Do Not be Afraid – 5

Do Not be Afraid – 5

Subject – The Fear of the Lord

by Rick Welborne

Deuteronomy 6:1‑15 (NKJV) 

1 "Now this is the commandment, and these are the statutes and judgments which the LORD your God has commanded to teach you, that you may observe them in the land which you are crossing over to possess, 

2 that you may fear the LORD your God, to keep all His statutes and His commandments which I command you, you and your son and your grandson, all the days of your life, and that your days may be prolonged. 

3 Therefore hear, O Israel, and be careful to observe it, that it may be well with you, and that you may multiply greatly as the LORD God of your fathers has promised you‑‑'a land flowing with milk and honey.' 

4 "Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one! 

5 You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. 

6 "And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. 

7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. 

8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 

9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. 

10 "So it shall be, when the LORD your God brings you into the land of which He swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give you large and beautiful cities which you did not build, 

11 houses full of all good things, which you did not fill, hewn‑out wells which you did not dig, vineyards and olive trees which you did not plant‑‑when you have eaten and are full‑‑ 

12 then beware, lest you forget the LORD who brought you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage. 

13 You shall fear the LORD your God and serve Him, and shall take oaths in His name. 

14 You shall not go after other gods, the gods of the peoples who are all around you 

15 (for the LORD your God is a jealous God among you), lest the anger of the LORD your God be aroused against you and destroy you from the face of the earth. 

1. You are to “Fear the Lord Your God” and to keep all His commandments.

Dake’s Definition of the Fear of The Lord: This kind of fear is not the dread of a vengeful Being standing over man to punish for the least infraction of His law; it is more to do with respect and reverence of God as Father and Provider. Men must learn to respect God as the Lawgiver and Judge, keeping in mind the justice of God as well as His mercy and longsuffering. No man can walk with Him conscientiously or safely who has lost the fear of God.

–We exemplify our fear of Him by our obedience to His Word...His commandments.

–One of the benefits of fearing God is prolonged lives...that is directly related to God’s blessings and our choices because we love Him...we will choose what is best for us.

–Fear the Lord your God is manifested by your love for Him (all your heart) and by your willingness to teach his laws to your children at home and church.

–He says to be faithful even when you inherit cites you did not build and blessings you did not work for...a word for us...be faithful because others paved the way.

–To fear Him is to understand that He is a jealous God...you can’t be His bride and run around with the world ...He will not tolerate it.

2. You are to “Fear The Lord Your God” in such a way that you have influence on those around you.

Deuteronomy 10:11‑13 (NKJV) 

11 Then the LORD said to me, 'Arise, begin your journey before the people, that they may go in and possess the land which I swore to their fathers to give them.' 

12 "And now, Israel, what does the LORD your God require of you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all His ways and to love Him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, 

13 and to keep the commandments of the LORD and His statutes which I command you today for your good? 

–Possessing only happens as we follow the Lord...Israel was to go in and possess the land.

–What is it you want to possess? Your children being saved, family members right with God, reconciliation with family, a new job...etc. Then Fear the Lord your God!

–Respect and honor God in all you do...how do we do that...walk in all His ways. How do we do that...Know His Word and walk in the Spirit.

–When Saul was converted to Paul and began to preach and the rest of the church accepted him:

Acts 9:31 (NKJV) 

31 Then the churches throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and were edified. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, they were multiplied. 

–When they walked in the fear of the Lord and in the Spirit...they were multiplied...souls were being saved ...they were possessing the land.

Galatians 5:16, 22-25 (NKJV) 

16 I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. 

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 

23 gentleness, self‑control. Against such there is no law. 

24 And those who are Christ's have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 

25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. 

–If you want to have influence and possess the lost around you...fear the Lord and walk in Holy Spirit.

3. You are to “Fear the Lord Your God” in such a way that you never let Him go.

Deuteronomy 10:20‑22 (NKJV) 

20 You shall fear the LORD your God; you shall serve Him, and to Him you shall hold fast, and take oaths in His name. 

21 He is your praise, and He is your God, who has done for you these great and awesome things which your eyes have seen. 

22 Your fathers went down to Egypt with seventy persons, and now the LORD your God has made you as the stars of heaven in multitude. 

–How hard is it to see someone who fears the Lord? Find someone who is serving Him with all their hearts and who is holding on to Him no matter what is going on.

–Someone who only makes oaths to Him: a solemn promise, often invoking a divine witness, regarding one's future action or behavior. To fear the Lord your God is someone who is willing to hold fast in these last days.

Hebrews 10:21‑25 (NKJV) 

21 and having a High Priest over the house of God, 

22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. 

23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful. 

24 And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 

25 not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching. 

4. You are to “Fear the Lord Your God” by bringing your tithe to Him every week.

Deuteronomy 14:22‑23 (NLT) 

22 “You must set aside a tithe of your crops—one‑tenth of all the crops you harvest each year. 

23 Bring this tithe to the designated place of worship—the place the LORD your God chooses for his name to be honored—and eat it there in his presence. This applies to your tithes of grain, new wine, olive oil, and the firstborn males of your flocks and herds. Doing this will teach you always to fear the LORD your God. 

–At the Experience Conference we went to in Lakeland...a pastor teaching in one of the breakout sessions said...the very first thing that should be taught to someone just saved was tithing.

–Most of us probably thought praying or reading your Bible...why tithing?

–He said right from the get go this new believer needs to understand Lordship and obedience...who he is (a servant) and what he has belongs to God.

–If we cannot get this...it will be hard to be a disciple...this sets forth discipline in our lives and shows that we fear the Lord our God because we honor Him first.

–Putting God first in our finances is a ‘biggy’ because if we can trust Him with our money we can trust Him with everything else...shows we really fear (respect) Him.

–Just came to my heart...I guess many fear the bank, the electric company, the cable company, the insurance company more than God...we fear them first.

5. You are to “Fear the Lord Your God” and realize that it is something that can be learned.

Deuteronomy 31:10‑13 (NKJV) 

10 And Moses commanded them, saying: "At the end of every seven years, at the appointed time in the year of release, at the Feast of Tabernacles, 

11 when all Israel comes to appear before the LORD your God in the place which He chooses, you shall read this law before all Israel in their hearing. 

12 Gather the people together, men and women and little ones, and the stranger who is within your gates, that they may hear and that they may learn to fear the LORD your God and carefully observe all the words of this law, 

13 and that their children, who have not known it, may hear and learn to fear the LORD your God as long as you live in the land which you cross the Jordan to possess." 

–Gather the people to hear...hear what? The Law or the Word of God. Hearing God’s Word taught, preached, or even read will help us learn to fear the Lord our God. I wonder if we know His Word is enough?

Psalm 119:9‑16 (NIV) 

9 How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your word. 

10 I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands. 

11 I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you. 

12 Praise be to you, O LORD; teach me your decrees. 

13 With my lips I recount all the laws that come from your mouth. 

14 I rejoice in following your statutes as one rejoices in great riches. 

15 I meditate on your precepts and consider your ways. 

16 I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your word. 

–It is imperative that our children hear and learn God’s Word...not just from Pastor Mark or Sunday School teachers but also from parents who share His Word with their children.

–Children grow up with a healthy reverence and respect for God and His Word because mom and dad have read it and modeled it in front of them. They can learn to fear God.

6. You are to “Fear the Lord Your God” and to set up memorials for your children so they can learn to fear Him also. 

Joshua 4:20‑24 (NKJV) 

20 And those twelve stones which they took out of the Jordan, Joshua set up in Gilgal. 

21 Then he spoke to the children of Israel, saying: "When your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, 'What are these stones?' 

22 then you shall let your children know, saying, 'Israel crossed over this Jordan on dry land'; 

23 for the LORD your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed over, as the LORD your God did to the Red Sea, which He dried up before us until we had crossed over, 

24 that all the peoples of the earth may know the hand of the LORD, that it is mighty, that you may fear the LORD your God forever." 

–I hope you are setting up memorials for your children so that they will fear the Lord...it may be reminding them how God touched them in children’s church, youth, or on a mission’s trip.

–It may be telling them stories of God’s visitation and miracles in your life...how He came thru just in time.

–It may be reminding them how the doctor had given them such a bad report but the Healer (Jesus) showed up and showed off and healed their body.

–It may be reminding them that “code blue” was called on them in the hospital but God spared them for a reason...for a purpose...a destiny.

–It may be when they received salvation or were baptized in Holy Spirit...keep reminding them...keeping building memorials...keep teaching them to fear the Lord.

Ecclesiastes 3:11‑14 (NKJV) 

11 He has made everything beautiful in its time. Also He has put eternity in their hearts, except that no one can find out the work that God does from beginning to end. 

12 I know that nothing is better for them than to rejoice, and to do good in their lives, 

13 and also that every man should eat and drink and enjoy the good of all his labor‑‑it is the gift of God. 

14 I know that whatever God does, It shall be forever. Nothing can be added to it, And nothing taken from it. God does it, that men should fear before Him.