The Fear of God
“Now all the people witnessed the thunderings, the lightning flashes, the sound of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking; and when the people saw it, they trembled and stood afar off. Then they said to Moses, “You speak with us, and we will hear; but let not God speak with us, lest we die.” And Moses said to the people, “Do not fear; for God has come to test you, and that His fear may be before you, so that you may not sin.””Exodus 20:18-20
This text describes the challenges of the presence of God - it is awesome and produces a fear of God. We so desperately need the fear of God yet it is...fearful. We don't like fear and seek to avoid it or at least experience fear in controlled doses (rollercoasters, sky diving, horror movies/novels, apocalyptic information). We don't get to control the dose when we engage with God. We never know what He will say and how we will experience Him.
Chambers had a great quote a while back that puts is succinctly, "Certainty is the mark of the commonsense life– gracious uncertainty is the mark of the spiritual life." Gracious is the right adjective for uncertainty with God because we must trust that God's only goal is our growth and progress. He never wants to inflict needless terror for a sadistic reason. The devil is the terrorist who uses fear as a weapon of control and destruction. The thunderings, the lighting, sound of the trumpet, smoke and earthquakes are all tools to instruct Israel about the holiness and power of God. Humans are visual and experiential learners when it comes to spiritual things. Most people have difficultiy with abstract concepts and need tangible demonstrations to truly grasp spiritual things. "For the kingdom of God is not in word but in [demonstration of] power." 1 Corinthians 4:20 Sadly, only a few actually push past the need for control to experience God. May the Lord help us walk in the gracious uncertainty of the Holy Spirit in all we do today.
This text describes the challenges of the presence of God - it is awesome and produces a fear of God. We so desperately need the fear of God yet it is...fearful. We don't like fear and seek to avoid it or at least experience fear in controlled doses (rollercoasters, sky diving, horror movies/novels, apocalyptic information). We don't get to control the dose when we engage with God. We never know what He will say and how we will experience Him.
Chambers had a great quote a while back that puts is succinctly, "Certainty is the mark of the commonsense life– gracious uncertainty is the mark of the spiritual life." Gracious is the right adjective for uncertainty with God because we must trust that God's only goal is our growth and progress. He never wants to inflict needless terror for a sadistic reason. The devil is the terrorist who uses fear as a weapon of control and destruction. The thunderings, the lighting, sound of the trumpet, smoke and earthquakes are all tools to instruct Israel about the holiness and power of God. Humans are visual and experiential learners when it comes to spiritual things. Most people have difficultiy with abstract concepts and need tangible demonstrations to truly grasp spiritual things. "For the kingdom of God is not in word but in [demonstration of] power." 1 Corinthians 4:20 Sadly, only a few actually push past the need for control to experience God. May the Lord help us walk in the gracious uncertainty of the Holy Spirit in all we do today.