The Fear of Man Bringeth a Snare

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The powers that be are not finished with COVID, but there is now also a new "public health emergency of international concern" known as “monkeypox.”

The Bible is clear: the only appropriate thing to fear is God, because fear leads to obedience. If you fear men (or any “emergency” that they tell you exists), you will obey men. If you fear God you will obey God.

Jesus said in Luke 12, “And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body and after that have no more that they can do. But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yeah, I say unto you, Fear him (4-5)."

We should view fear, paranoia, and superstition as built-in consequences of the sin of unbelief. Galatians 5:22 says, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance…” so anyone without the Holy Spirit will naturally be full of hate, misery, tumult, impatience, wrath, malice, doubt, arrogance, and excess.

In contrast to Galatians 5, notice the list of damnable traits in Revelation 21: “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death (8).”

Fearful is the first trait on this list, and unbelief follows right on its heels. You will find this connection between fear and unbelief throughout scripture. We all experience fear because we all have our sinful flesh, but we should recognize fear for what it is and use it as a spur to draw us closer to God rather than let it rule our lives. We have so many promises from God that he will be our stronghold in the day of trouble, so trust him and praise him for that!

With this in mind, what are we to make of these “churches” all over America that now require proof of COVID vaccination to attend their services? I drove past an Episcopal “church” offering Covid shots in their sanctuary in a town near where I live about a month ago. There are many professing Christians who subjected themselves to this medical experiment out of fear of losing their jobs, their friends, or their church. If there’s anything we must learn from all of this, it is Proverbs 29:25:

“The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the LORD shall be safe.”