Fear God, Not Man
Isaiah 8-10; Hebrews 8
“The Lord spoke to me with his strong hand upon me, warning me not to follow the way of this people. He said: ‘Do not call conspiracy everything that these people call conspiracy; do not fear what they fear, and do not dread it. For the Lord Almighty is the one you are to regard as holy, he is the one you are to fear, he is the one you are to dread…’”
Isaiah 8:11-13
When was the last time the strong hand of the Lord was upon us and we sensed he was speaking to us?
In the uncertainty of our times we are tempted to fear economic downturns or even collapse, wars, the loss of rights and freedoms, and our personal security and safety. Fear has become our greatest enemy and the media feeds off our vulnerability. When we seek the presence of the Lord, we are reminded that he is the Almighty. He gives us life and one day we will stand before his throne in eternity. Living in the awesome awareness that God is holy and almighty fills us with reverence and a healthy fear of the Lord. It is this reverence and fear which guards our heart from temptation and sin. When we know God, we fear God, not just love God; and this reverence, or hallowing of his name, delivers us from the fear of man and all the world fears. We know the living God!
What have we to fear?
“Lord God Almighty, increase the healthy fear of you in my life, for your glory.”