If we understand God’s love, we will not be afraid of anything:
“… perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love." 1 John 4:18
We will really believe “…that in all things God works for the good of those who love him…” Romans 8:28
To have “perfect love” is to have a perfect relationship with God. Jesus, God the Son, had a perfect relationship with God His Father. Jesus obeyed God in everything:
“By myself I can do nothing; I judge only as I hear, and my judgment is just, for I seek not to please myself but him who sent me.” John 5:30-33
“For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me.” John 6:38
If we have a close relationship with God, we do not have to fear punishment. We may not have perfect obedience as Jesus did, but we can be assured God will forgive us when we ask:
“Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus,” Romans 8:1
“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9
We may face the consequences of our sin, but even when God disciplines us, He does it in love and for our good:
"Blessed is the man whom God corrects; so do not despise the discipline of the Almighty.” Job 5:17
God disciples those He call His children:
“And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons:
‘My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son.’ (Proverbs 3:11-12)
Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” Hebrews 12:5-12
God only expects us to change from what is harming us and others to what is good for us and others:
“Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent.” Revelation 3:19
If we have “perfect love” we will have no fear of harmful judgment.
If we have “perfect love” we do not need to fear the devil or anyone who does the devil’s work by putting a curse on us:
“Like a fluttering sparrow or a darting swallow, an undeserved curse does not come to rest.” Proverbs 26:2
If we fear God, we don’t need to fear anything else. Jesus said:
"I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more. But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after the killing of the body, has power to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him. Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.” Luke 12:4-7
Fearing God simply means respecting Him–obeying Him. It should be a joy to obey Him because He never asks anything which isn’t for our good and the good of others. Everything He does, asks, is, is love:
“God is love.” 1 John 4:7-8 “…God is love…” 1 John 4:16
I we have “perfect love” we will trust God completely. It helps to know how God expects us to trust Him:
God expects us to be bold:
“The wicked man flees though no one pursues, but the righteous are as bold as a lion.” Proverbs 28:1
We won’t be afraid of what might happen if we know what God wants us to do:
“The sluggard says, "There is a lion outside!" or, "I will be murdered in the streets!”" Proverbs 22:13
“The sluggard says, "There is a lion in the road, a fierce lion roaming the streets!" “Proverbs 26:13
We will keep on trusting Him and not doubt His goodness or that He will keep His promises:
“If you falter in times of trouble, how small is your strength!” Proverbs 24:10
He gives us small trials to prepare us for larger ones and lets us know that we can overcome the seemingly impossible:
"If you have raced with men on foot and they have worn you out, how can you compete with horses? If you stumble in safe country, how will you manage in the thickets by the Jordan?” Jeremiah 12:5
God never asks us to do what can’t be done:
“… "With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26 (Mark 9:2, 10:27, 14:26 Luke 1:37, 18:27)
We can trust God because He has already demonstration His love for us:
“We love because he first loved us.” 1 John 4:18-19
“This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.” 1 John 4:9
God sent His Son to suffer and die for our sins:
"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16
We can trust God because of His character:
“But you, O Lord, are a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.” Psalm 86:15
If we have “perfect love” we do not have to fear anything but the God who is Himself “perfect love”—the God we can trust completely anytime, all the time: “You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast, because he trusts in you.” Isaiah 26:3