I do Fear God

August 28, 2018

 Proverbs 16:6

“By steadfast love and faithfulness iniquity is atoned for, and by the fear of the Lord one turns away from evil.”

I do not have a clue about your past, your thought life, or your walk with the Lord, but I’m somewhat of an expert on mine, and I’ve had many bought lessons that I hope you have not had.  When I ponder on steadfast love and faithfulness, Jesus always fills the picture in my mind.  Do you recall John the Baptist seeing Jesus coming to be baptized and he proclaimed to the crowd, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”  I, like you, have a sin problem, and as a child, I went to church, heard many sermons on how to ask Jesus to come into my heart, but even as a child I wanted to be the one in charge of my life.  I believed that Jesus was the Son of God and that the Holy Spirit placed Jesus into a virgin, named Mary, and that He died on a cross to pay our debt of sin.  And yes, I believed He rose from the grave in three days and that He lives with the Father in heaven.  But all of that knowledge and belief does not make one right with the Father, in fact, the devil also believes and trembles at what he knows to be correct about his eternal home of fire and torment.

“And by the fear of the Lord one turns away from evil.”  I was blessed to know a man I respected for the wrong reasons, and he asked me one day to attend a Bible Study.  For six months I went to that Bible Study, and for the first two months I thought I would never go back, but five men who I found out had a personal relationship with the Lord that I was only informed about.  They loved me and treated me as a brother, and I believe the hounds of heaven were released on me.  One night I opened a hotel Bible and read Romans 10:9-10, and this is what I read that night and acted on.  ^“If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.  One believes with the heart, resulting in righteousness, and one confesses with the mouth, resulting in salvation.”

That night I was very fearful that a Holy God had run out of patience with me.  For a month I had been trying to make a deal with God, and it was not working, on that night, I just wanted to have Him in my life and become the man I so needed to be.

I’ve had teachers who said God is not to be feared but loved and honored and yes we must do that, but I do fear my God.  Do you recall Jesus words on this subject in Matthew 10:28,  ^“Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.”  You may also want to read Luke 12:4-5, “I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have more they can do.  But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear the One who, after you have been killed, has power to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear Him!”

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice