by Alan Langstaff

If you have been a pastor for a number of years you have a challenge on special days in the Christian year such as Christmas and Easter. The challenge is to find something new and fresh to turn into a sermon. At Christmas for example you have probably had sermons about, Mary & Joseph, about the birth in Bethlehem, the Shepherds, the wise men, etc. Yes it is often hard to find something fresh and new.

Well this year, although I am no longer a pastor, I found something new, at least for me. This year I have been reading a chronological Bible and so I have already read the Christmas Story. By the way, I am on the way to completing the Bible at the end of the year.

As I read the Christmas Story a fresh thought came to my mind. It is this – how many times “fear” is mentioned in the Christmas Story.

So let us look at “fear” in the Christmas Story, but first of all, let us be clear on what we mean by fear.

DEFINITION OF FEAR

Fear is something everyone usually faces at times in their life. Some experience fear more than others and it becomes an ever-present anxiety that almost paralyzes them and holds them back from acting.

It is natural to fear at times. But for the purpose of this article, let’s just look at the spiritual side of fear, particularly. Here, we see “fear” as a sense of awe that a person experiences when experiencing a divine presence.

It is a sense of awe that speaks of the feeling one has when they are faced with an encounter with the Lord or His Angels. Here is a list of some of these occasions mentioned in the Christmas story. Let me give you three examples.

ZACHARIAS
Zacharias, the father of John the Baptist had an encounter with an angel of the Lord and in Luke 1:12 it says Zachariah “was troubled, and fear fell upon him.” Fortunately, the angel told him “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard.” (Luke 1:13 NKJV)

MARY
An angel appeared to her and her response was “she was troubled” at the angel’s greeting, but the Angel reassured her saying “Do not be afraid Mary for you have found favor with God.” (Luke 1:30 NKJV)

JOSEPH
Joseph was undoubtedly troubled by the fact that his betrothed wife was pregnant. An angel appeared to him in a dream telling him “Do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife.” (Matthew 1:20 NASB)

Now, we will come back to this later in this article.

In other words, on each occasion as they experienced a divine visitation in these cases with Angels their initial reaction was to be fearful or troubled.

So let us look at fear.

NATURAL FEAR

Natural fear is often unpleasant and quite often it is a strong emotion that can also be associated with danger in some way. If you are standing at the very edge of a deep precipice you fear and feel the danger of falling.

Indeed some people have ignored this aspect of danger and have tried to take a “selfie” only to end up falling to their death. Fear can be there to protect us.
Even animals exhibit fear. Our first dog, Scottie, a blue cattle dog would never show fear except when a storm arose. Then he would hide under a bed.

Now fear can have a serious side to it and develop into constant anxiety, phobias, etc., and may require skilled counseling and prayer to overcome.
In 1971 on my first plane trip, I discovered I suffered from claustrophobia (fear of enclosed spaces). A fear, by the grace of God, I overcame and embarked on 40 years of flying.

SPIRITUAL FEAR

a) Negative Spiritual Fear

This is an abnormal fear originating from the demonic and can manifest itself in various ways. One time Dorothy and I were away with a group of young people at our holiday house at Macmasters Beach north of Sydney. We were having a group meeting one evening when suddenly everyone in the group felt fear of some kind. It was a strange experience. We took authority over it in the name of Jesus and it lifted from all of us.

Perhaps in more than one way, the devil tries to stop us from following the Lord by tempting us to feel fear about doing something and not obeying the Lord. How many people have failed to fulfill their calling because they were afraid to take a step of faith.

Now I am aware that we are not to live in fear for indeed God’s word declares God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and love and a sound mind. (2 Timothy 1:7)

b) Positive Spiritual Fear

There is however another positive kind of fear. It is the fear of the Lord.

This is the kind of fear that we read about in the Bible and especially in the examples from the Christmas Story. Remember the stories of Zacharias, Mary, and Joseph. The initial feeling that all of them had was that of a fear of the Lord that involved a sense of awe, a sense of profound reverence towards the Lord, or even relating to His Angels.

So the Bible has many verses about the fear of the Lord. For example, Proverbs 9:10 “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” (NKJV)

A CHRISTMAS CHALLENGE

Let me suggest a Christmas challenge. A challenge of rediscovering “the fear of the Lord.” To make sure that there is a sense of awe and a profound respect for God at this Christmas time, to meditate on Christmas and what it really means. It is not just a nice warm fuzzy feeling. It is the recognition that at the first Christmas God the Father sent His only Son Jesus into the world, born of a virgin with the specific task of taking our sins upon Himself and dying in our place on the cross. Christmas and Easter go together. They are all part of the one story – the story of redemption.

So let us come, with a sense of awe and a profound reverence and like the shepherds and the wise men, bow before one who was born a baby but is now the Lord of Lords and the King of Kings.

Finally, Merry Christmas from all of us at Kairos Ministries.