GALATIANS 6:9 – And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.”

Let’s make a distinction before we move on. Today’s nugget theme is not “Why Be Afraid of God?” but “Why Fear God?” The former should be alive and well to those outside of Jesus Christ and His salvation. Such people are in a state of condemnation and under the wrath of God. They should be very afraid. This was the response of sinful Adam and Eve after their disobedience and before God gave animal skins as illustrative of salvation by blood sacrifice – And they heard the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the man and said to him, “Where are you?” And he said, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself.” He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten of the tree of which I commanded you not to eat?”(Genesis 3:8-11). But the fear of the Lord, opposite of being afraid of the Lord, is healthy, necessary, and comes with many spiritual blessings. Let’s consider a few.

First, the fear of the Lord is a gift of God given at new birth – And they shall be my people, and I will be their God. I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear me forever, for their own good and the good of their children after them. I will make with them an everlasting covenant, that I will not turn away from doing good to them. And I will put the fear of me in their hearts, that they may not turn from me (Jeremiah 32:38-40). Remember this and be thankful for it. No one by nature has this fear. It is one of the wonderful blessings in salvation. Notice the benefits in the Jeremiah passage of fearing the Lord. It is for our good and keeps us on the path of obedience. A precious gift is this fear that not everyone has. Thank the Lord often for it!

Another truth about this fear of God is its power to keep us from yielding to temptation. The best illustration of this is Joseph with Potiphar’s wife – So he left all that he had in Joseph’s charge, and because of him he had no concern about anything but the food he ate. Now Joseph was handsome in form and appearance. And after a time his master’s wife cast her eyes on Joseph and said, “Lie with me.” But he refused and said to his master’s wife, “Behold, because of me my master has no concern about anything in the house, and he has put everything that he has in my charge. He is not greater in this house than I am, nor has he kept back anything from me except you, because you are his wife. How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?”(Genesis 39:6-9). Why did Joseph refuse her advances? The fear of God. It is powerful in the heat of temptation to remind us of God’s presence which always gives us the proper perspective when fighting temptation.

So, why fear God? It is a chief mark of being born again, promotes our good in life, keeps us on the path of obedience, and empowers us to defeat all temptations to sin. May the Lord help us develop His fear more in our lives.

PRAYER: “Father, thank You for placing Your fear in me enabling me to walk close to You in holiness.”
QUOTE: “The fear of the Lord is never separate from the love of the Lord .The former fuels the latter.”

Because of Him,
Pastor Jim