The Fear of the Lord - Part 2

Welcome to the In Touch Podcast with Charles Stanley for Wednesday, December 27. It's much easier to follow God's commands when we've gotten to know him. And we get to know him by spending time with him in prayer and Bible study. Here's part two of The Fear of the Lord. Here's part two of The Fear of the Lord. Here's part three of The Fear of the Lord. I've got integrity in the process. A wise man, a person, a man or woman who fears God will be blessed of God both spiritually and materially for the simple reason that those who fear him have a discernment about the circumstances of their life that oftentimes is not there.

of their life that oftentimes is not there. The question is this, do you want God's very best in your life, or do you want to keep on playing around with sin, courting evil, compromising your conviction, while at the same time, you're trying to get what God has offered freely, but it'll never be there because you do not fear God. You see, a person who plays with sin and courts its disaster doesn't fully love the living God with all of his mind, all of his heart, all of his soul, as God has warned us and has admonished us.

Let's move on, listen to what he says. He says, now wealth and riches are in his house and his righteousness endures forever. Oh, look at verse four. Light arises in the darkness for the upright.

What is he saying here? Simply this, God protects the man or woman who fears him in time of great difficulty. Now, when he says light arises in darkness, what is he speaking of here? We'll turn back to Psalm 34 for just a moment. Listen to what he says in verse seven.

He says the angel of the Lord encamps around about, around those who fear him and rescues them. Now, when he says here in this passage, light arises in the darkness for the upright, here's what he means. That because you and I live a life fearing the Lord in obedience to him, that doesn't mean we're not gonna have our dark times.

It does not mean that we're not gonna have periods of distress and valley experiences and difficulties and heartaches and trials and headaches and tears and all the rest, we're going to have them. But here's what he says. He says, for the man or woman who learns to fear God, when the darkness comes, he says, there will be light.

It may be dark to everybody around you, but there's going to be light. He says, here's the reason why. The angel of the Lord encamps round about those who fear him. He says, the man or woman who learns to fear God, he says, here's what they can be assured of. He has built a wall of defense. His armor and his armaments are there.

He is ready for action in a split second. Nothing can touch you or touch me apart from the permissive will of God as delegated by Almighty omnipotent God to that holy ministering angel who has set up camp about you and who has encompassed you, surrounded you about, beneath you, over you, all around you, not anything can reach you from any direction under any circumstance without God's permissive will. In the midst of the darkness, my friend, there is always light. Wherever there is darkness in the life of the man or woman who fears God, there is light.

Let's move on, something else he says here. He says, the latter part of that verse, he is gracious and compassionate and righteous. And then let's move on under verse five, I'm coming back. It is well with a man who is gracious and he lends, verse nine, he has given freely to the poor. Now think about this, why is the man of God so generous? Why is the man or woman who fears the Lord so generous? Here's the reason, because in the word of God, leading the principles, building strength into their family and watching their family grow, watching their spiritual as well as their material wealth begin to grow as God so allows, and the tremendous confidence that person has in the difficult times of their life, God has proven to the man or woman of God who fears him, there is no want to those who fear God. It is this natural and normal for the man or woman to fear the Lord, to be giving generously to those who are in need.

Notice what he says, he says, he is gracious or she is gracious and compassionate. And what is gracious and lends, so this does not mean in this passage, lends with high interest, but lends freely and generously. And in verse nine, he has given freely to the poor, why? Because you see, the man or woman who fears God, listen to me carefully, the man or woman who fears God never need fear being in want without Almighty God providing exactly what they need.

My friend, if you're afraid of being in want, if you are scared about the future and you're uncertain about it, rest assured my friend, that your omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent God in whose presence you dwell has already provided for your future and there is anything you will ever be in want of, he has not already deposited to your account. Let us say a big amen to that. We need to praise the living God for his marvelous, incomparable provision.

Well, listen, let's keep going. Oh, I like this. Verse five, it is well, listen, it is well with a man who is gracious and lends. He will maintain his cause in judgment. That means he will be able to wisely guide his affairs. He will make wise decisions, maintain his cause in judgment.

It is well with this man. If you'll turn to Psalm 33, 18 for just a moment, look at this verse. The 18th verse of Psalm 33 says, behold, look, he says, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear him. Do you know why this man is able to make such wise decisions in his life?

Here's the reason. He says the eye of the Lord, his omniscient eye is upon those who fear him. Now, what does he also say in the Psalms? God says, I will teach thee in the way which thou shall go. I will guide thee with mine eye. The eye of the Lord is upon those who fear him. And the man who fears the Lord has his eye upon the Lord. And you see, if God is going to guide me with his eye, I've got to keep my eye on him. If he guides me with his eye, he says his eye is ever upon us.

Listen, the man or woman who learns to shun evil, rejects sin and refuse it in their life and live in a life of reverence and obedience to God, he says that man's gonna make wise decisions. He will, listen, he says, for he will never be shaken. He may go through troublesome times, but God's omnipotent righteous hand will uphold him, strengthen her, undergird her, keep her steady when the going gets rough because of the very presence of the Lord God.

It is well with a man or woman who's gracious and lends. He will maintain his cause. God will maintain your cause. God will protect your efforts and your decision-making.

He won't allow you to be thrown off course. He will never be shaken, it says. The righteous, listen, the righteous will be remembered forever, why? Because the eye of the Lord is ever upon the righteous, ever upon those who fear him. The eye of the Lord is upon those who fear him. That means you, listen, you and I not only cannot hide from him, no one can ever so cover us in anything that God does not know exactly where you are. And the wonderful thing about our omniscient God is this.

He doesn't only know my geographical location, he knows all the infinitesimal minute details of what's going on in your human body, every single thing that is functioning, what you're thinking, your plans, your past, there's not anything that is omniscient God does not know. And listen, that omniscience who is absolutely incomparable in description, the scripture says, his all-seeing eye and all-knowing eye has zero, listen, he's targeted you. He's looking down in compassionate love. Even we sin saying, don't do that. That's corrupting, that's gonna destroy you.

I love you, please don't do that. When you tell your children that God's always looking, you be sure you define the expression on God's face. It is not the way oftentimes we've been taught. Well, he says, look in verse seven, what a tremendous life of contentment, the man or woman who lives in the fear of God. Listen, verse seven, he will not fear evil tidings. His or her heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord. His heart is upheld, he will not fear, steadfast. Think about this, what is the foundation of a steadfast, tranquil, contented life?

Is it not? Clean conscience, no obstruction between you and your God and your fellowship in relationship to him. The man or woman who walks in the fear of God is a man or woman who walks in faith. They'll listen, their faith is such, they're not always wondering, I wonder what's gonna happen next. I wonder if everything's gonna turn out right. I wonder what's gonna happen, things are too good.

This is too good to be true. That's not the person who fears God, that's the person who's scared of God. The man or woman who fears God, who has shunned evil, rejected it out of their life, who has a holy reverence for the living God and all of his omniscience, omnipotence and omnipresence. Remember this, it says he will not fear evil tidings. You know why he won't fear evil tidings? Listen, because before you ever hear evil tidings, guess who's already heard them? God's already heard them. And listen, not only has he already heard them, he already knew about them before they were ever spoken by anybody and he had already preceded even the expression or the happening itself to make preparation to provide and protect the child of the living God.

How good God is to us, how gracious and kind and loving. He says, he will not fear evil tidings. His trust is steadfast. Man, listen, it's anchored like a rock. It's immovable.

It doesn't make any difference what happens. It's immovable because you see, he's learned to fear the living God. All of his trust and all of her trust and all of her faith is in the God who is within her. Steadfast, trusting in the Lord, his heart is upheld. He will not fear him.

Then he looks with satisfaction on his adversaries. Listen, we read verse nine about his freedom. His righteousness endures forever. His horn will be exalted in honor.

Do you know what he's saying? Well, let me give you a couple of verses. Turn to Psalm 145 for a moment. Psalm 145. Let's begin in verse 18.

Listen to what he says. The Lord is near to all who call upon him, to all who call upon him in truth. Listen to this next verse. He, that is God Jehovah, will fulfill the desire of those who fear him.

Now think about that. God has made a promise. God says he will fulfill the desire of those who shun and hate evil and who have a holy, awesome reverence for him and submission him. God says he, listen, he will fulfill the desire. Now, if I were to give you a sheet of paper and a pen and say, would you please complete this sentence? Heavenly father, my desire is, and you could write any desire of your heart to complete that sentence and God promises you he will fulfill that desire. What would you, how would you complete that sentence?

What would you say? He says, and listen, those who fear the Lord, he will grant him the desire. Now, why is that true? Because the man or woman who fears the Lord God is hating evil, reverencing the Lord. So how is it that God can make a such a bold statement is to say, he who fears the Lord, God says, I promise you, I will grant you the desire of your heart.

Why? Because the man or woman who fears God is going to desire the things that are pleasing to God. Now, some things that you and I desire, we think, oh, I'm not worthy of that. God wouldn't do that for me. Let him make that choice. Don't tell God what he wouldn't do. Listen, you notice what he says in this passage, back to Psalm 112.

He says, his horn will be exalted in honor. That means that his life, listen, his life is going to be favored by God. Turn to Psalm 147 for a moment. 147, and look, if you will, in verse 11. What a beautiful verse. We must never forget this simple verse. Psalm 147, verse 11, the Lord favors those who fear him. You can't beat that. Listen, how many of you would like to walk every day in the purest of your life?

Walk every day in the pure, listen, in the pure unmixed, unreserved, unlimited favor of the living God. Some of you not sure. You know why you're not sure?

Here's the reason. The promise is too good to be true to you. Now, I want you to think about something for just a moment. Do you think it would be to your advantage? Do you think one of these days you'll be so happy?

You did. If you learn to fear the Lord, knowing that you're going to develop a love for this book, which means you're going to become wise. If it means building a strong family, becoming enriched spiritually and materially as God sees fit, enjoying the protection of God and the presence of God in the midst of the trials and the heartaches, being generous and kind to those all about you, living a life of resting, confident faith in the God who is living within you, watching over you, caring for you, providing for your needs. A father who has said, you can live in my favor. Contentment is yours.

I will make you a success. Would you not agree that it will be a very foolish person who insists on living their life, refusing to learn to fear the Lord if this is God's offer to those who fear him? My friend, can you give me one even sensible reason for not surrendering your life to Jesus Christ, not submitting your will to the will of your heavenly Father, not asking God to teach you how to hate the evil that's caused you such misery? Can you give me one more reason for not turning your life over to Christ and telling him that beginning today, you want to learn to fear God, that you may learn to walk in his favor all the days of your life?

That is a choice you have to make. My friend, for your sake, the sake of your family, for your present life and your future life, would you ask the Lord God of hosts today, oh, my Father, forgive me of my sins. I receive Jesus Christ's death on the cross as full payment of my sins. I yield my life to you today, and beginning today, I choose to learn to fear you, Father, and to walk in your ways. One of these days, I will be with you in your ways, one of these days, you'll look back on this particular day and say, that was the most important day in my life.

The choice is all yours. Thank you for listening to part two of The Fear of the Lord. If you'd like to know more about Charles Stanley or In Touch Ministries, stop by intouch.org. This podcast is a presentation of In Touch Ministries, Atlanta, Georgia.