It is the fear of man.
Far too many Christians are living lives of bondage to the fear of people. I am talking about not doing or being all that God has called you to do and be because of the influence of another person or because of their opinion. The Bible is filled with examples of this kind of fear in operation.
The adult generation of the men of Israel who came out of Egypt failed to enter the Promised Land because of fear of man, which amounted to intimidation. The Israelites came to the very edge of the promised land, the land of which God had said, "I give you this land. Go take it, and I will be with you. I will give you the victory."
In preparation for the invasion, they sent out 12 spies to check out the enemy. One of the 12, Caleb, was full of faith and confidence in the Word of the Lord. And Caleb stilled the people before Moses, and said, "Let us go up at once, and possess it; for we are well able to overcome it" (Num. 13:30).
Caleb was not simply optimistic. He was enthusiastically confident. His report to Moses and the people was, "Let's go do it now!" One of the other 12, Joshua, agreed with him. The other 10, however, brought back a different report. "But the men that went up with him said, We be not able to go up against the people; for they are stronger than we" (Num. 13:31).
These 10 men chose to believe what their senses told them about the enemy rather than what God's Word said about themselves and about the enemy. As a result, they moved from doubt to fear - fear of people. That fear spread like wildfire through the camp of Israel.
And they brought up an evil report of the land which they had searched unto the children of Israel, saying, The land, through which we have gone to search it, is a land that eats up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of a great stature.
Fear is like a cancer. It spreads. Fear of people begins like any other fear - by considering the circumstances rather than the promises of God. The 10 spies saw giants.
Operating In Strong Faith
Caleb and Joshua saw the covenant Israel had with Almighty God. The same God later delivered David from Goliath; Shadrach, Meshech, and Abednego from the fiery furnace, and Daniel from the jaws of the lions. Compared to the size of Caleb's God, those giants looked like ants.
The spies operated in strong fear; Caleb operated in strong faith. For us, Canaan is a type of the abundant, victorious Christian life. The passage through the Jordan River is a type of the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
When you allow yourself to be intimidated by the outward appearance or manner of other people, you can rob yourself of the glorious inheritance that is yours as a child of God. Instead of living in the abundance and security of the promised land, you live in the scarcity of the wilderness on the other side of the Jordan.
Excerpt permission granted by Harrison House Publishers