The Fear of God

When the apostle Peter went to the household of Cornelius he stated, “.....In truth I perceive that God shows no partiality. But in every nation whoever fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him” (Acts 10:34-35). Peter points out that the only ones that will be accepted by God are those who “fear Him” and “work righteousness.” We must understand that each and every one of us “....must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad” (2 Corinthians 5:10). We further learn that in James 4:4 the Word of God says, “Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.” These inspired Bible passages teach us that in order for us to go to heaven we must do what God tells us to do. We cannot compromise, nor can we tolerate anything that will keep us from being in the proper fellowship with God. Friends are good to have, but we must choose our friends wisely. A true friend is one who will look out for our best interests also. A friend will not want us to do anything that will compromise our values or jeopardize us from being with our Lord eternally. In Proverbs 1:7 it says that “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, But fools despise wisdom and instruction.” The Christian that does “fear God” will increase in knowledge so as to ensure an eternity with Him. Are the things we are doing in our body (the things we say, the things we wear, the things we do) pleasing to God? Let’s make sure they are so that we can look forward to our eternal home with Him!

Praying to God

An active prayer life is something that every Christian should have. The Hebrew writer wrote, “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). Prayer is an effort on our part to reach and commune with our God in heaven. When we read the Bible we are letting God speak to us. When we pray to God we are speaking to Him. When we engage ourselves in an active prayer life we become closer to God. Our families will have a stronger, deeper relationship with one another when we communicate effectively with one another. As parents, we need to talk to our children and our children need to talk to us on a regular basis. That is the way it needs to be between every Christian and our Father in heaven. The more we communicate with Him, then the closer we will be with Him. We have so many things in our life to be thankful for and we need to express our thankfulness to our Father. He needs to hear it from us just like we need to hear words of thankfulness from our own children.

Besides letting God know how thankful we are for all the blessings that He has given us, we should also pray for guidance. We have an example of the apostles seeking guidance from God when they were ready to select the apostle to replace Judas. The text says, And they prayed and said, “You, O Lord, who know the hearts of all, show which of these two You have chosen” (Acts 1:24). We too should petition God in prayer to help us make good decisions in our day to day life. One of the best ways that we can get closer to God and increase our faith is to talk to Him often. How is your prayer life?

 

Make No Provision for the Flesh

Most of us probably have several Bible verses that have been among our favorites for many years. I can recall as a teenager one particular verse that helped me make good decisions in my life and service to Jesus. The verse for me was and continues to be Romans 13:14. “But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.” Once I put on Christ in baptism (Galatians 3:27), this verse helped me tremendously in making the right choices as a young Christian. I was determined to remove myself from any situation that may cause me to succumb to sin. This verse should help every Christian in so many ways to do the same. If we don’t want to be a slave to alcohol, tobacco, drugs, etc., then we will not take that first drink, smoke that first cigarette, or begin using any illegal or dangerous drugs. We will not have to be concerned with fulfilling our lusts if we do not make any provision for those things in the first place.

In the 12th verse of the 13th chapter of Romans Paul begins the verse by saying “Let us walk properly, as in the day….” When we are walking properly, in the footsteps of Christ, then we will strive to not let anything cause us to fulfill our lusts and cause us to sin. Peter wrote, “For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps” (1 Peter 1:21). What would Jesus do? That is THE question that should be in our head constantly. When we are determined to follow in His steps, allowing Him to be our priority in life, then we will have peace of mind and a good conscience toward God, knowing that we are truly doing His will (Matthew 7:21-23). Jesus said, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16). I encourage you to let your light shine brightly for Christ, making no provision for the flesh to fulfill its lusts!

A Christian's Responsibility

Whether we want to admit it or not, we are responsible for our actions. As Christians we must first understand that we are accountable to God. In Romans 14:12 it says, “So then each of us shall give account of himself to God.” Since we know that we are accountable to God we then must realize what the areas are in our life where we must take personal responsibility. Let’s examine a few of these:

For what we say: “But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment” (Matthew 12:36).

For what we do: “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.” (2 Corinthians 5:10).

For what we own: “But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.” (2 Corinthians 9:6-8).

For what we think: “But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matthew 5:28).

For what we know to do: “Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin” (James 4:17).

Sincere, devoted, and loyal Christians understand that we will give an account of ourselves to almighty God one day. Therefore, we should strive to examine ourselves daily to ensure that we are making the right choices, knowing that is our personal responsibility.