Why is it so dangerous to fall into a trap? If we could interview a rat, the answer would be: “It’s deadly!” Fearing people is dangerous, because when fear grips us it traps us. And when we are trapped, we are stuck. We are not going anywhere. People should not have that kind of power over us. In fact, God did not create people that way.

In the beginning, Adam was very much on his own. The second person that came into being was taken from his rib. Eve was part of him and as such part of mankind; so is every person born ever since. Mankind is connected and functions just like an organism. Unfortunately, when Adam and Eve disobeyed God mankind began to drift apart and also drift away from God. As a result death became part of human history.

The specific malfunction of an autoimmune disease identifies part of the body as a disease and tries to combat it; in a manner of speaking, this is exactly what we see happening in genocide: humankind kills part of itself.

Fearing people is a derivative of the autoimmune disease, because in fear we combat our own kind. This is so wrong! We should not be afraid of each other. We should love and respect each other. That’s how mankind was wired initially before we got stuck in the death trap of fear.

Jesus has set a precedent when He conquered death on the cross. He loves each and every person, but He hates the effects of the autoimmune disease. Here is what He once said in a public statement (Matthew 23:37):

“Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing.”

All of humanity – not just Jerusalem – suffers from self-inflicted pain. Jesus offers us refuge under His wings. Indeed, under His wings we are at a place where we can deal with anything that comes our way. Most importantly, we are reconciled with God and set free to love; and there is absolutely no fear in love.