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Pastor Chris White says to all of you: HELLO MY FRIENDS. May the Lord bless you today.
HOLA MIS AMIGOS. Que el Señor los bendiga.
For the unbeliever, the fear of God is the
fear of the judgment of God and eternal death, which is eternal separation from
God (Luke 12:5; Hebrews 10:31). For the believer, the fear of
God is something much different. The believer’s fear is reverence of God. Hebrews 12:28-29 is a good description of
this: “Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let
us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our
’God is a consuming fire.’” This reverence and awe is exactly what the fear of
God means for Christians. This is the motivating factor for us to surrender to
the Creator of the Universe.
Proverbs 1:7 declares, “The fear of the
LORD is the beginning of knowledge.” Until we understand who God is and develop
a reverential fear of Him, we cannot have true wisdom. True wisdom comes only
from understanding who God is and that He is holy, just, and righteous. Deuteronomy 10:12, 20-21 records, “And now, O Israel, what
does the LORD your God ask of you but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all
his ways, to love him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with
all your soul. Fear the LORD your God and serve him. Hold fast to him and take
your oaths in his name. He is your praise; he is your God, who performed for
you those great and awesome wonders you saw with your own eyes.” The fear of
God is the basis for our walking in His ways, serving Him, and, yes, loving
Him.
Some redefine the fear of God for believers to “respecting” Him. While respect
is definitely included in the concept of fearing God, there is more to it than
that. A biblical fear of God, for the believer, includes understanding how much
God hates sin and fearing His judgment on sin—even in the life of a
believer. Hebrews 12:5-11 describes
God’s discipline of the believer. While it is done in love (Hebrews 12:6), it is still a fearful thing. As
children, the fear of discipline from our parents no doubt prevented some evil
actions. The same should be true in our relationship with God. We should fear
His discipline, and therefore seek to live our lives in such a way that pleases
Him.
Believers are not to be scared of God. We have no reason to be scared of Him.
We have His promise that nothing can separate us from His love (Romans 8:38-39). We have His promise that He
will never leave us or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5). Fearing God means having such a
reverence for Him that it has a great impact on the way we live our lives. The
fear of God is respecting Him, obeying Him, submitting to His discipline, and
worshipping Him in awe.
Thank you to Got Questions Ministries
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