When Fear is Essential!

My little boys know two sides of me. First, they know the playful side - the dad who rolls with them on the floor as we play games and wrestle and laugh and run. They know the dad who buys toys and other fun stuffs and they love that aspect of our relationship. However, lately, as they grow up, they are learning another aspect of daddy - the stern dad who would not hesitate to discipline, and even paddle if necessary, to correct them when they go wrong. In order for my boys and I to have a proper relationship, they need to understand both of these aspects of fatherhood.

In the same way, there are two very important characteristics of God that you must understand and relate to properly in order to ensure a successful relationship with Him. Rom 11:22 spells them out:

"Consider therefore the kindness and sternness of God: sternness to those who fell, but kindness to you, provided that you continue in his kindness. Otherwise, you also will be cut off. (NIV)

The kindness and sternness of God, or the goodness and severity of God as the King James Version puts them, are two important ways in which God deals with humanity. These two aspects of Him must be balanced appropriately to get the full picture of God. God is good and kind. He cares for you and is ever looking for avenues to pour out his mercy and grace on you. It is because of God's goodness that we exist. It is the reason why he wants to be your friend, bless you, provide for you, protect you, and reveal Himself to you.
Lam 3:22 reminds us that:

"It is of the LORD'S mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness. The LORD is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him. The LORD is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him."

We should thank God for his goodness and kindness every day. However, we need to understand the other side of God - his sternness or severity. If we focus only on his goodness, love, and kindness, we risk getting to a point where we take Him for granted. We not only need to love God, but also to fear Him.
In Deut 5:29, God says:

"O that there were such an heart in them that they would fear me, and keep all my commandments always, that it might be well with them , and with their children for ever!"

God is reminding us that we should know Him enough to fear Him. However, this fear is not the kind of fear you would have of a rattlesnake or an impending harm. Rather, the fear God talks about is reverential fear - deep honor, awe, and respect for Him and things that relate to Him. In this week's LightPoints, I enumerate below some areas in which we need to show more reverence to God.

1. Revere God's Name: God's name is great and He wants us to revere it. He says he will deal severely with those who profane and dishonor it. Jesus in His prayer taught us to Hallow God's name. Eliminate curse words from your lips and avoid those who use God's name to curse. Sing praises all week to his name. Isaiah 59:19, Leviticus 22:32, Luke 11:2

2. Revere God's Words: His words should be the final say in our lives. You should honor them enough to give them attention, obey them, and rate them higher than all other opinions. You should put faith in them and trust in their power to fulfill themselves. Isaiah 66:2

3. Revere God's Spirit: God does not deal lightly with disrespect for His Spirit. You should honor His presence both when you are alone and also when you are gathered with other believers. We should respect servants of God and those that God has anointed for his work. I Samuel 24:1-11

4. Revere God's Boundaries: Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:1-11) learned about revering God's boundaries the hard way. They died because they were covetous and lied about money in God's presence. Uzzah (2 Samuel 6: 1-7) died because he did not respect the instructions of God in touching the ark. You should respect God's boundaries by keeping away from sin - both physical, like fornication and adultery, and spiritual, like unforgiveness and strife.

5. Revere God's Covenant of Blood: The blood of Jesus must be revered. The taking of the communion must be done with respect in order to enjoy its benefits. Dealing with the covenant of the blood lightly incurs the severity of God. I Corinthians 11:17-34

I conclude with Hebrews 12:28:

"Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear: For our God is a consuming fire"

Blessings this week!

Pastor Lan

 

For other devotionals, please click here