Is fear necessarily a bad thing? There are some who would say that fear is bad ... but I would disagree. In fact I think that a healthy fear is beneficial to us as people and to society as a whole. You see, fear keeps us accountable.
What I mean is that if there was no fear, there would be no reason to do what is right. If people did not fear the consequences of their actions, there would be no reason for them to avoid doing wrong or dubious acts.
This is seen easily in children - children are good because they fear the consequences of being bad. Children who have no consequences have no fear and have no reason to do what is good. This same reasoning can be expanded to adults, we avoid unlawful acts because we fear the consequences of breaking the law.
Even apart from moral laws fear has a place. For example, I fear getting bit by a rattlesnake, so I don't play with them. This keeps me safe. If I did not fear getting bit I would have no reason to avoid playing with them and I might end up dead.
So then, fear is good because it helps us remain conscious of the consequences of our actions.
Many times the Bible says we are to "fear God." For example, Lev. 25:17 says: "You shall not wrong one another, but you shall fear your God, for I am the LORD your God." This too is beneficial for us. For in fearing God we are spurned on towards righteousness.
"Non-filer Syndrome"
17 years ago
1 comment:
Healthy fear! Yep, its good to put some fear in those kiddo's and grown ups too! Helps reduce the amount of stupid things they do :)
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