Sermon Tone Analysis

Can I clean your windshield?

(Can I clean your windshield Picture)

Have you ever had someone come up to your car when at a stop light and offer to clean your windshield?

There is a certain amount of fear there for most are homeless and you don’t really know their intentions.

Sometimes we need things clean up so we can see better.

Maybe the glass around a light house needs to be cleaned up so it will shine better.

Previously we looked at

Developing Christ like character so as to let our personal light shine and that when we come together we can be a city on the hill that cannot be hidden.

We also looked to developing Christ like service and that our light shines in and through that.

Do you want your personal light to shine brighter?

our passage tonight is focusing on letting our light shine brighter when we work out our salvation with fear and trembling.

Not it is not working out for our salvation, it is working out your own salvation.

Salvation is done, this has to be with continuing to develop Christ like character and Christ like service.

Today we are looking at the definition of working out our salvation with fear and trembling.

We will look at why we should do it

How to develop it, how to apply it

I think we can all agree there is no shortage of passages that discuss “fear of the Lord” and that they have been taken at times to the extreme of “hell fire and brimstone” preaching and then others have gone so far the other way that they are “ear tickling” preaching with only feel good messages and nothing about the fear of the Lord.

It is important that we have the right understanding, the right application and the right balance of fear and trembling so we can be a brighter light in a world where light is needed.

May we consider a few things still here in the introduction section.

Fear and comfort (Act9:31)

We need to go on in the fear of the Lord, we need to walk in the fear of the Lord.

Even if it is unpopular to talk about.

Everyone likes to hear about God’s love and God’s mercy and grace, but who wants to hear about God’s righteous indignation?

Indignation means: Wrath, anger (be sure to qualify this by righteous anger)

Be sure to walk in the fear of the Lord (Ps7:11; Isa34:1-2)

Consider this

God has indignation everyday, but He is also longsuffering too.

Praise God for that!

Consider what Isaiah has to say

We need to have balance of His mercy, grace holiness, righteous indignation and justice.

Even though some say “my God is not like that.”

In our culture today in the church today we have strayed too far, too far where there is no concept of “fear and trembling” Could this be why there are so many sleep walkers in their Christian walk where they have become apathetic?

So, how can we develop a healthy balance of the “fear of the Lord” without going to one extreme or the other?

Fear of the Lord defined.

Fear of the Lord, there is a strong connection with reverence and awe of the Lord.

Let’s look together at the definition and scriptures too.

In the Hebrew it is:

Yir’ah - defined as fear, tear, awesome or terrifying thing; fear (of God); respect, reverence, piety.

In the Greek it is:

Phobos - defined as panic, fright, fear, dread, terror, that which strikes terror

So, I’m sure you can agree there is a strong connection as I mentioned a moment ago.

Does this go far enough?

We can get the fear part, but what about the trembling?

The fear of the Lord should include a place for trembling too.

So let me define trembling

Greek it is:

Tromos - defined as trembling or quaking with fear.

When we try to balance properly, when we have a proper view of the fear of the Lord it should include, reverence an awe.

Commentator Hendrickson says it like this.

“Being afraid to offend God in any way.”

Trembling, being in awe of God (Heb12:28-29)

Oh yeah, expand on this (fear, trembling can be demonstrated in gratitude and in acceptable service with reverence and awe)

Trembling, terrifying expectation of judgment (Heb10:26-27)

Now written at a time to the people that had seen the glory of Jesus or sat at the feet of those who did.

Can this not still be something we can learn from too, the fury of the Lord has not changed.

Fear and trembling, terrifying thing (Heb10:30-31)

Look at (v.31) terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God, why? because the people then were loosing focus on the reverence of God.

People then were not in awe, in wonder, no longer astonished by the Lord.

They had become apathetic and they had no fear of the Lord.

Could that not be said about today too?

Having the right attitude, the right balance of “fear and trembling” leads us also to know why we are to have it.

Why have fear and trembling?

I think it is best we let the scripture tell us why we are to have it.

Fear of the Lord is _____________ of knowledge (Pro1:7)

Fear of the Lord will cause on to _____________ evil (Pro8:13)

Fear of the Lord ____________ days (life) (Pro10:27)

Fear of the Lord is a _____________ of life (Pro14:26-27)

Fear of the Lord will prompt you to _____________ from evil (Pro16:6)

(expand on this verse some!) because of mercy truth and atonement, one will wan to flee, depart from evil!

So, we are talking about balance, balance so that our light will shine and when we come together as light we are a city set on a hill that cannot be hidden.

When we don’t have balance, when we don’t have the fear of the Lord there are these things.

We close ourselves off from God’s wisdom and knowledge

We can easily be persuaded, lured into and corrupted by evil

We will not know the love of God and the surety of our salvation in Him.

Other scriptures to consider

We need to press on to maturity (Heb6:1)

Leave the elementary things behind and dead works behinds and press on to maturity.

When we are not diligent we have no confidence (2Pt1:10; Heb4:16)

Confidence is assurance that we will never stumble, so you need to practice, have diligence in the things that are beyond the elementary things of repentance.

We need to be able to go to the throne in confidence!

Without fear of the Lord you cannot please God (Isa66:1-2)

Look at the end of the verse who the Lord looks on, the one who is humble, contrite and trembles at His Word

With proper fear we have promise (Ps103:17-18)

So, it is well worth it for us to take time to develop and to grow in fear and trembling when it comes to the Lord.

Developing and Growing in fear of the Lord.

Fear, like faith of the Lord comes from the Word of God (Rom10:17; Deu31:10-13) so let’s look historically and then look for application so we can develop and grow in the fear of the Lord.

Historically look at what they did to learn to fear the Lord (Deu31:10-13)

They gathered together so they could hear so they can learn

They gathered together to learn from the Word of God

As we read, as we study God’s Word together it helps us to gain a healthy understanding of the fear of the Lord.

Fear of the Lord is needed by all (Rom2:4-11; also see 1Chr16:34)

Don’t be flippant about God’s kindness, don’t take it lightly.

Those who do have wrath in store for them.

Be one who through perseverance in doing good seek glory and honor as well as eternal life, immortality.

May we be a people, be light that seeks the Light of the world through the Living Word of God so that we can have a proper balance of fear and trembling.

We need to know the full counsel of God, for there are some:

Who focus on the promises only

Others read, study the sections on God’s love and mercy

Both lack the fear of the Lord.

Others emphasize the “hell fire and brimstone passages” and forget about God’s lovingkindness