For the past
few weeks, I’ve had a feeling of dread.
I can’t explain it in any other word than that. The worst thing about it is that when I’ve been
asked what I’m afraid of, I couldn’t put my finger on it. I’m tired of feeling this way. So I thought what better way to get past it
than to confront it! There are several
Scripture references to “fear” that have enlightened me and given me comfort
today.
Fear has a
couple of different forms. First,
there’s a form of fear that’s contrary to faith. It’s a fear that leads us to doubt and even
despair. It’s a fear that results from
the attack of the evil one and others who may sin against us. This form of fear is unhealthy and must be
overcome through a faith that turns to our Lord with the utmost confidence and
hope. Unfortunately, it’s also the form most
of us think of most often, and I think, the form I’ve been afflicted with these
last couple of weeks.
But there’s
also a ‘holy fear’ that’s most useful and one of the seven gifts of the Holy
Spirit (Isaiah 11:1-2). Recall the
Proverb that says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of
wisdom…” (Proverbs
9:10). At a minimal level, this holy
fear makes us aware of our sins and the consequences of those sins, especially
serious sin. And this holy fear leads us
to fear the punishment that results from sin, leading us to avoid serious sin. But the ideal form of “fear of the Lord” we
must strive for is “filial fear,” which is the holy fear of a son or daughter
of God. This fear is one that’s grounded
in a profound love of God and leaves us so filled with a wonder and awe of the
glory, goodness and majesty of God that we’re filled with a desire to please
Him and give Him great glory with our life. Thus, this “fear” leads us to a desire to
avoid even the smallest of sin, because, in our love of God, we not only want
to avoid offending Him, but we also want to honor Him to the greatest extent
possible.
Matthew
7:15-20 should lead us to, at a minimum, a fear of not entering the gate to the
“road
that leads to life.” It’s useful to consider Jesus’ teaching in a
very straightforward way. Jesus
essentially says that it is quite easy to walk through the gate that is “wide” and down the road that is “broad” in this life. In other words, it’s exceptionally easy to
embrace a life of sin and head toward “destruction.” Jesus further says that those who walk through this wide gate
and down this broad road are “many.” This fact should be the cause of our
honest daily examination. If this broad
road is so easy, then we should honestly admit that we can easily find
ourselves walking it.
The “narrow
gate” and the “constricted” road are found and walked by only a “few,”
according to Jesus’ words. Again, we
should take notice of this and take it seriously. Jesus wouldn’t say this if it were not true. Therefore, if the gift of the fear of the Lord
is alive in our life, and if we truly are a son or daughter of God, then we’ll
daily strive to be one of those “few” who find this narrow way to holiness. And, ideally, we’ll do so out of our love for
God and our desire to give Him the greatest glory we can.
Let’s strive
to enter the narrow gate and the constricted road and don’t turn back. Though this requires much determination,
sacrifice and love, the goal and end of the road are worth it (1 Corinthians 2:9).
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