Fear of Lord

This morning we are going to discuss the Fear of the Lord and what that looks life in our lives. If we want a fresh outpouring of the Holy Spirit we must learn to properly fear God.

We are going to be in the book of Leviticus this morning looking at the sons of Aaron. Aaron was Moses right hand man. He was a Priest and a servant of God. This calling was passed down to his sons-Nadab and Abihu. Nadab and Abihu didn’t respect God. They didn’t follow the call of God nor did they respect God’s law. Aaron was making a priestly offering to God when his sons came in chapter 10 V 1and made an unauhtorized fire before the Lord.

In Exodus 30:9 the priests were strictly warned against unauthorized fire. In today’s world this would look like using lights, music, and key words and feels in order to provoke emotion instead of creating an atmosphere where the presence of the Holy Spirit can manifest. When we can’t line up our lives with the God’s word in order to manifest His presence we often attempt to create a knock off atmosphere to make up for it. The issue is that when we do this we grieve the Holy Spirit and when this happens people` die.

Leviticus 10:3 ESV

3 Then Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord has said: ‘Among those who are near me I will be sanctified, and before all the people I will be glorified.’ ” And Aaron held his peace.

And before we write this off because it’s OT let’s remember the difference between the Mosiac Law which still exists today and the Levitical Law which was fulfilled on the cross. Although we don’t make these offerings any more the principles are still the same and apply to everyone.

1 Peter 2:9 ESV

9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

NT calls everyone of us a Priest. I may hold the title Pastor or shephard, but we all hold the priestly title. We all must hold onto the Fear of the Lord.

Today’s church has this battle. So what is the result?

1 Samuel 3:1 (ESV)

1 ...And the word of the Lord was rare in those days; there was no frequent vision.

God’s gifts healing, words of wisdom, knowledge, prophecy, tongues are very limited in an atmosphere that doesn’t Fear God. Why? Because God won’t manifest where he isn’t respected.

If God were to tae His Holy Spirit out of the this world, much of what the church is doing would go right on; and nobody would know the difference.

I can get you dancing, I can get you shouting, I can get your crying and weeping, but I can create atmosphere so convincing that I can even get people to be slain in the Spirit without the Spirit ever showing up. That’s why we see a lot of emotional church services without much change in the heart or actions.

We need to understand if we are living a life where God isn’t manifesting His presence we are living a dangerous life. God’s desire is to pour out his Spirit

Joel 2:28 ESV

28 “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions.

But notice the connection between The Holy Spirit’s manifest presence and his gifting.

God desires to move. He desires to bless you. He desires to use you. He desires to be with you. Everything about Him wants to connect with you, but you too must desire to connect with Him. A marriage or any relationship can’t be one sided in order to Grow. There must be a duel connection. There must be effort coming from both sides. That doesn’t mean there has to be equal effort. There are times in my marriage where I was going through something and my wife had to pursue me harder. And there are times when she goes through things and I must pursue her harder.

That doesn’t mean there isn’t an effort coming from both sides. We may be giving it all we have we just may not have much to give. God never said we have to pursue him equally. We just have to pursue Him and when we do his Glory will manifest.

When God isn’t working we must examine ourselves to see if we are working.

The only way to work this out is The Fear of the Lord

Philippians 2:12 ESV

12 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling,

The greek word for trembling is Tro’mos which points back to the action of Fearing. It’s such a degree of Fear that your body shakes out of control. This combination of words fear and trembling have been used by Paul four times in the New Testament to show our attitude toward God.

When we desire God more than anything else in this life our life becomes a walking miracle. We become a walking powerhouse.

So the question is What does it look like to Fear God today?

Pursue God

Simply push everything else aside to make room for God. If my wife calls me with an emergency it doesn’t matter what I am doing. I will drop everything to find a way to help her. What are we willing to push aside to make a connection with God multiple times a day throughout the day.

I was recently asked when my devotional time with God is. I found this hard to answer. Not because I don’t spend time with God, but simply because I don’t limit it to one time in a day. I start out my morning with God, but throughout the day I’m reading his word, I’m reading other books connected to faith and such, I am praying continually. Sometimes my prayer is help me. Sometimes I talk to him for 45 minutes on the way somewhere. Sometimes it’s just thinking out Him and His word. Think back to your dating years. When you truly wanted to make someone yours how hard did you pursue them? How much did you think about them? How much did you talk with them?

Pursue Greatness

Jesus didn’t stop our pursuit of Greatness he redefined it. Yes we must give up control on a lot of things, but if I know someone who could control it better why wouldn’t I want to give up control? God is better at finances. He is better at parenting. He is even better at the job you work. The promise is what when we Pursue greatness the ay Jesus defines it you are pursuing best.

Pursue Integrity

The state of being whole and undivided-Strong moral principles. What would our actions/words/thoughts look like if Judgement was immediate. Be that person. If you knew the judgement of God would immediately rain down from Heaven how would` that change your moment to moment.

That’s a healthy Fear of God, but the promises we talked about before are amazing.

Joel 2:28 ESV

28 “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions.

The manifest presence of God. The working of His gifts and Spirit. And the joy that we will recieve when we hear well done my good and faithful servant.