A favorite morning walk for me is also the most difficult one. It involves a lengthy steep climb that wears on the legs and saps the breath. At my age I can no longer do it without stopping to rest¾ four times. Though only brief 30 seconds rests, my body has a chance to recover some, but it also gives my mind a chance to look around and see the whole setting from a different perspective. Sometimes we just have to stop what we are doing, stand still, and look up seeing our lives from a new perspective, and give it a chance to re-vitalize, refocus, and move forward.
So, in this brief respite, let’s strengthen our spiritual muscles and take hefty lungs full of the “fear of God,” perhaps seeing it from a perspective never seen before. I remember my mother telling me, “growing up I was only taught of the fear of God, but now I know the love of God.” Yes, all too often the clause fear of God is miss-understood to mean a dread, or fear of punishment from a powerful, holy and righteous God. But in Biblical truth, “the fear of God” has no such meaning, nor does itrelate to the love of God towards us. If anything, this fear has more to do with ‘our’ love towards God. Perhaps the strongest, most powerful notion on the “fear of God” may be stated as:
“The fear of God”—the reverential awe before the thought of God’s presence.”
The first part, “reverential awe,” is that deep, overwhelming mixture of deep respect, wonder, and perception of the supreme worth, holiness, and mighty authority that command my highest regard for God’s presence; it produces a sense of smallness, humility, and loss of “self” realizing you are standing in the glorious presence of the One and only most sacred, most magnificent God. If I stand at the shore of the vast ocean, or at the foot of majestic mountains, I feel so tiny, yet filled with more admiration of the greatness before me rather than panic and have a quiet sense of awe rather than fear.
The second part is, “before the thought of God’s presence.” There is a Latin expression, coram Deo, meaning “before the face of God.” That is, having the awareness that every thought, every intention of the heart, at each moment of my existence, are all exposed and known in God’s presence…even before it is fully formed in thought, spoken, or acted out. This is a rather deep spiritual thought, but to think on it we must. It means to live our lives in total transparency and accountability realizing none of what we do or think is done in secret but is continuously in the sight, or before the face, of a holy and almighty God.
This “awe” is not the emotion that triggers a bodily response of calmness or a racing heart, but it is a feeling in which the mind interprets what is actually taking place. An emotion affects the body and is short lived, but a feeling becomes a viable part of our soul and lasts, and is real as you think back on the experience.
I frequently recall a time of worship (better, have a flashback) in which a sense of calm came upon me difficult to understand; it was an intense sense of awe as in the presence of a most holy God. I stopped singing, or even saying anything, just absorbing the presence. Actually, I was afraid to say anything for fear that my words would only be what I think I “should” say, or have been “taught” to say and not be totally honest and sincere¾ knowing that He knows so well the true thoughts and intents of my heart, and I did not want to appear “two-faced”¾ like the time my friend told our hostess how nice her red dress was when in fact she bulged out of it, in every direction; neither of us said what was truly on our minds. So, in His perceived presence I just remained silent, now realizing what is meant by Isaiah:
Is. 57.15 “For thus says the High and Lofty One Who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: “I dwell in the high and holy place, With him who has a contrite and humble spirit, To revive the spirit of the humble, And to revive the heart of the contrite ones.”
I am troubled when I see the casualness, the somewhat dis-connect between people and our Lord, especially at times of supposed intensity of worship and honor. We do not gather to feed at a banquet of grace, to indulge ourselves in blessings from God; but we have gathered to bless and honor the One who is the bestower of that grace and those blessings. It is the place where “I” is taken out of the equation and is replaced not with “He” but with “You,” the most holy and righteous One¾ For example, the expression “He is worthy” is replaced by the more personal “You are worthy.” Knowing this, that of 8 billion people on this planet, none could come into the presence of the One “who dwells in unapproachable light” (1 Tim. 6.16), except, to the praise of His holy Name, those who come enshrouded “in Christ” their Redeemer and Savior.
How much different our lives would be, or should be, if we REALLY believed this in “full faith;” having a steadfast unwavering faith not given over to fleeting thoughts and emotions, or living on a weakly developed understanding of the reality of the Kingdom of God¾engaging spiritual reality and not the fantasy of religion. Jesus came and saw His disciples sleeping and asked Peter, “What! Could you not watch with Me one hour?” Not even for sixty minutes could they exercise their faith without their minds drifting here and there, and tiredness and sleep enter in. When in fact, this thought of “The fear of God”—the reverential awe before the thought of God’s presence,” can, and should extend from that one hour of worship, to times of prayer and Bible study, and grow and enlarge to be a living part of our daily lives.
“What! Could you not watch with Me one hour?
