Zombies, Vampires, and Werewolves—Oh No!

by Jeremy Ham

What should our attitude be toward these “monsters”? Do we have a right to fear them?

Whether we like it or not, scary monsters permeate our culture, particularly during this season. For example, the entertainment industry has a horror genre dedicated to scaring young and old while children dress up as zombies, vampires, werewolves, and other kinds of creatures on Halloween. Similar monsters show up in a myriad of popular books, songs, and the imaginations of many as children wonder if there is a monster under the bed. Even when we grow older, we still have our monsters—they can even take the form of “real-life” issues such as paying bills, safety and provisions for our family, big decisions, public speaking, and so on. What should our attitude be toward these “monsters”? Do we have a right to fear them?

The Fear of Monsters

No matter what type of monsters we face, the key concept here is fear. Moreover, our “real-life” monsters often seem bigger than what they really are. Fear is what turns circumstances, things, or ideas into monsters—these frightening issues are only as terrible as we allow our fear to make them appear. God’s Word has many things to say on the subject of fear. Here are some passages we should consider:

The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? (Psalm 27:1)

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, even though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; though its waters roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with its swelling. (Psalm 46:1–3)

The Lord is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me? (Psalm 118:6)

All these passages have a common theme. Rather than submitting to fear, we need to submit to our Lord God. He will be the One to protect, sustain, and save us. God will not always save us from physical harm or even death; however, Christians should not fear these things since He has given us eternal life (John 5:24).

The Lord knows everything we go through. Scripture states that He even cares about every single sparrow (Matthew 6:25–34). If He cares about the birds, how much more would God care about us, since we are made in His image? God the Father loved us so much that He sent His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to die on the Cross for our sins (John 3:16).

What firm confidence we can have because God cares so deeply for us! We do not need to fear or worry about “monsters” of any kind, as the Lord is in control and knows all. He will take care of us as He has promised—not always in the way we would want, but “all things work together for good to those who love God” (Romans 8:28).

The Fear of God

There is another type of fear, however, that is very important. We should fear and revere the Lord our God. God is the Creator—heaven is His throne, and earth is His footstool (Acts 7:49). He is worthy of our praise, admiration, respect, and awe. The Scripture has a plethora of passages on this topic; see the following for an example:

Let all the earth fear the Lord; let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him. (Psalm 33:8)

Oh, fear the Lord, you His saints! There is no want to those who fear Him. (Psalm 34:9)

As a father pities his children, so the Lord pities those who fear Him. (Psalm 103:13)

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; a good understanding have all those who do His commandments. His praise endures forever. (Psalm 111:10)

You who fear the Lord, trust in the Lord; He is their help and their shield. … He will bless those who fear the Lord, both small and great. (Psalm 115:11, 13)

Better is a little with the fear of the Lord, than great treasure with trouble. (Proverbs 15:16)

There is wisdom in fearing God. He rules over all, and every knee will eventually bow to the Creator. Scripture directly links the fear of God with our well-being. The Lord is our Shepherd, and we are His sheep. He will look after us. We must trust Him in all things. When our outlook on life gets bleak, we should remember Nehemiah 9:6, which states, “You alone are the Lord; You have made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth and everything on it, the seas and all that is in them, and You preserve them all. The host of heaven worships You.”

God has made all things and is in complete control, and we can take comfort in that. Scripture tells us that “we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Ephesians 6:12). God also gives us everything we need to be “more than conquerors” (Romans 8:37; Ephesians 6:13–18).

When we think about who God is and take hold of those truths, we should realize there is no need to fear. There will be tough times, but we have God the Holy Spirit within us. He has given us all that we need to defeat our fear of monsters—real or imaginary. Our focus should continually be on God from whom our strength comes—“He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world” (1 John 4:4).

Conclusion

God hates evil, and since we fear God, we also should hate evil (Proverbs 8:13). Humbly submit to God and follow His principles. “Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and depart from evil” (Proverbs 3:7). We should ask God to teach us as we seek to follow Him and to fear His name (Psalm 86:11). When we let God rule over our lives rather than our fear, the difference will be clear. We must have faith in the promises of God.

As many people focus on monsters and fear, perhaps you can teach others about the fear of the Lord and what He has done in your life. Please consider the following passages during Halloween (and any other time):