Fear
Fear is a subject I think we are all uncomfortable with and avoid in some way. We tend to redefine it in order to avoid dealing with it. We take a verse like, “The Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” and change fear to “awe” instead. I am not suggesting that this is “wrong,” but it can be a way around this uncomfortable subject. This verse is not implying that this fear is “eternal conscious torment!” or something like that, but the awakening of our consciousness to the One “. . . who sees the end from the beginning.” Therefore, a healthy use of fear is a good thing.
Another example is what my oldest brother calls the “Salvation Oracle,” “fear not,” or “be not afraid.” One of the most often used greetings when we encounter the Divine presence in often difficult and challenging situations. Again, how true and beautiful the truth of this wise statement is!
A Place for Fear
As usual, MacDonald takes on challenging subjects with the insights that only one who sees the big picture can offer. MacDonald offered these insights for our consideration in his sermon, “The Fear of the Lord”. As a father of four willful children, ones very much like their parents, I had seen a time and place for the virtues of fear to be applied. Children, in the beauty of play and discovery, seem to be drawn to dangerous places and things, being totally unaware of their potential harm. For instance, if playing on their driveway is good, then the larger, flat playground of the street would be even better! They have no idea of the danger it presents. They have no experience to draw on to inform their choice. They KNOW what fun playing in the street is, so they cannot be reasoned with either. Therefore, “No, I will discipline you if you go into the street” is an acceptable response of a wise parent. This fear of the street given to them by a loving parent protects them while the necessary wisdom is learned.
A time will come when this boundary will be understood as love. A time when wisdom learned, “. . . by costly and actual experience” will be appreciated. However, in the meantime, fear will hold and protect them for its season. And yes, there is a time coming when fear is no longer helpful but harmful in developing a deeper relationship of mutual love and respect with your child. Then and only then can the boundaries set by fear be abandoned! Then can the “Salvation Oracle” be Wisdom’s response and call us to maturity, freedom, and Life!
Our Father’s Children
We are all God’s children, and He sees what we do not and lovingly protects us from ourselves in a life and world we lack the wisdom to navigate! What we call maturity is to give up play and discovery with its parental guided freedom for different forms of behavioral controls. A fear umpired by our own goals and ambitions rather than a love that liberates us in relationship. Becoming what we are is a natural journey of discovery in which we begin letting go of the fear of a God who we think wants to take away our control to replace it with His own and instead see Him as a Father who wants the fullness of Their Life for us, a Life and Joy we know little or nothing about on our own. Our Father is for us, not for us in remaining in our terrible twos, but for us in becoming mature sons and daughters after the image of our own true nature and self.
We can trust Jesus in His strength to finish what They have started. For in Him is Divine Power perfected in our human weakness. Jesus is the One in whom these extremes find a compassionate balance and a grace for freedom and Life!
Use of Fear is the introductory blog for the Sermon below: