XXIX. Fear, or the Scare-Crow Devil.

Farmers, frequently put up some frightful object in their corn-fields to scare away the crows—preventing them from pulling up and eating the corn. The devil works in like manner, to prevent honest souls from partaking of the real corn of the kingdom. He succeeds remarkably well, if by any means the saints are prevented from getting blessed, baptized with the Holy Ghost, and made all alive in Christ Jesus, and sinners converted to God. He don’t care how much religion we profess, if we are only destitute of real piety.

He loves to have us profess a giant’s grace if, in fact, we are empty. This scare-crow, when simmered down to a philosophical point, is Fear. It often presents the very frightful character of Wildfire, Fanaticism, Nazarite, etc. The Devil is exceedingly busy, on all occasions, at every means of grace, especially at quarterly and camp-meeting, to prevent the work of grace. One of the strangest things in connection with this work is that, the saints professedly, will help the Devil do his miserable work of unfurling the scare-crow banner. How many inglorious defeats we have as “Pilgrims,” all through fear. Fear of what? Why, our reputation is at stake. Some are afraid the saints will shout more than is meet; others that they will jump too high; or the glory that is unutterable will become unmanageable in some way; or that the car of salvation will get out of the groove of modern quiet, still no excitement, sweet, precious holiness that disturbs nobody, kills nobody, resurrects nobody, leaving all in the cold embrace of death. From such we say, Good Lord, deliver us.

It is exceedingly distressing to be where the work is managed by men full of fear. If a saint happens to get blessed, their appearance, the peculiar noise made, the length of the amen, the terror produced among the unsaved, all must be critically tested by their rules of propriety. What we need is perfect love that casteth out fear; especially this tormenting fear.

He that feareth is not made perfect in love. “For God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power and love, and of a sound mind.” Thank God! we may be delivered out of the hand of our enemies, and serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before him all the days of our life.”

“For whom the Son maketh free, shall be free indeed.”