7/19/26 - WiFi Land / THE FEAR OF THE LORD

Good morning my friend all over the world today. We greet you in the name of he whose fear of God was perfect and whose fear of man did not exist and it was never a respecter of persons. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ to whom be glory both now and forevermore of him. Well, we often hear questions from professing believers about the fear of God. Now, just like there are two sides to a coin, so the fear of God also has two sides and both of these sides are complimentary to each other. First, there is fearing God because of his terrible judgments upon sin and sinners and this is especially true for the unbeliever. And second, there's the fearing God in which a believer has a wonderful and profound awareness of God's supreme holiness, majesty and power. It involves honoring God for the magnitude of his glory and the beauty of his perfect holiness and righteousness. And this fear of God leads the believer to desire to conform his or her life to God's character. So, let's first consider the fear of God's judgment. In speaking of the coming day of the Lord, we read in Revelation 6:15. And the kings of the earth and the great men and the rich men and the chief captains and the mighty men and every bondman and every freeman hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains and said to the mountains, "Fall on us and hide us from the face of him that sitteth upon the throne and from the wrath of the lamb. For the great day of his wrath is come, and who shall be able to stand? And Hebrews 10:27 speaks of a fearful expectation of judgment and a fury of fire that will consume God's adversaries. And then the thought concludes in verse 31, it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. To be eternally separated from God and cast into the lake of fire is an unimaginable consequence for the sin of refusing God's mercies in Christ. Hear the Lord Jesus' own words Matthew 10:28, and fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul, but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. And destroy does not mean the loss of existence, nor the loss of being. No, not the loss of being, but the loss of well-being. My friend, if you are without Christ in this moment, is there no fear of God before your eyes? Do you not realize the sins of your life shall soon fuel the fire of God's judgment that you'll never be quenched? Do not delay, call upon Christ. Receive him as your Lord and savior. He endured the full fury of God's wrath so you might experience God's mercy and love, but never experience his wrath. Amen. And then there is that fear of God which describes the believer's awe and wonder at this God who saved him. This God who is incomprehensible and who is indescribable, and who is glorious in majesty and power and love. Now, this godly fear has no thought of judgment. First John 4:18, "There is no fear in love. But perfect love casteth out fear because fear hath thought of torment." Amen. Now, we read in Proverbs 9:10, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. And the knowledge of the holy is understanding." The fear of the Lord is the foundation for all accurate learning. Learning must begin with God himself. Who he is and what his character is. Just like you cannot progress in reading without a knowledge of the alphabet, so you cannot acquire true wisdom without a knowledge of God. And having said that, there should be no question as to why there was such confusion in today's world. Just like the foolish man who built his house upon the sand, so this world's wisdom is built upon the shifting sand of man's thoughts and ideas. Without the fear of the Lord and the wisdom it brings, you are left with man's wisdom. A wisdom which brilliantly concludes that you are only a very advanced monkey. And having made that foolish quantum leap, why not get real stupid and conclude that men can have babies? And then there is the knowledge of the holy. This personal knowledge of the eternal and immutable God can only be found in the Bible. And then as perfectly revealed in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. And this knowledge of the holy one and his will allows the believer to make good and wise choices. Choices that are made in light of eternity. Amen. Joseph is a great example of a man who feared the Lord and had knowledge of the holy. When lusting Mrs. Potiphar tried to catch Joseph in the snare of her sinful lust, he responded, "How can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?" Joseph feared the Lord and his knowledge of the holy became his personal motivation to be holy himself. May we all take this to heart. Myself first. And finally, the most perfect and most descriptive picture of the meaning of the fear of the Lord for the believer is seen in the Lord Jesus himself. Hebrews 5:7 tells us that God heard the prayers of the Lord Jesus because of his godly fear. The Lord Jesus walked in an absolute reverence for God and love for him always. Amen. In closing, may each of us who profess faith in Christ follow the exhortation of 2 Corinthians 7:1, "and perfect holiness in the fear of God." In Jesus' name, amen.