Pray for a Breakthrough of the Fear of the Lord
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Pray for a Breakthrough of the Fear of the Lord
Dear partners in the good fight of faith,
As we focus on praying for a breakthrough of the fear of the Lord this month, you might want to check-out a book by Jerry Bridges called The Joy of Fearing God (available in our Bookstore).
Mr. Bridges gives a good working definition of the fear of God: “To truly fear God means to be in awe of God’s being and character as well as in awe of what He has done for us in Christ. When you put these two ideas together, you have an absolutely sovereign Creator of the universe who punishes those who resist Him, and yet loves us and sends His Son to die in our place. Surely that’s good reason to fear or reverence Him.”
We see how God’s powerful grace in saving His people motivates the fear of God in passages like Exodus 14:31: “When the people saw what God had done to the army of Egypt, they feared the LORD and put their trust in Him.”
Worldly logic says that if God is gracious to sinners, then we have nothing to fear. But gospel-centered logic says, because God is so astonishingly gracious to sinners, He is to be feared with all our hearts. Listen to Psalm 130:3-4: “If you, O LORD, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand? But with you there is forgiveness,that you may be feared.” And lest we imagine that this is simply an Old Testament concept, look at how the Apostle Peter motivates God’s people toward personal holiness: “... as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy.’ And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one's deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot” (1 Peter 1:15-19).
Over the next couple of weeks, we will explore more fully what it means to fear the Lord. But for now, I want to whet your appetite for a breakthrough in the fear of the Lord by highlighting some of the rich spiritual benefits that belong to those who fear God. As you read these benefits, pray and ask the Lord to intensify your fear of Him - and pray the same for your family and for our church family - so that we can grow in our experience of these astonishing blessings.
The fear of the Lord brings blessedness
“Praise the LORD!
Blessed is the man who fears the LORD,
who greatly delights in his commandments!”
(Psalm 112:1 ESV)
God stores up goodness for those who fear Him
“Oh, how abundant is your goodness,
which you have stored up for those who fear you
and worked for those who take refuge in you,
in the sight of the children of mankind!
In the cover of your presence you hide them
from the plots of men;
you store them in your shelter
from the strife of tongues.”
(Psalm 31:19-20 ESV)
God provides the needs of those who fear Him
“Oh, fear the LORD, you his saints,
for those who fear him have no lack!
The young lions suffer want and hunger;
but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.”
(Psalm 34:9-10 ESV)
God guides those who fear Him in ways of pleasantness and peace
“Who is the man who fears the LORD?
Him will he instruct in the way that he should choose.
His soul shall abide in well-being,
and his offspring shall inherit the land.”
(Psalm 25:12-13 ESV)
Those who fear Him enjoy intimacy with their Lord
“The friendship of the LORD is for those who fear him,
and he makes known to them his covenant.”
(Psalm 25:14 ESV)
God shows tender compassion to those who fear Him
“For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
as far as the east is from the west,
so far does he remove our transgressions from us.
As a father shows compassion to his children,
so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him.
For he knows our frame;
he remembers that we are dust...
But the steadfast love of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him,
and his righteousness to children's children,
to those who keep his covenant
and remember to do his commandments.”
(Psalm 103:11-14, 17-18 ESV)
Those who fear the Lord enjoy confidence & security from generation to generation
“In the fear of the LORD one has strong confidence,
and his children will have a refuge.
The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life,
that one may turn away from the snares of death.”
(Proverbs 14:26-27 ESV)
The Holy Spirit comforts & multiplies God’s church when His people fear Him
“So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was being built up. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it multiplied.”
(Acts 9:31 ESV)
Oh how rich is God’s mercy toward those who fear Him! Wisely did Charles Spurgeon say, “The fear of God is the cornerstone of all blessedness. …Let us cultivate that holy filial fear of Jehovah which is the essence of all true religion — the fear of reverence, of dread to offend, of anxiety to please, and of entire submission and obedience. This fear of the Lord is the fit fountain of holy living: we look in vain for holiness apart from it: none but those who fear the Lord will ever walk in his ways.”
Walking with you in the fear of the Lord and the comfort of His Holy Spirit,
Pastor David Sunday
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