Fear of the Unknown

Oct 23, 2022 | by Pastor Josh Tate | series: Courageous

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Fear of the unknown is a particularly difficult form of fear because it refuses to take the shape of anything definite, real or concrete. If it did, it would no longer be properly a fear of the unknown but a fear of that thing. A fear of the unknown flourishes in the shadowy world of what is possible, and not what is. A fear of the unknown tends to grow in our minds into a nebulous swirl of ominous possibilities. With all of its ever-shifting variables, this fear can paralyze us and keep us from moving forward in obedience.

A poet once wrote,
It’s better to face a monster that is seen and understood
Then one that’s left a’ lurking in the mind’s darkened wood.

That’s true to my experience. Of course, as I have pointed out on previous Sundays, we would not have a fear of the unknown if we possessed a god-like omniscience. However, God has not chosen to grant us greater knowledge of what the future holds. Instead, He asks us to trust Him who does know all things. Time and time again in His Word, God calls us to answer the fear of the unknown with a trusting confidence in Him. After all, we lack godlike powers, but we do not lack God. So, when the fear of the unknown grips our hearts we can rest in an all-knowing Shepherd who has promised to never leave us nor forsake us.