Either Fear Or Faith - But Never Both

“As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, he saith unto the ruler of the synagogue, Be not afraid, only believe.” (Mr 5:36 AV)

Five little words.  Five simple words.  They need no explanation.  They need no interpretation.  They need no expounding.  They are self-evident.  They are self-explanatory.  Be not afraid, only believe.  There are only two choices here.  There is fear of faith.  There is no in-between.  There is no third position where faith or fear are not the only two options.  The father above is afraid to lose his daughter of twelve years.  She lies at the point of death.  By the time Jesus arrives, she has passed away.  The situation does not matter.  No matter how dire it may look, we have only two options.  We either fear, or we believe.  It is one or the other.  If we are doing one, then the other is not active.  If we fear, then we do not trust.  If we trust, then we have no fear.  These five words are repeatedly uttered by the Holy Spirit to our hearts.  Our troubles continue until glory shines in.  Not until eternity will we have rest from our existence.  Until then believing is the only cure for fear.  It is one or the other.  It cannot be both.

There are several types of light switches.  There is the basic on and off switch with only two positions.  Gaining in popularity is the dimmer switch.  That means we can increase the amount of light in a gradual way rather than one hundred percent on or off.  Any way you look at it, there are only two options.  On or off.  There is no middle ground.  Even with a dimmer switch, the lights are on or off.  Sure, they may only be on a little.  But as long as there is electrical current going to the bulbs, then they are on.  There are no degrees of ‘on’.  There is no degree of ‘off’.  It is one or the other.  I found out recently that one of my grandchildren is afraid of the dark.  The light switches in our house are at shoulder level.  This young lady was too short to turn on the lights.  So, if she had to use the bathroom someone had to go with her to turn on the lights.  On one particular evening, she was sent up to the bedroom to change into her night clothes.  She wouldn’t even go halfway up the stairs because she knew the room was dark and she couldn’t reach the light switch.  She was terrified of the dark.  Light and dark cannot co-exist.  They are opposites.  They cannot co-exist any more than faith and fear can.  Faith eradicates fear and fear inhibits faith.  They cannot co-exist.

Jesus tells the father who is losing his daughter that he has two, and only two, choices.  He can either fear the worst or he can believe that Jesus has it all under control.  Only two choices.  We can vacillate between the two and think fear and faith can co-exist.  This is a misnomer.  They cannot.  We can have faith one day and then fear the next.  All this means is one or the other is not permanent.  The words of Jesus are not complicated.  They are not difficult to understand.  The simplicity of His words is not equal to the difficulty of the choice.  Believing to the point that all fear has fled is no easy matter.  It takes the study of God’s word and life’s experience to get to the point that no matter what comes, faith will prevail.  I don’t think Jesus’ words are flippant here.  I don’t think they are condescending.  I think His words are spoken with a heart of compassion.  The real challenge was not raising a dead body and giving his daughter a new life.  The real miracle was faith.  In the former, faith in the girl's heart was not necessary.  In fact, it was impossible.  The latter was the mountain that needed to be climbed.  The father needed to learn to believe.  He needed to learn that believing, even in an impossible situation, is the only answer to fear.  It may not turn out as we wish, but God is still God.  He knows what He is doing and whatever He allows is for His glory and our benefit.  Therefore, to exterminate fear, believe.  It really is that simple.