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Fear also impacts the world of politics, social interaction, and the interplay between cultures and ethnicities.  Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, former Chief Rabbi of the UK and Commonwealth, speaks about how to approach the future without a spirit of fear.  He begins by asking what people worship in modern times, saying. 

I think future anthropologists will take a look at the books we read on self-help, self-realization, self-esteem.  They’ll look at the way we talk about morality as being true to oneself, the way we talk about politics as a matter of individual rights, and they’ll look at this wonderful new religious ritual we have created, you know the one?  Called the “selfie.”  And I think they’ll conclude that what we worship in our time is the self, the me, the I. 

He describes the danger of such focus on the self. 

When we have too much of the “I” and too little of the “we,” we can find ourselves vulnerable, fearful and alone.. . . So I think the simplest way of safeguarding the future “you” is to strengthen the future “us” in three dimensions: the “us” of relationship, the “us” of identity and the “us” of responsibility.” 

The ”us” of relationship  

After reflecting on the wisdom of marrying someone entirely different from him, he states that it’s the people not like us that make us grow. 

The trouble with Google filters, Facebook friends and reading the news by narrowcasting rather than broadcasting means that we’re surrounded almost entirely by people like us whose views, whose opinions, whose prejudices, even, are just like ours.  And Cass Sunstein of Harvard has shown that if we surround ourselves with people with the same views as us, we get more extreme.  I think we need to renew those face-to-face encounters with the people not like us. 

The “us” of identity

Rabbi Sacks notes how our American memorials in D.C. tell our story through quotes from Lincoln, Jefferson, King.  As a nation of immigrants, this telling of the story has allowed us to welcome the stranger among us.   

But when you stop telling the story, your identity gets weak and you feel threatened by the stranger. . . . I think collectively we’ve got to get back to telling our story, who we are, where we came from, what ideals by which we live.  And if that happens, we will become strong enough to welcome the stranger and say, “Come and share our lives, share our stories, share our aspirations and dreams.” 

The “us” of responsibility

Focusing on “we the people,” Rabbi Sacks emphasizes that “we all share collective responsibility for our collective future.”  Rather than looking to one political leader or party, the extremes at the far right and the far left, or even the presence (or absence) of God to magically solve all our problems, we need to “move from the politics of me to the politics of all of us together.” 

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Romans 12:4-7 

Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone.  To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. 

Pray

Let us pray, 

Lord God, you embrace the strength of community working together.  As we look to the future, open our hearts to seek the good of all, being people of reconciliation rather than division, communication rather than silence, partnership rather than opposition.  We pray in the name of the one who surrounded himself with disciples, Jesus Christ our Lord. 

Amen. 

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Fear impacts lives both individually and corporately.  Take the church, for example.  For centuries, organized religion (of all faiths) has taken advantage of people’s fear of death, fear of the unknown, and fear of isolation to create a dependence upon the church.   

Early in his life, Martin Luther struggled with his vision of an angry God.  Having been raised by tremendously strict parents, where being beaten was a regular occurrence, Luther viewed God in much the same light as he viewed his parents – as one he desperately tried to appease, but failed to do so. 

In modern times, Christianity is sometimes viewed in much the same way.  Confusing God and Santa Claus, there is this “you’d better watch out” mentality, that God is always watching to see if we’ve been “bad or good” which is to motivate us to “be good.”  Fear – in implicit and explicit ways, is used as a motivator. 

It wasn’t until Luther studied Romans that he experienced his “aha moment.”  The first verse that caught his attention was Romans 1:17, where it says “The one who is righteous will live by faith.”  Then he read: 

Romans 3:22-25 

For there is no distinction, since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a sacrifice of atonement by his blood, effective through faith. 

Instead of a wrathful God looking for a reason to punish us, God was revealed to be one of intense love, mercy and forgiveness.  For he gave his own Son (or from a more Trinitarian point of view, he gave himself) as a sacrifice of atonement on the cross.  In Christ, we have no need to fear, for our God loves us totally and completely – in spite of our imperfection. 

So if you have heard people use God’s name to stir fear in someone else, or have found yourself thinking that way personally, recall Christ’s sacrifice on the cross.  “Be good” because that’s what a beloved child of God looks like!  Love others as Christ has first loved us. 

Pray

Let us pray, 

Lord God, your love drives out all fear.  Help us to embrace that truth and exemplify it to others.  We pray in the name of the one who died on our behalf, Jesus Christ our Lord, 

Amen. 

Please contact the church office if you’d like to receive the daily devotions through email. 

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Proverbs 1:7 

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction. 

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It would seem amiss to address fear without discussing a concept found throughout the scriptures: “the fear of the Lord.”  Believing in a good and gracious God, how do we understand the concept of fearing God, which is found repeatedly in Scripture. 

In Hebrew, there are two distinct phrases translated as “fear” in English.  One literally means “shaking” – as in shaking in fear because you know there is an approaching army who intends you harm.  This is not the word used in conjunction with “fear of the Lord.”  The word in “fear of the Lord” literally means “flowing of the gut,” or “pouring out.”  When connected to Yahweh’s name, this points towards an outpouring of reverence and awe at the power and might of God.  So while God certainly has the power to do anything to us, a reality which could be frightening, the Biblical call to “fear of the Lord” is to stir in a Christian increased awe and reverence of God. 

I recently had a conversation with a church member who had been speaking with a friend about her faith.  A disillusioned Roman Catholic, his friend stated that she could be a Christian without going to church.  While I do believe that one can have faith in Jesus without “organized religion,” going to church, worshiping regularly, is critical to a vibrant faith.  All of us struggle against apathy in our spiritual lives.  But practicing one’s faith alone runs a high risk of losing that sense of awe and reverence. 

As seen in our Proverbs text above, “the fear of the Lord” also points to a right relationship with God – one of humility and receptiveness.  We are clearly the student and God the teacher.  When we stop “fearing” God, we start thinking we have all the answers, our prayer life becomes a one-way list of demands “fix this, heal them, give me that.”  In contrast, worship draws us beyond ourselves and our constant self-focus.  It is important! 

So as we seek to fast from fear, may we also seek to increase our awe – that deep and true worship which flows from the gut – that we would pour out our awe at God’s majesty, power, and grace. 

Pray

Let us pray, 

Lord God, you are Lord of the universe, creator of all, crafter of mountains and designer of capillaries.  You truly are an awesome God.  Stir in us a deep reverence.  May awe at your majesty flow from our souls.  We pray in the name of the one who raised the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

Please contact the church office if you’d like to receive the daily devotions through email.