Praise our God, all you his servants, you who fear him, both great and small!
Summary: Why do we fear God? That is a question that will be easily answered when we shed this life and discover what is beyond the grave’s veil.
How do you greet a king? Do you just walk in and say whatever is on your mind? How about a president? Do you think you can simply drive to Washington DC and stop by the White House?
People who approach those in authority do so at personal risk. In Esther’s day, “for any man or woman who approaches the king in the inner court without being summoned the king has but one law: that they be put to death unless the king extends the gold scepter to them and spares their lives” (Esther 4:11).
Ouch!
If you think it is a small thing to come into the presence of the Living God, you are mistaken. Yes, it is true that we are loved by God (Romans 5:8). It is also true that through Jesus we are adopted into God’s family (Ephesians 1:4-6). But these truths do not diminish the fact that it is still no small thing to be granted access to the God of Creation.
When we read stories in the Old Testament about people coming before the king we often hear them proclaim, “May the king live forever!” (See 1 Kings 1:31, Nehemiah 2:3, Daniel 2:4, 3:9, etc) Why do they do this? Don’t they know that the king is human? Do they really believe that a human king can live forever?
No. They don’t.
Kings are all too mortal, and they know it. Assassinations are always a possibility (See 2 Kings 12:19-21; 2 Kings 15:10; 2 Kings 21:23; Esther 2:21). To say, “May the king live forever” is to assure the king that you have no ill will against them. In a way, it acknowledges the king’s authority and your acceptance of his authority.
God lives forever (Exodus 3:15). He does not fear assassination. We do not have to reassure God that we are not a threat. But we do need to fear God (Psalm 66:16, 1 Peter 2:17, Revelation 14:7). We need to acknowledge that God is God.
When we come before him, we affirm God’s sovereignty when we say, “hallowed be your name.” We acknowledge God as Father, yes, but we also acknowledge the sanctity of who he is.
Application: It is not good to take our relationship with the Father for granted.
Food for Thought: How do we honor God’s name here on earth?
How do we honor God’s name here on earth?
With reverence of Gods power. I try to include my morning to be thankful of all of Gods blessings in my life. I’m not perfect or without sin yet our God who sustains my existence ( every breath, every heartbeat is a gift ) being thankful and humbling myself knowing that I’m grateful for my relationship with other followers. I’m deserving of Gods wrath, yet God allows us to come before Him in prayer and petition, in fasting, and in sackcloth and ashes. Our God is so Holy and Righteous that we shouldn’t be able to come to Him without being instantly killed. He has done so much for us. Jesus has given so much for us. There is no greater love than a brother who gives his life for another. I honor my fallen brothers and I miss them dearly but I do love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
Thank you, Tim.
Knowing a little about your personal journey and the sacrifices you have made for our country, your testimony on this topic is especially meaningful. Thank you again, brother, for your work on behalf of the rest of us.
As to honoring God, you have touched on all the key points: humility, repentance, and love. Well said!
By holding firmly to the faith we profess (along with many other ways, but this one shows He is our God and our only God). Hebrews 4: 12 – 16.
Thanks Rich!
Great passage.
11-15-2022, How do we honor God’s name here on earth.
I knew a man who was the father of four children. For some reason he did not like the older boy, and would often beat him. On one occasion, the boy was six, the man stripped his cloths off him, tied him face down to his bed and began beating him with a rope. The boy had made up his mind to not cry, so the man lit a cigarette, whispered in his ear, YOU WILL CRY, and began burning him on his back. Well the boy was not stupid and he cried. In time the boy grew and by 15 they were fighting with fists and the boy had to beat his father three times before he would leave him alone. This same young boy remained angry inside until Jesus took this away as an adult.
Over time, human fear of turns to anger and an adversarial relationship. While the “fear of the Lord” doesn’t describe the fear that makes you angry or causes you to run from danger; it is a reverential awe which develops in the hearts of all true believers in Jesus Christ toward God.
Believers do not go to the “ Reverential Trust “ store and buy this. It has been paid for by Jesus Christ and is freely given to all who will accept His sacrifice for our sins. Fear of the Lord develops over time, it is our deep respect, reverence and awe for God’s power and authority. Rather than causing believers to be afraid of God, a proper “fear of the Lord” leads us to a greater love for Him.
We honor God on earth and thru out eternity as we live in and grow in our deep respect, reverence and awe for His power and authority. Rather than causing someone to be afraid of, anger toward God, a proper “fear of the Lord” leads one to grow in love for Him.
Thank you, Ron.
God’s love is a powerful medicine capable of healing the deepest wound.
I am probably one of those that have taken my relationship with God for granted, I am doing my best to honor God here on earth, and I bet I get it wrong all the time, sometimes I feel like was all this learning of the Bible worth it, I even wonder if eternal life is really a thing or if these guys in the Bible have been bluffing me?
My walk with Him has certainly not been perfect in any way, I find myself questioning if all this is real or some kind of mystical fairy tale at times. I lean hard to the reality of it all but then, BAM! It hits me again.
I am so the opposite of Job that’s for sure, because when something bad happens, I let God hear me roar with my anger. It’s not easy to hold stuff like that back,..reverence? What is reverence? From what I understand the cross leveled the playing field for all of us. And yet I still have a problem bowing to the God I don’t see, Sometimes I even feel like I am just talking to myself, even though I know Who I am talking to, I even catch myself saying, “Are You listening God!” No answer until I open His word and then He speaks to me again, and I am so guilty again, I thank Him for His forgiveness through the blood of His Son on the cross again.
To be honest, I am not sure how to honor God, not even sure if I was in the first place. Anyway, one thing I do know is that God does love honesty, so I am just being honest here
John
Through the prophet Hosea God says:
“For I desire mercy, not sacrifice,
and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.”
(Hosea 6: 6)
I think God would rather have us acknowledge him in frustration and anger rather than ignore him with indifference.
Thank you for your testimony, brother!