11AM - LANCE LEE- The Benefits of Fearing God

Exodus 20:20, And Moses said to the people, “Do not fear; for God has come to test you, and that His fear may be before you, so that you may not sin.”

What is the fear of the Lord and why do we need it?

The fear of the Lord is just what it says, having a healthy fear, awe, reverence of God.  It is holding to the right perspective of a holy, magnificent, omnipotent God that both created and sustains us.  It is also the rejection of everything that is displeasing to Him.   

Proverbs 8:13 “The fear of the LORD is to hate evil; Pride and arrogance and the evil way And the perverted mouth, I hate.”

 

SO WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF WALKING IN THE “FEAR OF THE LORD”?

 

1.  Keeps Us From Drifting Off Of The Straight And Narrow- It takes both the love of God and the fear of God to keep you on the narrow path.  As you walk down the path of the Lord, you will always have a ditch on either side of you.  On one side will be a ditch that is legalism, and on the other side will be lasciviousness (a “loose” attitude towards sin).  Having the Fear of God will keep you out of the ditch of lasciviousness, and the having the love of God will keep you out of legalism.  We must have a healthy dose of both to stay in the middle of the path.

Romans 11:22 “Behold (consider) therefore the goodness and severity of God: on those who fell, severity; but toward you, goodness, if you continue in His goodness. Otherwise you also will be cut off.”

2.  Provides A Way For Us To ______________ From _______________- 

 

Proverbs 16:6 “In mercy and truth Atonement is provided for iniquity; And by the fear of the Lord one departs from evil.”

3.  It Is The Beginning Of Wisdom And Knowledge-

Proverbs 9:10 “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.

Proverbs 1:7 “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Psalms 111:10 “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow his precepts have good understanding. To him belongs eternal praise.

4.  It’s A Fountain Of Life Which Keeps Us From Destruction-

Proverbs 14:27 “The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life, turning a man from the snares of death."

When one has the fear of the Lord, they get a continual fountain that does not stop running, as it always has a fresh supply.

5.  It Will Bring Us Into Intimate Fellowship With God And _______________   _______________   _____________________-

Proverbs 25:12 “The secret of the Lord is with them that fear Him.”
Psalm 147:10-11—"His pleasure is not in the strength of the horse, nor his delight in the legs of a man; the Lord delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love."

Psalm 5:7 "But I, by your great mercy, will come into your house; in reverence will I bow down toward your holy temple."

6.  Both You And Your Family Will Have Mercy And Security-

- Security for you and your family. Prov. 14:26 “He who fears the Lord has a secure fortress, and for his children it will be a refuge."

- Mercy that is extended from generation to generation. Luke. 1:50 “His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation."
 

7.  Additional Personal Benefits: 

- There will be honor for the woman and man who fear God. Proverbs 31:30—"Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised;"

  Proverbs 22:4—"Humility and the fear of the Lord bring wealth and honor and life."

- There will be true life and contentment. Proverbs 19:23—"The fear of the Lord leads to life: Then one rests content, untouched by trouble."

- There will be an extension of the length of our life. Proverbs 10:27—"The fear of the Lord adds length to life, but the years of the wicked are cut short."

- There will be no lack of anything. Psalm 34:9—"Fear the Lord, you his saints, for those who fear him lack nothing."

- There will be fulfilled desires. Psalm 145:19—"He fulfills the desires of those who fear him; he hears their cry and saves them."

- It will be a great treasure to us. Isaiah 33:5-6—"The LORD is exalted, for he dwells on high; he will fill Zion with justice and righteousness. He will be the sure foundation for your times, a rich store of salvation and wisdom and knowledge; the fear of the LORD is the key to this treasure."

- There will be healing. Malachi 4:2—"But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings. And you will go out and leap like calves released from the stall."

- We will be blessed by God—Psalm 112:1; 115:13. "Praise the LORD. Blessed is the man who fears the LORD, who finds great delight in his commands." 115:12-13] "The LORD. . . will bless those who fear the LORD—small and great alike."

- We will have riches, honor and life. Psalm 25:12-13 —12] "Who, then, is the man that fears the LORD? He will instruct him in the way chosen for him. 13] He will spend his days in prosperity, and his descendants will inherit the land."

 

HOW DO WE KNOW IF WE HAVE OR ARE WALKING IN THE FEAR OF THE LORD?

1.      We Are Quick To Turn Away From Sin And We Hate What Is Evil- Proverbs 3:7 “Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD and shun evil.”

Proverbs 8:13 “The fear of the LORD is to hate evil; Pride and arrogance and the evil way And the perverted mouth, I hate.”

Basically, what God loves, we love, and what God hates, we hate.

 

2.      We Are __________________To Obey Him-

Many people say that they love the Lord, but they do not do what He says:

Luke 6:46 “But why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say.” 

John 14:15 ““If you love Me, keep My commandments.”

 John 14:21 ““He who has My commandments and keeps them,   it is he who loves Me.”

 John 14:23 “Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word;”

3.  We Give Time To Reverence And _______________________ Him- Psalm 29:2 “Give unto the Lord the glory due to His name; Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness.”

4.  We Don’t Fear Man- God demands that we have no other gods before Him in Exodus 20:3.  So is there a person on this earth that can “override” or sway you to disobey His instructions to you personally or in His word? 

5.  We Don’t _______________________ In Idolatry- everything we have ultimately belongs to Him, and we withhold nothing from Him.  Consider the example of Abraham and how he was asked to sacrifice his only son, Isaac.

6.  We Reverence His Name And Give Him The Preeminence Over Our Entire Life-

 

SO HOW DO WE GET IT?

 

1.  Ask The Lord To Reveal To You Ways That You Do Not Reverence Him Or Have A Healthy Fear Of Him.

2.  Acknowledge Your Sin And Ask His Forgiveness For How You Have Disobeyed Him In This Area.

3.  Begin To Meditate On The ________________________ Of God- Consider how in Matthew 6:9, “The Lord’s Prayer” beings with acknowledging that God’s name is to be “Hallowed” (sanctified, set apart, consecrated). 

Then meditate on His wonders like in Psalm 8:3-4
“When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers,
The moon and the stars, which You have ordained,
⁴ What is man that You are mindful of him,
And the son of man that You visit him?”

4.  Seek Him _______________________, Then You Will Find Both The Fear Of The Lord, And The Knowledge Of God. 

Proverbs 2:1-5 “My son, if you receive my words,
And treasure my commands within you,
² So that you incline your ear to wisdom,
And apply your heart to understanding;
³ Yes, if you cry out for discernment,
And lift up your voice for understanding,
⁴ If you seek her as silver,
And search for her as for hidden treasures;
⁵ Then you will understand the fear of the Lord,
And find the knowledge of God

Psalm 31:19-20—"How great is your goodness, which you have stored up for those who fear you, which you bestow in the sight of men on those who take refuge in you.  In the shelter of your presence you hide them from the intrigues of men; in your dwelling you keep them safe from accusing tongues."   

8AM - SED FLUKER- BENEFITS OF COVENANT LIVING

Psalm 103:1-2

Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. ² Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits.

 

Hebrews 8:6-10

¹⁰ For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people.

Understanding Covenant-Living

As revealed in scripture, there are many wonderful benefits to being a child of God! However, every benefit or blessing we receive from the Lord is only made possible through our covenant relationship with Him.  It is a fact that God has historically dealt with mankind according to covenant.  A covenant is a mutual agreement between two parties to fulfill certain promises or commitments made.  A covenant differs from a contract in that covenants are typically based on relationship.  When we except Jesus as our savior, then a covenant relationship between God and us is established.  Afterwards, the believer lives daily in accordance with the covenant he or she has with God (covenant-living).  The word of God serves as the policy for our lives to help us stay in covenant with God while experiencing all of His benefits.  It is the very heart of the Father that we experience all of his benefits through “covenant living”.

Covenant-Living vs Comfort-Living

Oftentimes we don’t experience the full benefits of covenant living because we conveniently switch over from covenant-living into comfort-living.  What’s the difference?          

Covenant-Living	Comfort-Living
Pleasing God	Pleasing Self
Self-Denial	Self-Gratifying
Based on Love	Based on Lust
Long-term commitment	Short-term commitment
Reproving Sin	Excusing Sin
Relationship-driven	Stuff-driven

 

Covenant Expectations

What does God expect from us in our covenant with Him?

a)   God expects obedience.

1 Samuel 15:22

And Samuel said, Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams.

 

b)   God expects holiness and righteousness. 

Leviticus 19:2

Speak unto all the congregation of the children of Israel, and say unto them, Ye shall be holy: for I the Lord your God am holy. 

1 John 3:7

Little children, let no man deceive you: he that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous.

 

c)     God expects unwavering commitment.                                                        Exodus 34:14

For thou shalt worship no other god: for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.

 

Joshua 24:15

And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

 

d)   God expects our relationships with others to be a reflection of our covenant with Him. 

1 John 4:20  

If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?

     Benefits of Covenant-Living

1)   God’s protection. 

Psalm 91:9-11

Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; ¹⁰ There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. ¹¹ For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.

 

 

 

2)   God’s prosperity.

Job 36:11

If they obey and serve him, they shall spend their days in prosperity, and their years in pleasures.

 

3)   God’s promise of the Holy Spirit.                                                                          Acts 2:38

 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.

 

4)   God’s forgiveness of our sins.                                                                            Isaiah 45:25

I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake, and will not remember thy sins.

 

5)   God’s Grace                                                                                               Ephesians 2:8-9                                                                                                   For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.

 

Romans 3:20-24

Therefore no one will be declared righteous in his sight by observing the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of sin.  But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify.  This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference,  for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,  and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.