Overcoming Fear -- Day 9 (Deuteronomy 20:8)

Then the officers shall add, "Is any man afraid or fainthearted? Let him go home so that his brothers will not become disheartened too." -- Deut. 20:8

This entire chapter is an instruction manual for "when you go forth to battle gainst your enemies." (v.1) It is important to see that it says "when" and not "if." It is clear that we will all have battles to fight, but that the Lord goes with us into them all. Verses 3 and 4 reaffirm that we are not to fear (as does all of the previously discussed passages in Days 1 - 8), for the Lord our God goes with us to save us.

Verses 5 - 8 give reasons men should turn back. This is not wise from a military standpoint (possibly with verse 8 being an exception), but it weaves in with the confident knowledge that the Lord is fighting for us, so while He honors our labor (2 Chron 15:7), He is still the one who creates the final outcome. We see God refines Gideon's army in a similar fashion. This severe mismatch of forces also ensures that the credit and glory go to God. Whe circumstances are so thoroughly out of control, we cannot think to boast in what is so clearly divine deliverance.

Perhaps the most important thing to see in verse 8 is that fear is contageous. Similar to one's faith being used to protect one another (e.g. the shield of faith in Ephesians 6, also see examples in Haggai 2:4-5, 2 Chron 32: 7-8, and Joshua 1:5 - 9), we see fear in one person can cause fear in another. Conversely though, if one's fearfulness can create fearfulness, courage should create courage, hope create hope, and faith create faith.

In the words of Don Miller, "Sometimes one has to see someone love something in order to know how to love it."

That may be the point, exactly.