Fear Not

As the Savior ate the Passover meal with His apostles, directly before He would enter the Garden of Gethsemane to begin His great atoning sacrifice, He gave these words of comfort: “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid” (John 14:27). This is the scripture that the #StartingToday inspirational message used today to discuss Good Friday. It said this of the Savior’s final hours in mortality: “Following a series of one-sided trials, He is sentenced to death by crucifixion. His suffering for us continues on the cross, and He is surrounded by people who cruelly mock Him. And yet, through it all, Jesus courageously endures, never letting fear keep Him from carrying out His mission to redeem all God’s children.” Surely if anyone ever had reason to fear in mortality, it was the Savior the night before He was to descend below all things and suffer for the sins and pains of all the world. No one ever was to face a greater test, and yet He did not fear but went forward with courage and determination to accomplish the will of the Father. He counseled us by word and deed to “let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” Because of His great sacrifice that day we have no need to fear if we put our trust in Him.

                President Nelson’s talk Embrace the Future with Faith last general conference also encouraged us to not fear the future. He said, “How are we to deal with both the somber prophecies and the glorious pronouncements about our day? The Lord told us how with simple, but stunning, reassurance: ‘If ye are prepared ye shall not fear.’” Preparing as the Lord has taught us—by keeping His commandments and doing what He has asked—we need not fear anything that might come in the future. President Nelson continued, “Of course, our ultimate security comes as we yoke ourselves to Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ! Life without God is a life filled with fear. Life with God is a life filled with peace.” We can have His peace and security as we seek to live our lives as He would have us live. To do what He would have us do is to be prepared for the future. The Savior’s promise to the Prophet Joseph Smith in Liberty Jail is surely applicable to each of us who yoke ourselves with Him: “Therefore, fear not what man can do, for God shall be with you forever and ever” (Doctrine and Covenants 122:9). If God is with us, then we need not fear because He has overcome all things as He affirmed in another revelation: “Fear not, little children, for you are mine, and I have overcome the world, and you are of them that my Father hath given me” (Doctrine and Covenants 50:41). Because He overcame the world—including death and sin and the powers of darkness—that night so long ago, we need not fear anything that may come to us as long as we stay true to Him.