Title: Good Fear -- Good Hate / Topic: Godly Living

Posting from our nation's capital, Washington DC, from May 22 through June 3.

Today's Reading: Proverbs 7; Proverbs 8; Proverbs 9; Romans 9

Scripture: Proverbs 8:13 To fear the LORD is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil behavior and perverse speech.

Observation: Fear and hate. Things to avoid, right? Apparently not. We are to "fear the Lord." And if we do that, we will "hate evil." The proverb goes on to further define evil: "pride and arrogance, evil behavior and perverse speech." Notice the link between wrong attitudes ("pride and arrogance"), bad language ("perverse speech"), and evil action ("evil behavior"). This linkage is unbreakable. One of the reasons that I am so concerned about today's young people is the fact that pride and arrogance and perverse speech are their stock in trade. Evil behavior cannot help but follow.

Application: And how about our own lives? Don't we often think that we can engage in wrong attitudes and bad language without the corresponding evil behavior? We must apply comprehensive cleansing of our lives -- attitudes, thoughts, words, and actions -- to really live pure and clean before the Lord. So many people struggle with living fully for God. I believe that's because they have allowed "little sins" of attitude and language to continue, thinking that these wouldn't corrupt them. But it is not true. "Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows." We need to learn what "the fear of the Lord" truly is and fully walk in it.

Prayer: Lord, help us to root the bad out of our lives: pride, arrogance, bad words, evil thoughts, hurtful action, and all sin. May we get it all out. Help us to see it, identify it, confess it, and bring it before Your throne of grace so that we may be free. Lord, we want to embrace You and to know what it is to fear You rightly that we may properly hate evil and thus be enabled to receive all the good that You have for us.
This I pray in Jesus' name, Amen.