No Fear

In preparing for this Sunday's sermon on fear I was reminded of the famous Franklin Delano Roosevelt quote...."the only thing we have to fear, is fear itself."  FDR uttered these famous words during his inaugural address on March 4, 1933....in the depths of the Great Depression and rumblings of war across the Atlantic.  With nearly 25% of Americans unemployed and great uncertainty about the country's future....surely widespread fear was rampant at that time.  I think it's easy for those of us, living in the midst of 2013, to forget that we are not the only generation that has struggled with fear and uncertainty.

On an interesting note....FDR was sworn in with his Bible open to 1 Corinthians 13....commonly known as the "love chapter".  Especially interesting given the discussion of "love vs. fear" that is part of this Sunday's discussion.

I also drew from an article I found entitled "The Physical and Mental Effects of Fear".  This article made the case, very convincingly I might add, that "fear" was the greatest threat to humanity (in our time).  It even made the bold assertion that being gripped by fear was more devastating than being a victim of nuclear fallout.  Using results from a study done by the World Health Organization, the article shared some amazing facts.  Many surviving victims of Chernobyl, Nagasaki and Hiroshima actually died of preventable cancers.  However, because those victims feared what doctors might find, many did not pursue medical treatment immediately after their radiation exposure.  Similar results have been found in groups of patients who have been found HIV Positive.  Many, who would later die of full-blown AIDS, could have been successfully treated with medical interventions early on.  But because of the fear of "what if".....

Probably the most striking paragraph in the article was:

Fear has manufactured a prison for them that is smaller than their potential boundaries.  According to a 2001 study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, one of fear's sneakiest tricks is convincing us that the realm of possibility is more limited than it really is.  It causes risk-avoiding behavior.  It tells us that we are not good enough or smart enough and robs us of what could have been. 

Wow.  Pretty hard-hitting stuff.  So my question is....if fear is so debilitating to the human soul, then surely our Scripture addresses how we should deal with it, right? Fortunately, the answer is "yes". 

For this message, I chose three passages of scripture:  Psalms 122, 1 John 4:17 - 18 and Luke 8:24 - 26.  Using these passages of Scripture, three truths about fear - and freedom from it - can be fleshed out:

Focusing on others, especially through giving and sharing, frees us from fear.  (Psalm 122)
Wherever Christ is, fear is not.  (Luke 8:24 - 26)
Love is fear's worst enemy (1 John 4:17 - 18)

Our God never intended us to live a life filled with fear.  Much to the contrary.  Fortunately for us, Scripture has left us a blueprint for dealing with fear....and freeing ourselves from it. 

A little bit of fear might be healthy, but taken to extremes....only serves to separate us from God. 

Notes from sermon and audio file of message are below:

Sermon Notes - "No Fear" - January 27, 2013

Audio of Sermon - "No Fear" - January 27, 2013