The Lord of hosts, Him you shall hallow; Let Him be your fear, and let Him be your dread (Isaiah 8:13).
THEME
FEAR OF GOD
On June 6, 1944, five thousand ships departed England for the Normandy coast and the greatest invasion of World War II. From this military event comes the story of the skipper who lectured his crew on fear, and said, "Fear is a very healthy thing." A third-class yeoman yelled in reply, "Captain, you're looking at the healthiest sailor in the United States Navy."
During Isaiah's time, King Ahaz and the people of Judah trembled like trees in a wind storm because of the Syrian and Ephraim alliance. Isaiah warned Ahaz and Judah about their misplaced fear; Syria and Ephraim were just two smoldering wood stubs that Assyria would put out in 722 b.c. Judah should fear a holy God, and in so doing, other fears would go away like the frequent east wind.
We tend to associate fear with punishment and danger, but that shows our limited understanding of it. Perfect fear comes from our sense of awe and wonder as we get glimpses of God. John says, "Perfect love casts out fear" (1 John 4:18). Fear, for the Christian, is not so much about punishment as love. God-fearing people are God-loving people.
Fear can be healthy; but God must be the focus. In fearing God, we express not only awe but also trust and love. This frees us from rival and lesser fears and makes us both fearsome and fearless.
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JUL 08
ISAIAH 51:7-16
The fear of man brings a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord shall be safe (Proverbs 29:25).
Fear of what others may think about us can play an important role in the way we act. The American Indians recognized this and used scorn and ridicule to promote social order. For instance, when a child of the Fox tribe was taught the do's and don'ts of Indian life, his elders didn't hold over his head an abstract rule of morality. Nor did they threaten him with punishment now or in the hereafter. Instead, they said to him, "The people of the village may say things about you."
Isaiah 51 also recognizes the power of peer pressure--but not as a motivation for right conduct. Whereas the Indians used fear of ridicule to induce good behavior, the Lord warned His people Israel that the "reproach of men" could be their downfall. Their concern with what others said about them could cause them to seek unholy human alliances and to make compromises. Instead, God called them to trust the Lord and seek only His approval.
This is also good advice for us, because "the fear of man" snares many Christians. If we order our conduct only by the approval or disapproval of others, we will be frustrated and left with a painful sense of insecurity.
When we find our fulfillment in doing what pleases God, the crippling terror of what others think will give way to the confidence of a healthy fear--a reverence for God that frees us to live for His approval.
--M.R.D.II
The fear of God can deliver us from the fear of men.
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JUL 09
ROMANS 13:1-7
Render therefore to all their due: taxes to whom taxes . . . fear to whom fear (Romans 13:7).
One night I heard a radio preacher say that we should fear only God. But I don't agree. Peter exhorted servants to be subject to their masters "with all fear" (1 Pe 2:18), and Paul said that wrongdoers should be afraid of civil authorities (Ro 13:4). A hierarchy of fear is an integral part of living on our sin-cursed planet. Our moral responsibility is to put the things we fear in their proper place.
A boy whose friends urged him to experiment with illicit drugs told me he was afraid they would think of him as a coward, but he resisted because he was more frightened of the consequences. A young man who volunteered for dangerous military duty admitted he was scared of being wounded or killed, but he had a greater concern about what would happen if the enemy won the war. Both of these young men did what was right because they recognized the priority of certain fears.
The Bible teaches that our greatest fear should be of displeasing God. A believer who is told that he must either commit evil or face the firing squad should be more concerned about disobeying the Lord than being shot. That's what Jesus meant when He said, "Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell" (Mt 10:28).
Fear is part and parcel of life here on earth. But this strong emotion can serve us well if we let our fear of God be supreme.
--H.V.L.
Shame arises from the fear of men, conscience from the fear of God.
--Samuel Johnson
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JUL 10
ISAIAH 51:1-16
"Who are you that you should be afraid of a man who will die, and . . . who will be made like grass?" (Isaiah 51:12).
Phobias are nothing new to most Americans, but "cyberphobia" is. It's one of America's newest phobias. According to a team of business professors at George Mason University, a large number of people have cyberphobia--a serious fear of computers. Just being in the same room with one causes some to feel panic, have irregular heartbeat, breathing difficulties, dizziness, and trembling. One therapist says that these individuals have more than the normal fear of failure while learning to work with computers. They become so anxious that they fear passing out, going crazy, or losing control. This doesn't make sense to most of us, but then no phobia makes much sense. Yet the fear is real.
Many of us have another phobia that can be equally debilitating--the fear of the opinions and actions of others. Sometimes we think and act as if our fate and well-being rested solely in the hands of other people. Isaiah told us how it looks to the One who is in control when we become so afraid of people that we panic and forget to trust entirely in Him. He said that fearing the reproach of people is foolish because they are dying creatures who have little more real strength and longevity than grass (51:12). The Lord knows what great harm people can do to us (vv. 13-14). But He has the last word. Our future and everlasting well-being depend on Him and Him alone.
--M.R.D.II
Faith can break the stranglehold of fear.
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JUL 11
ISAIAH 6:1-5
But they, measuring . . . and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise (2 Corinthians 10:12).
A little boy announced to his mother, "I'm like Goliath. I'm nine feet tall." "What makes you say that?" asked his mother. The tyke replied, "Well, I made a little ruler and measured myself with it, and I am nine feet tall!"
Although the child's measurements were accurate, his ruler was defective. He was like many people who fail to see their need of salvation because they measure themselves by a faulty standard. By looking at their peers and comparing their own behavior with others who have done worse than they have, they conclude that they are not so bad after all. But such pride is demolished when people compare themselves with a perfect standard of righteousness.
When the prophet Isaiah saw the Lord in all His glory, he exclaimed, "Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips, . . . For my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts" (Isa 6:5). And according to Romans 3:23, we all have sinned and fallen short of God's glory. These two verses reveal how we measure up spiritually in God's sight.
Those who have never given their lives to Christ, and who recognize how far short of God's standard they fall, can place their trust in Christ and enjoy the true righteousness found in Him. When we measure our morality against that of other sinners, we are "not wise." We are using the wrong standard of measurement.
--R.W.D.
If we could merit our own salvation, Christ would not have died to provide it.
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JUL 12
ISAIAH 8:11-22
So will I . . . bring their fears on them; because, when I called, no one answered (Isaiah 66:4).
Many people like to be scared, but only in the world of make-believe. They keep going to horror movies, but they don't like to be faced with legitimate causes for fear. A writer who depicts the threat of communism in Central America is accused of using scare tactics. A Christian leader who dares suggest that some diseases may be God's judgment on sin is scorned. The general attitude is: "Never say anything about God's judgment to scare people into doing what's right."
Isaiah didn't hesitate to use fear in addressing God's people. Already afraid of the Assyrians, they accused him of treason because he warned the king against making an alliance with this nation. He responded, in essence: "You have far more reason to be afraid of what God will do than of what Assyria will do." He told them that if they made an alliance with Assyria God would punish them. The Almighty would become a rock to make them stumble, and a trap to take away their freedom.
The Bible declares that those who reject Jesus and continue in their wicked ways will find God to be their enemy. If this frightening thought motivates a person to trust Him for salvation, it has served a good purpose. Similarly, if fear causes a Christian to serve the Lord with new zeal, it has fulfilled a positive function. The fear of God is good because it leads to right living--even if it scares us.
--H.V.L.
Fear God and you will have nothing else to fear.
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JUL 13
2 TIMOTHY 2:1-13
Walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him
(Colossians 1:10).
A strong desire to please God is the highest incentive for doing His will and shows a true understanding of godly fear. We may have other worthy motives, such as the inner satisfaction of doing what's right or the anticipation of heavenly rewards. But we bring the greatest glory to God when we obey and serve Him because we long to do what brings Him delight.
Craig, a first-grader, beamed with satisfaction as he handed me a spelling test on which his teacher had written a large "100--Good work!" Craig said, "I showed this to Dad and Mother because I knew it would please them." I could just see him riding home on the bus, hardly able to wait for the moment when his parents would express their excitement with how well he had done. His desire to make Dad and Mom happy obviously was a strong motivating factor in his life.
When Paul used the simile of a soldier serving with single-minded devotion to please his commanding officer (2 Ti 2:3-4), he wanted Timothy to know the supreme reason for serving God, even when the going gets tough. Wholehearted devotion, marked by hard work and careful attention to God's rules, brings the greatest glory to the Lord when it comes from a yielded, loving heart. Our Savior, who in His humanity shrank from the prospect of being made the sin-offering for mankind, nevertheless prayed, "Not My will, but Yours, be done" (Luke 22:42). Our motive, like His, should be the desire to please the Father.
--H.V.L.
Man weighs the deeds; God weighs the intentions.
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JUL 14
MATTHEW 10:24-33
"Fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body"
(Matthew 10:28).
All sorts of fears obsess believers. Although some may be legitimate, most are vague, nameless feelings of apprehension. They rob us of confidence and joy, and keep us from spiritual health and effectiveness. The Bible has the solution to this problem. When we learn the fear of God, we will not be controlled by earthly terrors.
A young boy living in Holland when it was occupied by the Nazis during World War II, wrote the following in his journal: "Last week three German officers stopped my dad in the hallway. They held him at gunpoint and forced him to open the steel door leading to the basement. One of them ordered Dad to show the crawl space under the hallways. He said if he didn't tell where the hidden weapons are, he will be shot. Dad usually is not a great hero. He's even afraid of the dentist. But this time he is not afraid at all. One of them cocked his Luger and held it against my Dad's temple. Dad recited the Bible verse that was on his mind, 'And fear not them who kill the body, . . . but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both body and soul in hell.' The Germans looked at each other, shrugged their shoulders, and then left. The steel heels of their boots made a clanging noise on the iron stairway."
This boy's father feared God more than he did the enemy. Having that kind of attitude will help us put all our fears in perspective.
--D.C.E.
We need not fear the darkness of this world, for we have Christ the light.
