Sudden Fear
From Pastor Kevin King
Proverbs 3:25 says to be not afraid of sudden fear. Sudden fear is fear that swarms us without warning or notice. We have no time to prepare or gird ourselves. It just comes into our lives suddenly. It’s one thing to have a heads-up that something is coming, even if I don’know what it is. At least I can maybe not be shocked when whatever it is shows up. But sudden fear comes suddenly. Since I can’t prepare, I don’t know in what area to strengthen my faith or pray for wisdom. How do I navigate such a situation?? The next verse, verse 26, says that the Lord shall be our confidence and will keep our feet from being taken. ‘Being taken’ is to put in a noose or trap. God knows the end from the beginning, so He also knows everything in between. Though we don’t know what the sudden fear is about, God does, and He already knows how to help us. We keep peace by responding to the sudden fear with confidence in God - not a specific confidence, but a general confidence in God. He knows what it’s about, He’s bigger than the source, and He knows how to help us. Let that confidence comfort you.
In Mark 5:22-36 we read about a man named Jairus whose daughter was extremely sick and close to death. Jairus caught up to Jesus to plead for Him to come and minister to her so she would live. Jesus was delayed by the woman with the issue of blood, and by the time He was finished with her, the daughter had died. An associate of Jairus came and gave him the bad news and said to not trouble the Master any further. Translation - the girl is dead, there’s nothing else that can be done. Don’t bother Jesus because not even He can do anything to help her. It’s over. The Bible then tells us that ‘As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken,’ He said unto Jairus, ‘Be not afraid, only believe.’ Jesus knew the daughter was going to live again, but Jairus didn’t know that. It was too late, she was dead. His faith was fading. But Jesus protected what remained of Jairus’s faith by immediately combating the fear so that it could not take root and destroy what was left. In other words, Jesus was telling Jairus to not be afraid of sudden fear, but rather let the Lord be his confidence. The next time you are confronted with a sudden fear, do not panic, but be confident that the Lord knows what to do. We just believe.
