Hope for Life Blog

There’s an amazing story about Jesus and a man named Jairus. Jairus was a religious leader, one of the rulers of the Jewish synagogue. At that time, that would have made him unlikely to go see someone like Jesus. But Jairus went.

He went because his daughter was very sick. He went because he was desperate. He went because he considered Jesus to be his only hope.

Jairus was able to convince Jesus to come to his house. But while they were on the way, someone came with terrible news: Jairus’ daughter was dead. All hope was now gone. Or so Jairus must have thought.

But Jesus thought otherwise. He said to the grieving father: “Don’t be afraid; just believe, and she will be healed.” (Luke 8:50)

When they arrived at Jairus’ house, people were standing outside, crying. Jesus told them: “She is not dead but asleep.” They laughed at him, because everyone knew she was dead.

Except Jesus. That is, he knew she was dead. But he also knew that she wouldn’t stay that way. Jesus went to the girl, took her by the hand, and told her to get up. And the young girl did!

It’s a beautiful story. As a father, I guess I hear it differently than I once did. I can imagine if my daughter were desperately ill, how hopeless I would feel. And I don’t even want to try and imagine how I would feel if she passed away.

But I know that Jesus’ words would ring in my ears: “Don’t be afraid; just believe.”

More than 80 times in the Bible, people are told “Don’t be afraid.” Fear is a common element of our human condition. And there’s probably no greater fear than the fear of death. One New Testament writer wrote that Jesus came to “free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.” (Hebrews 2:15)

As we find ourselves facing the imminent death of someone we love or even our own death, that’s the time we need to hear Jesus’ words: “Don’t be afraid; just believe.” Because even when the worst happens, Jesus can say, “They’re not dead but asleep.” He is able to take even the dead by the hand and wake them up. If we only believe.

Don’t be afraid. Just believe.

I like the story of Gideon in the Old Testament of the Bible. Gideon was an Israelite who lived in a time when a foreign power, the Midianites, were constantly invading Israel. These raiders would wait until the crops were ready to harvest, then they would descend upon the land and steal everything the Israelites had worked for months to grow. It was a terrible time for the God’s people.

God used Gideon to free His people, using a small band of men armed with pitchers and torches. It’s a fascinating story that can be read in chapters 6 and 7 of the book of Judges.

There’s one aspect of the story that sometimes gets overlooked. Gideon was a coward. Time and again, we see him acting out of fear. When we first meet Gideon, he’s down in a hole, hiding from the Midianites. God tells Gideon to tear down an idol that has been erected in his village. Gideon does so… at night, because he’s afraid.

The next day the villagers come to Gideon’s house, and Gideon hides in the house while his father convinces the crowd not to harm his son.

Later in the story, when Gideon has already raised an army and has received numerous signs and messages from God, God tells him to go eavesdrop at one of the tents of the Midianites “if you are afraid.” Gideon went. Because he was still afraid.

I’m not pointing this out to attack Gideon. I’m doing this to show that God can use all of us, even the cowards among us. God shaped Gideon into the very leader his people needed.

The remarkable part of all this comes in the very first words God had for Gideon. We can read them in Judges 6: “When the angel of the LORD appeared to Gideon, he said, “The LORD is with you, mighty warrior.” (Judges 6:12)

Mighty warrior? Really? Remember, these words were spoken to a man standing in a hole, hiding. A man who would do his acts of heroism under cover of darkness, because he was afraid. A man who needed Daddy to protect him from the townspeople and needed a word of reassurance every step along the way.

I like that. It tells me that God sees us not as we are, but as we can be. He can look at me, with my uncertainties and fears, and say, “I’m with you, mighty warrior.” More than that, He can look at me, with all my faults and failures, and say, “Well done, good and faithful servant.” He can cleanse me from sin and forget that I ever sinned in the first place.

The story of Gideon is an encouraging one for people like me, people who aren’t perfect but are willing to let God make them perfect. Maybe it’s a good story for you, as well.

Have you heard of the Winchester Mystery House? The sprawling house in San Jose, California, is famous for its huge size and irregular layout. It was under constant construction for 38 years, eventually coming to have almost 160 rooms.

Despite its great size, the house can be considered unfinished in many ways. There are dozens of doors that open on blank walls, others with knobs on only one side and inside doors with screens on them. There are stairways that reach no destination, chimneys with no stoves, and floors that you can see through.

The construction shows a fascination with the number 13. All the stairways are constructed in series of 13 steps. The chandeliers all have 13 lights. Every wall has 13 panels. Each glass door has 13 pieces.

Who would build such a house?

The mansion was built by Sarah Winchester, the widow of William Winchester (of the Winchester family that owned the famous rifle company). The June 1937 issue of Modern Mechanix states that, after the death of her husband and infant daughter, Winchester was told by a medium that she must build a house that was never completed; if the house were ever completed, Sarah Winchester would die.

Because of this, the fearful widow maintained her house in a constant state of construction. Her attempt to avoid death failed, of course. On September 5, 1922, Sarah Winchester died. Work immediately stopped on the house, and it remains as a monument to one woman’s fear of death.

Was Sarah Winchester the only person afraid of dying? How many others would do whatever it takes to avoid the inevitable?

A favorite passage of mine is found in Hebrews, and it talks about that very fear: “Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might destroy him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil— and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death.” (Hebrews 2:14-15) Jesus came to free everyone held captive by the fear of death.

Jesus has defeated death, and he invites us to share in his victory. There is no need to live fearing death. We have a champion who can rescue us from that fear.

Building a house can’t free us from death. Building a relationship with Jesus will do just that.