1 John 4:18
“There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.”
Fear is a condition of the heart and mind. It is debilitating. It robs you of energy. It distorts what you see, disrupts how you feel, and limits what you do. It holds you back from doing things you need to do in order to be effective and successful.
Fear is the result of giving your attention to the wrong thing. It is the result of misplaced and misdirected focus. If you give your attention to, think about, and fixate on something that you are afraid of, then you will experience fear. And the longer you fixate on the negative thing, the more intense and debilitating the fear.
In many ways, fear is mismanagement of the imagination.
What John teaches is that “perfect love casts out fear.” Why is that? Because when you love according to God’s design, you give your attention to, think about, and focus on what is productive and helpful. God’s love motivates you to solve problems, not worry about them.
The focus of fear is self and circumstances.
The focus of love is God and others and what needs to be done.
The word that John uses for “perfect” is the Greek teleios. Earlier this week I shared that this word conveys the idea of fullness rather than flawless. It means “whole and complete.” We could paraphrase the verse by saying “fear is cast out when your heart and mind are directed by the fullness of God’s love.” When God’s love fills your heart, there is no room for fear.
Fear says, “Fixate on what intimidates and frightens you, and be scared!”
Love says, “Trust God and focus on taking action. Do not be distracted by what seems to be scary.“
This is another reason why we must not follow the world’s definition of love. As I write the phrase “the fullness of God’s love,” I can sense how the world interprets it as mystical and “religious” and sentimental/soft.
But the fullness of God’s love—the perfect love that casts out fear—is definitely not soft and sentimental. It is not mystical and “religious.” It is strong. It moves us to effective, productive action. It is the motivator of deeds both great and small.
Love is the unbreakable bond and invisible force of strong relationships, healthy families, productive organizations, and elite teams. It is what drives people to do what is uncomfortable but necessary.
More next week …
