Matt 10:29-31 “Aren’t two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will. Even all the hairs on your head are numbered. So do not be afraid*| you are more valuable than many sparrows.”
Jesus wanted His followers not to fear what any man could do to them, but to “fear the one who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matt 10:28).
We are never to be afraid of being separated from the omniscient and omnipotent God who is so careful of details that He counts every hair on our heads and knows the death of every insignificant sparrow (10:29). He will miss no detail of what happens to His most precious followers.
The world’s systems have always used fear as a manipulating tactic. A person will eventually become submissive to whatever he fears the most. Terrorists understand this; they go to extremes to create fear because it is the key to obedience to them.
The disciples were asked to consider the worst case scenario: all man could do is kill the body. It is estimated that more than fifty million believers were killed during the Dark Ages, and millions more have been killed in the past century by communist and Muslim regimes. These people were unashamed and unafraid to die for Christ.
Human evil does not compare to the wrath of God. He can send the body and soul of an unbeliever to a horrible eternity in hell. In Matthew 10:28, Jesus told the disciples to fear the one who determines man’s destiny; then, in verse 30, He said, “So do not ever at anytime be afraid.”
There is a healthy fear. Jesus wants us to fear God, meaning that we should be afraid God will do exactly what He said He would do: for the unsaved, this means a destiny in hell, and for the saved, He promises chastisement for disobedience.
We had better be afraid that God will chastise us if we are disobedient; otherwise, temptation will have no resistance in our spirits.
We are never to be afraid of anything that man can do to us, because we can never be separated from God (Rom 8:38–39). Whatever happens to a believer is part of His plan, so faithfulness is highly prized.
If He marks the death of a tiny sparrow, how much more will He note, and never forget, the persecution or loss of one of His children? Stay true to Him. It will be worth it.
“Lord, my fear of what others will think is often greater than I want to admit. The threats to me are nothing in comparison to those faced by the early disciples. Teach me to fear disappointing and disobeying You more than what men can do to me.”