One of the two will ultimately characterize the soul of the individual. The Scriptures give considerable insight on both. The life of the Christian is to be marked by faith, faith in the Person of Christ and in His Word. We enter God's Plan by faith in Christ; simply believing that on the Cross He paid our sin debt and freely offers us eternal life. It is always faith alone in Christ alone. The challenge then for the believer is to grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord. When we fail to fulfill that command, fear finds itself into the soul. It expresses itself in that which causes worry and agitation. The Greek word is “phobos” from which we have the English word Phobia. Over and over the Scriptures remind us to fear not. Moses addressed the Exodus generation with an admonition --
… “Be strong and of good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the Lord thy God he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.”(Deut 31:6)
Yet applying that truth by faith sometimes seems so difficult. A generation later, Joshua had to instruct those about to enter into the land what God had promised with these words --
... “And Joshua said unto them, Fear not, nor be dismayed, be strong and of good courage: for thus shall the LORD do to all your enemies against whom ye fight.”(Josh 10:25)
That which is unknown is always a potential for arousing fear, even in those who trust in the Lord. The angel in announcing to Mary that she would bear the humanity of the Christ began with the words “fear not.” The same was necessary on the night of the Savior's birth as those faithful shepherds of the Temple sheep would be privileged to hear the long awaited announcement of the Messiah’s birth. Our Lord Himself appeared to John in exile with the words “fear not.” The Lord then commissioned the apostle to write the book of the Revelation. If fear is to be overcome, it must be overcome with faith. Not a blind faith, but a faith that is grounded and rooted in the Word of God. The Apostle Paul wrote to the Church concerning faith --
… “So then, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message comes through preaching Christ.”(Rom 10:17)
Martin Luther ignited the 'fires of the Reformation as he came to believe for himself --
… “that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law”(Rom 3:28)
Fear will be a part of life, but greater is faith that is directed toward God and His Word. It has been well said -- "fear knocked at the door, faith answered, no one was there." May we be as those individuals recorded for us in Hebrews the eleventh chapter, who by reliance on God's Word had an impact for God in their generation and in the nation.