faith vs fear....

one evening at grief share, the video we watched said that faith and fear were the same thing. really? how can that be?  i thought "fear" was satan's weapon and faith was God's shield against fear.
let's see what the dictionary has to say about both...

faith:  (there are 8+ definitions of faith, but i chose these 2) "belief that is not based on proof; the trust in God and in His promises as made through Christ and the Scriptures by which humans are justified or saved."

fear: (again, there are many definitions) "a distressing emotion aroused by impending danger, evil, pain, etc., whether the threat is real or imagined; the feeling or condition of being afraid; reverential awe, especially toward God."
 
do you see any similarities between the two?  two that stick out the most to me are 1) that both are mostly "unseen;" 2) that both include God.  and even for a secular dictionary, that's huge.
 
There are many instances where both faith and fear appear in the Bible.
Hebrews 11:1 states: "now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see."
2 Corinthians 5:7 "we live by faith, not by sight."
Isaiah 41:10 states: "so do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God."
1John 4:18 "there is no fear in love. but perfect love drives out fear., because fear has to do with punishment. the one who fears is not made perfect in love."
Psalm 111:10 "the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom..."
Proverbs 1:7 "the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge..."
Psalms 19:9 "the fear of the Lord is pure, enduring forever."

of course, i could go on and on quoting scripture.  i guess what i am trying to say is that there are similarities between faith and fear.  you can especially see those similarities in the last three scripture verses.  to have a "fear" of the Lord, such as a "reverence" of the Lord, leads to an increased faith because you are increasing your knowledge of Him and your wisdom in His Word.
but i think if you are "afraid" as in the first definition of the word fear, it's not a "healthy" fear.  it will hold you back. it will eventually consume you.  to fear anything else in this life or death is to not put your faith in Christ.  i have written some previous posts here and here, regarding fear, if you wish to read them.

so perhaps when you feel afraid you can turn to your faith...
if you feel a fear of the unknown, have faith in Christ to move forward.
if you have a fear of a new reality, have faith in Christ to bring you through it.
if you have a fear of what lies beyond the grave, have faith that God told us "to be absent in body means to be present with the Lord."

in the video, they stated that the words "fear not" were listed in the Bible 365 times!  that's one for every day of the year!  do you think God is trying to tell us something?  i do!

i hope i didn't bring more confusion to this, but a small light on the subject.  for it will take us a lifetime to really delve into what faith vs fear really means to us.  but as for me, right now, i will live by faith, not by fear...no matter how similar they seem to be.