Fear Not
Luke 2:10
But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid.”
Are you afraid of what the next year will bring? Perhaps you can find your greatest fear somewhere on this list of top 10 fears Americans had in 2019.
Corrupt government officials – 77.2%
Pollution of oceans, rivers, and lakes – 68%
People I love becoming seriously ill – 66.7%
Pollution of drinking water – 64.6%
People I love dying – 62.9%
Air pollution – 59.5%
Cyber-terrorism – 59.2%
Extinction of plant and animal species – 59.1%
Global warming and climate change – 57.1%
Not having enough money for the future – 55.7%
Did you see your greatest fear there? Were there any that made you say, “I’m not afraid of that”? Were there any you would have added to the list?
There’s a common link between all the fears on that list. In fact, there’s a common link between these fears and every fear. It’s lack of control. It’s lack of power. For a few of these, you might try to do your part to stop them from happening. But you can only do so much. For the others, they’re completely out of your control. Some of them might be completely out of anyone’s control.
When the shepherds saw the angel, they were terrified. A powerful being unlike any they had seen stood before them. What could this appearance mean? They were used to being in control. There had never been a sheep uprising. Even the wild predators could be handled by a group of shepherds. But this heavenly visitor was obviously more powerful than they. The situation was suddenly out of their control. If the angel came in anger, they stood no chance. They were at its mercy.
Human beings have a natural fear of God. And not fear in the sense of respect (Romans 3:18), as we learn from the First Commandment to “fear, love, and trust in God above all things.” No, by nature, we are afraid of God. Even unbelievers “show that the requirements of the law are written on their hearts, their consciences also bearing witness, and their thoughts sometimes accusing them and at other times even defending them” (Romans 2:15). The natural law inscribed in the heart of every person, whether they believe in God or not, accuses and condemns. Every person recognizes that they are “by nature deserving of wrath” (Ephesians 2:3), no matter how much they try to quiet their conscience.
And how we try to quiet that little, annoying voice! How we try to divert God's wrath against us! “God, don’t be angry with me! Remember how much I’ve loved you!” “Don’t destroy me! I watched church online this week!” “I gave the last $5 in my wallet to the guy standing on the street corner!” “God, don’t look at the bad I’ve done! Look at how good I’ve been, too!” Our attempts to control God, to force him to have favor on us, may quiet the conscience for a moment, but we are quickly reminded that the almighty God cannot be controlled or compelled. The decision always belongs wholly to the holy God.
As we stand with the shepherds, we understand their fear. What message has the Almighty sent? “Do NOT be afraid. I bring you GOOD news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord” (Luke 2:10,11). Though we can’t control God, we don’t need to be afraid of him. He calms our fear with the good news: a Savior has been born! HE has taken away our sins. HE has offered the perfect sacrifice to remove our guilt. HE has diverted God's wrath against sin. Without control or compulsion from us, God has loved us and sent his Son to save us!
God has removed our fear of him through his Son so that we may fear, love, and trust in him. Now, fearing God, we don’t need to be afraid of anything. All those things that are outside our control, he controls for our good (Romans 8:28). We are no longer motivated by fear of what will happen or what someone will do. Instead, “we love because he first loved us” (1 John 4:19). “There is no fear in love. Perfect love drives out fear” (1 John 4:18). We have the perfect love of Christ. There’s no need to fear.
During the next week, consider these three questions:
How do I find myself motivated by fear?
How does God's love shown to me in Jesus Christ wipe out my fears?
How does God's love for me motivate to live in love and not fear?