Misplaced Fear

The Zip Line and the Fear We Face

Last Thanksgiving, I spent a week with my youngest daughter Evie in South Asia visiting some of our church partners. On the way home, we flew through Dubai, so we decided to spend a couple of days there. Evie wanted to do the longest zip line in the world—50 stories high, running through downtown Dubai.

I am terrified of heights, but this was going to be a core memory for my daughter, so we went for it. Evie, who I've never seen scared of anything, actually yelped when they strapped her in. That terrified me even more—if she was scared, this must really be something.

When it was my turn, lying there strapped to a single line 50 floors up, I thought, "This is what it's going to feel like when I die one day." I prayed, "God, help me know that you'll be with me in that moment, so I know you're with me now." I thought seriously about backing out. But Abby had already gone ahead of me, and my love for what was in front of me was greater than the fear within me. So I went for it.

We often face fears in life, and what keeps us moving forward is having a greater commitment to what's in front of us than to the fear we feel in the moment. But fear can also stop us—from relationships, from taking risks, from truly enjoying the life God has for us.

Fear as a Snare

Scripture describes fear as a trap that holds us back:

"The fear of mankind is a snare, but the one who trusts in the Lord is protected." (Proverbs, paraphrased)

Notice that the biggest snare Scripture warns about isn't fear of danger or death—it's fear of mankind, fear of other people. Christian counselor Ed Welch describes it this way:

"When we see people as bigger than God and out of the fear that creates in us, we give other people the power and right to tell us what to feel, think, and do."

Fear of mankind makes people big in our lives and God small. It's a form of idolatry—giving to people the worship and trust that belongs to God alone.

Four Idols Beneath the Surface

David Powlison, another Christian counselor, developed a model describing source idols—things beneath the surface that quietly shape how we relate to others. Identifying these isn't about condemnation; it's about recognizing what we struggle with so we can trust God more fully. Here are four:

1. Comfort — You look for stress-free relationships and avoid anyone who challenges you. You fear the expectations of others.
2. Approval — You long to be liked and accepted above all else. You fear rejection.
3. Power — You long to be seen as successful. You fear disrespect, which you internalize as humiliation.
4. Control — You long for certainty and want everything mapped out. You fear inconsistency, even from other people.

Martin Luther said that "under every behavioral sin is the sin of idolatry." Take materialism, for example—it's a surface sin, but beneath it might be comfort (accumulating things to reduce stress), approval (wanting to impress others), power (wanting to look successful), or control (wanting to manage every variable in life).

You can often identify your idol by what you fear most. Which of these tends to be your struggle—comfort, approval, power, or control?

Israel at the Edge of the Promised Land

We see this fear of mankind play out vividly in Numbers 13–14. God's people, rescued from Egyptian slavery, are camped at the edge of the Promised Land. God says:

"Send men to scout out the land of Canaan I'm giving to the Israelites."

Notice: God doesn't say, "go see if you can take it." He says, "I am giving it to you." This was the fulfillment of a promise made generations earlier to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

Twelve scouts go and return with an accurate report:

"We went into the land where you sent us. Indeed, it is flowing with milk and honey... However, the people living in the land are strong and the cities are large and fortified."

Everything they said was true. But notice the word however. The promise of God is true—however, the problems seem bigger than the promise. Ten of the twelve spies let that "however" dominate their report and stir up fear in the whole community.

But two were different. Caleb said:

"Let's go up now and take possession of the land because we can certainly conquer it."

Joshua and Caleb believed God's promise was bigger than the problem. The other ten believed the problem was bigger than the promise.

The Cost of Misplaced Fear

The people's response was shocking. They wept, complained, and said:

"If only we had died in the land of Egypt... Wouldn't it be better for us to go back to Egypt?"

They were trying to reverse their own salvation—preferring slavery to trusting God's promise. This is a picture of what Scripture calls apostasy: people who looked like they trusted God but, when tested, revealed they never truly had.

Moses and Aaron fell face down before the assembly. Joshua and Caleb pleaded:

"The land we passed through and explored is an extremely good land... Only don't rebel against the Lord. And don't be afraid of the people of the land... The Lord is with us. Don't be afraid."

God himself equates their rebellion with their fear of the people in the land. Fear of mankind is rebellion against God. It reveals a high view of people and problems, and a low view of God.

God's response is sobering. Though He pardons them from immediate destruction, He declares that this entire generation—everyone twenty and older who saw His miracles yet despised Him—would die in the wilderness without entering the land. Only Caleb (and later Joshua) would enter, because Caleb "has a different spirit and has remained loyal to me."　

Over a million people missed out on the promised land because they made people big and God small in their hearts. As C.S. Lewis put it:

"There are two kinds of people in the end: those who say to God, 'Thy will be done,' and those to whom God says, 'Thy will be done.'"

God gave that generation exactly what they asked for—life without Him.

Replacing Fear of People with Awe of God

The way to enter into the life God has for us is what Joshua and Caleb modeled: replacing all for people with all for God. Let's return to those four struggles:

• If comfort is your idol, replace fear of others' expectations with awe for God, your ultimate Comforter, who walks with you through every hard season.
• If approval is your idol, replace fear of rejection with awe for the One who has already approved you—not because of your performance, but because of Christ's finished work on the cross.
• If power is your idol, replace fear of disrespect with awe for the God who is already awesome. You don't have to be amazing; you simply give your awe to the One who is.
• If control is your idol, replace fear of inconsistency with awe for the God who is unchanging, faithful, and infinitely more capable of running the universe than you are.

When your "all" goes to people, your problems multiply. When your "all" goes to God, you see again and again that He is greater than your problems.

The Promise Greater Than Every Problem

The Israelites stood at the edge of the promised land—two believed God's promise was bigger than the problem; ten believed the problem was bigger than the promise. The question for us is the same: do you believe God's promise over your life is bigger than your problems, or do your problems loom larger than His promise?

Scripture tells us that all of God's promises are "yes and amen"—He always keeps His word. We know this because from that very story, in that very land, came the Promised One: Jesus Christ.

Jesus lived perfectly on our behalf, went to the cross, and there took away our sin, giving us His righteousness in exchange. He was buried, and on the third day He rose again—because He keeps every promise. He ascended to the Father's right hand, where He intercedes for us even now.

I absorbed something I hated—crippling fear of heights—because of my love for my daughter. Jesus, out of His love for you, absorbed something infinitely worse: the weight of your sin and shame on the cross, enduring hours of suffering and separation from the Father, so that He could forgive you and be with you forever.

His salvation is greater than the problem of your sin. His promise is always bigger than your problems.

Lord Jesus, help us in our minds to see you as bigger and all our problems as smaller. You are the great God who keeps all of your promises. In your name I pray. Amen.