The Bait Trap of Fear and Anxiety

The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe.” 

(Proverbs 29:25)

Sin and guilt motivate us. They push and pull us in directions and down paths that we would not have done or gone down otherwise. Sin and guilt propel us in directions that a righteous self would never allow. This creates friction, like a car driving against a guard rail with sparks flying. We allow sin and guilt to drive us through our guard, our rail our salvation only to crash and burn us at the bottom of Hell’s pit of despair, anguish and desperation.

“The fear of man” is his anxieties and cares. The very thing that Peter says we should give to God. “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.” 1 Peter 5:7. It is these anxieties that cause worry and grief. It is an anxious worry that can drive us to tears and trembling or, “quaking” as the Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew lexicon defines it.

Our fear and anxieties “bringeth a snare”. This “snare” is more literally defined as a lure or bait. The devil can only tempt, trick and lure us. Anxiety and fear is a reaction to something perceived adverse from the adversary the devil. Our fear and anxiety then motivates us to do something. Physical reactions include worry, grief, sleep loss, stomach problems, ulcers, heart attacks. Man’s solutions to these problems include Doctors and therapy, drugs and alcohol, distractions, perversions and fornication, irresponsibility and rebellion.

Lures and baits are the preferred tools of the devil to trap and ensnare us. It is how he motivates us to sin and to get the righteous man to do what he wouldn’t otherwise do. The devil even tried this on Jesus.

“But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.’ Matthew 16:23

The word, “offence” comes from the Greek word, “skandalon” which means a trap, bait trap or snare.

The answer to all of this is God as the rest of Proverbs 29:25 tells us. “…but whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe”.

Fear and faith cannot co-exist. If we find ourselves fearful then we have taken our eyes off the prize of Jesus Christ. This is exactly what the devil is trying to accomplish.

The next time you find yourself worrying, fearful, drowning your sorrows in drugs and alcohol or whatever it may be, just remember this. The devil threw out a lure and you bit. Fortunately we have a forgiving God who wants you to cast all of your cares (worries, problems and anxieties) upon Him. 

Why? Because He cares (loves) you!

Bill Hitchcock