Today’s Reading: 2 Samuel 7; 1 Chronicles 17; Psalm 2; Matthew 20
Scripture: Psalm 2:11 Serve the LORD with fear and rejoice with trembling.
Observation: What a strange combination of words these are to my ears. First of all "fear" is not something that is generally associated with serving the Lord. (Now I know that some of you are quoting to me right now the verse that says "the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom." OK, I also know that verse.) But my observation about this is true: in today's "Christian culture," the phrase "serve the Lord with fear" is not common -- and certainly not popular. And if this first part of verse 11 is uncommon, the second half "rejoice with trembling" is downright strange! If you went up to ten people at church and said to each of them, "rejoice with trembling," you would get ten confused responses. [I don't suggest you try this. :-) ]
The fact that these phrases are so far out of our norm is what caught my attention. I think that we have overemphasized the "personal relationship" aspect of our faith too much and have lost the sense of God as the Lord of Lords, the invincible One in Whose presence we must bow. The idea that God is a friend to us is true. But He is not our "buddy" or "pal".
Let me share a personal story. I recently had an encounter with a very young child where I was introduced to him and ended up sitting next to him at a meal. I immediately shifted into the "Grampapa mode" and started entertaining the lad. He laughed at my funny voices and wanted more. When I told him that it was time to pause and look at the menu, he grabbed me and demanded more funny voices. I calmly but firmly explained to this child, "Do not do that. You are not to grab me like that. I am your friend, but I am an adult and not one of your playground pals. You are not to treat me like one of your kid buddies. You must respect me. Do you understand?" He had become too comfortable with me and I needed to help him to better understand the relationship. Today this little boy is very glad to see me and is always respectful but also appropriately affectionate.
Application: We need to be careful that we are not too comfortable with Almighty God. A too-comfortable relationship can result in a casual attitude and taking God for granted. The outcome of this could be a disastrous complacency. There is another verse with the phrase "fear and trembling" that is on point here: "work out your own salvation with fear and trembling..." (Phil. 2:12). This pushes us in the direction of the serious, earnest, dedicated pursuit of God's purposes for our lives. There is a gravity to it. It is not to be taken lightly. Walking with God, knowing and serving Him is a joyful but serious business. "Serve the LORD with fear and rejoice with trembling."
Prayer: Lord, help us to find this place of great joy and deep reverence for You. May we walk in such a way that we experience the freedom You bring while taking Your yoke upon our lives. Thank You that You call us to lives of a humanly-impossible balance that can only be achieved by surrendering to Your power.
This I pray in Jesus’ name, Amen.
1 comment:
I loved your blog today. An analogy of walking in "fear" and "joy" in another type of relationship comes to mind--- the parent/child relationship. I've observed such relationships where the parents have never established themselves as the authority figures in the home and the children are too "buddy-buddy" with the parents. These children are usually disrespectful and a real chore (even heartbreak) to their parents. On the other hand, children who are raised to "fear" the consequences of diobedience or disrespect of their parents are generally more loving,respectful and happy. It is our responsibility to recognize our duty to respect and honor the Lord as Sovereign Judge. When we do so I believe we can actually love Him more.
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