[Biblemat] A) AFRAID OF THE UNKNOWN

[J5827Sasser at wmconnect.com]

Brethren and Friends, Jim Sasser here.  A very good Thursday
morning to each and everyone.  May God bless you and yours.
Here is an article from my files:

AFRAID OF THE UNKNOWN

     I remember a teacher whose mere presence, at one time,
invoked fear and trembling in the hearts of children.  When I
was in the second and third grades, I was "scared to death"
of Mrs. Corbitt, one of the fourth grade teachers.

     I distinctly remember my eight-year-old conception of her.
She was old, wore funny glasses, had a large nose and was
obsessed with details.  She had no fear or reservations about
reprimanding students, even if they were not in her class.

     My only actual confrontation with her came after school
one day in my third-grade year.  A couple of my friends and I
went into the school building after classes were over for the
day (a practice that was unquestionably against the rules).  We wanted to use 
the restroom and get some water.  The 
restrooms and water fountain were directly across the hall-
way from her classroom.  It was inevitable -- we were caught!

     She line us up against the wall (for what we thought would
be our execution) and severely lectured us.  We would never
be so bold as to break that rule again.

     One of the strongest wishes and prayers of my young life
was that I not be assigned to Mrs. Corbitt's class when I enter-
ed the fourth grade.  But as childhood often seems to go, I 
saw my worst nightmare come true.  My name was down near
the bottom of the list innocently taped to the door of her classroom.  It was 
my death sentence.  "I'll never survive," I
thought.  "I'll never live to be 9-years-old.

     Strangely enough, however, once the class began and as
time progressed, I found Mrs. Corbitt to be one of the grand-
est women I have ever known.  As a teacher she ranks among
the very best.

     Her "old school" approach to education proved to be a
well-seasoned, experienced learning method.  She encourag-
ed us to be creative, to write, to think on our own.  It was in
her class room that I wrote my first newspaper article (which
was later published in the state teacher's association journal).
Through her I was introduced to timeless characters of litera-
ture like Tom Sawyer, Huck Finn, Old Yeller and a host of 
others.  She wielded our attention with her personal account
of Dec. 7, 1941.

     Mrs. Corbitt has remained in my heart and memory as one
of the best teachers I have had.

     It is amazing to me how the unknown and the partially known can be 
misleading and frightening to almost everyone.
But when we gain a fuller understanding, what once was frigh-
tening becomes wonderful.

     This principle is true regarding God and His Word.  To
someone who knows little or nothing about God, He becomes
a great mystery, a vociferous listing of dos and don'ts govern-ed by an 
unseen, cold and dictatorial being who uses us as
nothing more than human chess pieces.  God is nothing more
than a powerful ogre waiting to strike down any man who dares to disobey Him.

     And to others, God and His Word become an impotent, useless antique for 
man to place on a shelf and admire for
historical value, but certainly not for any power, authority or
respect He might possess or deserve.  To many, God is a
literary classic with strong ties in ancient civilization, but He
has little influence in our modern society.

     If we take the time to get to know God and His Word, we
will find that neither of these extremes is true.

     Our God, the God of the Bible, is a God of wrath, vengean-
ce and justice (Heb. 10:26-31), but His is also a God of love,
grace and mercy (Eph. 2:1-10).  God, the Creator is also God,
the Destroyer (2 Pet. 3:10); and He is God, the Savior as well
(2 Cor. 6:2).

     What we believe about God is based upon what we know
about Him.  We gain knowledge from studying His revealed
Word.  Our lack of belief, our fear of the unknown stems from
a lack of knowledge of God and His Word.

     We don't have to live in fear (trembling apprehension)
about an ambiguous, unloving being who exercises total con-
trol over us.  We can come to know a loving, caring, merciful
God, who warns us of the consequences of disobedience, yet
allows us to make the choices ourselves.  God should not 
remain unknown, or a mystery in our lives.  We should be able to affirm as 
Paul did, "...For I know Him whom I have be-
lieved, and I am persuaded that He is able to guard that which
I have committed unto Him against that day" (2 Tim. 1:12).

     "...for in Him we live, and move, and have our being...for we are His 
offspring...The times of ignorance, therefore God
overlooked; but now He commandeth men that they should
all everywhere repent; inasmuch as He hath appointed a day
in which He will judge the world in righteousness by the man
whom He hath ordained; whereof He hath given assurance
 unto all men in that He hath raised Him form the dead" (Acts
17:28,30,31).      ------ Mike Thomley via Gospel Power, Vol. 14
No. 2, Jan. 14, 2007.   </HTML>
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