Reverential Fear of The LORD
We’ve all heard something from time to time that makes the hairs on your neck stand up.
Well this was one for me. There is coming a realisation of the need to chase personal holiness; well, a reverential Fear of The LORD comes as part of that package!
The LORD is presently preparing all of us for the coming season. Part of that is the acceptance and actions needed as we realise the truth of Isaiah’s ‘filthy rags’ comment in Isaiah 64:6,
“But we are all like an unclean thing, And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags.”
Our personal holiness is as a filthy rag when seen through God’s eyes, yet He graciously still sees us as perfect, because of Calvary. I thank God He sees me this way.
The LORD is about to begin cleaning us up, for the tasks ahead will require clean hearts, clean minds, and a clean conscience.
He will come, nipping at our heels like a sheepdog rounding us up ready for separating and marking. We will have to be clean for Him to mantle us for His Kingdom work.
He will instill in us a reverential Fear of The LORD which will occasionally hit us as it did Daniel — and he only saw The Angel of The LORD!
“Yet I heard the sound of his words; and while I heard the sound of his words I was in a deep sleep on my face, with my face to the ground. Suddenly, a hand touched me, which made me tremble on my knees and on the palms of my hands. Then he said to me, “Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard.” Daniel 10:9-10,12
When The LORD manifests His Presence among us we shall be like this — prostrate, face down, weeping before The LORD our God.
Yet He will speak and we will listen, and we will worship Him with great joy. For The Joy of The LORD shall follow the reverential Fear of Him as day follows night.
There is a great price to pay for those who would carry Revival. The reverential Fear of The LORD is part of that price, an essential part, a necessary part.
Will you pay it? I know I have to. It’s a new, stronger, driving force in me. Holiness at any price. I just want to be fit for the Master’s Use.
“Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from Your presence, And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.” Psalm 51:10-11.
How about you?
~ Chris G. Bennett
Chris Bennett came to salvation in 1962 but didn’t begin ministry until 2007 — a late-comer! Now mandated by The LORD to prophesy and open old wells of revival in the U.K., but especially in Wales. He has also operated Healing Rooms, and worked with deliverance teams, all with his wife, Linda. Happily now doing whatever The LORD asks of them! Founder, with wife Linda, of their ministry The Upper Room Encounter.
Spot on Chris
I have extracted from a number of postings on my fb page the following.
Matthew 5:45
“ So that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. “
In stronger terms
Ezekiel 20 : 4
4 Seeing then that I will cut off from thee the righteous and the wicked, therefore shall my sword go forth out of his sheath against all flesh from the south to the north:
Ananias and his wife Sapphira were, according to the biblical New Testament in Acts of the Apostles chapter 5, members of the early Christian church in Jerusalem. The account records their sudden deaths after lying to the Holy Spirit about money.
God’s Holy judgement – immutable, swift, complete, justifiable. Just think, these two unfortunate people, despite being Christians, will never see Heaven . You cannot expect God to change his mind about sin in his presence.
The Holiness of God is unspeakable. Deeply deeply unspeakable. And Immutable.
From the “ Body of Christ “ perspective, how can God use a people who have no sense of personal holiness. Like me, have you often wondered why there is a lack of revival. Why there is the absence of the miraculous and why there is the lack of power in witness.
It is us! It is a lack of “personal holiness” ?
Were it not for God’s abundance of Grace!
Brother Chris, I join in your pursuit and cry: Holy, and set apart for the Master’s useful and glorious purposes. Wholely His. Forever King; forever yours!
I am struck by the fact that of the disciples the Apostle John was the closest to the Lord, even reclining against Him [John 13:23], but when he saw Him in His heavenly state he fell down as if dead [Revelation 1:17]. There is danger in the church believing in a one-sided kind of Jesus – that is One who is only love, which we almost bound to misconceive as a sentimental kind of fallen human love that excuses sin. Paul, however, warned in Romans 11:22,
“Therefore consider 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.”
Holiness is thus not an added option, but is inseparable from our calling, since
“.. He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love”. [Ephesians 1:4]
Blessed is your “new,stronger driving force”. May that force arise in every true believer because it will be needed!
(2Thess.1:5,10)