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"There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear." 1 John 4:18

"Handling Our Fears"

Children of Israel nearing Promised Land. Moses chooses twelve men, one from each tribe to go out and secretly survey the land. After forty days they return. 'l'wo of them bearing between them a beauti­ful bunch of grapes from Eschol. People assembled to hear the report of spies.

A majority and a minority report. All agreed was a land now ing wi. th milk and honey. All agreed the land was peopled by giants living in strong, walled cities. A difference in conclusions they draw and in action they propose. Majority said, "We are not able to to overcome the land". But minority report said, "Let us go up and possess the land for we are able to over­come it."

Majority, filled with fear, declared, "We saw giants ••• the sons of Anak ••• and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers". Confusion and consternation in camp of Is­rael. There were the grapes but they re­fused to trust evidence of their eyes, and sought their trust in fears of their hearts. Phantom fears won a victory that day.

WHAT DO WE FEAR? And might I suggest that all of us, even bravest has some fear. Psychol ­

ogy has named some of them. Acrophobia the fear of high places; claustrophobia the fear of closed spaces; monophobia the morbid fear of solitude. Fear of insecurity. Fear of sickness. Fear of loneliness. Fear of old age. Fear of darkness. Fear of failure. Fear of the future. Fear of death.

"As night goes around t he eart h, thousands who ohould be sleeping, are lying awake; tedring a bully; tearing cruel compet i t ion; dreading lest t he.y cannot make good; ill of some disease they cannot comprehend; dis­t ressed by some irrat ional quarrel; madden­ed by soxoo thwar t ed inst inct or some sup­pressed or perver t ed desire".

H. G. Wells in "Men Like Gods "

-2-And let me suggest that many of these

normal fears are normal. Such normal fear gives rise to certain values and blessings. If we had no fear we could show no courage. I remember the road from Healey to Fearby. Afraid; but at least I made the trip. Real courage comes When a person goes on though afraid.

uut of normal fear, noble anxieties and fine loyal ties have their birth. ·rhus, captain of ocean liner fears nothing but the loss of his ship; and the scholar fears nothing but the betrayal of truth; and the mother fears nothing except suffering of her child. And because of those normal fears, the captain of the ship and the scholar and the mother do their job with undying loyal­ty and unswerving devotion. The capt-ain will stay up all the stormy night with his ship; the scholar will pore over his books search­ing for truth by candlelight; and the mother will stay all night by the bedside of her sick child.

ABNORMAL FEARS Might I also suggest that fear leads to skill, that is, normal fear. Confi­

dence does not come through fearlessness but comes when a man faces his fear and knows how to meet that fear and situation. Example

- l wouldn't trust a surgeon who assures me he has no fear. Normal fear leads to effic­iency.

Abnormal fear disables and paralyzes. Abnorma l fear makes a man into a miser - the fear of the future. Abnormal fear leads to nervous breakdowns and mental illness. Ab­normal fear fills us with vast, formless, misgivings and haunt and frighten us. lt is abnormal fear that destroys our happiness and peace of mind. Listen to H. G. Wells.

Says Shakespere; "Or in t he nigh , imagining some fear,

How easy is a bush supposed a bear ! tt

"The t hing to do is to shout . The bear is more afraid t han we. In the fear of ill-heal t h, t he act ion is to go w1 t hout. delay to a doc or. In fear of loneliness, t he act ion is to deliberat ely share some neighbor's suffering - t here is plent y t o share • In a vague , unfounded, form­less fear, t he proper act ion is work, a t hle t ics or a hobby. ~ racing engine soon chokes wit h carbon. The s t rat egy is t o t hrow in the clut ch."

George Buttrick

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Interesting to see how Jesus was sur ­rounded by fear in closing hours of His life upon this earth. See what a part fear played in that tense drama. ~veryone but Jesus was afraid when He came to die. Jesus was not afraid but others were. Priests in fear because of their position - Jesus was threatening that. ~harisees afraid of the populace. People afraid of their leaders. Pilate afraid of Caesar. "Thou art no friend of Caesar if thou let this man free" The soldiers were afraid - an army is ever a sign of fear. Disciples afraid - forsook Him and fled. But He was not afraid.

WHAT CAN WE DO? The practical question is right r here. Carlyle says "The measure of our man­

hood is the extent to which we have set our fear under our feet". No use saying fears do not exist, they are groundless and imag­inary. Need to face our fears frankly.

'l'ennyson, "He faced the spectres of his mind and laid them; thus at length he came to find a stronger faith his own". We need to face our fears; refuse to be black­mailed; we have paid enough .in the coin of nervous energy.

lt may be that we will have to have professional psychiatric help in order that we might discover the origin of our partic­ular fear. Psychology has brought both light and blessing and release in this field of ministry. Some of our fears are buried in the past; they need bringing to the fore­front of our consciousness. Then we see then for what they are and no longer do they make us afraid.

'l'here is value in action. We need to go bravely forward and shake the bush. Buttrick

But there is something else; some­thing deeper than anything I have suggest­ed. .I!' acing our fear is of value; psychi­atry can give us help in tracing abnormal fear to its origin; and action has value. ~ut something deeper is needed. And this something deeper can only be supplied by what we call faith.

'lihe real victory over fear is not in anything we can do for ourselves; and not in anything anyone else can d::l for us. Hut in .what God can do for us. And here 1 come to the text - "There is no fear in love; perfect love casteth out fear". John said that. .b'ear is overcome, driven out by the expulsive power of love.

The p erfect love is not our love. Our love at best is an imperfect thing. His is the perfect love - and it is that love ex­tended to us and it is our response to that love that casts out all fear. lt'ear of ill­health; fear of darkness; fear or future; fear of fa !lure; fear of death.

'l'he first words concerning Jesus were these; "Fear not, for behold I bring you tidings of great joy". And the last words ascribed to Him are these; "Fear not, I am the first and the last. 1 am He that liv­eth and was dead; and behold I am alive for evermore; and have the keys of death and of he 11". 'l'hrough that love and thro' our faith comes the power to handle all our fears •

..l!'or perfect love casteth out fear.