Where Is Fear Silencing Your Faith?

Last Sunday we talked about something every Christian deals with sooner or later: worrying about what other people think.

Jesus said, “And I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do” (Luke 12:4).

That sounds simple enough. But it isn’t always easy to live out.

WATCH THE FULL SERMON: Courage Under Pressure — Luke 12:1–12]

During the sermon, I told a story from when I was a young Christian.

I came to Christ during my freshman year of college. Before that, I had been involved in a social fraternity. As I began growing in my faith, I gradually started moving away from that crowd and spending more time in a campus ministry.

Sometime later, some of my Christian friends talked me into taking them to a fraternity mixer.

Before I even made it inside, one of the fraternity guys saw me and said something like, “Stegemueller, are you still hanging around with those Jehovah’s Witnesses?”  It was his way of making fun of me. To him, serious Christianity looked more like a cult.

And I still remember how that made me feel.

I was embarrassed. I felt out of place. And to be honest, I just wanted to disappear.

I wish I could tell you that I stood there and boldly told him about Jesus.

I didn’t.

Fear silenced me.

And instead of looking at those guys and thinking, They need Jesus, I mostly wanted to stay away from them.

Looking back, I can see that I missed an opportunity.

That was a long time ago, but the problem behind it is still around.

We all care more about what people think than we probably want to admit.

Maybe it isn’t at a fraternity house. Maybe it is at work. Maybe it is around family. Maybe it is with a group of friends. Maybe somebody says something, and you know you ought to speak up, but you hesitate.

You start wondering, What are they going to think about me?

Sometimes fear keeps us quiet. Other times it causes us to soften what we really believe because we don’t want to offend anybody.

I’ve had to wrestle with that as a preacher too.

Especially when I was younger, I wanted people to understand the grace of God. I still do. But there were times when I probably didn’t speak as clearly about sin as I should have because I was afraid somebody might not like it.

After more than 35 years of preaching, I can tell you that temptation doesn’t completely go away.

At some point, we have to ask ourselves: Whose approval matters most?

Jesus reminds us in Luke 12 that people can only do so much. God is the One we ultimately answer to.

But I love what Jesus says next.  He talks about sparrows. He talks about the hairs on our heads being numbered. In other words, the God we fear is not distant from us. He knows us and He cares about us.

That matters.

Following Christ doesn’t mean we have to become loud, argumentative, or act like we have all the answers.

Sometimes it simply means being willing to say, “Yes, I belong to Jesus.”

And Jesus also reminds us that we’re not doing this by ourselves. He promises the help of the Holy Spirit.

Sometimes, when we find ourselves in one of those uncomfortable moments, maybe the best thing we can do is quietly pray:

Lord, help me here. Give me the words. Help me say what needs to be said.

We don’t have to be fearless.

We simply have to be faithful.

So here is something I’ve been thinking about since Sunday:

Where is fear silencing your faith?

Is there somebody you’ve been afraid to talk to? Is there a situation where you’ve been trying too hard to fit in? Is there a place where what people think has started to matter a little too much?

You don’t have to promise God that you’ll never be afraid again.

Just ask Him to help you be faithful the next time the opportunity comes.

And when that moment comes, trust the Holy Spirit to help you.