The fear of the Lord adds length to life, but the years of the wicked are cut short. (Proverbs 10:27)
…and I pointed down to my knees.
“You will observe there,” I said, “A slight trembling. It is because I am afraid, the flesh is afraid; and I am afraid in my mind because I do not wish to die. But my spirit masters the trembling flesh and the qualms of the mind. I am more than brave. I am courageous. Your flesh Is not afraid. You are not afraid. On the one hand, it costs you nothing to encounter danger; on the other hand, it even gives you delight. You enjoy it. You may be unafraid, Mr. Larsen, but you must grant that the bravery is mine.” (London, Jack. “Seawolf” from The Collected Jack London (edited by Steven J. Kasdin), p. 971)
“You will observe there,” I said, “A slight trembling. It is because I am afraid, the flesh is afraid; and I am afraid in my mind because I do not wish to die. But my spirit masters the trembling flesh and the qualms of the mind. I am more than brave. I am courageous. Your flesh Is not afraid. You are not afraid. On the one hand, it costs you nothing to encounter danger; on the other hand, it even gives you delight. You enjoy it. You may be unafraid, Mr. Larsen, but you must grant that the bravery is mine.” (London, Jack. “Seawolf” from The Collected Jack London (edited by Steven J. Kasdin), p. 971)
I love the quote from Seawolf enough that I stopped at the library to get a copy so I could share it with you. I’m probably going to make a picture of it for my quotes file. I think that quote, more than any other, changed my understanding of fear and courage.
Fear can be wise. It’s a good idea to be afraid of things that can kill you. Fools have no fear or they fear the wrong things. By definition, the wicked do not fear what they should. They don’t fear being caught or punished either by man or God. Wisdom involves being afraid of the things that deserve our fear. Bravery, I submit, is facing our fears wisely.
Some of the things I believe we are wise to fear are the natural laws that God put in place when He created the universe. Respecting these is part of fearing God. There are lots of simple examples: including don’t pretend gravity doesn’t exist, don’t try to breathe under-water. Yes, I know that there are ways to overcome gravity temporarily, and one can always put on SCUBA gear, but those actions still how respect for reality, and therefore, for God.
Of course, respect for God goes beyond not running off a cliff. He also designed the moral reality. We tend to think that we can run off the morality cliff without gravity getting in the way, but in the long run, we or our families, or our societies crash to the ground.
Consider smoking. For several centuries, it was accepted, considered normal and even sexy. Those who didn’t smoke often had no choice about inhaling second-hand smoke, but “no harm done.” Eventually, they discovered that the “no harm done” idea wasn’t true. Smoking damaged the smoker. Later, it because understood that smoking harmed those around the smoker as well. Lots of places either have designated smoking rooms or force the smoker to go outside to enjoy what my brother called a “coughin’ (or coffin) nail.” Now, there are countries that are outlawing the smoking of tobacco in private vehicles if there are children in the vehicles.
“But we know better now,” we claim. Do we? Are the things we accept or promote actually morally acceptable, or is it that we simply won’t know how much damage is being done until a generation or two have had to face the harm done? We don’t have to wait a couple of generations. The Bible provides us with the instructions we need, with the principles that will guide us to know whether or not we need to fear something.
Fear can be wise. It’s a good idea to be afraid of things that can kill you. Fools have no fear or they fear the wrong things. By definition, the wicked do not fear what they should. They don’t fear being caught or punished either by man or God. Wisdom involves being afraid of the things that deserve our fear. Bravery, I submit, is facing our fears wisely.
Some of the things I believe we are wise to fear are the natural laws that God put in place when He created the universe. Respecting these is part of fearing God. There are lots of simple examples: including don’t pretend gravity doesn’t exist, don’t try to breathe under-water. Yes, I know that there are ways to overcome gravity temporarily, and one can always put on SCUBA gear, but those actions still how respect for reality, and therefore, for God.
Of course, respect for God goes beyond not running off a cliff. He also designed the moral reality. We tend to think that we can run off the morality cliff without gravity getting in the way, but in the long run, we or our families, or our societies crash to the ground.
Consider smoking. For several centuries, it was accepted, considered normal and even sexy. Those who didn’t smoke often had no choice about inhaling second-hand smoke, but “no harm done.” Eventually, they discovered that the “no harm done” idea wasn’t true. Smoking damaged the smoker. Later, it because understood that smoking harmed those around the smoker as well. Lots of places either have designated smoking rooms or force the smoker to go outside to enjoy what my brother called a “coughin’ (or coffin) nail.” Now, there are countries that are outlawing the smoking of tobacco in private vehicles if there are children in the vehicles.
“But we know better now,” we claim. Do we? Are the things we accept or promote actually morally acceptable, or is it that we simply won’t know how much damage is being done until a generation or two have had to face the harm done? We don’t have to wait a couple of generations. The Bible provides us with the instructions we need, with the principles that will guide us to know whether or not we need to fear something.
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