Fear – Part 15

I am writing this essay while glancing at a newspaper on my desk with a boldfaced headline which reads, “Economy: Depressing, but not a Great Depression”.¹The accompanying article goes on to compare the current economic situation with that which prevailed during the Depression that started with the collapse of the stock market on Black Friday, October 24, 1929, and reached its zenith in 1933. While it is too early to tell whether we will experience a similar almost total economic collapse, it is clear that fear is prevailing in the financial markets and in the public’s confidence in the economic system. It may be instructive to examine exactly what conditions existed at the height of what has become known as the Great Depression, and compare them with conditions existing today.²

The following benchmark measures of economic activity are associated with the Great Depression:

• The Wall Street stock market had crashed on October 24, 1929, sending a shock wave of financial collapse that would eventually spread around the entire world. By July 8, 1932, the Dow Jones average had declined 89% from its 1929 peak. As of November 18, 2008, the decline has been 36.5% from the peak of January 1, 2008.
• In 1933 the unemployment rate was 25%. Fifteen million people were out of work. Relative to the population today, that would amount to 45 million.
• By 1933 industrial production had fallen 50%.
• Farm prices had fallen 60%, forcing many farmers from their homes and farms and driving them into poverty.
• Two million people were homeless (equivalent to eight million today).
• Banks in 32 of the 48 states had collapsed and closed their doors, leaving depositors penniless. By 1933 10,000 out of 25,000 banks had failed, leaving their depositors nothing (there was no FDIC then).

The previous government of President Herbert Hoover had done little to correct the situation. Hoover had believed that free markets would eventually fix them­selves, but they didn’t. By the inauguration of President Roosevelt on March 4, 1933, the country was in the grip of widespread fear. Parallels to the situation today are uncanny; a recent headline in Hearst newspapers read, “Economic uncertainty breeds fear.”³

It was a cold, gray, overcast day in Washington, DC, when FDR, hoping to cast aside partisan politics, delivered the famous line in his inaugural address that electrified the nation. The tag line from that speech was: “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” That quote reveals a very basic truth epitomized in an old saying: “Fear breeds fear.”⁴Roosevelt knew that the whole country had become consumed by fear, and when that happens a mental paralysis sets in that stifles all sensible action:

• Fear can lead to mob rule and vigilantism.
• Fear allowed Hitler to control the German people and turn a blind eye toward the plight of the Jews. The refrain, “I was afraid what would happen to me and my family if I spoke out”, was recited over and over again by ordinary Germans when asked after World War II why they didn’t speak out against the Holocaust.⁵
• Fear grows in companies under stress, where employees can be so afraid of making a mistake that all creativity is stifled.
• Fear can grip an ecclesia, or even spread wider in our community. Rumor and innuendo can breed suspicion and fear, and this in turn can lead to mistrust that can completely break down harmonious relationships.

Should the present economic uncertainties cause us to be fearful? Indeed, is there anything that can happen to us in this life that could cause us to be fearful?

The word “fear” has a prominent place in the Scriptures. Remarkably, two al­most diametrically opposite circumstances have to be considered to appreciate the meaning intended when this word is used. In the first instance, having fear is absolutely essential for salvation. In fact, the use of the word in that context should be regarded as a first principle. However, under other conditions having fear is disastrous and can prevent us from obtaining salvation. How can these two seemingly polar opposite ideas be reconciled?

There are numerous references in our Bibles which instruct us to fear the Lord. Two that come to mind are:

“Behold, the fear of the LORD, that is wisdom, and to depart from evil is understanding” (Job 28:28, NKJV).

“Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling” (Psa 2:11, NKJV).

There are at least 40 verses in the Scriptures that tell us to fear the Lord, or alter­natively fear God, or the Lord God. Bible critics have a great deal of trouble with these types of verses because they contrast them with the preaching of the Lord Jesus Christ, who taught a God of love, not terror:

“Jesus said to him, ‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great com­mandment” (Matt 22:37,38, NKJV).

They complain, ‘If God is a God of love, why should we fear Him?’ Ironically, fire and brimstone preachers also misuse the injunction that our God is a God to be feared. They emphasize the terror of mythical torments in hellfire to scare Christians into good behavior. Judging from the general morality of Christians, this doesn’t seem to be very effective any more (if it ever was!). The little English word “fear”, used in the context above, has a primary meaning, which is more aptly understood as “reverence” and not terror.⁶

A similar circumstance prevails in the New Testament, where we consider the Greek word that is rendered “fear”⁷when used in relation to God:

“And his affections are greater for you as he remembers the obedience of you all, how with fear and trembling you received him” (2Cor 7:15, NKJV). “Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king” (1Pet 2:17, NKJV).

Fear of God should not be a case of terror, but rather of deep reverence. It is the type of fear we should have for our parents, one of respect, based on mutual love and not trepidation (cp Heb 12:9). Such fear should motivate us to actions that are moral and just. This is readily illustrated by the passage in Leviticus 25:43, which instructs the children of Israel how they should treat slaves and by analogy how we should treat anyone beholden to us, whether it be an employee, colleague, child, spouse, etc.:

“You shall not rule over him with rigor, but you shall fear your God” (NKJV).

Fear, i.e., deep reverence, of the Lord God should motivate us to actions that are moral and just. We should fear, or revere, God — not out of terror of His retribu­tion (though that will certainly happen) — but out of our love, so that we may emulate the character of His Son the Lord Jesus Christ.

There is another kind of fear that is appalling. If we allow it to control our be­havior, it can prevent us from entering into the Kingdom of God. It is a fear that prevents us from doing what is right because we are afraid of consequences in this life, consequences that may touch us personally. This is illustrated by a story in the Gospel of John:

“But when his brothers had gone up, then he also went up to the feast, not openly, but as it were in secret. Then the Jews sought him at the feast, and said, ‘Where is he?’ And there was much complaining among the people concerning him. Some said, ‘He is good’; others said, ‘No, on the contrary, he deceives the people.’ However, no one spoke openly of him for fear of the Jews” (John 7:10-13, NKJV).

Here the Greek word interpreted “fear” is different from what we have cited in the contexts previously mentioned. Fear here literally means alarm, fright, being afraid (exceedingly), or terror.⁸There is no connotation here that can be construed as signifying reverence. Plain and simple, they feared what their brethren would do to them. Failure to speak up here is not being applauded! We have a responsibil­ity to do the right thing, not only when it is convenient and easy, but especially when it is hard and fraught with danger. Think of Daniel 6:9,10 and of course all the heroes recorded in Hebrews 11. As soon as Daniel knew of the king’s decree, he immediately defied it by going home and praying “with his windows open”. He could have easily rationalized the situation and said, ‘It doesn’t matter where I pray; much safer to do so in a closet.’ What would we do if faced with a similar challenge? Would we use the same closet rationalization and even justify it by Scripture (Matt 6:6)?

Failure to report a crime, when we have been an eyewitness to the event, is itself considered a crime in almost all jurisdictions. Hence, even the world recognizes the principle of complicity with evil for one who remains silent when evil is perpetrated. How do the Scriptures treat this principle?

“If a person sins in hearing the utterance of an oath, and is a witness, whether he has seen or known of the matter — if he does not tell it, he bears guilt” (Lev 5:1, NKJV).

The New Testament is just as emphatic in condemning failure to act in the face on wrong:

“Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin” (James 4:17, NKJV).

The Scriptures permit no loopholes. Unfortunately, we often confuse lack of courage for prudence. We fear for what might happen to us, or to those with whom we are associated. We are fearful of what others might think of us, or of privileges that we may lose. Ironically, we will often tell someone we are teaching the Truth that they might have to sever ties they previously had in the world. We emphasize that they may even have to cut loose from family associations if those relatives are opposed to them accepting the Word of God and being baptized into our community. Yet we will turn around and accept wrongful behavior by brothers and sisters if they are closely associated with us through family or ties of old friendships, and remain silent when they should be reprimanded for sin­ful actions! The Scriptures clearly tell us the consequences for us if we are silent in the face of sin:

“Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matt 10:28, NKJV; cp also Acts 24:24,25; Rev 14:7).

Here the word fear refers to reverence. Plainly the Lord Jesus is telling us not to revere those who can only temporarily hurt us (even if they go as far as to kill us). Rather, we need to revere Him who can permanently destroy us by finding us undeserving of eternal life.

We have nothing whatsoever to fear in this life, because if we do the right thing we are assured of eternal life. Our Lord Jesus Christ suffered on the cross so that we might have the hope of things eternal. Even if we suffer dire consequences in this life for acting courageously, our heavenly Father will not forget us. Courage overcomes fear, and courage comes from our absolute faith in the Lord God:

“There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love” (1Jn 4:18, NKJV; also see Psa 23:4; 27:1; 34:7; 147:11; Isaiah 35:4, among others).

How can we even begin to compare the inconveniences and trials of this life with what the apostles suffered for their courageous efforts in preaching the Truth, often in the most hostile environment? The apostle Paul alludes to these trials in 2 Corinthians 11:23-33:

“Are they ministers of Christ? — I speak as a fool — I am more: in labors more abundant, in stripes above measure, in prisons more frequently, in deaths often. From the Jews five times I received forty stripes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods; once I was stoned… in perils among false brethren… besides the other things, what comes upon me daily: my deep concern for all the churches. Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to stumble, and I do not burn with indignation?” (NKJV).

Receiving 40 stripes even once was enough to kill a person; quite possibly the only way that Paul could have survived would have been the miraculous healing power of the Lord God. His trials were not only physical, but also emotional — he suffered because of false brethren and because of his concerns for the ecclesias. How many of us would be willing to go through suffering like that of the apostle for doing the right thing? Moreover, we must never forget the suffering of our Lord Jesus Christ, of whom it is said:

“…looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Heb 12:2, NKJV).

The passage in Hebrews goes on to consider our own suffering in comparison to that endured by our Lord Jesus Christ. It asks us to consider him when faced with trials and tribulations. That consideration, in the first century, was literally a call to endure even death for upholding the Truth. Such a death was often carried out by the most horrible means, such as being thrown into the arena to be torn to shreds by wild animals, or crucifixion, or fiery immolation:

“For consider him who endured such hostility from sinners against himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls. You have not yet resisted to bloodshed, striving against sin” (vv 3,4, NKJV).

Sooner or later, all of us must be prepared to face trials and tribulations in this life. Assuredly many (if not most) reading this have had many difficult experiences already. They may be as simple as standing up for the right principles and behav­ior in the ecclesia, or as difficult and painful as enduring financial ruin, terminal illnesses or worse, or seeing unbearable suffering in one dear to us. Nevertheless, there is one thing that is certain: we need never give into our fears, nor abandon our faith. In the end there will come a day when all the sorrows and cares of this life will be forgotten, and we will ever be with our Lord.

1. USA Today, Tuesday, November 4, 2008, page 3B.
2. By “today” I mean November 21, 2008, which is the time that I am putting these words on paper. Obviously, conditions could, and probably will, change by the time you read this article, but the figures for 1933 are historic and will remain a benchmark for measuring economic fear and despair.
3. Dan Rather in his syndicated column of October 10, 2008.
4. Attributed to Byron Janis.
5. See D.J. Goldhagen, “Hitler’s Willing Executioners: Ordinary Germans and the Holocaust”, Alfred A. Knopf, New York (1996), for more information on how the Nazis used “fear” to control and pervert one of the most educated and sophisticated nations in the world.
6. Strong’s number 3374.
7. Strong’s number 5399.
8. Luke 12:32.