TOPIC:  UNVEILING THE WONDERS OF SANCTIFICATION (PART 2)

KEYS TO SANCTIFICATION: THE FEAR OF GOD

Understand that to fear God does not mean to be afraid of God or to run away from Him. To fear God means to honour Him, to reverence or respect Him, to acknowledge or recognise Him. “A son honoureth his father and a servant his master: if then I be a father, where is mine honour? And if I be a master, where is my fear?...” Malachi 1:6. Just as we naturally fear our superiors and accord them due respect and regard especially at work, God also demands that we as His children should honour, respect and fear Him.

When you truly fear God, you will be far away from iniquities and not be given to immoralities such as fornication, adultery or covetousness. When you fear God, you would be satisfied with whatsoever He gives to you at every point in time, while aspiring for more blessings from Him. A man that fears God is humble and not proud and does not tells lies; He that fears God is clean. (Ps19:9). He hates evil, detests it and can’t be caught in evil. (Prov.8:13). Also, by the fear of the Lord, men depart from evil. (Prov16:6). Therefore, when a man or woman is committed to doing evil, then that man or woman does not fear God. If you sincerely fear God, you will be clear from sin or evil.

This fear of God is demonstrated in Gen 20:1-12, where Abraham, during his sojourn in the land of Gerar , instructed Sarah to pretend that they were siblings and to also tell the king so. He did this out of the fear of being killed by king Abimelech in order to covet Sarah, his wife. In the night, God intervened; preventing the consummation of Abimelech’s evil act by creating His fear in his heart, thereby restoring Sarah back to Abraham, her husband. Abraham later confessed his wrong to Abimelech when he said in verse 11 that “… I thought, Surely the fear of God is not in this place....”

Similarly, when Joseph came into Potiphar’s house, in Gen 39:7-9, his master’s wife wanted him to sleep with her, but Joseph refused because he feared God and even ran away from the woman. Despite the fact that nobody was there to query Joseph, he refused to sin against God saying “…how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?” (vs 9b). In Gen 42:18, Joseph further professed this Godly fear to his brother. Nehemiah was also a man that feared God, choosing to be different from the past governors.(Neh 5:14-15).

There are things you should never do or say in your life if you actually fear God. A husband only needs the fear of God in order to always be faithful to his wife and same applies to the wife. Even our High Priest, Jesus Christ feared God as He was tempted at all points, and was yet without sin. (Heb 4:15). God demands His fear from us. Isa 11:1-3. God is always demanding His fear from us in all spheres of life; our lifestyles, relationships, offices, schools, businesses and in other areas too.

THE BLESSINGS OF THE FEAR OF GOD

1)      Riches and Honour. Prov22:4

2)      Long life. Prov10:27

3)      Divine wisdom. Prov11:10, 15:33, Job28:28

4)      Right living. Phill2:12

5)      Total well being. Deut5:29

HOW TO WORK IN THE FEAR OF GOD

1.       Be conscious of His abiding presence. Pslm139:

2.       Tremble at His word. Ecc l12:13