In Awe of God Pt. 3
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Fear That Transforms
Fear That Transforms
welcome
This week shifts the series from:
Week 1 - Seeing God rightly (Awe)
Week 2 - Surrendering fully (Trust)
Week 3 - Being transformed deeply (Purification)
story of how when Police come around you we change how we drive. Alex and I were dating, young, 18 and taking her home. we had gotten into a little argument. I started driving like i was to cool for school, Alex warned me police will be around, Nah I aint scared of no police…saw one parked waiting…Ill tell you my mood never shifted so quick…tried to play it off like i was all good all of a sudden lights turn on and they are heading towards me next thing I know two more following, that was it i lost it i was panicking telling Alex i couldnt get in trouble as I moved over to pull off they raced passed me…I looked at Alex “Yeah thats what I thought”…
Listen for most of us…We don’t change because of conviction.
We change because of consequence.
And that’s not fear. That’s survival.
Here’s where it gets real.
Some of us treat God the same way.
When we think He’s “watching,” we straighten up. When life gets intense, we pray harder. When conviction feels close, we slow down = when our bank accounts about to hit 0, when our marriage is on the rocks, when that health report looks bad…
But the moment pressure lifts? We drift right back.
and if I can be honest its because we don’t fear the Lord. We fear getting caught.
church, there is a massive difference between fearing punishment and living in reverent awe of His presence.
One changes you temporarily. The other transforms you permanently.
and today, here today I want us to learn how to stop fearing consequences and start fearing the lord rightly because that brings true transformation.
and now listen lets talk about this,
so far we have been talking about the fear of the lord.
week one seeing God correctly for who he is. understand the fear of the Lord is not being scared of God.
It is living awake to His presence.
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,
and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.
The Hebrew word for fear there is “יִרְאָה” (yirah). It does not primarily mean terror.
It means awe. Reverence. Weightiness. Awareness of greatness.
It’s the kind of fear you feel standing at the edge of the Grand Canyon. You’re not scared it’s evil. You’re overwhelmed because it’s massive beautiful.
The fear of the Lord is recognizing:
He is holy.
He is sovereign.
He is not casual.
He is not common.
And when you see Him correctly…It rewires you. You begin to trust him fully.
and when you trust him fully it cultivates obedience in our life. it transforms us…
watch this…
The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil.
Pride and arrogance and the way of evil
and perverted speech I hate.
Be not wise in your own eyes;
fear the Lord, and turn away from evil.
look, when we have the fear of the lord in our hearts, we hate evil, thus we are to what turn from it…
put it all together = awe of God trust and obey him, hate and turn from evil…
Notice the sequence.
Fear → Turn.
remember the Hebrew word for fear here is “yirah” (יִרְאָה) reverence, awe, weight. The phrase “turn away” is from the Hebrew “sur” meaning to depart, remove, reject.
In other words: When God becomes the focus in your life,
sin loses weight in your life.
You don’t have to police yourself constantly. Reverence redirects you.
You feel stuck or in the same place, things are not changing? check your heart, do you fear the lord? or just the consequences?
do you hate sin??
And after a time his master’s wife cast her eyes on Joseph and said, “Lie with me.” But he refused and said to his master’s wife, “Behold, because of me my master has no concern about anything in the house, and he has put everything that he has in my charge. He is not greater in this house than I am, nor has he kept back anything from me except you, because you are his wife. How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?” And as she spoke to Joseph day after day, he would not listen to her, to lie beside her or to be with her.
One of my favorite people in the bible, no bias there i promise…
Joseph is in Potiphar’s house.
He’s young.
He’s gifted.
He’s far from home.
He’s been betrayed by his brothers.
He’s been sold into slavery.
He’s isolated.
He’s unseen.
And yet, the Bible keeps repeating one phrase: “The Lord was with Joseph.”
And after a time his master’s wife cast her eyes on Joseph and said, “Lie with me.”
dont mistake what im saying, the fear of the lord does not mean temptation doesn't come…
preach on whats happening…
here’s what makes this powerful: No one is watching.
No accountability group.
No small group leader.
No pastor.
No security cameras.
No consequences in sight.
This would have been easy. This would have been secret.
And yet Joseph says something that reveals the depth of his relationship with God.
conclude
He is not greater in this house than I am, nor has he kept back anything from me except you, because you are his wife. How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?”
He says: “How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?”
Notice what he did not say.
He didn’t say, “What if Potiphar finds out?”
He didn’t say, “This might ruin my career.”
He didn’t say, “I might lose my position.”
He said, “How could I sin against God?”
That is the fear of the Lord.
this is intimacy.
Because only someone who feels close to God worries about grieving Him. You don’t fear dishonoring someone you feel distant from. You fear dishonoring someone you love.
Joseph’s obedience was not rooted in surveillance. It was rooted in relationship.
He wasn’t managing behavior. He was protecting closeness.
That’s intimacy.
Let me define it clearly: Intimacy with God is not emotional hype.
It is not romantic language.
It is not mystical feelings.
It is relational nearness that shapes private decisions.
It is living so aware of God’s presence that sin feels personal.
Joseph understood something powerful: Sin is not just breaking a rule. Sin is violating a relationship.
That’s why he said, “How could I do this… and sin against God?”
He saw God as present.
He saw God as near.
He saw God as worthy.
That’s what reverent intimacy looks like.
And here’s where we go deeper.
The fear of the Lord does not make you paranoid. It makes you loyal.
It doesn’t make you nervous. It makes you faithful.
When intimacy is real, you don’t ask, “How far can I go?”
You ask, “How close can I stay?”
That is the difference between fear of consequences and fear of the Lord.
Fear of consequences says: “I hope I don’t get caught.”
Fear of the Lord says: “I don’t want to grieve Him.”
Ephesians tells us not to grieve the Holy Spirit.
Grief is relational language. You don’t grieve a force. You grieve a person.
Joseph’s refusal was not about self-control alone. It was about sacred closeness.
And watch this, His obedience cost him.
He was falsely accused.
He was thrown into prison.
He suffered for doing right.
But one day, when he went into the house to do his work and none of the men of the house was there in the house, she caught him by his garment, saying, “Lie with me.” But he left his garment in her hand and fled and got out of the house.
Church he didn't think about it, he didn't linger, he fled…
Intimacy remained. Even when comfort disappeared.
Church, that is mature faith.
When you choose obedience not because it’s rewarded, but because He is worthy.
Private integrity rooted in public reverence. That’s the fear of the Lord. That’s intimacy. And that’s what God is building in us.
Not believers who slow down when lights flash. But sons and daughters who live aligned because they value His presence.
So here’s Week 3 in one sentence: The fear of the Lord awakens you, aligns you, and invites you into intimacy.
So here’s Week 3 in one sentence: The fear of the Lord awakens you, aligns you, and invites you into intimacy.
It’s not ten-and-two driving when you see lights.
It’s living aligned because you know He’s always present.
Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe,
So are we just slowing down when conviction flashes? Or are you living aligned because He is worthy?
Because when the fear of the Lord settles into your spirit…
You won’t adjust temporarily. You’ll align permanently. And alignment produces intimacy. And intimacy produces power. And power produces transformation.
We don’t need to be scared of God. We need to see Him. And when you see Him clearly
Everything else falls into place
preach
pray
HOLY SPIRIT TAKE OVER AND PREACH IT!!!!
