Fear Itself

But God offers the ultimate fear-antidote, even though at first glance it seems like more of the same. Ecclesiastes concludes with this scripture:

“Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter:
FEAR God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.”

Doesn’t set your mind at ease? How could fear itself be a remedy for fear? I love the explanation that author and pastor of the Mosaic church in California, Erwin McManus, gave in a conference I attended last year. To paraphrase, fear determines the boundaries of our lives. If we’re afraid of flying, we only visit places within driving distance. If we have a fear of public places, we stay at home. If we fear death, then we take fewer risks.

Fear also works in reverse. You can tell what a person fears by looking at how they spend their resources, not just money but time and energy too. Do you spend all your time checking the markets? Maybe you fear financial failure. Do you workout tirelessly at the expense of other aspects of your life? Maybe you fear getting fat or aging. If we allow, fear can determine not just what we do but how we do it.

But what does it look like to fear God? When we fear God, then He alone determines the boundaries of our lives. Fearing God means understanding that His ways are not ours, that He is in control despite what news anchors say, understanding that He can work beyond the physical framework set into place for us as human beings. Instead of being reactively driven by circumstances we’re driven by a need to please a God who loves us enough to die for us, a God that scriptures tell us has a good and perfect plan for our lives.