Fearless (of God)
One of the repeated teachings of the Bible is that we should not only love God, but also fear God. That is not a teaching we hear repeated much today, at all. We live in an age where tolerance is king and everything is touchy-feely, and the church has bought right in and re-painted God with that brush. In fact, a lot of Christians would even argue that fearing God is an Old Testament thing that is no longer necessary because of Jesus coming. Really? Okay, question: How many times in the gospels do we see the disciples hugging Jesus? And how many do we see them cowering in fear of Him? (Think about it, it’s probably more than you realize.)
Part of the problem is that is all you do is love God, but not fear Him, it will show in your life. It will lead you into sin. Not sure I’m right? Look at today’s reading (Proverbs 14) and what it says the fear of God does for us:
- leads to an upright walk
- helps us to shun evil
- provides a secure fortress and a refuge for our children
- turns a person from the snares of death
So … I pray we love God (and are overwhelmed by His love for us), but do you also fear Him? And are you teaching people to love Him … and fear Him?