LOVE AND FEAR GOD

                     

                                     

 All Bible quotations are taken from the New King James Version

          How do you view God? Do you see Him as a God of love – a Father who is a loving Father towards His children? The Bible tells us that God is a God of love. “He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.” (1 John 4:8). Or do you view God as One to be feared? The Bible tells us God is a holy God and He is to be feared and worshipped. “And one (a seraphim – angelic being) cried to another and said: Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; The whole earth is full of His glory.” (Isaiah 6:3).

We, like the children of Israel, need to learn how to balance the love of God with the fear of God. There is a very fine line between the two. Yet, the Bible not only tells us to do both, but commands us to do both. We either go too far one way or the other.

God is a God of love as well as a holy God who is to be feared and worshipped by His people. We can see these two characteristics of God merged together in the first line of the prayer Jesus taught His disciples to pray. “Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name.” (Mathew 6:9). Here we see God as “Our Father in heaven.” Jesus is instructing His disciples here to call God “Father” which was unheard of in the Jewish culture. When we think of a father, we have a picture of someone who loves and cares for every need his children have. Yet, the Father in heaven loves His children with a deep, everlasting love which is unfathomable. “The Lord has appeared of old to me, saying, Yes, I have loved you with an everlasting love. Therefore with lovingkindness I have drawn you.” (Jeremiah 31:3).   His loving arms are always outstretched to us to draw us to Himself.

In the very next phrase Jesus teaches His disciples to pray, “Hallowed be Your name.” The definition of, “hallowed” is, “made holy, consecrated.” It also means, “greatly revered or honored.” Here Jesus is teaching that, even as God is our Father, His name is holy and is to be “greatly revered and honored.” To a great extent, the church has lost the reverence of God today. Very often, we do not worship the Lord as He deserves to be worshipped.

God is a holy God, and for that reason, He taught His people, Israel that they should not have any other gods before Him, or make any craved image, or bow down to them. We get a picture of God’s holiness by the way God instructed Moses to construct the Tabernacle in the wilderness. The Tabernacle was constructed very carefully according to the detailed design God showed Moses on the mountain. The Tabernacle had three main sections: the Outer Court, the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies. All of the children of Israel could go into the Outer Court, but only the High Priests who were appointed by the Lord (Aaron and his three sons) could go into the Holy of Holies once a year under very strict restrictions. Every Priest who entered the Holy of Holies had to wear special garments which had bells in the hem. These bells were to tell the children of Israel if the Priest was still alive in the Holy of Holies. If the bells stopped ringing, that meant the Priest was dead, as he did not meet the requirements of entry into the Holy of Holies of a holy God. The High Priest’s annual entry in to the Holy of Holies was a serious and exacting requirement to fear the Lord as they were instructed to do. 

           As Christians we can learn something from this. First of all, Jesus Christ paid the ultimate price, it was His blameless sacrifice that paid the price for all of our sins, making the annual blood sacrifices obsolete / or no longer necessary.  Only God was able to provide such a covering for us through the Blood of Jesus Christ.  Jesus’ blood not only covers our sin but blots it out forever. “But Christ came as a High Priest of good things to come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is, not of this creation. Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.” (Hebrews 9:11-12). It was when Jesus yielded up His spirit on the cross that the veil of the temple was torn in two (the veil which separated the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies). (See Matthew 27:50-51). This means that we can now have full access into the very presence of a holy God. Once we have applied the precious Blood of Jesus to our lives, we can come boldly, but reverently into God’s presence. “Therefore, having boldness to enter the Holiest by the blood of Jesus. Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscious and our bodies washed with pure water.” (Hebrews 10:19, 22). 

Sometimes we are so casual as we enter the church. It's alright for us to socialize while drinking our tea or coffee in the church lobby, the outer court. Yet, we think we can continue to socialize and bring our drink into the sanctuary, the Holy of Holies. Let us have a fresh vision of God’s holiness and show Him the respect He alone deserves. Remember that if the Priest in the Tabernacle made even one mistake, he was instantly dead. I know that is not our vision of God today, but He has never changed. “For I am the Lord; I have not changed. Therefore you are not consumed, O sons of Jacob.” (Malachi 3:6).

          I like the way Jesus merges the two greatest characteristics of God together in the first two statements of (what we call) the Lord’s Prayer. What I also find interesting is Jesus mentions God as, “Our Father” first before He mentions that God’s name is, “hallow” or “holy.” One would naturally think that when we come to God in prayer, which is what’s happening here, we should reverently worship Him before we call Him, “Our Father.” For a long time, when I prayed, I started with, “Abba Father” but then I changed my praying to put worshipping God first. I had it right when I was putting, “Abba Father” first. I am just seeing this as I am writing it. Now, when I pray, I’m going to put it back in the correct order and fellowship with my “Abba Father.” Once I come to God as my “Abba Father,” then my heart breaks out into worship to Him for being a “holy” God who deserves even more honor and reverence than I could ever give Him.

          God wants us to see Him as “Our Father” and the One who loves us with a deep, everlasting love. God showed us how much He loves us when He sent Jesus, His Son to die on the cross for our sin. God had to satisfy His holy demands so we could come boldly, yet reverently into His presence as He is a holy God. “Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” (Hebrews 4:16).  As our holy God, He is to be revered, honored and worshipped from the depths of our being.

 

          At the beginning of this devotional, I asked, “How do you see God?” Do you view Him as a loving Father who takes care of His children? Or do you perceive Him as a Judge ready to make you pay for every mistake you have ever made? Then, I have good news. God sent His Son, Jesus to take yours and my punishment and blot out our sin forever by dying on the cross and shedding His blood. If you are serious about receiving Jesus and following Him, you must first repent of all your sin, turn from it, and live fully for the Lord. By accepting Jesus as your Savior and Lord, He will cleanse you from your sin so you can come into a right relationship with God the Father. If you would like to accept Jesus, pray this prayer or one similar. “Jesus, I ask You to forgive me and cleanse me of my sin by Your precious blood. I surrender my life to You and ask that You will bring me into a relationship with my Heavenly Father.” If you have a Bible, start reading in the Gospel of John, which is the fourth Book of the New Testament. In the Gospel of John, it will explain how much God loved you and sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to save you from your sin so you could have a relationship with both Jesus and your Heavenly Father.