It needed to be said

You do not get into heaven by just being a good person. There is nothing you can do outside of Jesus Christ that will assure you a ticket to heaven. John 3:3 says, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.” That’s not all though folks. Jesus mentions to the requirements of the Kingdom all throughout the New Testament. In verse 5, Jesus says “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit.” He was talking about the Holy Spirit. There is one of the keys of entry to Heaven. Nowhere in there does it say you can get in by being a good person alone. Nowhere in the scripture do good deeds solely guarantee your entry into the kingdom. Yes, good deeds help, but that is not the only way to get into Heaven. Jesus is the only way! If you are just going through life thinking “aww well, I’m a good person. I don’t hurt people. I don’t steal. That should be enough.”, well I’m here to tell you it’s not!

When was the last time you repented? When was the last time you turned away from the thing that keeps you from God? When was the last time you really evaluated yourself and what you bring to God’s table? Do you think you are automatically granted entry just because you come to church? Judas walked with Jesus and still betrayed Him; even the demons come to church every Sunday. How often do you read your Bible? How much time are you spending communicating with the Creator of the Universe? This message is meant to get you thinking. I’m not judging, I love you enough to ask you these questions. I love you enough to tell you that the reason it’s so easy for you to come here and just check it off your Sunday to-do list is because you do not have a fear of the Lord. Let’s talk about that for a minute.

What even is the fear of the Lord? Well, first let me tell you what it is not. The fear of the Lord is not being afraid of God. If you are afraid of God, then you probably have something to hide. When you are afraid of God, you tend to stay away from God. You don’t pray because you know conviction is coming. You don’t read the Bible because there’s things in there that speak directly to your sin, and you are not ready to change. When you do not have a fear of the Lord, you love the things He hates, and hate the things He loves. But when you possess the Spirit of the fear of the Lord, you love what He loves and hate what He hates. You love righteousness and hate sin. You love the sinner but hate the sin that separates them from God. When you have a fear of the Lord, you are quick to obey Him, and you obey Him to completion. When you have a fear of the Lord, you obey even when it doesn’t make sense. You obey God even when you benefit nothing from it; you obey God even when it hurts.

I know that sounds uncomfortable. It is, but man is it worth it. Proverbs 1:7 says “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.” That sounds like teenagers, right? But that’s us too. Proverbs 9:10 says “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” It’s starting to sound like having the fear of the Lord isn’t such a bad thing. But wait, it gets better. Psalm 25:14 says “The secret of the Lord is with those who fear Him, and He will show them His covenant.” When you have a fear of the Lord, God himself reveals His secrets to you! Scripture says that those who fear the Lord are friends of the Lord. We know a few men in the Bible who were known as friends of God. Moses, King David, Abraham. All three of these men had an active and healthy fear of the Lord. They were not afraid of Him, they kept it real with Him. And God revealed His secrets and plans to these men.

So, what does it mean to fear God? We know it’s not to be afraid of Him. To fear God as John Bevere so profoundly put it is, “to esteem, respect, honor, venerate, and adore Him above anyone or anything else.” To fear God is to walk in authentic humility before God and mankind; to fear God is to hate sin, to hate injustice, to depart from evil in every sense of the word. To fear God is to be in reverence and awe of Him. Some won’t like this next one, but to fear God is to abstain from any form of complaining, murmuring, or grumbling; especially when the Holy Spirit is convicting you. The fear of the Lord is God’s treasure and Jesus’ delight. Psalm 19:9 says, “the fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever.” Are you starting to get it now? It is an honor to have a fear of the Lord. You grow closer with the Lord when you have a fear of Him. This is what Jesus meant when He said, “abide in me and I in you.” (John 15:7) And when He said, “draw nearer to Me, and I will draw nearer to you.” (James 4:8) That is a beautiful thing people.

So, obviously you obtain a fear of the Lord when you have been born again. When the Holy Spirit because active within you, that fear of the Lord comes naturally. Delight yourself in God, and He will delight in you. If you haven’t been born again, why not? What is stopping you? What are you holding back from God? What don’t you want the Light of God to expose? I can guarantee you, He already knows, so just be genuine with Him and let Him clean you up. You don’t have to be clean to get right with Jesus. You wouldn’t prewash your body before taking a shower, would you? It works the same way with Jesus. He will meet you right where you are. He will meet you in your addiction. He will meet you in your depression. He will meet you in your isolation; in your schizophrenia; in your mental illness. JESUS WILL MEET YOU WHERE YOU ARE!