Fear, Risk and Faith

November 21, 2010

Faith, fear and risk – they are all verbs that describe our challenge to live godly lives and fulfil God’s great purpose for us.

“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” (Hebrews 11:6)

Faith is being convinced of who God is and is built on the unshakeable foundation of an abiding relationship with Him. It is fixing our eyes constantly on God and who He said He is.

Fear comes about because of uncertainty. Without perfect foreknowledge, it is easy for us to be intimidated by the physical limitations and future provision. The only way for us to overcome fear is to step out and act out our faith in God.

Risk then becomes the action-verb for faith. However, it will be foolish to think that any type of risk undertaken by Christians is a demonstration of active faith.

While it is true that Noah, Abraham, Moses and all biblical heroes of faith took risks – they do so because they had a trusting relationship with God and were convinced of who God is. They were fixated on pleasing God and therefore were able to overcome their fears. Convinced of God, they took the risk.

What men call risk, God calls it faith.