The Reverential Fear of God - Part 3, Practical Steps
By: Tom Burns
This is the third and final article in a three part series on adopting a lifestyle of reverential fear of God. The first article addresses the fact that we were created for a relationship with God and the need for us to grow up in this relationship, becoming mature sons of God. The second article looks at some of the hidden ways sin plays a role in our lives and impacts our relationship with God. This article discusses some practical steps that Christians can take in responding with a reverential fear, or awe, of God.
It’s A Matter Of Heart
There are no checklists or protocols that lead to or demonstrate a reverential fear of God. In fact, judging by outward appearances can lead to a distorted and deceptive relationship with God (Romans 3:20Romans 3:20
because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin.). As with everything else in our relationship with Him, God does not look at us the way that the world sees us. He looks at us based on our heart (1 Samuel 16:71 Samuel 16:7
But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”).
The motivation of our heart is far more important than what people can see of our lives (Romans 2:28-29Romans 2:28-29
28 For he is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision that which is outward in the flesh. 29 But he is a Jew who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that which is of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the letter; and his praise is not from men, but from God.). King David was far from a perfect man. But, David was one of the most honored men in the Bible. The Lord promised that Jesus would be seated on David’s throne and his throne would last forever (Luke 1:31-33Luke 1:31-33
31 “And behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus. 32 “He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; 33 and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and His kingdom will have no end.”). Why is David so honored? Because he was a man whose heart was after God's heart (Acts 13:22Acts 13:22
“… He raised up David to be their king, concerning whom He also testified and said, ‘I HAVE FOUND DAVID the son of Jesse, A MAN AFTER MY HEART, who will do all My will.’”).
Wait on God
One of the most important things we can do is seek God's input on any decision or activity that we are undertaking. This normally involves investing our time to be still and wait upon the Lord.
In many ways, waiting has become a lost art in modern society. We crave fast food, instant communication and immediate gratification for our wants and desires. We require constant activity and constant entertainment. Waiting is a discipline that we need to learn if we want to draw close to God. Waiting is one way we honor our Father (Isaiah 40:31Isaiah 40:31
Yet those who wait for the LORD Will gain new strength; They will mount up with wings like eagles, They will run and not get tired, They will walk and not become weary., Psalms 46:10Psalms 46:10
He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”). By waiting, we are effectively saying, “Not my will, not according to my timing, but Your will, in Your timing.”
Jesus demonstrated a lifestyle of waiting on God. He frequently would withdraw and spend hours with His Father (Mark 1:35Mark 1:35
Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.). Although I do not have any proof, I doubt that these times of prayer were consumed with Jesus going over lists of requests for His Father. I suspect that these prayer times were more times of waiting, seeking His Father’s will and listening to what His Father, what Our Father, was saying to Him.
Avoid multitasking
When we do finally attempt to wait, to be still before the Lord, our minds are frequently bombarded by thoughts about things we need to do, or things we did not do or mistakes we have made. In the parable of the sower, Jesus describes these thoughts as the thorns that choke out God’s word (Mark 4:18-19Mark 4:18-19
18 “And others are the ones on whom seed was sown among the thorns; these are the ones who have heard the word, 19 but the worries of the world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things enter in and choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.”). Distraction is a key tool of the enemy, and we must be prepared to resist these distractions to hear what the Lord wants to say to us.
Multitasking happens when the distractions in our life overpower our desire to spend time with God.
God wants a committed, complete relationship with us, all of our soul, all of our mind and all of our strength (Mark 12:29-31Mark 12:29-31
29 Jesus answered, “The foremost is, ‘HEAR, O ISRAEL! THE LORD OUR GOD IS ONE LORD; 30 AND YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND, AND WITH ALL YOUR STRENGTH.’ 31 “The second is this, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”). I have learned, when God says all, He means ALL! He wants all of our attention! When we are consumed with multitasking, we are basically saying that He is not worthy of our “all!”
Although God hates multitasking, there is a difference between trying to spend time with somebody who is consumed by looking at their smartphone and friends talking and enjoying each other’s company while working together on a project.
One of my favorite activities in the fall of the year is to invite several friends over to cook Brunswick Stew. The cooking involves hours of us standing next to a large cast iron pot over an open fire, taking turns stirring the ingredients until the flavors are blended together in perfection. Spending this time together provides a great opportunity to develop deep friendships.
Forgiveness
Forgiving others is one of the fundamental requirements of any Christian. There is ample instruction in the New Testament of the critical importance of forgiveness, starting with Jesus’ instruction about how to pray. He said that we should ask our Father to forgive us as we forgive others (Matthew 6:9-13Matthew 6:9-13
9 "Pray, then, in this way: 'Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. 10 'Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. 11 'Give us this day our daily bread. 12 'And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 'And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.'"). If we know that we are failing to forgive others, then we are basically asking our Father not to forgive us.
If that is not enough, later in the same chapter, Jesus explicitly says that if we fail to forgive others, we will not be forgiven (Matthew 6:14-15Matthew 6:14-15
14 "For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 "But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.”).
When Peter asks Jesus how often we should forgive our brothers, He replies seventy times seven (Matthew 18:21-22Matthew 18:21-22
21 Then Peter came and said to Him, "Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me and I forgive him? Up to seven times?" 22 Jesus said to him, "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven."). In the Scriptures, numbers often carry a significance of their own. The number seven frequently represents completion. When Jesus replied seventy times seven, He was basically saying, “as many times as it takes to completely forgive.”
So, if we fail to forgive others, our sins will not be forgiven! If our sins are not forgiven, then our sin creates a separation, a barrier, between us and God (Romans 12:17-21Romans 12:17-21
17 Never pay back evil for evil to anyone. Respect what is right in the sight of all men. 18 If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men. 19 Never take your own revenge, beloved, but leave room for the wrath of God, for it is written, “VENGEANCE IS MINE, I WILL REPAY,” says the Lord. 20 “BUT IF YOUR ENEMY IS HUNGRY, FEED HIM, AND IF HE IS THIRSTY, GIVE HIM A DRINK; FOR IN SO DOING YOU WILL HEAP BURNING COALS ON HIS HEAD.” 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.). Unforgiveness can disqualify us from receiving many of the benefits of God while opening us to attack from the enemy!
Treasure His words
Another way that we can show a reverential fear or awe of God is by treasuring His spoken word. Many times, people are eager to receive a spoken, or prophetic, word from God, but they do nothing with it beyond receiving it.
Rick Joyner, an American Prophet, Teacher and the founder of MorningStar Ministries, once said that he believed that over 90% of the prophetic words people received at MorningStar were invitations. Invitations need to be accepted. They require a response. Invitations require us to pray into them, to ask God for wisdom and direction in their fulfillment. In short, we can’t just say, “Oh, that was nice.” and move on until the next time we receive a word from Him.
I had a friend who shared that in one encounter he had with the Lord, the Lord said something like, “You keep asking for dreams and visions and fresh words from me, yet you do not treasure the words I have already given you. Why should I give you new words when you don’t honor the words I have already given you?” From that day forward, my friend slept with a notebook on his bedside table, ready to record any dreams that he received from the Lord. He recorded and transcribed any words that people gave him during ministry sessions. He prayed into the fulfillment of those words in his life. In short, he began to honor and treasure God’s spoken word in his life (Job 22:28Job 22:28
“You will also decree a thing, and it will be established for you; And light will shine on your ways.).
Get In Formation
Paul refers to the Church as an army. Whether we want to admit it or not, we are engaged in spiritual warfare on a daily basis. We are equipped with mighty weapons and our own battle armor (2 Corinthians 10:3-52 Corinthians 10:3-5
3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, 4 for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses. 5 We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ,, Ephesians 6:10-17Ephesians 6:10-17
10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places. 13 Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. 14 Stand firm therefore, HAVING GIRDED YOUR LOINS WITH TRUTH, and HAVING PUT ON THE BREASTPLATE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS, 15 and having shod YOUR FEET WITH THE PREPARATION OF THE GOSPEL OF PEACE; 16 in addition to all, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 And take THE HELMET OF SALVATION, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.). But, for any military unit to succeed, each member has to be in their proper place, completing their assigned duties.
The Roman Legion had a fighting formation called the testudo or tortoise. It allowed the army to advance against their foes while each soldier was in position to protect themselves and the other members of their unit. When we are in our places in God’s Army, we are able to confront the enemy and take ground for the Kingdom while having other Christians to protect us from the enemy’s attacks.
Paul also refers to the Church as the Body of Christ, with individual members as parts of Christ’s Body, each fulfilling a specific purpose and properly joined together (Ephesians 4:16Ephesians 4:16
from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love., 1 Corinthians 12:12-181 Corinthians 12:12-18
12 For even as the body is one and yet has many members, and all the members of the body, though they are many, are one body, so also is Christ. 13 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit. 14 For the body is not one member, but many. 15 If the foot says, “Because I am not a hand, I am not a part of the body,” it is not for this reason any the less a part of the body. 16 And if the ear says, “Because I am not an eye, I am not a part of the body,” it is not for this reason any the less a part of the body. 17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole were hearing, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But now God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body, just as He desired.).
It is important to remember that Jesus’ plan for the Church is not an organization where we gather weekly to watch the pastoral staff entertain us with their latest sermon. His plan is a Church where each member is equipped and operating in their assigned place, utilizing their spiritual gifts to make disciples and help spread His kingdom (Ephesians 2:10Ephesians 2:10, For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them., Ephesians 4:11-13Ephesians 4:11-13
11 And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.).
It is critical that each of us finds our place in Jesus’ Body. This can be both geographically and organizationally.
What’s Next?
A lot of ground has been covered in these articles. Many of the topics that were just touched on could become the subject of an extended series of articles by themselves. My intent has not been to provide an exhaustive list of how to have a reverential fear of God. If anything, it is only an introduction that I hope will lead each of you into your own journey of drawing closer to God by removing the obstacles that separate us from God.
It is also important to remember that we are all on a journey towards maturity in our walk with the Lord. As I have been writing these articles, I have been convicted repeatedly of areas where I need to address these issues in my life. As we all continue on this journey, I close with the words of Paul in Philippians 3:14,
I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
