The Fear of the Lord is a complex issue. Some think the Believer ought not to have any fear of the Lord subsequent to salvation. Sadly, this ignores aspects of that fear that may be somewhat classified under the idea of reverential awe.
Sin distorts everything. As Christians, we know this as axiomatic. And nowhere is this more evident than when addressing a topic like the fear of the Lord. The Fear of the Lord gets twisted in our fallenness and sin-distorted reasoning, as we look at those words “the fear of the Lord” and import into them notions of ruthlessness, implacability, perpetual irritation, pettiness, unpredictability, volatility and harshness.
He becomes not a God to be awed at in His glory and wonder but cowered before.
So that God must be approached as though surrounded by a cosmic minefield and that we had better be constantly careful that we don’t tick Him off lest He explode at us in inexplicable rage.
And that, by keeping an endless list of revealed and even worse – secret and irrational rules regulations.
But in Psalm 147 we get one of the aspects of the fear of the Lord that is greatly overlooked. It reads: “the Lord values those who fear Him, those who depend upon His faithful care.” (JPS. Tanakh: 1985).
Here is a most sweet and wonderful consideration then: That part and parcel of fearing the Lord, is to “depend upon His faith care.”
And so I pray today: Heavenly Father, it is a thought above all thoughts that you take pleasure in your people. In the likes of me. But here you say it. And this in the most simple of contexts. To fear you, and to hope in your steadfast love. May I study to please you with all my might. To know your fear in truth. And to never doubt your love for a moment – but to trust and hope in it always. I want to make you smile.
Anyone reading their Old Testament, sooner or later comes across the account of David wanting to move the Ark of The Covenant to Jerusalem. And bound up with that account, is the somewhat shocking record of a man called Uzzah.
There a number of interesting things about this account, but what really stands out is that while David and his people were in the process of doing what was perfectly acceptable, even desirable, this tragedy occurs. They decide to transport the Ark on a cart. In the process, as 2 Samuel 6:6 notes, the oxen pulling the cart stumbled. Uzzah, fearing the Ark might tip off the cart, reached out and took hold of it to steady it. At which point the text says: “And the anger of the LORD was kindled against Uzzah, and God struck him down there because of his error, and he died there beside the ark of God.” (2 Sam. 6:7)
There are a number of lessons which can be drawn from this, but for time’s sake I want to focus on just one: Well-meaning actions are no substitute for Biblically informed obedience.
Just pasting the label of good intentions on what we do, is not sufficient to magically secure God’s blessing on things which are contrary to what He has plainly communicated in His Word. Where Scripture is less specific, we certainly have some leeway. But it is our responsibility first and foremost to KNOW what God has said, and to seek to fulfill those things.
So we have it here by startling example. David meant well by wanting the Ark, which represented God’s presence among His people, to have a prominent, centralized and permanent resting place. So far so good. And Uzzah meant well in wanting to see the Ark kept from damage. But what had been ignored in all of this – apparently by all parties (even the Priests!) was that no one was ever to touch the Ark; it was only to be carried on the shoulders of the priests with is carrying rods. Starting in Ex. 25 and numerous times after, God was explicit – the Ark was to be carried by the Levites and that was the only way it was to be moved.
The point is, that good men, being very well meaning, can still commit very grave offences in the very midst of doing what they believe is right with a clear conscience, because at the same time, they failed to know and observe the Word of the Lord. Good intentions are not enough. No matter how sincere, when they sit yet against the face of God’s given revelation.
We’ve no time to unpack it here, but we see this OT example fleshed out in the life of Jesus; though mercifully without the same tragic result. It is in Mark 8 and Matthew 16. Jesus was telling the disciples how He would go to Jerusalem and suffer and be killed. At which unsteady moment Peter – well-meaning as could be – said: “Far be it from you Lord, this shall never happen to you.” Which earned Peter the rebuke “Get behind me Satan.” Peter couldn’t steady the Ark that was about to be carried by the Levites. To try, would in effect make Him God’s own adversary. Though Peter’s intentions couldn’t have been further from it. I suspect that the references from the OT which would blaze to life for the Apostles after Jesus’ resurrection, ascension and the giving of The Spirit – which were less explicit than the commands regarding the transportation of the Ark – were at least in part why mercy was so manifest here. Yet even that does not negate the severity of the rebuke from Jesus. As with Nicodemus, He expected His people to know and understand His Word. And where they failed, there were always sad consequences.
No matter how gentle, how patient, how forgiving, how condescending, God is still to be treated with reverence and propriety. We cannot just approach Him and handle His things any way WE please – even if it is in sincerity. It is our responsibility to know His ways. David and the others had the Word of God at their disposal. They all knew, especially the Levites, what God had commanded. And when God is ignored as to His will, wishes and ways, He breaks out.
Heaven deliver us from the wicked self-stylings of a free-wheeling – make it up as you go – kind of Christianity. A Christianity unmoored from Biblical principles. How we need to read and study our Bibles consistently and responsibly so as to apply what God has said carefully in our present circumstances, and not just be well-meaning but uninformed in our approach to Him. May we come to Him, as He desires for us to come. And serve Him, as He Himself has designed. There are some things, even God is picky about. We should know them.
Modern discourse, both in and outside the Church, seems to be fraught with suspicion and accordant condemnation of others, because we think we fully know other’s motives. Especially if they are people we disagree with theologically or politically. If they do not see things completely as we do, then there MUST be some nefarious reason. And in our pretended omniscience, we are certain we can dive deep into their souls and divine the dark coal of their wicked purposes. Whether those purposes are actually there or not.
And it is sin.
Joshua chapter 22 shows us how even the very best of men can fall prey to this tendency. And, it shows us just how disastrous such a practice can be. Why we need to ask questions and ascertain a full blown set of truths, before we begin accusing. Or, as in this case, before we nearly start a civil war. A war very narrowly averted.
The book of Joshua catalogs the events and battles of Israel’s conquest of Canaan. Key victories and even some key defeats are displayed before us. There are acts of bravery, heroics, bad choices, miracles, sad compromises and throughout – God’s faithfulness to His promises. It is a rollicking account.
By the time we come to chapter 22, all of the major conquests are done. There are pockets of enemies still to be dealt with, but the basic landmass has been secured and parceled out among the tribes. And if you recall, the tribes of Reuben, Gad and 1/2 of Manasseh had petitioned to receive their inherited lands east of the Jordan. That petition had been granted on condition of those tribes still aiding the remaining tribes in their conquering of the land west of the Jordan. Which they did.
Now, it is time for Reuben, Gad and half of Manasseh to return to their allotment. Upon doing so, they stop at the Jordan – the traditional eastern border of Israel – and build what vs. 10 calls “an altar of imposing size.” Once news of this got out – we read: Josh. 22:12 “And when the people of Israel heard of it, the whole assembly of the people of Israel gathered at Shiloh to make war against them.”
Civil war.
God had made it abundantly clear over and over again, that there was to be but one place in Israel for sacrifice and worship – and that was to be where the Ark of the Covenant was – and where the Levitical Priesthood would officiate. For all intents and purposes, this signaled a breach of the worst kind – rebellious idolatry.
War seemed inevitable.
Israel gets its army together and marches up against Reuben, Gad and 1/2 of Manasseh and calls them out.
Josh. 22:16-17 ““Thus says the whole congregation of the Lord, ‘What is this breach of faith that you have committed against the God of Israel in turning away this day from following the Lord by building yourselves an altar this day in rebellion against the Lord? Have we not had enough of the sin at Peor from which even yet we have not cleansed ourselves, and for which there came a plague upon the congregation of the Lord,”.
Serious stuff indeed.
Until.
The “rebels” respond. In essence they say – “if we’re actually doing what you think we’re doing – you should wipe us out. But we’re not doing that. Since we are separated from you by the Jordan, we feared that in time you might not consider us still part of Israel, and might eventually say “You have no portion in the Lord.” So we built this, not for sacrifices or worship – but merely to serve as a reminder that we are still all one nation serving the same God.”’”
Here’s the problem.
Reuben, Gad and half-Manasseh thought they could guess the future motives of Israel about something that hadn’t even happened yet. And Israel thought they could guess the current motives behind something they didn’t fully understand. And because both groups were steeped in their mutual suspicion, they nearly entered into a civil war that potentially could have cost many thousands of lives. All because suspicious minds were certain they knew why other people were doing things they didn’t understand or like. And because no one thought to talk about it to the other party to find out what was really going on.
Maybe, just maybe, our homes, our Churches and our political discourse could learn something here.
Joshua chapters 13-19 might at first glance be a bit of a yawner, but “there’s gold in them-there hills.”
These chapters are comprised of the tribal allotments to Israel. The various landmasses assigned to each are detailed. And as you know, 2 tribes (Reuben and Gad) along with 1/2 the tribe of Manasseh, received their portion on the east side of the Jordan – all the rest on the west side. The tribe of Levi however was given no real estate of their own, but merely cities to dwell in within each of the tribal regions. The Lord was to be their inheritance.
And it is at this point we begin to look at the Providence of God in His assignments to them, and also to you and me. For each of us, under His sovereign hand, have a certain lot in life. A place and a time where each of us were born and raised. And circumstances – most well beyond our control, and some within where we could make alterations, improvements, and even mishaps.
In all the divisions which are recorded here – a specific area for each tribe, I am reminded of God’s apportioning the parameters of each of our lives as He sees fit. And I wonder, as you and me, did the tribes find reason to wish they had what some other tribe had instead of what was assigned them? More water? Fewer hills? Better grazing land? Better farming land? etc., etc.?
No doubt some did.
And as we read later, some thought their lot too hard and sought for other. West Manasseh complained that they didn’t have enough land. Joshua reminded them they were simply unwilling to do the hard work of clearing out some particularly tough inhabitants to get all of what had been allotted to them. They wanted an easier road.
Or consider Simeon. As it turns out, their assignment was actually a territory not completely their own, but within the territory of Judah.
Some had coastland, others none. Some were completely landlocked between two or more other tribes. Some had good grazing, others better farmland. There were mountainous regions, and flatlands; arid and lush. Each had their own conditions both to wrestle with, and take advantage of.
But our God knew what was wisest and best in each case. What challenges were best for each group. What pluses and minuses would keep them looking to Him for what was beyond their own strength, ability and preferences.
And so it is with you and me beloved.
In His providence, He knows better how to bless His people than we know how to be blessed. No doubt, you might prefer your circumstance to be what mine are, and I might prefer someone else’s. But here, we must rest in the perfect love and wisdom of our glorious Christ and King in all things. Father really does know best.
The Father knows what sins you need to wrestle with. What comforts will not spoil you, and what difficulties will not crush you. He knows how to best arrange those places that will help you grow in grace, look only to Him and prepare you best for Heaven. He knows how hard some of what you face is. And He knows how to provide for you in those places. He is never oblivious to your cares and concerns. As Paul preached on Mars Hill: “he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God, and perhaps feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us, for “ ‘In him we live and move and have our being’; as even some of your own poets have said, “ ‘For we are indeed his offspring.’ (Ac 17:26–28).
Now this is not to make us fatalists. It is not a place to throw up our hands and “whatever will be, will be.” This is not grin and bear it time, resignation to all things. As Paul wrote in 1 Cor. 7:21, “were you a bondservant when called? Do not be concerned about it. (But if you can gain your freedom, avail yourself of the opportunity.) And Joseph when in prison, sought consideration from the King’s Cupbearer to change his lot. It is rather to get our eyes upon His providential appointments, and seek out how it is He intends to bless us by them, what provision He has made for us in them, and how we are to respond righteously to them as we seek to improve, change, and be changed by them. In pain, we seek right remedies. In bounty, we seek avenues to bless others. In challenges, we seek to meet them in Christ’s character by The Spirit. In sorrow we seek Him as our comfort. In joy, we lift our hands to Him. In weakness, we look for His strength. In vigor, we look for opportunities to serve. In confusion we trust His providence. In clarity, we declare His truth to others.
But in all things: Father really does “know best.”
The verse cited above, and its companion 1 Chron. 16:22 serve well to help us make a very important distinction in Bible study and application.
“Touch not my anointed ones, do my prophets no harm” is a darling passage within the ranks of Charismatic and Pentecostal communities, especially by their leadership – to fend off criticisms and scrutiny. Unfortunately for them, they commit (among others) the critical error of using a passage stripped not only of its immediate context, but of the larger context of the whole of Scripture.
Let’s start with the immediate context of both Psalm 105:15 and 1 Chron. 16:22.
In both cases (for one is a repeat of the other) the immediate context frames what is being talked about. And it is NOT, about individual, self-proclaimed prophets, miracle workers, preachers, teachers or anything of the like. This is how the pericope reads:
"When you were few in number, of little account, and sojourners in it, wandering from nation to nation, from one kingdom to another people, he allowed no one to oppress them; he rebuked kings on their account, “Touch not my anointed ones, do my prophets no harm!” 1 Chron. 16:19-22
So the first thing you need to note is that this is written about the nation of Israel – not any one “prophet.”
2nd, you have to notice that God never actually said this to anyone! It is merely a statement regarding how He had decreed that Israel would remain safe from the attacks from other nations during its 40 years of wandering.
3rd, it has nothing to do with legitimate criticisms of any who are in ministry or some mythical place of prophetic or apostolic leadership.
What is being taught, is that God was faithful to His covenant promises to Israel, even during their wilderness journeys.
Back to the title of this post: yes, the Bible “says” what is often quoted in this verse – but the Bible does not TEACH what so many people try to use this verse to say it does. Instead, the Bible requires God’s people to scrutinize its teachers, to root out false teaching and those whose lives are not commensurate with a godly lifestyle.
So, for instance, the Apostle Paul publicly confronts the Apostle Peter in Antioch when his actions contradict the Gospel. So the Prophet David is rebuked by Nathan due to his sin. So Jesus criticizes the church in Pergamum for not ferreting out those who hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, and the Church in Thyatira for tolerating a woman who called herself a prophetess, but led others into sexual immorality and spiritual compromise. God is in no way saying we ought not to “touch” them, but to rid ourselves of them. And so too – Paul can call the “super-apostles” of Corinth into account, and Deuteronomy 13 can instruct us: 1 “If a prophet or a dreamer of dreams arises among you and gives you a sign or a wonder, 2 and the sign or wonder that he tells you comes to pass, and if he says, ‘Let us go after other gods,’ which you have not known, ‘and let us serve them,’ 3 you shall not listen to the words of that prophet or that dreamer of dreams. For the LORD your God is testing you, to know whether you love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul. 4 You shall walk after the LORD your God and fear him and keep his commandments and obey his voice, and you shall serve him and hold fast to him.”
The Bible does NOT teach that supposed “anointed” ones or “prophets” are somehow immune from scrutiny, criticism or censure. In fact, it is just the opposite. For when the qualifications for those who would hold leadership positions in the Church are spelled out – they are to be evaluated by the congregation both as to their lifestyle, and their commitment to Biblical truth and competency in communicating and defending it.
Be careful Beloved that you find out what the Bible teaches, and not just what it “says.” It is true that Isa. 5:20 says “call evil good and good evil.” But that isn’t what it teaches. For the entire verse reads: “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!”
Don’t fall for the false-teacher’s tricks. READ THE TEXT – IN CONTEXT.
The longer I continue to read and study Proverbs, the more my heart is amazed at the wondrous economy of wisdom the Spirit has packed into phrases like this in Prov. 20:29: “The glory of young men is their strength, but the splendor of old men is their gray hair.”
So, young men, yes, you can do exploits, good for you – but can you endure?
It is one thing to consider “look at what I can do!” It is the pride of the young, both emotionally and spiritually. But it is a far different thing to look back and say, “this is where the Lord took me. This is where He delivered me. This is where He met me, kept me, where He prevented me from following my own path.”
Youth reflects upon itself in the immediate. Age reflects upon the Lord and how that gray hair is a testimony to God’s faithfulness.
This is why Paul argues so vehemently against taking pride in spiritual gifts. It puts the spotlight upon “look what I can do” instead of upon “Look what He has done!”
May we grow wise enough in our youth to turn our eyes toward the glory of the God who made, us, keeps us, empowers us and promises us the unimaginable in Christ. To be more enamored with Him, rather than what He might have decided to gift us with, or do through us.
Not to us, O LORD, not to us, but to your name give glory, for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness!
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. Crossway Bibles, 2016, p. Ps 115:1.
Out of sight, out of mind – so the saying goes. And nowhere is that more true than it is in our apprehension of God and His goodness as a constant, living reality to our souls.
So it is in Psalm 103, David needs to remind himself of who and what God is and has done, in order to restore an inward atmosphere of worship.
Note then in the Psalm this catalogue of “His benefits” – or as the 1985 Jewish Publication Society version calls them “His bounties.” But in either case, they are His benefits/bounties toward His own. They are personal. How He loves to bless His own Himself, and not just provide blessings impersonally or as rank and file, generic niceties.
So let these sink in Believer.
(v3) There is no species of sin beyond the power of His forgiveness.
(v3) And He grants forgiveness, not just of individual sins, but of our very sinfulness.
And then, healing from the effects of our sin.
The word for diseases here is only used 5 times in the OT and is always attached to the griefs the Lords lays upon people in punishment for sins. There is no species of suffering brought on by sin, that is beyond His mercy to heal.
(v4) He gives the promise of resurrection.
(v4) And grants the reality of His steadfast – not vacillating – love and mercy.
(v5) There is His desire to give us that which is a true blessing to us, and not decay our souls.
(v6) The privilege of looking forward to a day of complete justice.
(v7) And above all, His self-revelation, located in:
(v8) His imperturbable nature.
(v10) His dealing with us according to grace and mercy because His justice is satisfied in Christ.
(v13) His compassion on our weakness.
(v17) His personal, everlasting love.
(v19) And His divine superintendency over the entirety of our lives.
In my younger years, I fantasized about hosting a Talk/Debate TV show. I had determined then that if ever that should come to pass – I would start each discussion with: “Gentlemen, define your terms.” And only after that was done would we proceed. For if parties do not know what each other means by the words they use, very little progress can be made. And nowhere is this more important than when discussing Biblical and theological topics. It is why Paul in his discourse with the august brain trust at the Areopagus begins by defining what he means by using the word “God” before going one step further. Until they knew what he meant when he referred to God, they would import their own meaning(s) into it, and the Gospel would be lost.
Think about this just in terms of the word “Gospel.” Then find out what Roman Catholics mean by it, or Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and scads of others. Each has very different definitions from the other, and for many, very different definitions from how the Bible defines it. Or the term “Christian.” How many today would defer to something like the descriptors Paul uses for the Thessalonians: “how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.” 1 Th 1:9–10. Does that scream “Christian!” to you? It should.
So, “holiness.” The word gets thrown around all the time among Christians, but what we may mean by it might be subject to wide conceptions. For some, it only refers to behavioral conformity to Biblical and perhaps ecclesiastical norms. For others, it has to do with having been set apart for God. Still others may think of it only in terms of God’s own righteousness, and that then imparted or infused or whatever into Believers. But in J. C. Ryle’s book – he strives to use the word as pertains to Believers in one consistent sense: Being conformed to the mind and character of Christ. And he uses it in this sense interchangeably with the word sanctification – which he defines simply as growing in Christ.
As such, this book is not about listing rules which if followed, will make you holy. Nor is it rooted in learning how to keep those rules. It is not about whipping readers into behaviors and performances. Nor is it aimed at helping one achieve some sort of one-time, life transforming experience whereby “ZAP! – Now you’re holy!” It is a book about how we are to “grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ.” (Eph. 4:15) The privilege, call and duty of every true believer in Christ Jesus. Hence the full title of the book: “Holiness: Its Nature, Hindrances, Difficulties and Roots.”
With the skilled and steady hand of a spiritual surgeon, page after page finds Ryle doing what D. A. Carson says should be 2 key elements in every sermon – wounding, and healing. You will seldom read a book which is simultaneously as convicting or as encouraging as Ryle’s Holiness. I truly think it has no true equal in this regard.
Holiness, may be (in my humble opinion) the single most Gospel-centered, Christ-centered book I’ve ever read. And that is not for one moment to downgrade any of the multitude of profound writings of all my Puritan heroes – nor of any of the great “Doctors” of the Church. Christ has seen to it His Body is richly supplied in this way. And has so throughout history. But there is a unique richness and clarity, focus and singleness of purpose in these chapters that sets it apart into a category of its own.
At the risk of being overly reductionistic, let me cite two aspects of this book that make it so profoundly useful.
While he presses the need for growth in Christ, he hammers over and over the nature of our once-for-all justification and standing before God in Christ. This is essential in his mind to the Believer having a solid foundation under them while they encounter the very real struggles and failures in pursuing Christ.
And he cannot beat this drum enough; but his detailed accounting and stress upon the nature of the Christian life being a perpetual war against the world, and devil, and above all – the influence of indwelling sin – is of the utmost need for genuine growth in Christ. It prevents the Believer from self-condemnation, and from seeking after mythical one-time spiritual experiences that deal with sin once and for all in its inward motions.
On this last point, I cannot say enough myself. How many tender souls in Christ live perpetually suspecting their status before God because they find indwelling sin still so painfully present. And parallel to this is the striving after an imaginary place where I’ll no longer be tempted by X or Y or Z. Forgetting that sin does not die – we die to it. Daily we have to take up that cross. There is no mysterious super-spiritual plane to achieved where we are no longer bothered by such battles. Holiness is a clarion call for the Christian to “gird up your loins,” and to “act like men.”
In Chapter 4, titled “The Fight” a representative and classic portion in Ryle reads thus: “The first thing I have to say is this: “True Christianity is a fight. True Christianity! Let us mind that word “true.” There is a vast quantity of religion current in the world which is not true, genuine Christianity. It passes muster; it satisfies sleepy consciences; but it is not good money. It is not the real thing which was called Christianity eighteen hundred years ago. There are thousands of men and women who go to churches and chapels every Sunday, and call themselves Christians. Their names are in the baptismal register. They are reckoned Christians while they live. They are married with a Christian marriage-service. They mean to be buried as Christians when they die. But you never see any “fight” about their religion! Of spiritual strife, and exertion, and conflict, and self-denial, and watching, and warring, they know literally nothing at all. Such Christianity may satisfy man, and those who say anything against it may be thought very hard and uncharitable; but it certainly is not the Christianity of the Bible. It is not the religion which the Lord Jesus founded, and His Apostles preached. It is not the religion which produces real holiness. True Christianity is “a fight.”
I’m afraid we would be hard pressed to find such words from very many preachers or teachers today. Precious few. And until this truth is firmly in the heart and mind of the Believer – the “fight” will be experienced and processed as something foreign to the “victorious Christian life” rather than an essential feature of it.
I know of no single volume more needed in our day, nor more valuable to the Christian Believer in understanding and living out the Christian life than this one.
It is in my estimation, the finest companion to your Bible in practicality and applied Christian thought and living that you can lay your hands on.
If you read no other book this year, read this one.
ResponsiveReiding 