Have you ever felt afraid?
Have you ever had an experience where goosebumps have raised on your arms? Or got me I’ll feel a chill on the back of my neck walking home from my car at night. It can make me want to pray and practically run home because I’m so afraid of what could happen if I don’t.
Lately, I’ve been studying out what it means to fear God in the Bible. Often, I feel this sensation of fear when faced with people. I fear that people won’t approve of me, that they’ll hurt me, or that I simply won’t fit in. I’m so racked with fear being around people that it can make me change how I act, how I perceive those around me, and my opinion of myself. But, in Matthew 10:28 it says that we should not fear those who can only kill the body, but we should fear God who can kill our body and our soul in Hell.
Growing up I was always taught about a living God who died on the cross for me. A God who would forgive us when we did wrong. This is all true, but this caused me to glance over the God whose anger and jealousy burns for us so that we will turn to Him and not to other gods. It’s so easy for me to go to food for comfort, to neglect daily tasks, and to idolize the opinions of those around me, but forget about God.
In Exodus 20:20 it says that the fear of God is what will keep you from sinning. Everything that I want to grow in, in my character, can only be accomplished by fearing God. It’s the missing piece of the puzzle of my salvation that makes me want to rid myself of my sin rather than lay around in it.
God is the same God from Genesis to Revelation. He is a God we should love and fear. This will keep us close to Him and reveal his character to us. In Proverbs 9:10 it says the beginning of wisdom is the fear of God. So, you can’t be wise without fearing God. To grow you have to fear God. I can’t be more invested in Jesus as my savior than Jesus as my lord. I need both in order to be saved.
Wow this is awesome!