How We Should Fear God

Intro:

I hate being afraid. I don't do haunted houses, I don't like scary movies and I don't enjoy Heights. The feeling you get when you are afraid, the adrenaline pumping through your veins, the quickened pulse, all of it, I just don't like it. I attribute this to one specific movie I watched as a kindergartner

It was the summer of 1984 and the nation was engrossed by the movie Gremlins, which the movie industry was targeting at kids. So my parents went out and bought me a movie themed backpack, lunchbox and thermos, and then we went to the drive-in and watched the movie. That movie scared me to death. I spent most of the movie in the back seat of our car with my head covered and my hands over my ears trying desperately not to see or hear the terrors which filled the screen.

This is not a movie for kindergartners. It terrified me. my mom tells me that I was so scared by this film that I wouldn't touch the backpack or the lunch box or the thermos, they had to force me to take these things to my first day of school. It took them weeks to get me to sleep through the night without nightmares. So they decided that scary movies just weren't for me. And they never have been, I hate being scared

As I've grown older I have realized that people deal with fear in different ways. This is called the fight or flight response. The idea is that when faced with a situation in which the person is truly afraid they will either move to run or move to defend. But there is a third response and that is to give a wide berth to the fear. To know that what is to be feared is there but to give it the respect it deserves.

The Book of Proverbs gives us wise words to live by in respect to fearing God. Proverbs 9: 10 says, ““The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.”

We are to fear God but not in a fight or flight way. We are to fear him out of respect for His position, His power and His love. So that is our main idea, (Prov. 9:10)

Today our passage is one which most of us will find familiar. But it is the fear of the Lord which I want us to key in on.

Read Mark 4: 35- 41

Fear His Power

One can glean a lot from this passage of scripture. One might learn from this passage that for those in Ministry it is important to find rest even in the midst of life's storms. Another lesson you could learn is the importance of depending on God to get you through the tough times of life to grow in our faith.

Still (Mark 4:39)

However when I read this passage one word stands out to me more than any other. And that word is fear.

In verse 40 Jesus says,” why are you so fearful, have you no faith?” then one verse later the disciples after finally letting the magnitude of the situation take a hold of their thoughts allowed real fear to settle in.

“And they feared exceedingly,” These disciples who had seen Jesus heal the blind man, cure the leper, drive out demons. They saw Jesus defend himself in his actions before the religious leaders of their day. These same disciples stood before their friend, their rabbi, and they “feared exceedingly.” “who is this man.”

It is one thing to say that you are God's son it is another entirely thing to watch that same man stop a storm in its tracks. Of course they had seen Him heal and drive out demons but these are miracles on a personal level. But stopping a storm is on the level of impossibility, which can only be done with real power.

One night several years ago we were driving back from a night out with some of the youth on a missions trip in Colorado and we had just missed a very very large storm which had caused several tornadoes ahead of us. The lightning show which came out of the clouds was nothing short of magnificent and nothing short of terrifying. Noah who at the time was only about 3 years old sat in his car seat and kept yelling at the storm. go away storm, go away. Over and over he kept yelling at the storm and do you know what happened. Nothing absolutely nothing. Noah could have yelled that storm until he was blue in the face and nothing was going to happen. The Storm and The Lightning continued and nothing Noah said could stop it. You see my son Noah is not God.

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and what brings us to this fear? God's power!

Walk (Mark 6:49-50)

Jesus didn't just say he was God, He was God. Turn forward with me two chapters to chapter 6:45-52.

Read Mark 6: 45-52

Have you ever thought it would be really fun to test this? You know try running as far as you can before the water takes you down. How far do you think you could make it? What if you were running really fast? I would venture to say no matter how hard you might try the first step you take will be your last and instead of walking you will be swimming. Just like my Noah couldn’t stop the storm you can’t walk on water.

The definition of Supernatural power is that it is super natural meaning beyond what should naturally be able to happen. That is what is happening here. Jesus, the son of God, is super naturally circumventing what should be able to naturally happen and instead is walking on water.

And what did this walking on water do for the disciples? First they thought he was a ghost which scared them a lot. And then when they found out that it was Jesus Verse 50 says they were “troubled”, or as the NASB puts it, “ they were terrified”. They were so scared that Jesus's first words to them were “be of good cheer” which means to “take heart” it is me Jesus said “do not be afraid.”

But we are afraid and we should be because the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and what brings us to this fear? God's power!

Make (Gen. 1)

Again Jesus didn't just say he was God, he was God. John 1:1 says”In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” These words are deliberately drawing the reader back to Creation, back to Genesis. Where as part of the godhead Jesus was God and the power behind creation. God spoke and the world came into being. God spoke again and life began. God spoke & Light was born, water was created, and time started.

Jesus was there, not as an observer or as a passive bystander but in every way God himself, the creator of the universe. If we want to learn to be wise we must first learn to fear the Lord, to give him the respect he is due. We do not serve a tame God. We do not serve a gentle God. We do not serve a tolerant God. We serve a powerful God who is wild and Supernatural and unpredictable and whom loves us with a reckless abandon. And to that all God's people should say “Amen.”

Fear His Wrath

But it is not just his power which we should fear but also his Wrath.

Destroy (Gen. 6:5-7)

If we turn to Genesis 6:5-7, we read the beginning of the account of Noah and the Ark.

Read Genesis 6:5-7

Here we see that God is grieved in his heart by the wickedness of men. So what is God’s solution to man's wickedness? Verse 7

This is Wrath. God doesn't say to these people you're getting a timeout or go sit in the corner. No, God's solution to man's wickedness is destruction. He is sorry that he ever created Mankind and so decides that everything must go. All of mankind and everything else which draws breath and crawls on the face of the earth.

This seems like a harsh punishment for their sin. And if it were Us in control it would be, But God is not us. He is not only an all powerful God but he is also Holy without imperfection and he cannot allow this wickedness to continue. The Bible does not record to what extent their wickedness entailed, thankfully. Because if God had given a detailed account of man’s wickedness then we would know how close we are today to that same wickedness and that would be more terrifying than comprehension would allow. But God's Wrath had to be appeased and the destruction of most of mankind had to happen.

We must learn to fear God's Wrath.

Maim (Josh. 10:10-15)

But this is not the end of God's Wrath against mankind’s sin. Several times throughout scripture God's Wrath is doled out on God's enemies and the enemies of his people the Israelites.

A passage we studied not too long ago in the Book of Joshua comes to mind.

Read Joshua 10:10-15

In this passage 5 Kings try to band together in order to take out Joshua and the Israelites, But God does not allow it. God routes these 5 kings before Israel and into a great Slaughter. And when they kingdoms had fled from before Joshua, God threw at them hailstones at the armies and more were killed by the hailstones the the army of Israel killed. And when that wasn't enough carnage God stopped the Sun so that the killing could continue. Even the darkness of night could not help the enemies of God and His people escape the wrath of God.

Again God's Wrath must be Avenged. He will defend Those whom he has called his people. We must learn to fear God's Wrath.

Plot (Deut. 32:35)

This is the God we serve. He is powerful and he is wrathful. Deuteronomy 32:35 gives Gods plot on humanities wickedness.

Read Deuteronomy 32:35

Do you ever feel like some verses in the Bible need to be yelled. If God was texting this verse to us these words would be in all caps. Their Foot shall slip in due time. The people will fall and when they do God’s vengeance will be there powerful and terrifying. Their Calamity will be at hand.

This verse is at the center of one of the most famous sermons of all time. The Puritan preacher Jonathan Edwards gave the sermon entitled “Sinners in the hands of an Angry God” in which Edwards documents God's Wrath on a sinful people. I want to read you just a couple of excerpts from the sermon

“The bow of God's wrath is bent, and the arrow made ready on the string, and justice bends the arrow at your heart, and strains the bow, and it is nothing but the mere pleasure of God, and that of an angry God, without any promise at all, that keeps the arrow one moment from being made drunk with your blood.

The God that holds you over the pit of hell, much as one holds a spider, or some loathsome insect over the fire, abhors you, and is dreadfully provoked: his wrath towards you burns like fire; he looks upon you as worthy of nothing else, but to be cast into the fire; he is of purer eyes than to bear to have you in his sight; you are ten thousand times more abominable in his eyes, than the most hateful venomous serpent is in ours. You have offended him infinitely more than ever a stubborn rebel did his prince; and yet it is nothing but his hand that holds you from falling into the fire every moment. It is to be ascribed to nothing else, that you did not go to hell the last night; that you was suffered to awake again in this world, after you closed your eyes to sleep. And there is no other reason to be given, why you have not dropped into hell since you arose in the morning, but that God's hand has held you up. There is no other reason to be given why you have not gone to hell, since you have sat here in the house of God, provoking his pure eyes by your sinful wicked manner of attending his solemn worship. Yea, there is nothing else that is to be given as a reason why you do not this very moment drop down into hell.”

Jonathan Edwards words here in this sermon are both descriptive and terrifying. If you read these words and aren't convicted even a little bit over your sin and God's Wrath because of your sin then the only person you are fooling is yourself.

But let’s not leave ourselves in the Archer’s Cross hairs or dangling over the fires of Hell. Edwards calls us to an extraordinary opportunity.

“And now you have an extraordinary opportunity, a day wherein Christ has thrown the door of mercy wide open, and stands in calling and crying with a loud voice to poor sinners; a day wherein many are flocking to him, and pressing into the kingdom of God.”

Fear Life without Him

So we are to fear the Lord for that is the beginning of wisdom. We should fear his power, we should fear his wrath, but most of all we should fear a life lived without him.

Listen (Josh. 10:12)

Look again at that Joshua 10 passage. Specifically at verse 12. What does Joshua do here? He spoke to the Lord. But more importantly God listened and caused the sun to stand still.

In 1 John 5:14, which I spoke on last Sunday night, it's states, “Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.”

If we are seeking God's will, truly seeking what God wants, then what will happen? He will hear us. And just like Joshua if we are doing God’s will he will protect us. He is listening to us. The power of God can be used for our protection. God can and does hear our prayers and our petitions. And Again all God's people said “amen.”

Pleased (Gen 6:8)

But let's not stop there. Look back at the Noah passage in Genesis 6:8, “But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.”

God's Wrath will be doled out on all of Mankind's wickedness. But even in this Vengeance God still finds it in his heart to give Grace to those who will fear Him. Think about what that means. God grieved in his heart the creation of man and yet even in this he still was please with this man Noah. Somehow Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord.

Oh that I too might find that kind of Grace before a powerful, wrathful God. Who before him I am no more than the spider over the fires of hell unworthy of His grace but in whom God gives it.

Mercy (Luke 24:46-49)

And he will do this he will give this grace through the mercy of Jesus Christ his son. It is because of God's Vengeance and wrath that Jesus’ Mercy is so great and so necessary. The Holiness of God's presence demands that sin must be dealt with. But the mercy which comes through the life death and resurrection of Jesus Christ is greater than God's Wrath.

Edwards said that it is Jesus' Mercy which hold back the Archer's bow and it is only Jesus' Mercy that can save you from the fires of hell. Luke 24:46-49 gives us a glimpse of that Mercy.

Read Luke 24:46-49

This is our hope. A hope in a God who is powerful enough to still a storm, walk on Water, Stop the sun in its tracks, create everything and yet still loving enough to send his son to die for yours and my sins. That is true power and love. Fear God for it is the beginning of wisdom.

Conclusion

Let me conclude again with the words of Jonathan Edwards calling those who are without Christ to his Mercy.

“...many that were very lately in the same miserable condition that you are in, are now in a happy state, with their hearts filled with love to him who has loved them, and washed them from their sins in his own blood, and rejoicing in hope of the glory of God.”

Gospel Message:

God sent His son to die for your sins, but He isn’t going to force that freedom upon you instead he wants you to accept it. He is calling and all you have to do is believe. Romans 10:9 says, “that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.

It is just that easy. You can confess him as your savior. If that is your desire today you can say this prayer with me. Bow your heads.

God I know that I am a sinner

but I know that you provide mercy from my sin.

I believe that Jesus came and died for my sin

I believe he didn’t stay dead but rose so that I may have life.

Today I place my belief in Jesus’ sacrifice

I ask that you will call me your child

I ask to receive your gift of Mercy

In Jesus Christ’s most precious Name I pray. Amen.

Friend if you prayed that prayer today I ask that you come and speak to me after the service. I want to share in the joy that is a new brother or sister in Christ.

Benediction Romans 15:13