~
The Israelites Were Commanded to Fear God, 7 ~
God
does not want His children living in fear.
“Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus
our Lord, as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life
and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue”
(2 Peter 1:2-3). However,
God does want His children to have a proper respect and reverence for Him. We are told in many places in Scripture to “fear
God.”
Comment ~ The
Scripture for this week is in relation to God’s requirements regarding Slavery.
This Week’s Passage ~ “And if one of your brethren who dwells by
you becomes poor, and sells himself to you, you shall not compel him to serve
as a slave. As a hired servant and a
sojourner he shall be with you, and shall serve you until the Year of Jubilee. And then he shall depart from you — he and
his children with him — and shall return to his own family. He shall return to
the possession of his fathers. For they
are My servants, whom I brought out of the land of Egypt; they shall not be
sold as slaves. You shall not rule over
him with rigor, but you shall fear your
God. And as for your male and female
slaves whom you may have — from the nations that are around you, from them you
may buy male and female slaves. Moreover
you may buy the children of the strangers who dwell among you, and their
families who are with you, which they beget in your land; and they shall become
your property. And you may take them as
an inheritance for your children after you, to inherit them as a possession;
they shall be your permanent slaves. But
regarding your brethren, the children of Israel, you shall not rule over one
another with rigor” (Leviticus 25:39-46).
Comment ~ In
our society today we will fear God when we understand His requirements.
Fearing God Results in Salvation
~ “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Hebrews
10:31). “A wise
person fears and departs from evil, but a fool rages and is self-confident”
(Proverbs 14:16).
This does not mean the Christian is to live a fearful life—but a life
which reverences God and seeks to do His will.
Fearing God Results in
Fearlessness ~ “The Lord
is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord
is the strength of my life; of whom shall
I be afraid?” (Psalm 27:1). The answer is: only God. With the gift of salvation comes
responsibility.
Fearing God Results in Witnessing ~ “Come and hear, all you who fear God,
and I will
declare what He has done for my soul” (Psalm 66:16).
~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW
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