Recapturing Holy Fear - Finding the Treasure
Notes
Transcript
Today we are wrapping up the series on Recapturing Holy Fear. Over the past month and a half, we have examined what it means to fear the Lord and what we receive when we do. At the beginning of this series, I shared four truth statements about Holy Fear, as stated by John Bevere in his book the Awe of God, that I hope have become rather evident over the past few weeks. They are as follows:
We are human, and we will fear.
The awe and fear of God is way deeper, more beautiful, and more intimate than many dare imagine.
The fear of God swallows up all destructive fears.
The fear of God is the beginning of everything good.
I’ve already shared two big benefits of possessing a healthy fear of the Lord: Intimacy with God (we become His friend) and - as we heard last week - all other fears are eliminated. I’m reminded of what Rev. Richard Halverson, who once served as chaplain of the U.S. Senate, once stated: “Men who fear God face life fearlessly. Men who do not fear God end up fearing everything.”
There are many more benefits that I want to touch upon today. Possessing Holy Fear is like discovering a treasure that sets you up for life and allows you to flourish.
Wisdom and knowledge will be the stability of your times, And the strength of salvation; The fear of the Lord is His treasure.
This is a great treasure offered to every Christian who seeks after it and ask for it. My hope that through this series, you desire more of this treasure as well. Imagine what the Lord will do here at Grace and for Cambridge when we all are filled with a healthy fear of the Lord. The spiritual revival that could break out and transform our community.
A W Tozer was an influential American pastor and author who lived from 1897-1963. His ministry emphasized the importance of knowing God. One of my favorite instructions that he gave is this: “Go back to the grass roots. Open your hearts and search the Scriptures. Bear your cross, follow your Lord and pay no heed to the passing religious vogue. The masses are always wrong. In every generation the number of the righteous is small. Be sure you are among them.”
I mention him because he had discovered this great treasure, which is the fear of the Lord, early in his life and he prayed that America would once again capture that same awe and reverence for God that it once held. He once wrote:
“I do pray often: “O God, send a revival of repentance and the fear of God that will sweep through the continent that we may be spared and that we may honor Thee!” A.W. Tozer
That should be our prayer as well.
So what does the Bible say regarding the benefits of fearing the Lord. One of the most powerful passages of scripture to describe the benefits is found in Psalm 112.
Praise the Lord! Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who greatly delights in his commandments! His offspring will be mighty in the land; the generation of the upright will be blessed. Wealth and riches are in his house, and his righteousness endures forever. Light dawns in the darkness for the upright; he is gracious, merciful, and righteous. It is well with the man who deals generously and lends; who conducts his affairs with justice. For the righteous will never be moved; he will be remembered forever. He is not afraid of bad news; his heart is firm, trusting in the Lord. His heart is steady; he will not be afraid, until he looks in triumph on his adversaries.
You are blessed when you fear the Lord. The Hebrew word for blessed is EH-sher. “It conveys a sense of happiness and is often used to describe the condition of those who are in a right relationship with God, experiencing His favor and guidance. (Strong’s Lexicon)
EH-sher, blessedness, is a state of happiness that is not contingent on current life circumstances - rather reflects an inner joy and contentment that only comes from living according to God's will for your life.
This is what ancient Israelites believed and knew: that true happiness and prosperity comes when you live in accordance to God’s commands.
“Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who greatly delights in his commandments!” Fearing the Lord and delighting in his commandments go hand in hand. If you hold a proper awe and reverence for God - you are going to trust in His Word and follow His commands. You know that is where true life is found.
So one treasure we find is blessedness/happiness or joy. We hear this also in Psalm 128:1-2
Everyone who honors the Lord, who walks in God’s ways, is truly happy! You will definitely enjoy what you’ve worked hard for— you’ll be happy; and things will go well for you.
I know I can testify this - through the ups and downs of life, knowing and fearing God has brought a joy that runs deep. And life taken as a whole, has been filled with happiness. How about you? Does anyone else find this to be true?
Let’s consider other treasures the Bible says will be found when we fear the Lord:
I’m going to go through a list here - each treasure backed up with scripture. I’ll offer very little commentary - but I want you to listen and dwell on each one.
The fear of the Lord brings…
Wisdom and Understanding - Ps 111:10
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice it have a good understanding. His praise endures forever!
We gain wisdom because we come to know God - the source of all truth and knowledge.
The fear of the Lord brings…
Protection and Deliverance - Ps 34:7
The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them.
We spoke to this last week using the illustration of the servant of Elisha surrounded by the army of the King of Syria, yet when Elisha prayed that his servants eyes be opened - the same servant saw that the Lord’s angelic army were also present and Elisha’s words rang true “Do not be afraid, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them.”
God is with us and sends his angels to protect those who fear Him.
The fear of the Lord brings...
Fulfilled Desires - Ps 145:19
He fulfills the desire of those who fear him; he also hears their cry and saves them.
When our desires align with His Word and His Will - we know that we can pray and He will answer.
The fear of the Lord brings…
Healing for our bodies - Prov 3:7-8
Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord, and turn away from evil. It will be healing to your flesh and refreshment to your bones.
The fear of the Lord brings…
Confidence - Pro 14:26
In the fear of the Lord one has strong confidence, and his children will have a refuge.
We have confidence, trust, security, assurance that God is with us and everything is under His control.
The fear of the Lord brings…
Hope - Pro 23:17-18
Let not your heart envy sinners, but continue in the fear of the Lord all the day. Surely there is a future, and your hope will not be cut off.
We have hope. Hope that good will prevail over evil. That light will scatter darkness. That the life of a believer is everlasting.
That is quite the treasure chest that you have available.
So how do you obtain it? If you once had it, but feel you have lost it, how do you recapture it and get it back?
If you have never really had it, what do you do?
Our Lord Jesus made it very clear:
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.
If you want to see and increase of holy fear - you have to ask for it. And not with an off the cuff, non-committal prayer of Lord please give me more. We humble ourselves, repent, and ask the Holy Spirit to increase in us holy fear.
In our passage out of Isaiah this morning, we hear Isaiah’s prophecy concerning the coming Messiah who would be Savior of the world. This was written hundreds of years before Jesus was born.
There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit.
Jesse was the father of David, the great king of ancient Israel. David’s son Solomon was next on the throne. After him was the next king in the line of David. And down through the centuries it went, offspring of David sitting on the throne until 586 BC when the Babylonians conquered Israel and dragged them off to exile. The royal tree of David was cut down - leaving behind a stump. But Isaiah saw a time when a branch would spring up from the roots of that stump and bear fruit. The Messiah, who would track his lineage back to David’s family tree, would arrive and upon Him would rest the Spirit of the Lord.
Isaiah describes the Holy Spirit by his manifestations:
And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.
This Messiah would receive all these gifts from the Spirit of the Lord: wisdom, understanding, counsel, might, knowledge and fear of the Lord.
And the very next verse tell us:
Isaiah 11:3 (ESV)
And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord.
Jesus’ delight was in his relationship with His Father. He held his Father in awe and reverence and would spend time alone in prayer to Him.
He said this about his relationship with the Father:
And he who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to him.”
The passage from Isaiah shows us that the Holy Spirit is the one who brings, or imparts, or increases the spirit of the fear of the Lord. So if we want to see increase - should we not ask for it?
Personal testimony here:
We all struggle with things. We all face areas of our spiritual journey when we might get stuck in a rut, or we identify certain behaviors that we can’t seem to break, or there are areas of our life we don’t allow the Lord to have complete authority.
I had my own thorn in my side that I spent years dealing with. Until I began diving deeper into this teaching on holy fear. As I delved into what it means to fear the Lord and the promises given to those who do fear the Lord - I began to be aware that somehow, over time, my fear of the Lord had diminished. I had become a bit complacent in my relationship with God - taking it for granted. I was allowing distractions to get in the way of the wonder and awe of the One I vowed to serve.
And so, I repented and specifically asked “Holy Spirit, increase the fear of the Lord in my life. I want to stand in Your presence with awe and wonder again. Lord forgive me. Holy Spirit fill me.”
He heard my prayer and delivered me. My thorn was removed. That which was an annoying irritant for so long no longer had a hold on me.
That is what the Lord desires for all us. To deliver us from our broken condition and make us whole. To deliver us from evil, and to protect us under his wings. All we have to do ask, seek, and knock - and keep on knocking until the door is opened for you.
Let us spend time now in silent prayer asking and seeking - let us see what the Lord will do.