The Fathers Table - Part 1
Fear, The Good Kind!
The proceeding post comes in large part from a 3-part sermon series by Danny Silk, entitled The Father table. Those sermons are linked at the end.
We all have fear in our lives. Every day we fear outcomes, possibilities, delayed resolutions, accelerated performance expectations, and disappointed relationships. Somehow, being reminded that worry is a sin doesn't seem to ever eliminate the occurrences of fear. In fact, if we are being honest with ourselves, fear is always present in our life in various forms and proportions.
As Christians, fear can come with a lot of guilty connotations. If we fear, do we lack faith? If we worry, we are convicted of sin. What Danny beautifully lays out is that fear can be correct, as it is an element of appropriate focus. Rather, what we fear and consequently what draws our focus, is the topic worthy of consideration. As Psalms 112:1 says “What we fear is what we obey”. In other words, we will worship what we fear. What does that fear look like when it is the fear of man?
When we fear Insignificance, we will worship Power.
We will strive relentlessly for accolades, trophies, job titles, car, boats, etc.
When we fear Rejection, we will worship the Approval of Man.
We will allow ourselves to be walked over in relationships to keep them intact, we will sacrifice our values, and hide our truths to avoid conflict with others.
When we fear Disconnection, we will worship Denial.
In our marriages we will insist that nothing is wrong, everyone has problems we don’t really need to work on ours. We will deny the mistreatment of ourselves or others, and prohibit the truth being brought to the light in dark circumstances, all to avoid disconnection from those around us.
When we fear making Mistakes, we will worship Control.
As parents we will micro-manage our kids to prohibit them from making mistakes, at work we won’t trust teammates because no one can do it as right as us, in relationships we will be so afraid of being caught being wrong that we will control discourse in arguments to always be right.
All of these fears take up room in our lives and hearts. The first commandment we are given is “Love the Lord with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind”.
So if we are to love the Lord with ALL of our hearts, and “perfect love casts out all fear”, then how do we fear the Lord?. Does that give fear the possibility of being a good thing? Yes. Indeed, all sin is simply a perversion of what is and was made for good. Sin is not an original creation.
But the bible has a lot to say when it comes to telling us NOT to fear. So what gives?
First, before we can talk about what healthy fear looks like and how it can serve us, fear needs to be defined in a biblical context. Where do we find fear spoken of in the bible in a positive fashion?
The fear of God is said to be the beginning of wisdom (Proverbs 1:7)
“Be not wise in your own eyes: fear the Lord, and depart from evil. (Proverbs 3:7)
The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life, that one may turn away from the snares of death. (Proverbs 14:27 ESV)
To fear the Lord is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil behavior and perverse speech. (Proverbs 8:13)
Do not let your heart envy sinners, but rather be zealous in fearing the Lord all the time. (Proverbs 23:17)
Walk in the fear of the Lord, and the comfort of the Holy Spirit. (Acts 9:31)
Alright so a healthy fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, leads to the fountain of life, and pairs with the comfort of the Holy Spirit. That sounds pretty good to me!
What does fear look like then when it’s the kind that God wants us to have?
It’s the fear of missing the peace in your life. It is the fear of putting distance between you and the comforter that we know we go to in our hardest times. It is the fear of missing out on the greatest glory this life has to offer us. Missing out on the adventure of a divine purpose, the future the creator of the heavens wants us to affect. Our mortal ambitions could not possibly compare to how awesome God wants the story of our lives to be!
When we sin, we put distance between that amazing story God has written for us and who we are. When we fear man, we replace what God has for us with something far less.
How many of us were terrified to ask out the girl, but more terrified of losing out on her if we didn’t? God's plans and glory are like the future potential joys of that relationship, in fact the church is called to be his bride. God is calling us to a perspective that fears what we will miss out on if we play it safe! Take a risk friends, and be more afraid of what will happen if you don't, than what will happen if you do.
The next post will dive into how rules without relationship lead to rebellion, how our character is demonstrated not in compliance but in freedom, and why God is in charge but not in control.
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Peace be with you,
Sam
The Fathers Table - Part 1: https://youtu.be/QYiaJ-_UB3Y?si=HmPqP54tXGBHeWtk
