Not The Spirit Of Fear

Not the Spirit of Fear

2 Timothy 1:7

We live in fearful times. A pandemic has struck. People are afraid. The are afraid of dying from the disease. They are afraid for their loved ones. They are afraid of other people. We are all potentially biological weapons. We may infect others unwittingly. We are afraid of the economic repercussions. Will we lose our jobs permanently or even our home? Because the world is unstable, will this lead to a world war? The result is a general panic which threatens to engulf us.

One of the things we must understand about fear is that there is nothing new about fear and fearful times. Ninety years ago, the Great Depression filled most of the world with fear. World War 2 followed. Then the Cold War and fallout shelters. I could give many examples from various times and places. There is an existential quality about fear. We are not afraid of being consumed in the bubonic plague of the Middle Ages. It was certainly terrifying to them, but not to us because we did not live during these times. We live in the now. If someone 20 years from now were to read this sermon. They would have some other fearful situation to replace what I have just described. In some ways it might be familiar. We have suffered from the four horsemen of the Apocalypse from the time of the fall. The particulars and the names might be different. But you too will have to deal with fear.

What does the Bible have to say about fear. Since fear is a timeless reality of life, then the timeless Word of God should inform us of how to handle fear. And it does. I would like to read a verse from 2 Timothy 1:7 this morning: “For God has not given us the Spirit of fear, but of power, and of love and of sound mind.” Let us see this morning how this verse in particular and the Bible in general can help us deal with fear.

Paul was writing to Timothy in very troubled times. He was in prison for the sake of the Gospel. He knew his death was close at hand. He had been forsaken by a lot of his associates such as Demas. In many ways, Paul relived the sufferings of Jesus, even as we are all called to bear our own cross and follow Him. Paul also was deeply concerned for Timothy, his son in the faith. Timothy was timid. This is the first step to being fearful. Paul knew this could hinder Timothy’s ministry. He would see the example of Paul’s martyrdom, knowing that being bold like Paul could result in Timothy’s own death. It would be fair to say that Paul also feared death. Even Jesus in the Garden drew back from the cup before taking it. How Paul died would affect Timothy. It was necessary for him to be bold in the face of death, our greatest fear. Paul being bold in the face of death would embolden Timothy to proclaim the gospel. 2 Timothy, or perhaps Philippians, was the last will and testament of Paul.

In the verse we just read, we are reminded of how we are to deal with our own fear. The first step to confront fear is to remember who and whose we are. We have been given the Holy Spirit. This means that we are not alone, not even in the face of death. We need to remind ourselves of this often. We need to remember the examples of Scripture as a whole. Paul reminds Timothy of the Scripture that had been planted in him by his mother and grandmother. Timothy could be reminded of the timid Gideon in the Book of Judges. The Sprit emboldened Gideon to do great things. Things that were far above him. Scripture is full of such examples. Paul reminds Timothy and us that every Scripture is God-breathed and is profitable for our instruction and admonition. It is through this study of Scripture that we find our identity as the people of God.

Paul’s mention of his mother and grandmother also shows us the importance of community. We learn of our identity in community. In difficult times, we do not forsake the assembling of ourselves together, as the habit of some in the Hebrews community was. We learn together and teach one another. We face the trials of life together. Because we are together, we embolden one another. The people who laid hands on timothy at his ordination stood with him. But even if some fell away, this does not cancel the fact that God stands with us.

The tone of 2 Timothy breathes prayer as well. The identity of God’s people is tied up in our prayers, both individually and as a community. We can think from the Book of Acts of how Peter and John had been beaten and threatened with death if they continued to preach and heal in the name of Jesus. They returned to their church, and the church joined in prayer, a prayer so powerful that the place shook. And they were emboldened. They were reminded by their reciting the 2nd Psalm that God was in control, Fear was vanquished.