When Zechariah prophesied this great song of praise he celebrated God’s great plan of salvation, his covenant and oath to rescue us from the hand of our enemies and to enable us to serve him without fear in holiness and righteousness before him all our days. (73-75) and we can see in the song’s climax the conviction that God’s tender mercy is seen in Jesus ... the rising sun will come to us from heaven to shine on those living in darkness and in the shadow of death to guide our feet into the way of peace (78-79) There is the supreme answer to all our fears and isn’t it significant that those teenagers in the youth group were afraid of the same things that God’s word mentions darkness and the shadow of death?

Let’s look more closely at what makes us afraid Why are we afraid of the dark? Because we might get lost and never find our way ... we might be attacked, ... we feel our lives under threat ... Fear of the dark in the end comes from fear of death and we are afraid of death for 2 reasons: 1 our bodies instinctively resist the prospect of losing our lives 2 behind death is a horror of God’s judgement. We fear that when he asks us to account for how we have lived we would have no good convincing answer to give, no confidence that we could speak in terms that Zechariah uses of holiness and righteousness before him and so we are afraid of God with a guilty fear. There is a holy fear of God, a good fear, a trembling reverence for him (the fear of the Lord which Proverbs says is the beginning of wisdom) but there is also a guilty shrinking fear when we wish we could hide from this pure, shining bright God of light and holiness That is the sort of fear mentioned in 1 John 4.17-18 John writes that God’s love ' is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgement, because in this world we are like him. There is no fear in love. But perfect love casts out fear, because fear has to with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.' Would it not be true to say that in Ireland today so many still believe there is a God but they are afraid of him, they shrink from him they are not made perfect in his love? Is that not true of your life and mine? We may be here today because we call Jesus Saviour but really we are still afraid of God we have no confidence that our sins are completely forgiven and that God’s sun has risen in Jesus to shine upon us so that there need be no more dark, no more guilty fear no more shrinking from a loving God.

Zechariah even in advance of the life of Jesus on earth long before he had gone to the cross to die for our sins and rise again Zechariah was able to be confident of serving God without fear a God of salvation, a God of light, a God of love. But we who know that Jesus has died and risen for us Why are we afraid?

Let’s think of some of the answers we usually give. ‘I’m so aware of sin and failure in my life’ Which are you going to believe: God’s covenant and oath to deliver you or some deceived notion that you could never be forgiven?

‘I’m afraid because of what people might say or do to me.’ What is there that people can do that can stop God saving you? They can laugh at us, ignore us, criticise us, hurt us take our money away, physically hurt us, even kill us But if we really believe we have a home in heaven what’s the problem? As Luther wrote in his hymn ‘A safe stronghold our God is still’ ‘And though they take our life/ goods, honour children, wife/ yet is their profit small;/ these things shall vanish all: the city of God remaineth.’ The more we make our home in the deep love of God in Jesus Christ surely the less it should matter what hammering we have to bear for Jesus sake? And is not the reverse true: the less grasp we have of God’s great love in Christ the more it will matter to us to keep the world’s good opinion and the more fearful and miserable we will be?

I am not talking about being afraid to take a loud hailer into Patrick St (main street of Cork)to preach about Jesus. nor about having a proper reluctance to ram religion at people I’m talking about the fear which gripped Peter when the servant girl asked if he was a follower of Jesus, and big strong Peter was afraid and denied the Lord he had earlier boasted he would never desert. Have we not all been in situations like Peter’s where someone has simply asked us: ‘You’re not one of those Christians are you?’ and we have given the answer that we thought might please them and be easier on us rather than the answer that would please God, whatever the earthly cost to us.

Young people, if someone at school asks you that question this week, How will you answer? If you truly believe in Jesus Christ, you know there is only one answer you should give. I know that is not easy, not cool, but God promises that whoever honours him, he will honour them. Can I challenge you this week to go against the flow and see if you do not feel the freedom of Christ in a new way having once faced your fears and owned up when asked to the crime of being a Christian. Us older people, suppose someone asks us about Bertie Aherne (Irish Pprime Minister) and the controversy over his very public relationship with a woman not his wife. How will we answer? It is so easy, isn’t it, just to say it’s his private business and that would be fine if he were only a private individual; but here is one of the most public people in our country who has made public a relationship which is not right before God; and until last week, there seemed to be no Christian voice willing to stand up to be counted to express the disquiet that many undoubtedly feel about this. Or if you feel that I am out of order on this particular issue, let me ask you, is there any matter when you will take the pain of disagreeing with popular opinion for the sake of God’s opinion? Are you like a salmon, willing to swim against the current or are you a jelly fish, just drifting nicely along with the tides?

I know we have all have had our times of denial like Peter I’ve even done it as a minister and said the easy thing rather than the correct thing. Thank God we may all know a time of restoration as Peter did. To change the picture, as somebody wrote about the disciples before and after the resurrection and the coming of the Holy Spirit: ‘Rabbits became ferrets’ Fearful, confused disciples, scuttling into hiding became highly focused, fearless, active agents of God, fulfilling Zechariah’s prophecy to serve him without fear in holiness and righteousness before him.

And the Holy Spirit has not changed over the centuries. We can still receive as Paul told Timothy a spirit that is not a spirit of timidity but of power, love and self discipline. That means we don’t have to be gripped by fear nor do we have to be religious maniacs but people who will do what God wants and say what God wants as the Spirit of Christ directs.

Lord we are here today either as people still afraid of the dark of death, of judgement, show us your love in Christ so brightly shining that in him we will not be afraid.

or Lord, we are here as people who have been in the light but seem desperately afraid to say it or show it May your light so shine on us and in us by your Spirit that it will matter to us more than anything else to do what you want and say what you want.

May none of us be ashamed of you today so that you will not be ashamed of us at your coming.

Go as a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his glorious light

in the name of the Father who made you and loves you of Jesus Christ who died for you and calls you to know the Father and the Holy Spirit who makes you holy and will give you courage