When Fear Rules The Heart – Part II
“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” (1 John 4:18).
When read purposefully and reflectively, these words recorded by the apostle John are sobering. Yet more sobering is the fact that many disciples adversely allow a perfect fear to cast out love. And when fear rules the heart, we find ourselves courted by dragons as truth is suppressed in unrighteousness (Romans 1:18). But from where does such fear arise? It is borne of uncertainty, distraction, unbelief, sloth, and willful disobedience (Hebrews 12:14-15).
Fear Can Forfeit a Crown
In John’s letter to the Philadelphia church we read Jesus’ admonition for them to hold fast to what they have so that no one would take their crown (Rev. 3:11). To clarify, this does not imply an unsought thievery, accidental loss, or unwelcome dispute over said crown. Rather, Jesus’ words are an encouragement to hold fast to Him and the missional purpose He has granted, or He Himself will remove our crown (i.e. calling, influence) and give it to someone else who is humble and faithful enough to wear it.
Consider just a few examples from Scripture when souls lost their place/purpose to someone else. Cain lost his crown to Abel (Genesis 4). Ham lost his crown to Shem (Genesis 9:20-27). Esau lost his crown to Jacob (Genesis 25:34; 27:36). Reuben lost his crown to Judah (Genesis 49:4, 8). Saul lost his crown to David (1 Samuel 16:1, 13). Shebna lost his crown to Eliakim (Isaiah 22:15-25). Joab and Abiathar lost their crowns to Benaiah and Zadok (1 Kings 2:25). Judas lost his crown to Matthias (Acts 1:25-26). The Jews lost their crown to the Gentiles (Romans 11:11).
Each of these losses are tragic–in some cases salvation itself was forfeited (Hebrews 6:4-8). It often happens in life that one is given a task or mission, being chosen by God to walk with Him in accomplishing the same. Then that chosen one sets to the task with fervor and expectancy, only to be met with resistance and unexpected challenges that test physical, mental, and spiritual resolve which deplete all inspiration and motivation to press onward. Mistakes are made. Unbelief, unworthiness, inadequacy, and shame suddenly permeate one’s being, and just as suddenly they are removed from the mission and it is given to someone else. They have forfeited their crown, and God Himself has taken it for the lack of trusting in Him and in His strength.
As tragic as this is, however, God’s grace offers us the opportunity to begin again, though some opportunities may indeed be forever lost. When our folly leads to failure we must determine why we have failed and then cast ourselves upon Jesus Christ for further discernment and any restoration He may grant, for only when we walk in-step with Christ and the Holy Spirit can we succeed in the tasks He calls us to fulfill, and in taking up the crosses He has given us to bear (Luke 9:23-24).
Church Interrupted
When Jesus’ disciples became distressed as their Master slept amidst a storm at sea, they woke Him and asked if He even cared that they perish! He arose, calmed the tempest, and then scolded them for their shortsighted self-servitude: “Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?” (Mark 4:37-41).
Directly contradicting claims of “following Jesus,” multitudes of Christians have lost their way in the storms of life and cares of the world and are courting despondency due to imaginary crowns, fearful of receiving their true ones (accompanied by Jesus’ chastisement). At the same time, disciples are forfeiting the true crowns they wear due to indolence and sudden fear of the stewardship those crowns imply! This has led to a crisis of positional authority supplanting spiritual authority. Positional authority is granted or assumed and limited by humans despite one’s spiritual gifting or lack thereof. Spiritual authority is granted and governed by the Holy Spirit according to one’s spiritual gifting and specific function in the Church Body, and certainly in accord with one’s humility and worship of Christ.
This aberrant view of authority has seduced the Western church into exalting itself in place of God, forsaking the Spirit and Christ as Head of the Body. Church leadership has widely atrophied into a marketing/branding free-for-all and a failing excuse to make a name for oneself. Add to that a Christian individual’s coveted move into “full-time ministry” in order to 1) legitimize one’s call; 2) escape secular vocation; and 3) fulfill the idolatrous desire to be–dare I use the term?–relevant. What drives these pathetic pursuits? Pride, immaturity, ignorance, and fear of irrelevance–all born of not having one’s identity rooted in Christ (John 15:1-11; Ephesians 3:17-19).
Certainly, God calls some into full-time ministry-based vocations; but every disciple of Christ is called to full-time ministry regardless of what their vocations are. Moreover, we are not restricted to ministering to others only “at church.” We are the Church! We go and make disciples, they do not always come to us (Matt. 28:19-20). Realizing that our mission fields are our own spheres of influence (home, extended family, social network, career, school, recreation), and then proactively cultivating them, is a sign of spiritual maturity.
The apostle Paul emulated this when he refused personal financial support from known house churches and community assemblies (1 Cor. 9:18), choosing to ply his secular tent-making trade so as to work alongside and establish real-life connections with the unchurched wherever he went. Like Christ, Paul became the Church to all, that he might save some (1 Cor. 9:22-23).
Immature + Insecure = Spiritually Poor
Following the pandemic of self-servitude, it has become acutely evident that leadership in Western churches commonly neglects the vital aspect of discipleship. It may be mentioned from the lectern; it may be glossed over in a six-week study; it may be “encouraged” to percolate in small groups (with little to no immediate example). Discipleship is often mistaken for basic Bible study, small group discussions, theology classes, or even church attendance. Yet real-life, real-time, face-to-face, long-term invested discipleship remains tragically lacking in the majority of Western churches. Why? Because an unacceptable number of pastors, elders, teachers, and administrators are not disciples themselves! And it is not enough to be discipled by mentors alone. We must be actively discipled by Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit (John 14:26; 15:1-11). Otherwise, there is a surplus of information without spiritual transformation and souls will be full of themselves, not the Holy Spirit.
Sure the average church leader may have the spiritual upbringing, academic credentials, and requisite salvation story. But how much do they know about Jesus measured against how well they know Him personally? What do their prayer and worship lives look like apart from their necessarily routine Bible studies, fellowship, corporate public prayer, liturgical duties, and other ministry involvement? Are they being still and silently contemplating, worshiping, and listening to God in consistent solitude (Psalm 46:10; Luke 5:16)? Are they privately partaking of sufferings with Christ and consumed by His love or are they suffering from performance anxiety, church politics, church debt, low conversion statistics, and whether or not they get a decent paycheck and insurance coverage?
Our unChristian attitudes and motivations must change. We must stop avoiding our fears and we must stop constructing a false sense of self designed to impress both real and imagined critics, including our own self-critical voices! Consider: If we are beset with distraction and lack of focus when in the context of godly activities with fellow believers, then we are advertising our spiritual deficiency and defective discipleship. Any claims of a thriving private spirituality are rightfully suspect by the absence of outward fruit (Luke 6:43-45).
Poor attitudes and perspectives are rooted in personal insecurities, assumption, and guarded sin (Hebrews 12:14-15; James 4:1-10). Insecure individuals often see personal offenses where there are none and are commonly offended at the confidence of others, in the same way that many despised Jesus for His wisdom (Matt. 13:54-57; Luke 4:28-29). Such people inhibit their own maturity at every level as they distance themselves from those whom God would use to illuminate truth by instruction and example. Consequently, distance from God is likewise achieved as an unteachable spirit develops.
Additionally, personal motivation is frequently stained by the selfish hope to acquire God’s best with minimal pain, sacrifice, and effort–attempting to serve God on our terms, not His. This flesh-based view of motivation is devoid of love and fuels counterfeit discipleship. How so?
A Jesus of the Imagination is a Nice Guy… But Not God!
Many believe that Jesus does not want His followers to be burdened; for His yoke is easy, His burden light, and He offers rest (Matt. 11:28-30). This belief, however, betrays a naive grasp of Scripture and very limited exposure to the true Jesus. Indeed, His yoke, burden, and rest do not mean what most people think they mean.
Christianity in the West has been emasculated and recast in various molds of “prosperity gospels” and do-it-yourself “kumbaya churchianity.” Most Christians have been spiritually castrated, and the few who dare act with spiritual testicles (calling out hypocrisy, heresy, apostasy, counterfeit discipleship, pretense, sloth, etc) are considered arrogant, brash, or impolitic. Yet Jesus was held in like regard: He repeatedly–and publicly–leveled truth and stinging labels upon self-righteous charlatans, tersely reprimanded His disciples, curtly exposed the evil in those who believed themselves good, and sarcastically mocked those who took Him for a fool.
Fear and anxiety imprisons us in cells of contentment where our impact is least, by the devil’s design (1 Peter 5:8). Blissfully ignorant peace-mongering is all the rage despite the fact that we exist in the midst of a spiritual warzone. Jesus stated that His own would be as sheep sent out among wolves; and that He did not come to bring peace, but a sword (Luke 10:3; Matt. 10:34). These are not the words of a pacifist.
Truly, it appears that many Christians are called to comfort! This is even a selling point in the seeker-friendly culture of spiritual consumerism. Yet the inconvenient truth remains: we are not called to comfort, but to obedience. Jesus commands anyone who would follow Him to deny themselves and take up their cross (God-given burdens) or they are not worthy of Him (Matt. 10:38; Luke 9:23). Indeed, Jesus offers His peace and comfort along with the burdens He shares with us, but never instead of those burdens.
I explained in a previous article that our affluent Western church culture corrupts our perception of Jesus’ meaning, tempting us to interpret hard passages (and deceivingly simple ones) according to our own standards, not God’s. Too often we are quick to satisfy ourselves with our own understanding of Scripture (as it accommodates our preference) rather than humbly and eagerly listening to what the Spirit is truly saying. For the full treatment see The “Easy Yoke” and “Light Burden” of Discipleship Part I and Part II.
Fear Distorts the Clarity of Conversion
At some point in our Christian walk, we awaken to the fact that spiritual maturity is absolutely necessary to live as a Christian. So we determine to “get serious” about our faith and discipleship to Christ. We rightly understand that “being” is more important than “doing” yet we must do in order to be. And thus we begin attending a church or Bible group, or we become more purposeful if already a part of such. We attempt to establish set times of devotional reflection and prayer; we aim to be more attentive and compassionate toward others; and we intend to be more frugal in both our secular and spiritual pursuits. A season of spiritual growth may begin, but then comes the rub.
Our other life responsibilities (genuine or assumed) and recreations have not diminished or been appropriately managed or sacrificed. Internal conflict arises. Our newly minted spiritual disciplines of prayer, Bible reading, studies, ministry involvement, and deeper fellowship reveal the need to be even more zealous for Christ and ever more available to Him. Yet we become fearful that life is passing us by and we cling to our old self and its worldly ways, convinced that others (especially Christians) are enjoying themselves just fine with a casually convenient approach to discipleship. God understands if we are more enthralled with temporal and fictitious kingdoms than with His own, right? God understands if we are on Facebook more often than on our face before Him, right?
This is where our commitment to Christ is cross-examined and a clarity of conversion is either gained or passed over for the golden calves in our lives that shine brighter than the Light of the World. At this crossroad, we recognize our addiction to occupying our lives with anything but Jesus Christ. We also recognize, admittedly or not, that the pursuit of God is a personally progressive endeavor that requires much patience, courage, and joyful expectancy that most souls cannot or will not cultivate. Yet we are without excuse (Luke 14:16-24; James 1:22-26)!
Indeed, the Holy Spirit has been made available to us for this very reason; we could never manufacture and indefinitely sustain in the flesh the discipline required to wholly follow Jesus (John 14:15-17, 26). Only complete surrender to Him in true humility will invite His Spirit to ignite our spiritual hunger and enable us to worship Him in spirit and truth (John 4:23-24), finally free of self-victimization and the expectations of others that so long eclipsed the relational reality of Jesus as Savior, Friend, and God! Such spiritual hunger and freedom welcomes those burdens that Christ would share with us for the sake of His kingdom–a privilege that none of Christ’s own would forsake!
As I detailed in Part One of this series, the forsaken context of worship must be recovered before our identity in Christ is restored to where divinely appointed burdens do not hinder but compel us toward action.
“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind… Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God” (2 Tim. 1:7; 2 Cor. 7:1).
[Art from film The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug]