Free from Fear: Peace on Earth

It was an obscure benediction of Advent that jumped off the page of God’s Word. Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, had been mute until that day his son was named. His first words poured out prophecy for the coming Messiah, and have been recorded in Luke’s Gospel, chapter 1:67-79.

“That he would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies
might serve him without fear, In holiness and righteousness before him, all the days of our life.”

Luke 1:74-75

This phrase is in the middle of a long sentence, so it is helpful to read the entire context of Zechariah’s benediction. Yet, notice the words, “might serve him without fear.” Though Israel was under Roman domination, their enemies did not refer to Rome in this passage. Their enemy went all the way back to the Garden of Eden when God promised, “And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” Genesis 3:15

From the very beginning, the enemy of God has been a liar, twisting God’s words and using them against God and His creation. When God gave the children of Israel His Law, He gave them a system of sacrifices to make amends when they broke it. It was a picture of the sacrifice of His only Son who would some day make one sacrifice for all men for all time. The good news of the Gospel is that Jesus came to die, be buried for three days, and rise again, conquering sin, death, and the enemy forever.

However, to the political and religious leaders of Jesus’s day, the Law had become a means of control and a rule of fear to admit or deny access to God. The minutiae had become so precise that the number of steps one could take on the Sabbath without breaking the Law had to be counted. God’s Word had been turned into a tool of the enemy, using fear to control, rather than the display of compassion and mercy that God intended it to be.

Religion has always been used as a tool of Satan, twisting God’s words, pulling passages out of context, showcasing God as an angry despot ready to bring down the hammer on all who step out of line. When Jesus came, He confronted the religious and political rulers openly.

Luke 11:39-52 lays out Jesus’s case against those who use religion to control for man’s agenda. He spoke a series of “woes” to those who had kept the most detailed laws and overlooked God’s mercy. Later, one of Jesus’s disciples would pen the heart of God in 1 John 4:17-19.

Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world. There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love. We love him, because he first loved us.

John, under inspiration of the Holy Spirit, made it clear that God did not rule by fear. Fear is a tool of the enemy to place a wedge between God and man. Jesus came to break the chains of fear and bring His peace to every heart.

Anyone who believes on Jesus Christ as the Son of God, who came to take away the sin of the world, who calls on His mercy for her own sin, and asks Jesus to live in her heart will be free from the fear of death forever. 1 John again pens the promise, “And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.”

Yet even those who are born again into the family of God, though they trust God for eternity, may not have learned to trust Him in service. This is why Zechariah’s words jumped off the page and into my heart. Service and living for God can become a “have to or else” kind of life, even among believers.

Recently, I learned of a word used in Biblical counseling for an obsessive, religious pattern of thought based on fear. Scrupulosity is the “strict regard for what is considered right or proper” according to Merriam-Webster’s online dictionary. It is further defined by its “painstakingly exact” need for perfection.

How does this manifest itself in a Christian’s life? Often it can look like a deeply felt panic over whether one is saved, despite having already done what the Bible says to do for salvation. It can also show itself as a need to control one’s own life and others’ lives by clear-cut rules. There is a fear of failure if one is not perfect or does not look perfect to others.

What is a tell-tale marker of scrupulosity? Fear and anxiety underlie everything one does or does not do. Perhaps the sufferer believes that if she does not read her Bible that day something bad will happen to her. Another might not want to ever miss church for fear of God’s anger. If one does not tithe one week, that flat tire was God’s punishment. Fear of a prideful thought can hinder another from freely serving God with the gifts He has given her.

These thoughts can appear pious and holy on the surface, but they are really chains from the father of lies, removing the joy of service out of a heart of love, and making life an elusive search for approval and perfection.

Though I have only recently learned the name of this lie used by the enemy to hinder God’s people, it is something that has been at work in my life since childhood. Fear and anxiety have marked my own journey as long as I can remember. Though I learned of God’s amazing love for me as a child, and trusted in Him for salvation, that trust was confined to eternity. Everyday life still called for perfection in my mind. What if I messed up?

The Holy Spirit made the passage from Zechariah’s benediction an eye-opening revelation to these thoughts of my heart, and I want to share them with anyone else who may be struggling in this area.

This kind of thinking IS a LIE from the enemy. Please note that reading one’s Bible every day, choosing to be faithful to God’s house, tithing and serving Jesus to the best of one’s ability are all wonderful things. However, God intends these things to be motivated by love for the One who loved us first and gave Himself for us. He came to break the chains of fear and make service an outpouring of love for God and others. Any other motivation is not from Him.

As always, I welcome the comments and thoughts from my readers. Has “scrupulosity,” even a mild version, ever had a place in your life? Has the peace of Jesus made a difference in a way that religion never could?

When I wrote about Paul’s thorn in the flesh a few posts ago, I mentioned the paralyzing anxiety that I struggle with when I sing solos. This study “just happened” (as if anything ever just happens when God is on His throne!) to coincide with an opportunity to sing a solo with my church’s choir for our Christmas cantata. The Lord gave me peace and joy in service for these presentations rather than the fear that usually grips me. I am so thankful for the counsel God’s Word offers beyond what any person could even know.

Have a wonderful Christmas and blessed New Year, my friends!