Living In Fear

What are you afraid of?  Spiders? Snakes? Flying on an airplane?  What about losing your job?  The loss of a loved one?  Or a severe illness?  Maybe your fears run deeper.  Perhaps some of you have experienced sexual abuse and find it difficult to trust others.  Where do these fears come from?  We live in a broken world that is ravaged by the effects of sin.  Our lives are fragile and our fears come out of living within an accursed world.  Death and decay are our common experience.  It therefore seems normal that life leads to death.  But if that is true, then why do we push against death as if it were not normal?  Why are we filled with fear and worry over something that happens all the time?  It is because suffering and death are not normal.  Life as we know it, filled with disease, pain, and death, is not the way life was created to be.  And when God brings about a complete renewal of the heavens and the earth, suffering and death will be no more.  In that future time we will have nothing to fear.  The child will reach out to the snake without fear and the shadow of death will no longer hang over us.  For now, we wait in eager expectation of that future Day.  Our aches, pains, and worries create in us a desire to be free from a life of anguish.  We long for life without sin and suffering.  However, in this longing, we must not forget our calling.  We have been given a task by God.  That task is to preach the good new of Christ to all people everywhere.  It is easy to lose sight of our present responsibility to others and God’s creation when we become solely focused on the age to come.  Furthermore, we often lose sight of our calling when our fears cause us to focus more on our present circumstances.  This is seen in the Philippian Church.

Turn with me to Philippians chapter 2 verses 12 through 18:

“Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.  Do all things without grumbling or questioning, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain.  Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all.  Likewise you also should be glad and rejoice with me.”             

Notice that Paul says “work out your salvation with fear and trembling.”  This may seem strange if we consider that the problem facing this church is their fears.  They are sending one of their members, Epaphroditus, with a sum of money to provide for Paul’s needs.  Paul is in prison at this time and the Philippians are deeply concerned about his welfare.  Along the way, Epaphroditus fell ill.  He was so sick that he nearly died.  It is likely that an earlier report of his illness caused even greater unrest among the Philippian Church.  They are asking how God could allow Paul to be imprisoned and Epaphroditus, who was sent to care for Paul, become so gravely ill if the gospel is true?  Tragedy was causing them to question their faith.  But concerns over Paul and Epaphroditus were not the only concerns that burdened this church.  They were being persecuted for their faith.  Philippi was a Roman colony.  Christians who did not pay tribute to the emperor and worship him were often beaten, imprisoned, stripped of their possessions and land.  Their legacy, land, and lives were threatened by their belief in the gospel message.  We see this when the gospel first came to Philippi by the preaching of Paul and Silas.  In Acts chapter 16 we read of an account where Paul and Silas are accused of teaching customs that are against Roman law.  They are then beaten and thrown into prison.  While in prison they are able to share the gospel with their jailer and he believes.  This happens again when Paul speaks of the advance of the gospel that is occurring among the imperial guard in Ephesus.  See chapter 1 verses 12-14.  The Philippians are familiar with seeing Paul persecuted and imprisoned for his faith because this is what they observed when Paul and Silas first came to Philippi.  In writing the letter to the Philippians Paul is now in a prison in Ephesus and he seems to be awaiting a death sentence.  He writes in 2 Corinthians chapter 1 verses 8 and 9, “For we do not want you to be ignorant, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia.  For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself.  Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death.”  These verses are referring to Paul’s troubles in Ephesus.  In Philippians chapter 1 verses 19 through 21 Paul writes “for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance, as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death.  For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.”  In speaking of his deliverance Paul appears to be referring to a death sentence.  But this does not cause him alarm.  He has learned that his life or death is intended for the spread of the gospel.  He has no fear of death and rejoices in the midst of his difficult circumstances.  Why?  Because he knows God is using his trails to bring others to saving faith.  Again and again Paul assures the Philippians that the gospel is advancing in light of his tragic circumstances.  They only see the immediacy of the suffering that is affecting both Paul and their church.  They have lost sight of what God is doing through their suffering and the trails of Paul.  He tells them that his imprisonment is bringing many to salvation and leading other believers to preach the gospel without fear.  See verse 14 of chapter 1.  Further down in verses 27 and 28 he exhorts them to “stand firm in one spirit with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel, and not frightened in anything by your opponents.  This is a clear sign to them of their destruction, but of your salvation, and that from God.”  Paul is seeking to encourage the Philippians with what he may have thought at the time was a farewell letter.  He was eventually released from this prison, but at the time he clearly thought that his life was coming to an end.  If we consider that Paul’s imprisonment carried the threat of death, it is understandable why the Philippians were so discouraged.  Paul had founded their church.  They found strength in his leadership and loved him dearly.  The thought of losing him was a heavy burden to bear.  They began to lose hope as the very man who brought them the gospel was under the threat of death.  Knowing of their doubts and fears, Paul points out to them that his death or life is for the gospel.  The Philippians began to focus more upon present circumstances over their belief in the gospel.  Fear concerning death and suffering clouded their vision and weakened their faith. 

            What fears do we face that cause us to question our faith?  How many of us have struggled with depression or a sense of inferiority?  How often do we grumble about our bills, the maintenance of our homes and cars, or the difficulties involved in our jobs?  Why do we complain so much?  Voicing discontent is connected to our fears.  Worry often leads to anger and complaint.  We see one problem and then another arises and then another and another.  It seems like everything is falling apart and that God is set against us.  This of course is a distortion.  God has not set Himself against us, rather, we have set ourselves against Him.  When our world seems to be falling apart, it is because we have given ourselves over to thinking that this IS OUR world.  We have put ourselves in God’s place.  Fear is a result of our attempt at control.  When we do not thank God for His care over us, we began to think that we are responsible for our own welfare.  We get frustrated and overwhelmed when bills mount, illness befalls us, we lose our job, the car breaks down, or the electricity goes out.  We get frustrated because we are playing God and cannot plug all the holes in a leaking dam.  Have you ever seen the drawing of the boy with his fingers in a leaking dam?  The water is coming out here and there and each time he plugs one hole another stream of water breaks through the dam.  We need to stop trying to plug the dam. 

            I am sure many of you have seen the damage of the thunderstorms this past week: tree branches were strewn across yards, power lines were down, some trees were uprooted or broken in half.  Two trees fell over at the Wycliffe Townhomes where my family lives, down Joliet Street right past the Dunkin’ Donuts.  I was amazed at the power of the storm in seeing how large these trees were that fell over.  However, I looked closer at the fallen trees and found that they were rotten on the inside.  They appeared to be strong and full of life but on the inside they where being eaten away from within.  It was not until a strong storm came that their stability was truly tested.  They could not stand under the pressure of the ragging winds.  When we are tested by the storms of life what will be revealed within us?  Will we break under the pressure or will we be able to stand firm?  I can tell you for certain that if we are seeking control, which is the same as seeking to be equal with God, then we will be broken when suffering and death comes to our door.  The idolatry of self-worship is the root of all sin and eats us away from the inside out.  In order to stand tall, we must be made low.  Let us look to Christ as our example.

            Where did he come from and what was his position?  He came from heaven and he is God.  And yet he became one of us, a man who shared our suffering and knew our fears.  A man who choose to serve us in humility by his obedience to the Father.  He chose to die for us and in so doing he was exalted.  He demonstrates for us how we should live.  Our lives should not be marked by seeking after equality with God.  We can never be equal to Him.  All our efforts at control only serve to make us fearful and dejected.  In the midst of such suffering that is caused by our attempts at control, we cry out “Where are you God?”  and “Why are You allowing this to happen to me?”  The truth is that He has never left our side.  The pain can be so intense when we lose a loved one or if we have a child who is very sick.  It is not wrong to cry out to God in our pain when we cannot bear the burden.  He will give us an answer in our times of trail.  He will tell us “I am with you always and I will give you peace.  Do not be afraid.  Be still and know that I am God.”  When we are restless it is because we have lost our vision of God’s control.  Everything and everyone is in His hands.  There is nothing that happens without His knowledge and control.  We must try to see what He is doing through our trails.  In the case of Paul’s imprisonment the gospel became known to the imperial guard.  When Christians stand firm in the faith during times of trail, those outside of the Church see the power of the gospel and many are drawn to saving faith.  "How is she able to have such peace when she has been diagnosed with cancer?"  "He doesn’t have a job and his bills are stacking up, but he does not seem worried?"  Christians who find peace in God are free from the chains of a complaining spirit.  They are content in any circumstance.  This is because they have learned to fear God.

            Paul says “work out your salvation with fear and trembling.”  We have seen that the Philippians are filled with fear and trembling but their fears are coming from their circumstances.  Their fears demonstrate where they have placed their trust.  When we are filled with fear over our trails this reveals what we are devoted to—ourselves.  We have come to think more highly of who we are instead of who God is.  We worship an Almighty God whose raised right hand can shake the universe.  He is not a genie in bottle that grants our wishes or a grandfather we can rest our head upon.  God does offer us fatherly love and compassion, but we must not forget that He is all powerful and holy.  We are sinners who do not deserve His mercy.  Rather, we deserve His wrath.  But thanks be to God that Christ lowered Himself on our behalf.  How much more so should we live in humble adoration of our God who humbled Himself for us by dying on a cross?  When we think about what Christ did for us it should fill us with love for Him.  However, this love is not disconnected from fear.  We fear and love God because He has the power to redeem us.  Our fear of God is not a fear that causes us to run from Him.  It is a fear that causes us to bow before Him in humble adoration.  It is a fear that brings us peace.  That is an odd thought.  How can fear coexist with peace?  When we humbly place our lives in God’s hands we are no longer filled with fear over our circumstances.  It is a fear that cancels out all other fears because we worship a God who bigger than our circumstances.  We worship a God who conquered death, nothing is beyond His control and He is with us always.  Whom or what shall we fear if God is for us?  “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You (my God) are with me; Your rod and Your staff they comfort me.”  If you are struggling with your fears today, turn to God.  Trust Him.  Realize that your fears reveal that you are seeking control.  Let go of your attempt to grasp at equality with God.  Turn to Him in humble adoration and he will set you free from your fears.  Let us close with these words from Paul in Philippians chapter 4 verses 5 through 7 “The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.  And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”  May God grant us His peace.