Overcoming Fear: A Biblical Response to Fear And How To Overcome It

Article by

Pastor Bobby

Isaiah 41:10

[10] fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. (ESV)

I have always been deathly afraid of heights. I don't know when it started or why. I never had some traumatic event or anything like that. I just have always been afraid of heights. However, I remember one family trip that I had to face those fears. When I was about nine or ten years old. My family and I went on a family trip to The Royal Gorge. The Royal Gorge is a famous wide and high gorge in the mountains of Colorado. What makes The Royal Gorge even more amazing, is that it has one of the largest wood plank bridges in America. So for someone who has a fear of heights, it was a nightmare. And I remember the feelings I had so well. We get to the bridge, and I take a step on it. Then my dad tells me just don't look down. So... I look down. At that moment I was paralyzed with fear. So I had a choice I could overcome my fear or I could ruin the family trip for everyone. After a couple minutes of standing there in fear, my dad insured me that there was nothing to worry about. He then went on to tell me how the bridge had been there for such a long time. As well as how people do maintenance on the bridge all the time. So there was nothing for me to worry about. At that moment I decided to put my faith into what my dad was saying, and I had started to move. After we cross the bridge a couple more times, we headed home. The thing that I remember the most is how proud I was to listen to my father overcome the fear I had felt at that moment. Am I still afraid of heights yes, but I can now overcome that fear a lot easier. Our heavenly father is telling us the same thing whenever we are feeling afraid. That through His strength we can overcome all the fears that we are feeling. There is a popular trend amongst Christians, that the Bible tells us 365 times to not fear. Now while this is not necessarily proven or the case. Mainly because of different interpretations and so on. The sentiment is the same. We should allow fear to paralyze us, especially when we are doing God's well. Because there will be times that we are called to be out of our comfort zone. So during those time we must overcome our fear so we do God's will.

To be able to overcome fear, we need to have a deeper understanding of what fear is. Now I know that most people have at least a basic understanding of fear, or they at least know what they are afraid of. For example like me and heights. But what truly is fear? According to dictionary.com, "Fear, at its core, is a natural human emotion triggered by perceived threats, both real and imagined, and serves as a survival mechanism. It's a complex interplay of physiological and psychological responses that prepares the body for action. While fear can be a powerful motivator for self-preservation, it can also be debilitating when it becomes irrational or excessive." So, according to this at based level. Fear is an emotional response to get the body ready for something we think can hurt us. Which this also means that in it self fear is not a bad thing, and is really just trying to keep us from danger. The problem come in when we are so overtaken by fear that we are paralyzed by fear or are unable to do what God is calling us to do. All fear is, an emotion. The problem is when we allow the emotion to control us, rather than us controlling the emotion. And this isn't just with fear, this is with any emotion. It's just as bad if we let sadness, anger, or even happiness control us. And so, one of the things we must do is not allow our fear to control us, but we must control our fear. Fear is just warning us to be careful About what we might getting our self into. So like I said, inherently fear is not a bad thing. Let alone, we must also remember the Bible tells us in multiple places that we must fear the Lord our God. Proverbs 1:7, "[7] The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction." (ESV). But what does it mean to fear the Lord? Are we supposed to be scared of God? The simple answer is no. When it tell us in the Bible to fear the Lord. What the Bible is telling us is that we need to have great reverence and respect for God, not a cowering fear. It is often described as the beginning of wisdom and a source of blessing. Basically we are saying that we realize how great God is, and have true respect and awe for Him. You see this in the translations of fear in the Bible. For the Hebrew the word fear is translated from Yirah. While the Greek word for fear is Phobos. Which both means "fear," "terror," "alarm. However, the second definition is always reverence", "awe" and "respect". This show that when we see in the Bible to fear the Lord. It is telling us, we should respect, show reverence, and stand in awe of our God. What it is not telling us, is that we should fear God in the common sense. I think it is really important that we know the difference between the two. Especially when someone who is a new believer in Christ, or someone who doesn't know Christ as us about what the Bible tells us about fear. Because the Bible does speak about fear in a positive and negative. So, we need to be able to navigate the difference between the two fears in the Bible.

When looking at the negative fear, one will notice that a lot of times it is paired with anxiety. Anxiety is defined as, "Intense, excessive, and persistent worry and fear about everyday situations. Fast heart rate, rapid breathing, sweating, and feeling tired may occur." (dictionary.com). You can see why a lot of times that anxiety is grouped with fear. I mean one can even say that fear causes anxiety, or anxiety is a of fear. But let's dig into the group of anxiety and fear. Because they really are in changeable between each other. For example, Philippians 4:6-7, "[6] do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. [7] And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Do not be afraid would also fit well into this passage. But what is being said here still stands. We should not let anxiety and fear run our life. But we need to turn it over to God and allow His peace to run over us. We just need to be careful because fear can turn into anxiety. Then fear and anxiety can turn into doubt.

If one's fear is not severe enough it can cause us to become paralyze and can cause us to doubt that God has told us to do something and even doubt the exact of God. Now again, doubt in itself is not a completely bad thing. Which I know some people might disagree with. But doubt can actually be used to strengthen someone's faith. Doubt, when properly addressed, can be a catalyst for a stronger, more profound faith. Rather than viewing doubt as the opposite of faith, it can be seen as a natural part of a believer's journey, prompting deeper exploration, questioning, and ultimately, a more informed and resilient belief. However, like with fear. There can be a negative side to doubt as well. Mainly because like I said, it causes someone to walk away from their faith. Why is this? Will when it comes to prayers or something God is calling us to do. Fear and anxiety can start to sink in. This can cause us to doubt that God can answer our prayers or can cause us to doubt that God called us to do what God called us to do. And all of this doubt is all because of fear. This fear causes us to need to blame someone, so we blame God. Then we can doubt so much it causes us to walk away from our faith. See if we let fear control our life, it can truly ruin our lives.

The question is then, how can we biblically overcome fear? The first thing we need to do to overcome fear is, trust in the fact that God is God. We need to believe and know that God is the most powerful being in the world and that He is in control. I believe Psalms 46:10-11 says it the best, "[10] “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!” [11] The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah" (ESV). Sometimes we just need to be still and have faith that God is God. Now yes this has a lot to do with our faith, which a lot of the ways to overcome fear will have to do with our faith. However, the point still stands we must recognize and know God is God. So how does this help overcoming Fear? Like I said before, it's recognizing that God is God and He's in control. So even when we are afraid. We are realizing that what ever happens God is in control and God will use it for His will. Knowing that God is God can help alleviate fear by fostering trust in His sovereignty, power, and love, leading to a sense of peace and security. By recognizing God's presence and His promises to be with us, especially in difficult times, individuals can find strength and courage to face their fears.

The next thing we can do to overcome fear is, to devote yourself to prayer and thanksgiving. Philippians 4:6-7, " ⁶ do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. ⁷ And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." This is one of the best wats we can battle fear. First by being in consistent contact with the most powerful being in the universe. This is another part of recognizing and knowing who God is. Because one we know God is God. We are invited to have a relationship with God. We are able to have a relationship with God because of what Jesus did on the cross. Once we accept that we can now pray and communicate with God on a deeper level. There is a lot of comfort in being able to pray to God. And the great this is we can come to him just the way we are. We do not have to use fancy made-up church words. We can just speak how we normally speak. Of course, we must be respectful and remember that this ius God we are speaking to. However, He craves a relationship with us and want us to talk to Him. Look at King David there are times where he is yelling at God because of how much pain he was. And God listened to his pain. God also listened to King David's fears as well. And once God listened to David's fears, God comforted David. God does the same for us when we are feeling afraid. This is why it is so important to pray to God. So that he can comfort us, when we tell him we are feeling fears. God comforts us in a couple different ways. One, is He allows His calming presence upon us. Just knowing that He is with us is so calming. The other way prayer helps, is God reminds us of His promises. He reminds us that everything God promises comes true. So, this will allow us to remember all the things that God has promised His followers. The Bible is filled with promises that will help us when we are facing fears especially when God is calling us to do things. For an example Matthew 7:7-8, "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. ⁸ For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened." (ESV). When we feel overwhelmed by fear you can find comfort in praying over these promises. Like the promise above. In my personal I know that I had to do this many times. One time in particular, after college I was moving to Indiana. I had a lot of fears during that time, because I was moving to a new state where I didn't know anyone. I began to pray over Jeremiah 29:11, "For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare^[a] and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope." (ESV). Praying on this promise, replaced all my fear with faith. Knowing that God would take care of me and use everything for His will. The second part to this is by being thankful. The reason this is such being thankful allows us to know what and remember the things God is and has done for us all. This allows to know and have faith that through all the fears we might have. God has already blessed us is many ways. Agan the second way to overcome fear is by devoting yourself to prayer and thanksgiving.

The third way to overcome fear is by continuing to develop your relationship and faith in God. As most Christian know, our relationship and our faith plays a big part in being a Christain. They also play a huge part in overcoming fear as well. The closer we get to Jesus, the stronger our faith in Christ becomes. And like I said faith is such an important part because our faith in Jesus is what saves us. John 3:16 talks a lot about this, "“For God so loved the world,^[a] that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." Whoever believes in Him will be saved. So how can this help us overcome fear? We know and believe that our Lord and Savior has saved us from sin and death. If we know that then we will have faith that through the fear, he will carry us through. Even if that means something bad happens or something we don't want to happen. We know and believe that God will use it for His will. And the closer we get and the stronger relationship with Jesus. The more this we know that God is in control and will use everything for his will and plan. So even when we are afraid, our faith in Christ will carry on.

The fourth way to overcome fear is by knowing the ending of the story. The book of Revelations tells us the end of the story. And the end of the story is with Jesus defeating the Devil for good. Revelations 21:3-6 says, "³ And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place^[a] of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people,^[b] and God himself will be with them as their God.^{[c] 4} He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.” ⁵ And he who was seated on the throne said, “Behold, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.” ⁶ And he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give from the spring of the water of life without payment." We see Jesus is victorious, and that he will create a new heaven and earth. This allows us to overcome fear because we have confidence in the knowing that Jesus has won the war. This confidence will allow us to ignore the fear and do what God is calling us to do. For example God tells us to go to someone and tell them about Jesus. But all of the sudden we have fears coming over us. Fears of saying the wrong things, fears thinking your not adiqute enough to tell people about Jesus. But if you already know Jesus won the war. Then you can push those fears to the side and do what God wants you to do.

All in all, we are all affected by fears in one way or the other. But God gives us the power and equipes us to fight and over come these fears. Not with our strength, but with His own strength. So my brothers and sisters let us take cofidce in Jesus winning the war. So fear does not have a hold on us, unless we let it.