Fear God, Shun Evil

Fear of God is certainly one of the least favorite topics of the day both in modern Christianity and in the secular world. Many people, regard God as a good, loving, forgiving God and believe any fear [of punishment] is unmerited. This can be especially true in our Christian community circles where we [rightly] regard our standing with God as righteous, holy, and pure washed by the blood of the Lamb. However, sometimes this lack of fear can be a detriment to us as we are seeking to live lives characterized by holiness and fruit of the Holy Spirit. Several days ago, as I was in a Bible study, we contemplated some of the more stringent truths of 1st John such as, “No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him.” (1 John 3:6) “No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in them; they cannot go on sinning, because they have been born of God.” (1 John 3:9). Most of us admitted we had no idea what these passages meant, probably in large part due to the fact that they chafe against our own personal preconceived beliefs. I believe things like this may be rooted in our lack of fear of God.

So, how does a lack of fearing God relate back to believing the truth about God? In order to do this, I’d like to pair two other passages together and consider their implications for believing the truth about God. “The fear of the Lord is wisdom; and to shun evil is understanding...” (Job 28:28) “Can a man take fire in his bosom and his clothes not be burned? Can one go upon hot coals, and his feet not be burned?” (Proverbs 6:27-28) Think about these questions: When was the last time you grabbed some fire and held it to your chest? Or when did you decide to take your shoes off and decide to prance around in the coals of the fire you roasted your marshmallows in? Unless you’re a fool or someone paid you to (or perhaps both), you’ve probably NEVER done these things. Why? Because you understood the consequences of your actions. You, in a word, believed the fire and coals to be hot and harmful and therefore decided to stay far away (flee). Therefore, when we fear God and shun evil we demonstrate wisdom and understanding because we actually take God at His Word and trust that the sin which is so enticing is in actuality genuinely harmful (and sometimes deadly Acts 5:1-10) to us.  

Now how does this change the way we live out our faith? I believe it starts with identifying blind spots in our walks with the Lord, areas in which we know we are either outright disobedient or genuinely struggle to achieve victory. Then, we find what God’s Word has to say about these things, no matter how stringent.  Do you struggle with lust? Memorize and meditate on passages like Proverbs 5. Do you wrestle with anger? Consider Matthew 5. Does gossip come a little too naturally? Meditate on proverbs about the tongue and wholesome speech. Now I’m also not advocating for spiritual sado-masochism through beating yourself up with the Scriptures. I’m simply saying that you should fill your mind with the truth...all of it, including the sins and flesh struggles that are specific to you. I hope this helps you in your walk with the Lord and encourages you to know that His will for you is your sanctification. (1 Thess 4:3)

Questions for Reflection, Discussion, and Application:

1. Can we believe the truth about sin and still be ensared by it?
2. How do we reconcile fearing God and loving God at the same time? Is it possible?
3. What are some good passages to meditate on so that we fear God rightly?

*Next up on "Good & Noble"...What exactly is "repentance" and how does it relate to believing the Truth? Does it mean turning from evil and doing good as popularly heard or something else entirely?