
He’ll have riches (not necessarily financial, but spiritual riches). – v. 3
There will be light in darkness; He’s gracious, compassionate, righteous. – v. 4
He’ll “guide his affairs with discretion.” – v. 5
“He shall not be moved.”-v. 6
And finally, “He shall not be afraid of evil tidings: HIS HEART IS FIXED, trusting the Lord. His heart shall be established, HE SHALL NOT BE AFRAID.” –vs. 7-8.
July 2, 2014 gave me a clear picture of what it really meant to have my heart “FIXED/ESTABLISHED” on the Lord because of having the “fear of the Lord.” While I didn’t realize it at the time, nor even for months following, God has graciously shown me this truth. My husband and I traveled toward home on the final day of a 3-month deputation trip/family visit; we anticipated being in our own beds that night. We stopped for lunch at a Cracker Barrel in Gallup, New Mexico. About five minutes after we had begun eating, my husband fell over on the table, completely unconscious. Someone called for paramedics. A couple of waitresses volunteered to give him CPR until the paramedics arrived. I looked on with a mixture of feelings – uncertainty at the top! The paramedics used the paddles on him there on the floor of the restaurant, then again in the ambulance, and twice more in the ER in Gallup. Since the Gallup hospital had no cardiologist, they decided to fly him to the heart hospital in Albuquerque. The doctor in the ER told me he didn’t know if he’d make it alive to Albuquerque. I was allowed to ride with him in the medic plane, along with nurses and assistants.
It was during that time in the air, I realized God was in complete control. Sure, there were many thoughts and disturbing questions running through my mind. What would happen if God took my husband at that time? How would I get through this horrible nightmare? Financial questions, things concerning my family, home, and more were all going through my mind. Those who know me are aware that I have never enjoyed flying, so that was another immediate concern.
However, I remember thinking, “I KNOW God is in complete control! I can rest in Him to take care of everything!” Even at the time, I didn’t understand how I could look at this situation and have that kind of peace! I have always battled stress and anxiety. Yet, at this critical time, I truly had total peace and assurance of God’s control as I flew in that plane - with my unconscious husband - to an unfamiliar hospital and city. God DID take control; everyday God performed miracle after miracle! He allowed my husband to recover completely after suffering a massive heart attack, being in a coma for 8 days, being connected to a machine to assist his heart to continue to function, and almost one month later, returning home to begin rehab and therapy.
I went through many phases of fear during the following weeks and months, even suffering through some PTSD symptoms. I kept thinking about the total peace I had during that memorable air lift to the hospital, and wondering how I could have felt that way. I began searching the Scriptures concerning “fear” and how to deal with it.
This is the conclusion: Psalm 114:7-8: “He shall not be afraid of evil tidings: HIS HEART IS FIXED, trusting the Lord. His heart shall be established, HE SHALL NOT BE AFRAID”. This certainly does not mean I have victory in my life over fear. This will not happen until I get to heaven! But God has given us a way to defeat this “arrow of the devil” called fear. It’s only through maintaining a consistent walk with the Lord, reading, studying, memorizing His Word, obeying His commandments and direction, and trusting His promises that we can truly “fear the Lord.” Each day we must “fix/establish our heart” on Christ and His Word!