For the heart tempted to fear people more than God while forgetting the Father’s precise care.
Don’t be afraid of those who kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul. Rather, fear him who is able to destroy both soul and body in Gehenna. “Aren’t two sparrows sold for an assarion coin? Not one of them falls on the ground apart from your Father’s will, but the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Therefore don’t be afraid. You are of more value than many sparrows.
“Rather, fear him.” Does that expose what governs your fear? When a person can threaten your body or standing, you may treat human power as ultimate. Your false refuge is careful management of that person’s approval. You rehearse answers and monitor reactions, calling this wisdom. But Christ separates the body from the soul and places both beneath God’s judgment. Holy fear refuses to give a creature the weight that belongs to the Judge.
The Father’s care reaches the smallest fallen creature and the smallest detail of you. A sparrow’s fall is not hidden from him. Your head is not a blur to him; its hairs are numbered. In Christ, the Son accepted a body that could be killed and went to the cross, where judgment was borne rather than evaded. His resurrection declares that human violence does not have final authority over him or those who belong to him.
So place the threat of people beneath the Father’s holy authority. Will you fear the Judge above all while entrusting your uncounted details to Christ?
The Father’s care reaches the smallest fallen creature and the smallest detail of you.
Father, train my fear to bow before your holiness and rest in Christ’s cross.
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