October 14: REVERENCE AND WORSHIP (part 1 - FEAR)

. . . saying with a loud voice, “Fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His judgment has come; and worship Him who made heaven and earth, the sea and springs of water.” Revelation 14:7

Remember that our brother John is the last of the original twelve disciples of Jesus who is still alive. By now, being old and under the mistreatment of the Patmos prison guards, his soul must have thrilled to see and hear this amazing message from heaven. As John is experiencing this incredibly magnificent vision—known as the Revelation of Jesus Christ—he cannot help but hear the emphatic urgency in the angel’s loud voice. The angel begins his message for those who dwell on the earth intensely, imploring the hearers to “Fear God”! With a swelling heart of love for his Savior, John wrote it all down…

The concept of reverence, known as the fear of God, is well-developed in the Old Testament. Like a faceted jewel, it denotes taking God seriously, resulting in a right relationship with Him. Belief in His word is accompanied by full surrender to the instructions contained therein. This kind of fear fosters a deep and abiding reverence toward Almighty God, whose very character and desire is to protect us from evil and harm. The name of the LORD is a strong tower; The righteous run to it and are safe (Proverbs 18:10). The fear of the LORD is to hate evil (8:13).

The one who hates evil also loves good (see Amos 5:15). No one is good but One, that is, God (Mark 10:18). Good and upright is the LORD; Therefore He teaches sinners in the way (Psalm 25:8). As we are all compared to sheep who have gone astray (Isaiah 53:6) our great Teacher identifies Himself by saying, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep” (John 10:11). Truly, the fear of God is equated with love for Him. A pinnacle event in Genesis was the calling of Abraham to sacrifice his only son Isaac (22:2) in an act that foreshadowed God’s gift of His only son to pay the world’s debt of sin. May we be God’s instruments to make clear this understanding: that the fear of God ultimately results in salvation!

“Do not lay your hand on the lad, or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.” Genesis 22:12

For further study: 1 Samuel 12:14, 24; 2 Chronicles 6:31; Nehemiah 7:2; Job 1:1; Psalm 34:7; 40:3; Jeremiah 32:39; 44:10; Haggai 1:12; Malachi 3:16, Luke 23: 39-43