When I was young, very young, there were preachers who would stand in the pulpit and pound congregations about the terrors of hell. Don’t see that much anymore. Most preachers these days talk in more psychological terms about happiness, contentment, and finding fulfillment. I rarely hear a sermon about sin. The Bible, on the other hand, is replete with admonitions about sin and tales of the horrors of hell. And often, these passages talk about “the fear of the Lord.”
That meaning of that phrase, “the fear of the Lord,” has changed for the American Church over the past decades. We no longer believe that we should be fearful of God. Instead, we think that we should have a healthy respect for Him, but not be afraid of Him. And perhaps that accounts for our lackidaisical attitude about sin. I mean, how many of us really get on our knees everyday and pour out our sorrow for our sins (most of which are habitual and due to our self-indulgence)? Instead, we comfort ourselves with the knowledge of forgiveness and go on our merry way, only to sin again.
Matthew Henry, in his commentary, says this about “the fear of the Lord:”
“by the fear of the Lord, and the influence of that fear, men depart from evil; those will not dare to sin against God who keep up in their minds a holy dread and reverence of him.”
A holy dread . . . will not dare to sin against God.
Do we have an attitude that dares not to sin against God? Or are we so concerned about our own feelings and well-being that we forget that while He is a God of love and mercy, He is also a God of justice and purity Who demands righteousness? The proverb tells us that “the fear of the Lord is life” and not only life, but “life indeed!” In other words, it is life abundant, life superlative, life with security. Like the security that we seek when we sin because sin comes out of fear or rebellion. We want what we want and what we think we want (or need). And we fail to trust.
Do we want a life that is secure? Do we want to understand living in a state of “no harm,” understanding that this means no harm to our souls (regardless of what happens to our bodies)?
You know, we spend a lot of time trying to protect and nurture this body and its accouterments when what we should really be concerned about are our eternal souls! Paul tells us: “I punish my body and enslave it, so that after proclaiming to others I myself should not be disqualified” (1 Co. 9:27 NRSV). Imagine Paul being disqualified as a Christian! And yet, that was his concern. He says that his body and his emotional needs threatened his salvation, so he punished them and enslaved them, making himself do only that which would qualify him for salvation.
But isn’t salvation a gift? Yes, of course. But there is this dichotomy that says it is a gift that must be used, exercised, and can be lost! We are saved and we are being saved through how we demonstrate our faith. Faith isn’t something we say; it’s something we do. And we begin to “do” our faith through having a fear of the Lord that motivates us not to sin.
© 2009 Robin L. O’Hare. All Rights Reserved. International copyright reserved. This study may be copied for nonprofit and/or church purposes only without permission when copied in its entirety (including this notice).
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