Why I Think Fear is Both Wise and Good

If you know me well, then you know that I have a great fear of snakes. Hatred may be the more correct word, but certainly, the presence of a snake produces in me an undeniable feeling of fear. Once, many years ago, as I was opening the door to our home, a snake emerged from behind a chest freezer that was sitting beside the door. It so startled me that I jumped back and left my keys in the door. I called a friend who lived and worked nearby and who I knew was not afraid of snakes. He was gracious enough to immediately come over and remove the snake. While he single-handily moved the heavy chest freezer and caught the snake I stood at a safe distance in the yard. There was a part of me that felt ashamed that I was not helping my friend or willing to confront the snake alone, but my fear outweighed my shame causing me to remain in the yard while my friend worked alone.

What are you afraid of? Some may say pridefully but with confidence that they are afraid of nothing. Others may have a long list of things that cause them to fear. I believe that in some part, fear drives everyone. You might think this is an overly broad or overly pessimistic declaration, but I do not think so. Once you look for it and recognize it, you will find the influence of fear almost everywhere.

Generally, fear is seen as something negative or shameful. Being fearful is often seen as a sign of weakness. But I think we need to see fear not as something to hide or ignore but as something that points to wisdom and holiness. The goodness of fear comes when we rightly identify and respond to what is truly dangerous and destructive. The shameful and weakness of fear is when, in our flesh, we fear what is not truly most consequential.

The lack of fear is often the origin of many emergencies. Warning signs confront hikers at the rim of the Grand Canyon that going down in the canyon can be dangerous. It is easy to descend the hiking paths that lead to the bottom of the canyon, but the signs warn that returning to the top can be very difficult. Victors and inexperienced hikers are warned that extreme temperatures and the significant uphill grade of returning to the rim cause many hikers to find themselves in great personal danger when they are physically unable to make it back up to the rim. None of the people who have to be rescued by the park rangers start out believing they will find themselves in need of rescue. They all walk past the warning signs, but they do not heed the warnings because they do not have an appropriate fear for the challenges and dangers of the hike they are embarking on.

In Luke 12:4-5, Jesus tells us not to fear those who can kill the body but to fear the eternal consequence of hell. Jesus is clearly saying that there is something worthy and right for us to fear and there is something not worth fearing even though it seems to be scary.

““I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have nothing more that they can do. But I will warn you whom to fear: fear him who, after he has killed, has authority to cast into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him!” (Luke 12:4–5, ESV)

I cannot think of a more fear-inducing thing than the fear of death. I run from snakes because of my fear of death. Many, these past two years, have isolated themselves from family, friends, and community for fear of death from COVID. What we fear, we give great attention and effort to avoiding and mitigating. I think what Jesus is saying in Luke 12 is there is a danger of being afraid of the wrong thing and missing the real danger. Physical death is limited to the physical, but spiritual death is eternal. What good is it to preserve your physical life if you do not have the hope of eternal life with Jesus? Or from the other perspective, what worry is it to lose your physical life when you have the hope of eternity with Jesus?

Do not be afraid of what is temporary but do be afraid of eternal consequences. There is no greater consequence than dying in your sin and suffering the righteous wrath of God eternally in hell. That is certainly worthy of our fear! I have heard it said that when preachers preach on hell, they are only trying to scare people into salvation. Often when I have heard this assessment it is made with condescension and judgment that such sermons are flawed or manipulative. Jesus warned against the danger of hell, and I think we should too. In our hyper-litigious society, we put warnings everywhere and on everything attempting to both blunt the dangers of this world and liability for when those who ignore the warnings suffer the consequences. How much more should we give effort to rightly warning about the judgment of God, the condemnation of sin, and the reality of hell?

There are many things today that have the potential to cause fear, losing a job, economic downturn, government overreach, health crisis, natural disasters, and not the least of which COVID-19. To the amount these things and others like them cause you fear you will devote commensurate attention and effort. These things may or may not come to be, but it is assured that everyone will one day stand before the judgment of God. The only hope on that day will be the forgiveness that is found only in believing faith in Jesus. It is a terrible thing indeed to stand before the judgment of God in the condemnation of your sin. Above all other things, this is truly worthy of our fear.

“No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.” (Luke 13:3, ESV)