Fear
The opposite of faith and hope.1 Fear is not only the opposite of faith, but it contains within it the bitterness of hell (see Genesis 1:4). Man has become too fearful.2 Closing down because of fear hinders the process of bringing one to the Lord, as the devil knows (see T&C 22:8).3 The path to God can only be found when one refuses to share in the confederacy of fear held by his fellow man. For those controlled by their fears, they will view Christ’s way as a stumbling block and an offense (see Isaiah 3:7; 2 Nephi 9:8).4 No one should let borrowed fears become the barrier to one’s faith. One cannot respect men too much without respecting God too little.5 In contrast to fear, Moroni affirms that angels appear only to those with “a firm mind” (see Moroni 7:6).6 The happiest of people are those who live without fear.7
1 Eighteen Verses, 312.
2 “Ignorance Enshrined,” Feb. 22, 2013, blog post.
3 “2 Nephi 28:20,” Aug. 2, 2010, blog post.
4 “Recent Conversations,” Nov. 25, 2011, blog post.
5 “The Trick to Avoiding Apostasy,” June 22, 2012, blog post.
6 “Jumping out a Window,” Feb. 24, 2010, blog post.
7 Eighteen Verses, 312.