Overcoming Fear of Death
One day death will come to us personally. It is unavoidable that each of us will one day be buried and celebrated. But the question is, how do we know the power over death or even the fear of death?
You've been on the interstate at some point, traveling at the speed limit of 70 miles per hour. Then, you change lanes, and suddenly you're behind someone who, for some unknown reason, is traveling at 45 miles per hour.
We see that from David as he writes Psalm 23:4.
One moment, we're lying in green pastures, and everything's good. Then he shifts down gears into the fourth verse. He writes these words.
"Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me." (Psalm 23:4 (ESV)
Note, David explains a trust in God not only when he's in green pastures but also when things are very tough. David writes these words because he is under threat by his son, Absalom, who has betrayed and seeks to kill David to take his throne. The Psalmist is navigating a very dark hour. However, he uses terminology that expresses he already has victory over fear.
One day death will come to us personally. It is unavoidable that each of us will one day be buried and celebrated. But the question is, how do we know the power over death or even the fear of death?
What Power Is Found Over the Fear of Death?
1) Through An Assurance of the Shepherd's Presence
Let's book at our passage. First, David says that despite being in the valley of the shadow of death, he will fear no evil, and here's the key phrase of the verse: for you are with me.
For some of you, the following statement may strike fear into your heart or bring inexpressible levels of hope. God knows where you are. He is keenly aware of the GPS in your heart. But, has it ever occurred to you that nothing ever occurs to God?
Jesus reminds us that not a sparrow falls to the ground anywhere on the planet without the Father's awareness. Jesus did not say that to amuse you but to assure you. This is the reality that David describes in Psalm 23. He knows where you are, and His presence is with you.
In light of that presence, you need not walk in fear because you are in a different realm.
2) Through An Assurance That I'm in the Shepherd's Flock
You might say, isn't the power over the fear of death on display throughout the whole chapter? Yes, but David is in the very shadow of death when he pens this verse. It lingers and waits in the wing to strike.
“Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
let me hide myself in thee;
let the water and the blood,
from thy wounded side which flowed,
be of sin the double cure;
save from wrath and make me pure.”
"Rock of Ages, Cleft for Me" was written by Augustus Toplady during great crisis. He was riding on a ship through a storm and writing about the beauty of what God had done in Jesus Christ through His blood and atonement. Toplady's sins were washed away, and he was assured of the Shepherd's presence because his salvation and eternal life were secured.
In his letter to the Corinthians, Paul said that "the gospel is foolish to those who are perishing." It sounds foolish to people who don't get it. What Paul is describing sounds bizarre when we look at the situation: Your only hope in life is a naked man hung upon a piece of wood outside of town and near a garbage dump. When we step outside of our faith, we can acknowledge that it sounds foolish and unreasonable.
We must be mindful that as David writes these words, you need God to bring you to God. You can't get there on your own. [Read more: The Lord is My Shepherd Explained ]
This is also found in Jesus' own words in John 14, "No one comes to the Father except through me." John Wesley called this prevenient grace, meaning the power of God that goes before that draws you to salvation through the Son.
3) Through God's Grace In our Pain and Trials
For many of us, when we hear the word grace, the context we gravitate towards is forgiveness of sins. While that's not wrong, it's not full. In reality, throughout the New Testament, grace is used as the ability to live beyond your ability because you're experiencing God's availability in your circumstances. So it is a different realm of your Christian experience.
David has articulated that evil is coming at him, yet he says he will fear no evil. But how can a believer live like that? Well, David had a greater revelation of God than he did his circumstance.
God does not waste your experiences. You need to understand the good, the bad, and the ugly.
When David was young, he had experiences that developed his faith. For example, he slayed a lion and a bear; Scripture says the Lord delivered them into his hand. But was David measuring the sizes of the beasts based on his ability or in the light of the greatness of God? The answer is the latter.
When David, as a 12-year-old boy, saw Goliath in more than 100 lbs of armor and taunting God's people, did he measure the giant or by how big God was? Again, I submit to you it was the latter.
So, now that David is in a circumstance where his offspring has betrayed him and seeks to spill his blood, David measures the circumstance not by his ability but by the greatness of God. David has a greater revelation of God than he did of Absalom.
I want to remind you that fear does weird things to people. Often what makes fear so much larger is the unknown of the circumstances, which is the space where fear can best attack us. Behaviorists believe that more than 70% of our self-talk is negative, and when you combine negative self-talk with fear, it is a free admission ticket to dark places. Fear will remove you from your design and purpose.
God has not given you a spirit of fear. He gave us a spirit of love, power, and sound mind. Psalm 27:1 even declares, "The Lord is my light and salvation, whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?" While the Psalmist is asking a rhetorical question that might make for a good magnet on your refrigerator to make you feel good, it can be the reality of our experience.
As a pastor, I make my next claim purely in love and honesty, but if you only spend five minutes a day communing with God through Scripture or prayer, then the things of this world will feel 200x more real than the things of God. I don't say that to guilt you, but to encourage your walk so you can know victory in your circumstances. Otherwise, Psalm 23 will live out as a myth in your life.
As David describes, when you experience a divine envelope, you are not operating in fear but freedom.
4) Through the Realization of the Way the Shepherd is With Me
"You are with me. Your rod and staff they comfort me." (Psalm 23:4 ESV)
This is the imagery of a shepherd's tools to help care for his sheep. The picture is God's way of saying, "I am involved and invested in you through the midst of your valley of fear, pain, and grief. Through the fall of humanity and into the brokenness, I am with you."
Notice the intention of the tools. The rod's role is to protect a sheep as a weapon from predators. It also serves as a tool to peel back wool to inspect the condition of their skin. These are examples of the Shepherd's heart getting below the surface in our lives. But the rod is also used to lovingly correct. For example, it can redirect a sheep was going to eat something poisonous or venturing down a dangerous path.
"For the Lord disciplines the one he loves and chastises every son whom he receives." (Hebrews 12:6 ESV)
The staff is a comfort. For example, the Shepherd would use the staff to lift a newborn lamb near him to love on it without touching it because if he touched the lamb, the mother would reject the child. It was also used to catch individual sheep and draw them close for examination.
A Shepherd Who Knows & Understands You
Our Shepherd, Jesus, understands the valley of the shadow of death. The Bible tells us He was tempted like all of us. Although He is our High Priest, He identifies with us who has gone through our experiences and identifies our pain and tribulations. He was attacked, suffered, and died for us. But in His death, He walked through the valley of the shadow of death. But what's different about Jesus is He came out on the other side.
His grace is the operative ability to live beyond our natural ability. He's available and invested in the name of the Father who loves you.
TL;DR
How do we know the power over death or even the fear of death?
Through An Assurance of the Shepherd's Presence
Has it ever occurred to you that nothing ever occurs to God?
He knows where you are, and His presence is with you.
Through An Assurance That I'm in the Shepherd's Flock
We must be mindful that as David writes these words, you need God to bring you to God.
Through God's Grace In our Pain and Trials
But how can a believer live like that? Well, David had a greater revelation of God than he did his circumstance.
Through the Realization of the Way the Shepherd is With Me
God has not given you a spirit of fear. He gave us a spirit of love, power, and sound mind.
Related Reading
The Lord is My Shepherd Explained by Rev. Paul Lawler
Who We Are Depends on Whose We Are by Rev. Paul Lawler
Have You Prayed About It? by Mike Weaver
About Christ Church Memphis
Christ Church Memphis is church in East Memphis, Tennessee. For more than 65 years, Christ Church has served the Memphis community. Every weekend, there are multiple worship opportunities including traditional, contemporary and blended services