What might be the sign of this liberation? In the biblical imagination the antithesis of fear is love. Freedom from the fear of death makes love possible. As it says in 1 John 4:18, “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear . . .” Where fear is a symptom of death, love becomes a sign of resurrection: “Anyone who does not love remains in death” (1 John 3:14). Where we find fear and death on one side, we find love and resurrection on the other.
