ÒÉFear God and keep his commandments for this is manÕs all.Ó (Ecclesiastes 12:13) < ?xml version='1.0' encoding='utf-8'?>
ÒThe fear of the LORD leads to life, and he who has it will abide in satisfaction: he will not be visited with evil.Ó (Proverbs 19:23) The word of God is true; it has never failed, neither would it go back to Him void. The fear of the Lord is all that is needed in a believer to posses all things marked for the believer. The fear of the Lord makes the difference between a believer and a non-believer. The fear of the Lord demarcates the foolish from the wise. No one says it better than the Psalmist in Psalm 14:1, ÒThe fool has said in his heart, ÔThere is no GodÕ They are corrupt, they have done more abominable work, There is none who does good.Ó Foolishness is not to fear God. Fearing God should be sincere and consistent, and is to be evident in a believerÕs conduct. Have you repeatedly confessed the fear of God with no integrity to back it up? Integrity is what counts before God, not a good intention. It is possible to have good intentions without the fear of God. The race of life is not about being good, but being righteous through the blood of Jesus. Job feared God, and this is the testimony of God concerning Job, ÒThen the LORD said to Satan, ÒHave you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil? And still he holds fast to his integrity, although you incited Me against him, to destroy him without cause.Ó (Job 2:3) Just as God cannot overlook sin, so He will not overlook sincere and consistent obedience by any of His children. 2 Chronicles 16:9, ÒFor the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him…Ó It takes a heart that harbors the fear of God to be loyal to God. It is also confirmed in the word of God that He will not overlook every operation of the heart of man. Just like Job, every man that has operated in the fear of God must have experienced undeniable proofs of GodÕs hand. In contrast, those that have not operated the fear of must have given themselves to self-destruction. Remember LotÕs wife? God specifically commanded Lot and his entourage not to look back on the way of escape from Sodom and GomorrahÕs destruction. Genesis19:17, ÒSo it came to pass, when they had brought them outside, that he said, ÒEscape for your life! Do not look behind you nor stay anywhere in the plain. Escape to the mountains, lest you be destroyed.Ó There is no excuse before God, but the best position to live is in the fear of God. Genesis 19:26, Ò But his wife looked back behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.Ó Looking back, in this case, is a demonstration of not having the fear of God. It is not possible to listen to the word of God when you do not fear Him. The fear of God is all that leads to life, an abundant life indeed. What is it actually to fear the Lord? David gave the lesson when He volunteered to teach what it means to fear the Lord, Psalm 34:11, ÒCome, you children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the LORD.Ó Having made the offer to teach, he went on to say, Psalm 34:12-14, Who is the man who desires life, and loves many days, that he may see good? 13 keep your tongue from evil, and your lips from speaking deceit. 14 Depart from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.Ó David humbled himself in the presence of God to learn what it means to fear God. Keeping tongue in check, lips from deceit, departing from evil by doing good while seeking peace says it all about what it means to fear God. Among all the benefits of fearing God, abiding in satisfaction is probably the greatest, as mentioned in Proverbs 19:23. Abiding in satisfaction is what we all need; it eliminates every reason for pressing needs. Having satisfaction in God will terminate every visitation of evil. There is no amount of determination that can put the fear of God in a manÕs heart except by prayer. Do you desire to have the fear of God in you so that you may not sin? Pray the prayer of David in Psalm 86:11, ÒTeach me Your way, O Lord; I will walk in truth; unite my heart to fear Your name.Ó God is a prayer answering God. If it is your desire to fear Him, He will deposit what it takes for you to fear God. Like He said in Jeremiah 32: 40, ÒÉbut I will put My fear in their hearts so that they will not depart from Me.Ó Begin to hate evil. Fear Him and yours will be a fountain of life.
Without fainting or struggle in the face of lack, there will be a provocation of heavenly blessings of satisfaction.
Fear God; turn down manÕs reward for GodÕs reward will turn on showers of GodÕs reward.
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