Fears

21 Days of Fears, Jeers, Tears, and Cheers

Sermon Text: John 18:15-18; 25-27

Bible Study Text: John 14:1-3

I.    Introduction

Question: What kinds of things cause people to fear or be afraid?

Refer to the list of phobias attached to the end of lesson plan. Try to point out some of the absurd or ridiculous (i.e., ecclesiophobia – the fear of church), some of the sensational, some of the irrational (i.e., arachibutyrophobia – the fear of peanut butter sticking to the roof of your mouth). Highlight some of the more serious and crippling of fears. According to the American Psychiatric Association: “Fear” is the normal response to a genuine danger. With phobias, the fear is either irrational or excessive. It is an abnormally fearful response to a danger that is imagined or is irrationally exaggerated. People can develop phobic reactions to animals (e.g., spiders), activities (e.g., flying), or social situations (e.g., eating in public or simply being in a public environment). Phobias affect people of all ages, from all walks of life, and in every part of the country. The American Psychiatric Institute for Research and Education (APIRE) has reported that in any given year, 7.8 percent of American adults have phobias. They are the most common psychiatric illness among women of all ages and are the second most common illness among men older than 25.

II   We have many fears of various kinds

A.    Fear of failure/success

B.     Fear of rejection

C.     Fear of change

D.    Fear of embarrassment

E.     Fear of inability

1 Peter 1:3-5 – Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil, or fade – kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.

Fear in regards to the things that God has called or commanded us to do shows a lack of faith – therefore is sin.

III. We are more than conquerors

V.  Conclusion