January 14, 2024
Greetings and blessings to all of you. In Eccle. 12:13-14 it reads “now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter; Fear God and keep his commandments… for this is the whole duty of man; for God will bring every deed into judgement including every hidden thing whether it is good or evil.” Most believers do not understand the concept of “fearing God”. They have bought into the lie that ‘fear’ means weak, being or feeling less than somebody else, a scaredy-cat. In our culture to chase tornadoes, engage in extreme sports, to envy Evel Knievel (who performed death-defying stunts) and to live autonomously; doing what you want to do, when and how you want to live out your lives without any accountability to the One that breathed life into us…we believe is the way to live. But God... in this verse he wants to remind us that it is of utmost importance to fear Him. Because to fear God is to see God as God. To see and understand His Holiness which will result in fear. Fearing God is the proper reaction to seeing God for who he is. Our culture is defiantly shaking their fist at God. They do not fear Him and nor obey His commandments. In the O.T. God said to His people, “and now Israel what does the Lord your God ask of you but to fear the Lord your God to walk in obedience to him, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and to observe the Lords commands and decrees that I am giving you today for your own good.” This is our duty as a true follower of Christ. Fearing God without also obeying Him is an impossibility. The fear of God will always lead to obedience and disobedience is evidence of the denial of God. God knows the heart of man. You could superficially obey Him; that is say the right words at the right time like the politicians or you could perform in front of your associate or relatives so they could think highly of you or you could believe (in your own mind) you are being obedient only because you are comparing yourself to others such as Hitler or the slave masters. But all of these things will come to light on judgement day. Luke 12:2-3 says, “there is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed or hidden that will not be made known.” So understanding the sinfulness of sin will/should lead everyone of us to Fear God and know that just because the culture continues to attack the principles of God ..we will not...we will stand in the Truth.
With the Love of Christ
First Lady Vivian C. Currie
Pastor ALC