The Fear of God

We’re off to the lake, so the next post will be on Saturday.

The Bible says, “The fear of God is the beginning of wisdom.”

Some people have a problem with that. They think, why would we be afraid of a God who is supposedly a God of love? (A deep desire to ignore Justice is a common trait with people who make a fuss over fearing God). Or, they think that it’s wrong to make people afraid of God or of hell. (Somehow warning people of danger is a bad thing in the minds of these people). When I was a newish Christian I used to think that “fear of the Lord” meant that we should respect God and fear Him in the sense that we fear and respect fire. That’s true as far as it goes, but it doesn’t go far enough. The longer that I’ve followed Jesus, the more I’ve come to realise that we need to fear Creator God in a much deeper sense. Here’s why.

Awhile back I read about some guy who raped a little girl (I think it was in Florida) and buried her alive. When you think of the trauma and pain she experienced during the rape and when you think of her then suffocating as she sucked dirt into her nostrils and mouth in a desperate attempt to gain her last breath of air, what does that do to you, emotionally?

A week ago in a community near ours, three teens broke into the home of an 81-year-old woman. They beat her, ransacked her home and stole whatever they thought might be worth selling. 81- years-old. Living alone on a farm. Can you imagine the fear? What does it do to you when you hear of teenagers beating up an old woman?

Unless your conscience has been dulled by the daily wash of news, these kinds of crimes probably arouse anger in you. In fact I think we could say that the degree of revulsion you experience in response to these crimes is directly proportionate to the degree of goodness that is present in your character. The better person that you are (as the world understands goodness) the more upsetting the effects of evil are for you.

Can you see where I’m going with this?

God is perfectly good, pure and infinitely Holy. Sin and evil generate an infinitely Holy wrath within Him.

“The wrath of God is His eternal detestation of all unrighteousness. It is the displeasure and indignation of Divine equity against evil. It is the holiness of God stirred into activity against sin. It is the moving cause of that just sentence which He passes upon evil-doers. They shall be made to feel how great that Majesty is which they despise, and how dreadful is that threatened wrath which they so little regarded.
Arthur Pink, “The Wrath of God.”

The wrath of God is caused and has always been caused by human’s wanton arrogance and insolent disregard of His moral laws or restraints. We despise God and seek to live without any regard to the Holiness and Love of our Creator. The very thought of being accountable to anyone but ourselves sets up a rage toward our Creator that is so great we are willing to be eternally separated from Him in the most horrendous conditions imaginable rather than submit to His rightful honour and glory.

Of course it’s the degree of punishment at which atheists voice their opposition. They claim (as though they’re in a position to judge such matters) that an eternity of punishment is too much for the sins that they have committed. The fact is, each and every one of us is a lying, thieving, murdering, adulterer who ignores and even despises what Jesus calls the greatest and most important commandment - Love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength. In the atheist mind, all that should just be ignored by our Creator.

Because they see themselves as being good people (only the worst of us see ourselves as good) atheists demand a pass IF it turns out that they’re wrong and God really does exist.

Let me ask you a couple questions:

. A surgeon is about to perform abdominal surgery on you. Should she choose a completely sterile scalpel or one that has just a little bit of dirt on it?

. You order your favourite meal in your favourite restaurant. As the Server places the meal before you, you notice several of the Chef’s pubic hairs in the sauce. How many pubic hairs would there need to be before you send the meal back?

As you can see from both examples, the amount of dirt isn’t the issue. The issue is the presence of dirt. When we expect cleanliness, ANY filth is too much. It’s the same with sin. In the eyes of a perfectly Holy God, it’s not the number of sins that you’ve committed but the presence of sin - period. That sin will not and cannot be tolerated. Sin and evil are what have destroyed God’s perfect and Holy universe. Sin and evil have placed everything, including us, on the path of death, decay and destruction. That which causes life and purity to be corrupted by death and destruction will be judged by Creator God. Just reading the word purity makes those on the side of evil gag. Purity is the last thing that these people want in their lives yet purity is what God demands before anyone can gain entrance to heaven.

Jesus has offered us a solution - the only solution to the problem.
There is going to be hell to pay for those who refuse that remedy.

You can either accept Jesus’ offer, and enjoy paradise.
Or you can reject His offer, and experience God’s wrath.

Joy is appropriate for the former choice.
Fear and dread should and will accompany the latter.

Jesus said, “Do not fear him who can only kill the body. Rather, fear Him who can destroy both the body and the soul.”