Fear Reveals Our Idols

If we only move when odds are good, we miss the impossible working of the Lord.   ~~~   Biblical faith lives to God’s glory, not personal honor. We see this most vividly in the positioning of Saul, the people around Saul, and the presumption of Saul, all in contrast to Jonathan’s faith in God. Position of Saul Samuel 14:2 tells us , that “Saul was on the outskirts of Gibeah in a pomegranate cave.” In other words, on the day of battle (13:22), Saul was hiding. He was afraid. Fear says, “I won’t move until the odds are in my favor, no matter what God’s word says.” Did you know that fears often times reveal our idols. Saul resorted to hiding because he was afraid of being unsuccessful. Better to hide than risk defeat and be humiliated. So what was his idol? Being seen as successful. Sometimes, we as the people of God do not operate in faith because we fear that we will fail and be humiliated, and we just can’t have that because we care too much about our own reputations. Neither did Saul like the situation or circumstances. They were too difficult. Too risky. The work was going to be too treacherous, too much work. Who wants to scale a slippery or thorny mountain? What is the idol there? Personal comfort and ease. We have become spiritually fat and gluttonous people, that any amount of time or investment requires too much of us. We have lost the sense that work for the LORD is oftentimes hard work, difficult work, work that no one else would even think of doing. But you know what else we forget—we forget that it is not by might, nor by power, but by His Spirit. We forget that we are not to live and fight upon on our strength, but on His. And when we only move when the odds are good and the circumstances just right, then we miss out on seeing the LORD work.