Stronger than Fear

Excerpts from Wayne Jacobsen's book 'He loves me'

"After his work on the cross was finished Jesus went looking for love and he sought it from the one who had just failed him most. (Peter) Could this be what he most wanted the cross to produce in his followers? Was his death designed to reach past their fears of God and begin a new relationship based on the intimacy of love instead?

Love lies at the very core of God's nature. In fact, when John summed up the substance of God he said simply: "God is love." Father, Son and Spirit exist in a perfect state of love. When that love touches you, you will discover there is nothing more powerful in the entire universe. It is more powerful than your failures, your sins, your disappointments, your dreams, and even your fears. Nothing can prevail over it; and nothing else will lead you to taste of his kind of holiness.

The fear of God is incomplete - it is the first rung on the ladder to knowing God in his fullness. He said hmself it was the beginning of wisdom, but it is only the beginning. Love is the end product of wisdom.
If you don't love God, you will be well served to fear him. At least it might keep you from destructive behaviours... But once you know how much he loves you, you'll never need to fear him again. In other words, this Father doesn't just see your obedience, he desires your affection. He can have your obedience without your love, but he knows where he has your love he will also have your obedience.

"There is no fear in love.... because fear has to do with punishment," John wrote as he tried to convince the church in Ephesus that God's love had replaced the old order of fear. It was revolutionary then and regrettably still is today. We seem more comfortable fearing God than we do loving him.

 But fear isn't in God's nature. He fears nothing. Thus his own holiness is produced not by fear, but by his love. In fact, fear cannot produce the holiness God wants to share with us. It is incapable of doing so. For God to transform us to be like him, he must expel our fear and teach us the wonder of living in his love.
He needs our fear no longer, knowing we will never love that which we fear.

We think conformity to his ways will lead us closer to him, when the opposite is true. If we focus on our own fears and performance, he will seem more distant. It is only by living in the security of God's affection that he is able to transform us. God knows that responding to his love will take you much further than fear ever could. That is why love must first deal with our fears. "Perfect love drives out fear," John continued. While fear may be the most powerful motive known to man, God's love is more powerful still, and in the face of it our greatest fears are swallowed up in him. Love displaces fear the same way light displaces darkness.

There is nothing more critical to spiritual growth than making this transition. John concludes, "The one who fears is not made perfect in love" (1John4:18). As long as we live in fear, we exclude ourselves from the very process that will make us complete in God. When you are absolutely convinced of how much God loves you, that knowledge will drive out every fear you have. You won't need to fear an uncertain future, the rejection of friends, the lack of desires, or even God himself. Knowing his heart for you will free you to trust him more than ever, and that alone will lead you to ever-greater participation in his holiness.

http://www.lifestream.org/ - Wayne has free mp3 downloads of his core teachings.