DO YOU FEAR THE LORD?

DAY 208

Exodus 19:16 On the morning of the third day there were thunders and lightnings and a thick cloud on the mountain and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all the people in the camp trembled.

The God who appeared to Moses and the nation of Israel did so in a manner that was terrifying: ‘With thunder and lightning, a dark cloud over the entire mountain, smoke and fire’. None of these are elements that attract, in fact they are more likely to keep people away.

However, they revealed the majesty and power of God in a degree that very literally made the people of Israel tremble in fear. While their fear was literal, we appear to have encountered ‘a gentle God’ in our current dispensation. We have therefore become accustomed to a God who is slow to anger and abounds in mercy. A God whose tender mercy and loving kindness appear to override his judgements.

The consequence of this is that over time, even our reverential fear of God has disappeared. But beloved, make no mistake, Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever. God has not changed, what has become our inheritance in Christ, is the degree of access we have to Him.

Ecclesiastes 8:12b reads ‘still I know that it will be well with those who [reverently] fear God, who fear and worship Him openly [realizing His omnipresence and His power].’ In the fear of the Lord, there is life, instruction, provision and shielding. Simply, there are dimensions in God only preserved for those ‘who fear him’- not literally, but reverently.

#sly