The Most Common Command in the Bible

 I was surprised recently to learn what the most common command is in the Bible.  Go ahead and guess what it is.  My first guess was: worship God.  Jesus says that the greatest commandment is to love God and the second greatest is to love our neighbor as ourselves.  But this is actually not the most repeated command in Scripture.

The most common, most repeated, command in the Bible is "Do not be Afraid."  As someone who has struggled with anxiety recently this really struck me.  A lot of my anxiety comes from a fear of not being able to control the future.  What if this happens... What if that happens... And what if it's my fault.  But God repeatedly throughout Scripture commands us to not be afraid.

I've been working on some Christmas messages lately and you find this command to not be afraid even in the Christmas story.  Joseph, Zechariah, Mary, and the shepherds are all told "do not be afraid."  There is something about the Christ-child that will remove all our fears.

Why would this be the most repeated command in Scripture?  Surely, it is not more important than worshiping God.  I think it's the most repeated because God knows us and knows our weaknesses.  We fear the future, we fear the what if's in life, we fear that God doesn't love us anymore, we fear our past might catch up with us, etc.  So, God comes to us in our weakest moments and tells us to not fear.

A passage that I have latched onto recently that has this line in it is Isaiah 43:1-2.

But now thus says the Lord,

he who created you, O Jacob,

    he who formed you, O Israel:

“Fear not, for I have redeemed you;

    I have called you by name, you are mine.

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;

    and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you;

when you walk through fire you shall not be burned,

    and the flame shall not consume you."

The reason why Isaiah says we should not be afraid is fourfold: I have redeemed you, I have called you, you are mine, and I will be with you.  It's not just that God commands us to not be afraid and then leaves us.  He backs it up.  He gives reasons why we should not be afraid.  Ultimately, whatever happens, I know it's going to be fine, because God is with me.