1 Peter 2:19-24 NLT

¹⁹ For God is pleased with you when you do what you know is right and patiently endure unfair treatment. ²⁰ Of course, you get no credit for being patient if you are beaten for doing wrong. But if you suffer for doing good and endure it patiently, God is pleased with you.

²¹ For God called you to do good, even if it means suffering, just as Christ suffered for you. He is your example, and you must follow in his steps.

22 He never sinned,
      nor ever deceived anyone.
23 He did not retaliate when he was insulted,
      nor threaten revenge when he suffered.
He left his case in the hands of God,
      who always judges fairly.
24 He personally carried our sins
      in his body on the cross
so that we can be dead to sin
      and live for what is right.
By his wounds
      you are healed.

God seems to be an avid believer in “turning the other cheek.”

“He did not retaliate when he was insulted…”, have you ever noticed how God seems so DISINTERESTED in sticking up for Himself?  In life the pestering questions keep bombarding our minds; if God would only ___  or if he would just ___  then He would get the honor He deserves and people would see His glory.  We question, “Why doesn’t God stick up for Himself?”

The only answer I can come up with is because that is our job.  His job is to love, forgive and protect us, while our job is to stick up for Him by:

1. testifying of what He has done for us
2. living a sanctified life which honors Him
3. and displaying the power of God through anointing, fruit of the Spirit and miracles.

I don’t know about you, but I have marginally succeeded in the first point but have utterly failed in the last two points.  God forgive me!

After a short time of thinking about how God has taught me so many domestic problems either occur or are augmented by our pride I turned to Him in prayer and it was amazing. Moments later things were better and both my son and I calmed down. I took him to his car and surprisingly it started.  I followed him back to our home.

After all my sin and disobedience God is still merciful and makes a way when there seems to be no way.  He is amazing!

Psalms 107:43 NLT Those who are wise will take all this to heart; they will see in our history the faithful love of the LORD.

Genesis 32:1-2 NLT  As Jacob started on his way again, angels of God came to meet him.  ² When Jacob saw them, he exclaimed, “This is God’s camp!” So he named the place Mahanaim.

Why did angels of God meet Jacob?

Generally, when we read about angels in the scripture they are delivering a message or empowering God’s people in some way.  But in this instance, when Jacob had left Laban and continued on his journey home there is no message or need of deliverance – we are only told they met with Jacob.  So what was the occasion for this meeting? Personally, I believe, not only God but the entire heavenly host enjoys hanging out with God’s people.

In the book “Pour Down From The Skies – A Memoir of the Smithton Outpouring”, I read the following:

As worship began one Friday evening, an Assemblies of God pastor from Minnesota saw what he described as a “ladder descending” into our congregation.  He said that from the heavenly ladder, he saw multitudes of angels “stumbling over each other,” trying to get down and worship with the people.  This mild-mannered pastor described how it seemed as if the very “hosts of heaven wanted to join in” the glorious praise in the middle of the cornfields.

When my son was very young, he always wanted to be in the same room as his dad.  He would follow me from room to room – he just wanted to be near me. When we truly love someone we enjoy being around them and we tend to forget that implies to God too.

While we on earth are seeking the presence and company of God – He and all of His angels are seeking us and enjoy being in our presence as much as we will allow them into our lives. All He wants is an invitation.

Dear Jesus,

The only good thing that comes from my constant failure and sin is my remorse and the feeling of unworthiness. How can I withstand Your favor, intimacy and a clean life without pride? How do I cultivate humility while succeeding in holy living? Show me the path to meekness and a “right” attitude.

Abraham’s Faith Proved

Genesis 22:1-12

^{1 NLT} Some time later, God [proved Abraham]. “Abraham!” God called.

“Yes,” he replied. “Here I am.”

² “Take your son, your only son—yes, Isaac, whom you love so much—and go to the land of Moriah. Go and sacrifice him as a burnt offering on one of the mountains, which I will show you.”

³ The next morning Abraham got up early. He saddled his donkey and took two of his servants with him, along with his son, Isaac. Then he chopped wood for a fire for a burnt offering and set out for the place God had told him about. ⁴ On the third day of their journey, Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. ⁵ “Stay here with the donkey,” Abraham told the servants. “The boy and I will travel a little farther. We will worship there, and then we will come right back.”

⁶ So Abraham placed the wood for the burnt offering on Isaac’s shoulders, while he himself carried the fire and the knife. As the two of them walked on together, ⁷ Isaac turned to Abraham and said, “Father?”

“Yes, my son?” Abraham replied.

“We have the fire and the wood,” the boy said, “but where is the sheep for the burnt offering?”

⁸ “God will provide a sheep for the burnt offering, my son,” Abraham answered. And they both walked on together.

⁹ When they arrived at the place where God had told him to go, Abraham built an altar and arranged the wood on it. Then he tied his son, Isaac, and laid him on the altar on top of the wood. ¹⁰ And Abraham picked up the knife to kill his son as a sacrifice. ¹¹ At that moment the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven, “Abraham! Abraham!”

“Yes,” Abraham replied. “Here I am!”

¹² “Don’t lay a hand on the boy!” the angel said. “Do not hurt him in any way, for now I know that you truly fear God. You have not withheld from me even your son, your only son.”

I have three points to make concerning the above story:

1) God did not “test” Abraham but God “proved” Abraham.

In the first verse (Gen 22:1) I changed the phrase in the New Living Translation from “God tested Abraham’s faith” to “God proved Abraham”. The word “faith” is not in the original text and the Hebrew word “nasah” is better translated “proved”. In other words, God gives us opportunities to prove our love and devotion to Him. Our whole life on earth is one of “proving” in which God craves our fellowship and desires us to demonstrate our love and devotion to Him – He DOES NOT tempt, test or try us as so many believe.

James 1:13 ^KJ2000 Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempts he any man:

In the above story God was giving Abraham the opportunity to become more “God-like” – to become more like Him. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son…” Now, after Abraham’s proving, he would be the only person on earth who can truly understand (as much as a human can understand) what God Himself was willing to do out of love. Surely this experience – this common ground that only God and Abraham were acquainted had to enhance their relationship.

2) For someone so full of faith Abraham sure did lie a lot.

Twice before Abraham told half-truths by saying that Sarai was his sister (Gen 12:11-13; Gen 20:2). While this deception is excused by many because Sarai was Abraham’s half-sister, there can be no doubt in the above story Abraham told a “full-blown lie” to his son.

While on their way to Abraham’s greatest accomplishment the boy asked, “where is the sheep for the burnt offering?” Abraham replied with the lie, “God will provide a sheep for the burnt offering, my son.”

I have heard some excuse sins of the Patriarchs by saying things like, “Well that is just Old Bible, that is not New Testament teaching.” But here is the problem, while customs and traditions change, God does NOT change. The things God hated in the Old Bible He still hates today – and the things God loved in the Old Bible God still loves today – and the behaviors He had mercy on in the Old Bible He still has mercy on today.

Or are we to believe that God has less mercy today? – Absolutely not! If anything God is more merciful so if God was merciful to Abraham’s sins we can be assured He is merciful today. As today, God was not looking at Abraham’s sins but his devotion, his fear of God and most importantly the future sacrifice of God’s only son – the blood of the Lamb of God.

3) It was Abraham’s “fear of God” than impressed our Lord, not his faith.

In the scripture and in our Christian society, Abraham is held up as the “Father of Faith”. While truly he was a great man of faith it was NOT his faith that impress God.

I have heard this story preached and taught over and over and I have yet to hear anyone that didn’t completely ignore what God said about Abraham’s obedience. For God said, “now I know that you truly fear God.”

To further explain, read my post on “The Fear Of God – What It Is and What It Is Not.”

Genesis 22:12 ^KJV … now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me.

Why do Christians avoid this subject?  What are they afraid of?  …  smile…

Before I get into “what the fear of God is” and “what it is not”, let me say you “do not” need to feel uncomfortable about this subject. More than likely you will be pleasantly surprised how simple and clear your understanding will be by the time you finish reading this post, for what I am about to teach you – life itself has been teaching you your entire life, so there is nothing to be uneasy about concerning the fear of God.  However, don’t be scared off by the first few sections because they might seem a little scary until you finish reading the complete article.

The Fear Of God – What It Is Not

Philippians 2:12 KJ2000  Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.

We have been taught the fear of God is simple respect for Him – to be in awe and reverence of His majesty.  While I certainly agree with that definition it is incomplete and has little practical use for our everyday lives. God is a practical Lord and He wants us to use the knowledge and truths of His word in our practical everyday lives.

The author of Philippians admonished us to serve the Lord “in fear and “trembling.”  So let me ask you, Just how afraid do you have to be in order for your physical body to start trembling?  I know many will say I am taking the verse too literal, but whatever the meaning, surely it is more than simple respect or awe.

I can tell you one thing for sure, that if an angel of the Lord appears to me one hour after I finish writing this article I “will be” physically trembling!!!  Why?  Because to be in the presence of pure holiness is frightening and while I know the Lord intimately there is much I do not know and that is scary – especially when I consider my sinful life.  In such an experience I would need to be comforted and assured there is no reason to be fearful.

Daniel 10:10-12 KJ2000  And, behold, a hand touched me, which made me tremble upon my knees and upon the palms of my hands.  ¹¹ And he said unto me, O Daniel, a man greatly beloved, understand the words that I speak unto you, and stand upright: for unto you am I now sent. And when he had spoken this word unto me, I stood trembling.  ¹² Then said he unto me, Fear not, Daniel: for from the first day that you did set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come because of your words.

There are many such instances when God or an angel of God appears and speaks those comforting words, “fear not”.

“Fear Of God” or “Fear Of Satan?”

Much of the confusion about the “Fear Of God” comes from ignoring the blatantly obvious fact there are two sources of fear 1) The fear “OF” God – that fear which is “OF Him – which originates from God as His gift and 2) Fear which is “OF” Satan – which originates in hell and only serves to torment and destroy.

I have heard preachers preach-against people turning to God as a result of fear saying that such experiences never last.  Oh really?  I would like to ask them does that mean each and everyone of their converts never backslide? That is so ridiculous I have to wonder how an intelligent Christian could ever say such a thing.

One of the most famous sermons in American History was from Jonathan Edwards - Sinners In The Hands Of An Angry God.

From the book: Sinners In The Hands Of An Angry God:

“As Edwards preached, strong men and women held onto the pews and cried out for mercy, pleading with the preacher, ‘Is there no way of escape?’  Hundreds were converted as they heard that sermon…”

Or how about the many times the fear of God fell upon the early church: Act 2:43; Act 5:5; Act 5:11; Act 9:31; Act 13:16; Act 19:17

When the fear of God falls upon your life you are “driven” – complacency is no longer an option – you are compelled to act on God’s behalf.

Dear Jesus,

Please let such fear fall upon me!

The Fear Of God – What It Is

At the beginning of this article I mentioned the “Fear Of God” is practical and has a practical use in our everyday lives.

To explain let me share with you a somewhat humorous and a little embarrassing experience I had many years ago.  Back in my preaching days, when I was young, I wanted God to heal a toothache without going to the dentist.  My tooth was so bad the raw nerve was exposed and whenever I mistaking touched it with my tongue the pain was so severe that I would almost pass-out.  I told God at the time, “If only I could feel such pain when I was about to disobey Him I am sure I could live a much better life.” Of course eventually I made my way to the dentist.

In reality and in a very practical way God has done something like that for each one of us only we keep rejecting it’s gift.  God has given us the gift of His fear which when we welcome it into our lives motivates us to do His will and shun evil. But we keep rejecting it because the popular social gospel of today tells us that all fear is bad.

The fear of God is that fear which is “OF” God – in other words it comes from God. Not simply the fear which holds Him in awe and reverence, but any fear that motivates you to do good.

For example, if a mother runs out of her burning house only to discover her child still inside and fear grips her heart as she runs back into the house and saves her child, where did that fear come from? – God or Satan?  It has to be one or the other so which do you think?  Of God of course!  Any fear that results in righteousness or doing good is from God, while Satan’s fear only serves to torment and destroy.

So the next time you experience fear ask yourself, “Am I being driven to do something good, something responsible, something righteous?  Or are you simply being tormented and paralyzed.  If it is the later then your fear is from Satan and needs to be rejected, but if it is the former then you need to welcome it and pray that it will continue until it has accomplished it’s desired result in your life.

It is really very simple:

1. Fear which motivates you to do good is the “Fear Of God” and comes from Him.
2. Fear which paralyzes, torments or motivates you to do evil comes from Satan.

Does not everyday life teach you this?  I dare say you could not exist one day without God’s fear.  How about your fear to not miss work?  Or your fear you have concerning your kids which motivates you to be the very best parent you can be?

Every single day we are driven by God’s fear and every single day the enemy tries to torment us with his fear also. We need to welcome and through open the door of our hearts to God’s fear and reject Satan’s fear.

So how do we cultivate God’s fear in our lives?  The first thing is to pray and ask God for His fear to saturate our lives. And the next thing is to take the advice of God’s word to the king in Deuteronomy:

Deu 17:18-20 ^{18 (NET)} When he sits on his royal throne he must make a copy of this law on a scroll given to him by the Levitical priests.  ^{19 (NET)} It must be with him constantly ^(GW) and read it his entire life. ^(CEV) Each day the king must read and obey these laws, ^(NKJV) that he may learn to fear the LORD his God and be careful to observe all the words of this law and these statutes, ^{20 (NLT)} This regular reading will prevent him from becoming proud and acting as if he is above his fellow citizens. It will also prevent him from turning away from these commands in the smallest way. And it will ensure that he and his descendants will reign for many generations in Israel.

We should never forget the Bible is a living book – it speaks to us and teaches us and instills God’s love, His fear and His faith into our very souls.  Daily reading is a must if you want to fear God in this complacent and apathetic world.

Psalms 22:3 KJ2000  But you are holy, O you that inhabit the praises of Israel.

When translating Psalms 22:3, the King James and the King James 2000 versions of the Bible leave the impression that God comes down from His throne and inhabits the praises of His people – that He walks among us as we worship.  Unfortunately, that is not the impression we get from most modern translations where we are left with the impression that God sits enthroned above the praises of His people.

Personally, while I do consult Hebrew and Greek dictionaries, I don’t trust them to be reliable sources.  The meanings and definitions of words can change very quickly over a short period of time and I find the most reliable method to determine meanings is to study how a Hebrew or Greek word was translated in the King James throughout the scriptures.

For example in the above verse the Hebrew word (yashab) translated “inhabit” in the King James 2000 version is found 1084 times in the original Hebrew:

Total KJV Occurrences: 1084

dwell, 210; dwelt, 190; inhabitants, 190; sat, 94; sit, 65; abode, 33; abide, 31; inhabitant, 31; inhabited, 29; sitteth, 25; dwelleth, 20; dwelling, 16; sitting, 15; dwellest, 14; set, 13; tarry, 13; remain, 11; remained, 10; inhabit, 8; dwelled, 6; sittest, 6; tarried, 6; placed, 5; taken, 5; abideth, 4; continued, 3; habitation, 3; abiding, 2; continue, 2; endure, 2; place, 2; satest, 2; situate, 2; abodest, 1; downsitting, 1; ease, 1; establish, 1; haunt, 1; inhabitest, 1; inhabiteth, 1; lurking, 1; married, 1; marrying, 1; remainest, 1; remaineth, 1; return, 1; setteth, 1; settle, 1; tarrieth, 1

From this study it is clear that God “comes down” and dwells among us while we worship Him.

In the book “Pour Down From The Skies – A Memoir of the Smithton Outpouring”, I read the following:

As worship began one Friday evening, an Assemblies of God pastor from Minnesota saw what he described as a “ladder descending” into our congregation.  He said that from the heavenly ladder, he saw multitudes of angels “stumbling over each other,” trying to get down and worship with the people.  This mild-mannered pastor described how it seemed as if the very “hosts of heaven wanted to join in” the glorious praise in the middle of the cornfields.

This is the true meaning of God inhabiting the praises of His people.

While we set our eyes upon heaven, God sets His eyes upon us when we humble ourselves and worship. We have the attention of all of heaven – what are we doing with it?

But if we are NOT doing it then we MUST NOT be WILLING to do it or else we would be doing it….

So we need to change our focus on WHAT WE ARE willing do do? and do that….  I am guilty of this too… I do it all the time…. I just think we can not ask ourselves enough that simple question, “What AM I willing to do?”

Matthew 17:18-20 ^{KJ2000  18} And Jesus rebuked the demon; and he departed out of him: and the child was cured from that very hour.  ¹⁹ Then came the disciples to Jesus apart, and said, Why could not we cast him out?  ²⁰ And Jesus said unto them, Because of your unbelief: for verily I say unto you, If you have faith as a grain of mustard seed, you shall say unto this mountain, Remove from here to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you.

The Greek word for “unbelief” in the above scripture is “apistía” which is found in the New Testament twelve times and each and every time it is translated “unbelief” by the King James translators. It is unfortunate that many of the new modern translations use the phrase “little faith” instead.  I am sorry but unbelief is NOT little faith.

Faith is believing God and His word.  Unbelief is believing satan and his lies. That is it – topic closed!  It is NOT how much you believe but WHAT you believe that makes the difference.

For example if you believe lies like, “I can’t do that, I am not worthy”, or “I don’t have enough faith”, or “I don’t know if it is God’s will to heal me”.  etc…  If you believe those lies then your unbelief will stop the miracles God is trying so desperately to send your way.

Now if you said that your “pride” was getting in the way of your faith (which is the essence of our topic of believing more in yourself than you do God) – now that is a statement I tend to agree with – but I refuse to believe that God is withholding the gift of faith from you.

Jesus purposely choose the smallest thing to illustrate that it is NOT the amount of faith you have but what you believe that is important.  He went out of His way to make this point and yet we still manage to twist the truth into a lie as the devil whispers in our ears, “You don’t have enough faith”.  As you believe those lies so they become true – according to your faith.

The last thing Jesus wanted was for you to believe in yourself – in your own faith.  He wanted you to believe in HIM – not how much faith you have.  He is the one we are to believe in and …

to believe that YOU don’t have enough faith is accusing HIM of not supplying enough grace.

“Do you” or “do you not” believe in the CROSS? That is the question you really need to be asking.

With so little preaching on the cross these days it is no wonder so many Christians struggle in their faith and accept the lies.  Faith in the cross was the main preaching and topic of the New Testament and yet you rarely here about it today.

I am sorry, this just gets me a little riled up.  After all that Jesus has done for us and yet we still want to look towards ourselves for spiritual power and deliverance – it is just so insulting to our precious Lord and Savior.

Do you really believe that Jesus promoted believing more in yourself?  – in your faith? – in your ability to believe?  As though we don’t already have enough “pride” — do you really believe Jesus wants you to have yet more?

NO a thousand times NO!  He wants you to believe in the CROSS!  That is it! Believe in His blood and His sufferings.  You need not believe in anything else – He is enough!!!