~
Results of Fearing
God ~
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.”
Scripture Passage ~ Proverbs
gives us the essence of the “fear of the Lord.” “The fear of the Lord is to
hate evil; pride and arrogance and the evil way and the perverse mouth I
hate.” (Proverbs 8:13)
Some Results of Fearing God ~ While there is a long list of benefits that
arrive from the fear of God I particularly like this verse: “This poor man called, and the Lord heard him; He
saved him out of all his troubles. The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him, and He delivers them. Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is
the one who takes refuge in Him. Fear the Lord, you His holy people, for those who fear Him lack nothing” (Psalm 34:6-9).
“Then those
who feared the Lord spoke to one another, and the Lord listened and heard them;
so a book of remembrance was written before Him for those who fear the Lord and who meditate on His name” (Malachi 3:16).
Application
To Life ~
When a person acknowledges the reality of who God is there are many
natural results. Here are a few:
1. Repentance (confessing asking forgiveness
and turning away from continued sin). See
for example Matthew 9:13.
2. Seek to please God and He will give you
the proper attitudes and desires. See
for example Psalm 37:4.
3. New patience will be evident, what is sometimes
referred to as “waiting on God.” See for
example see James 1:3-4.
4. An alertness to temptation and pressures
(both external and internal) to conform to this world. See for example 1 Peter 5:8.
5. There will be a willingness to persist
in prayer. See for example Luke 21:36.
6. There will be His peace permeating your
life. See for example Isaiah 26:3 and Colossians
3:15.
7.
As all of
the above becomes an increasing reality in your life you will be doing God’s
will for your life. See for example Ephesians
5:17.
The
Bottom Line ~ “Praise the Lord! Blessed [happy] is the man who fears the Lord, who delights greatly in His commandments”
(Psalm 112:1).
Closing Comment ~ The
Bible tells us that people in the past feared God and people in the future will
fear God.
~ Robert Lloyd Russell, ABUNDANT LIFE NOW blog.
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