Yesterday, as I wrote about preparing our hearts for Easter, I shared about overcoming guilt and shame.

What an amazingly MERCIFUL God we serve!

Indeed, He is so good and faithful to forgive our sins when we confess and turn from them. He even says, He remembers them no more (Heb 8:12) and that causes my heart to love Him even more.

But as I remember His amazing grace and mercy, I must also simultaneously continue to reverentially FEAR Him because the fear of Him is also for my good.

Yes, we are to fear God for our good and diligently seek to daily obey His commands—all His commands.

We can’t go our own way while tucking a forgiveness card in our back pocket to be redeemed later.

To do so is foolish and dangerous.

I recently heard a pastor sharing about another pastor friend who had fallen so far that he was now imprisoned.

The pastor recounted the conversation with his imprisoned friend saying, “I said to him, I heard you preach, I saw people truly come to know Jesus through your ministry. Man, when did you stop loving Jesus?”

To which the fallen friend replied, “ I didn’t stop loving Jesus. I stopped fearing God.”

Friend, may our hearts soberly heed this warning.

If your theology is grace-heavy and truth-light and you flock to feel-good preaching with no mention of obedience or reverential fear that is due a Holy God, you are ripe for a devastating fall.

As we think about Easter, let’s understand only a Holy God could defeat death on a Cross.

We cannot stand in His presence nor look upon His face without dying except for the blood-bought forgiveness that came from what Jesus did for us on the Cross.

We absolutely owe God our love, but we must also reverentially fear Him.

Matthew tells us, “He drove out the (demonic) spirits with a word” (Matt 8:16, NKJV)

Jesus drove out demonic spirits with a word! Only a word!

Later, Matthew will describe how even the winds and the waves obeyed Him (Matt 8:23-28).

Can you imagine?

Oh friend, might our hearts ask as those surrounding Jesus did that day, “What kind of man is this?” (Matt 8:27)

What kind of man IS this?

Jesus, the God-Man, is to be loved AND feared if we want things to go well for us (Deut 5:29).

Oh, might our hearts stand in awe!

May we reverentially fear this King of Kings.

In thinking about all this, I can’t help but remember the words of C.S. Lewis as he described God through a lion called Aslan in The Chronicles of Narnia—

“Aslan is a lion- the Lion, the great Lion.”

“Ooh” said Susan. “I’d thought he was a man. Is he-quite safe? I shall feel rather nervous about meeting a lion”…

“Safe?” said Mr Beaver …”Who said anything about safe? ‘Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good. He’s the King, I tell you.”

‘Course he isn’t safe.
But he’s good.
He’s the King, I tell you.

What a Savior!

loveGod

fearGod

Easter

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