~
Individual Witnesses to God’s Power Feared 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.”
This Week’s Passage ~ “Nevertheless the men rowed hard to return to
land, but they could not, for the sea continued to grow more tempestuous against
them. Therefore they cried out to the
Lord and said, ‘We pray, O Lord, please do not let us perish for this man’s
life, and do not charge us with innocent blood; for You, O Lord, have done as
it pleased You.’ So they picked up Jonah
and threw him into the sea, and the sea ceased from its raging. Then the men feared the Lord exceedingly,
and offered a sacrifice to the Lord and took vows” (Jonah 1:13-16).
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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