The Spartan soldiers, one of the most efficient and effective group of warriors known to the history of war, practiced something prior to their actual fighting that absolutely scared their enemies right out of their pants. This practice, or, more accurately, this attitude was known as aphobos - the absence of fear. Prior to battle, they would shine every inch of their armor in order to enamor their enemies with their brilliance and grace as a unified organism. They would also sing serene and harmonic songs rather than shouting angrily as might be expected from a group of battle-hardened soldiers. This controlling and squelching of fear, fear that would undo most of us, enabled the phalanx to mechanically act as a human tank which could wipe practically any enemy off of the field of battle. Interestingly, I would argue that many of the battles were won in their hearts and minds before they fought, as they defeated their enemies by not fearing. Also, it didn’t hurt to have a reputation as one of the toughest group of men in the world. What, you might ask, has this gore to do with the gospel? I’m glad you asked. Let’s read Peter’s words first.

1 Peter 3:13-17 And who is he who will harm you if you become followers of what is good? But even if you should suffer for righteousness sake, you are blessed. And do not be afraid of their threats, nor be troubled. But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear; having a good conscience, that when they defame you as evildoers, those who revile your good conduct in Christ may be ashamed. For it is better, if it is the will of God, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil.

I always hear this text quoted when discussing apologetics, or the sharing of our faith, and rightly so. However, it is usually in the context of sharing our faith with the right words or the right strategies. If we use the above analogy of warfare, this text is usually discussed in regards to choosing the right weapons. I think Peter is getting at something deeper here. Notice what he writes before he tells them to be ready to give an answer, “do not be afraid of their threats.” This seems so logical, if we are going to give an answer for the hope that lies in us, we must first display the hope. Here, Peter is talking about displaying the hope by not fearing their threats. In the past few articles, we have discussed what it means to suffer for doing what is right. I think that concept is clear, we are always to do what is right, even if it means that we will be punished for it; even if our master is mistreating us, even if our spouse is mistreating us. The idea is that we don’t base our actions on what other people do to us, but upon what God has called us to do. So how do we apply this text concerning the absence of fear in the face of threats?

Think about who has threatened us recently. Probably what is foremost in all of your minds are the radical Muslims who have shown themselves to be a lethal threat to many people. How are Christians supposed to respond to this threat? I am simply aghast at the response of many prominent Christian leaders who have advocated the killing of those who threaten us. This attitude is not only nothing less than unbiblical, it is often in direct contradiction to those same leader’s views on abortion. More importantly, this attitude of killing our enemies before they kill us is opposed to the attitude Peter is teaching us here in this text. When we kill those who threaten us, we show that we are afraid of them. Not only that, but if we turn on the media, all we hear is how we need to be afraid of this nation, or afraid of that nation. This way of thinking should not be part of a Christian worldview. This fear leads to irrationality and poor decision making, and more importantly it seriously hinders our ability to share the gospel. Think about it going into one of these nations which we have bombed. Think about trying to share the gospel with those whose children have been killed by our bombs because we were afraid of threats. What kind of gospel would that be? It would be a gospel beset with fear, a gospel that says, “God can save you from sin, but He is not to be trusted with national affairs or our bodily well-being, and oh, I’m sorry that I supported a foreign policy that killed your children.” We must not fear! I know there are dangerous people in the world, but they are not a threat to us because we trust the One who is most dangerous, The Dread Champion (Jer 20:11). When we shake in our boots and wring our hands wondering what to do against these enemies, and then when we lash out by invading every nation we think might be involved, we are showing that we are afraid and we are showing that we don’t fully believe the gospel.

Now, let me close with another allusion to the phalanx just to show that I am not a pacifist. The phalanx was also effective because it did not lash out in fear. The soldiers stood together as one. This means that when a group of enemies was running at a particular soldier, that soldier could not lash out in offense, he remained in defensive mode, slowly marching while guarded by the shield held by the man to his right. It is exactly because he is not afraid, because he trusts the man next to him, that the phalanx will stand as one and crush the offensive advance of the enemy. When we as Christians, and hopefully as a nation (I’m not naive enough to confuse the two) begin to stop fearing, we will be stronger as a group. I am all for a strong national defense, but if you look at our current overseas endeavors, we have actually weakened our defense. We are in more danger today than we were a day after 9/11 precisely because we have allowed fear to control our actions. Christians must obey the Word of God here and take the high road concerning warfare. The prominent leaders who have spoken out in favor of preemptive war are wrong. Offensive and insurgent wars are wrong for the same reason abortion is wrong, and they belie our fears. Friends, when we trust Christ for our salvation, we are entrusted with a great hope that bombs and bullets cannot touch. If we are going to give an answer we must first act in ways that cause others to ask the question, “Why are they acting so fearless in the face of such chaos?” So how do we apply Peter’s words to our life today? Ask yourself this, how can I act in my life that will cause others to ask me about my hope? It is amazing how evangelism is portrayed in the Bible. People don’t go out knocking on doors, they live in such a way that causes others to ask them about the gospel. Imagine how easy it would be to evangelize if we lived like this. People are absolutely hungry for this kind of satisfaction and fearlessness, and when they see it in someone, they want to know how to get it. So make it your goal this week to live in such a way that others will ask you about your hope. People will follow courage and fearlessness, especially the kind that flows from following the One who is worthy of all our fears, the Lord of Hosts.