 |
Spirit-Led
or Purpose-Driven?
Part 6
(shorter series)
Forgetting the fear of God
by Berit Kjos, January
2004
Please read
Part 1, Part
2,Part 3,
Part 4 and
Part 5 |
|
Long before
David wrote his treasured Psalms or Solomon penned the Proverbs, Job knew the
secret of wisdom and friendship with God. In the midst of excruciating pain
and loss, he said, "Behold the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to
depart from evil is understanding." Job 28:28
"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom," echoed
the wise men who wrote Psalm 111:10 and Proverbs 9:10.
Centuries ago, God's rebellious and presumptuous people
thought they could follow their own sensual inclinations, participate in the rituals
of their idolatrous neighbors and sacrifice their children to gain personal favors
-- without losing God's favor and protection. Even the priests thought they were
following His ways. They were wrong. Our holy God, who is the same yesterday,
today and tomorrow, warned His foolish and presumptuous people,
"Therefore I will number you
for the sword,
And you shall all bow down to the slaughter;
Because, when I called, you did not answer;
When I spoke, you did not hear, but did evil before My eyes,
And
chose that in which I do not delight.” Isaiah 65:12
Pastor Warren has little to say about such godly
fear -- the blessed fruit of a deep awareness that God is our Judge and Avenger
as well as our Father and Love. God's anger and wrath don't fit into today's affirmative,
seeker friendly church environment.
Since Today's English Version, like the J. B. Phillips
version, may be considered a translation rather than a paraphrase, the differences
below may be less distinct. Yet, they illustrate a reluctance among many contemporary
Christian leaders to use the word "fear" when referring to God. While we certainly
must (by His Spirit) reverence our holy and almighty God, this more "positive"
word removes any subtle (or embarrassing) reminder that our loving Father is also
a "jealous" God -- an uncompromising Judge who has little tolerance for our lukewarm
"obedience" and self-pleasing "worship."
KJV: "The secret of the LORD is with
them that fear him; and he will shew them his covenant."
Ps 25:14
NKJV:
"The secret of the Lord is with
those who fear Him,
and He will show them His covenant." Ps 25:14
NIV:
"The Lord confides in those who
fear Him;
he makes his covenant known to them."
Ps 25:14
Living Bible
: "Friendship with God is reserved
for those who reverence him." Psalm 25:14a
KJV:
"The
Lord taketh pleasure in them that
fear him, in those that hope in his mercy."
Ps 147:11
NKJV:
"The Lord takes pleasure in those who
fear him, in those who
hope in his mercy."
Ps 147:11
NIV:
"The Lord delights in those who
fear Him;
who put their hope in his unfailing love."
Ps 147:11
Today's English Version:
"He takes pleasure in those that
honor Him; in those who
trust in His constant love."
[page 71]
In other words, the word "fear" clashes with today's
attempt to market God to the postmodern masses. To a lesser degree, so do the
words "righteous" and "merciful." Both remind us of our sin and inadequacy. They
bring the discomforting suggestion that God indeed is "holier than thou" -- an
unpleasant notion for those who prefer to believe that God is and thinks like
me.
Instead, Pastor Warren introduces a more likeable
God -- a smiling father who resembles today's permissive parent rather than the
righteous and merciful God of the Bible. Whether you are part of God's family
or not, Warren speaks confusing half-truths that assure you that --
[1,
page 63]
"You are a child of God, and you bring pleasure to God like
nothing else he has ever created. The Bible says, 'Because of his love God had
already decided that through Jesus Christ he would make us his children -- this
was his pleasure and purpose."
[1,
page 63-64]
"
God
enjoys watching every detail of your life, whether you are working, playing,
resting, or eating."[1,
page 74]
Do you feel good about yourself
yet? Do you feel comfortable before your holy God?
Perhaps we feel too comfortable.
Maybe our holy God doesn't "enjoy watching every detail" of our lives. Although
His Word assures us that He delights in us when we trust and follow Him, it also
shows us that He grieves over our foolish choices. And if we indeed have been
"born again" of His Spirit, we would grieve with Him whenever we obey our own
lusts rather than His Word! We would repent -- turn around and run back
into His arms!
Yes, He waits for us. Yes,
our patient and merciful Lord continues to love us deeply and eternally. Yes,
in Christ, all our sins were nailed to the cross. But He doesn't minimize
and excuse our
natural rebellion as we do. Instead, he tells us to "work out your own salvation
with fear and trembling; for it is God who works in you both to will and to do
for His good pleasure." Philippians 2:12-13
The New Testament brings
some sobering reminders of a side of God we often prefer to forget. Take the story
of Ananias and Sapphira. They were part of the early church community where people
shared their belongings with each other. You probably remember the story:
"Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession.
And he kept back part of the proceeds, his wife also being aware of it, and
brought a certain part and laid it at the apostles’ feet. But Peter said, 'Ananias,
why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back part
of the price of the land for yourself?... Why have you conceived this thing
in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God.” Then Ananias, hearing these
words, fell down and breathed his last. So
great fear came upon all...
"Now it was about
three hours later when his wife came in, not knowing what had happened. And
Peter answered her, 'Tell me whether you sold the land for so much?' She said,
'Yes, for so much.” Then Peter said to her, 'How is it that you have agreed
together to test the Spirit of the Lord? Look, the feet of those who have buried
your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out.' Then immediately
she fell down at his feet and breathed her last. And the young men came in and
found her dead, and carrying her out, buried her by her husband. So
great fear came upon all the church and upon all who heard these things.
"And through the hands of the apostles many
signs and wonders were done among the people....Yet
none of the rest dared join them,
but the people esteemed them highly.
And believers were increasingly added
to the Lord, multitudes
of both men and women...." Ac 5:1-14
God didn't hesitate to judge a sin that we might
easily overlook. After all, Ananias made a generous contribution to the church,
didn't he?
But God's standard for holiness among His people
is far higher than we are led to believe in our churches. He wants a purified
Body, a holy Bride -- washed and cleansed by His shed blood. Seeker-services that
bring the world into His sacred places compromise His revealed purposes. So does
consensus-based fellowship between believers and unbelievers, between His purity
and the world's profanity.
In the early church, God's judgment [above] spread
"great fear." The surrounding community showed two typical kinds of responses.
While "the people esteemed them highly," only those whom God was drawing to Himself
were added to the church. "None of the rest dared join them." It doesn't sound
like today's marketing strategies, does it?
The problem is not that Pastor Warren left out
the "the fear of God." He can't possibly teach all God's instructions in one book.
The problem is lack of balance. By emphasizing God's delight in "every detail
of your life" through most of the book while rarely mentioning God's
anger, holy standard or judgment, he virtually denied the less comforting
side of God's nature.
[2]
While God's love is unconditional,
His promises are not. Most are linked -- often in the same passage they appear
-- to guidelines and conditions for their fulfillment. But those conditions and
warnings are generally left out. As presented in this book, many of God's promises
to those who -- by His grace and Spirit -- follow Him become, instead, universal
and unconditional assurances to everyone who reads the book. No need to "mourn"
our sin, "tremble at His Word," or repent of our addiction to contemporary thrills,
for everyone is okay in the eyes of Him who "passionately" loves all of us as
we are.
But God calls us to know and follow
His
ways, not ours -- and to deny ourselves and let the "flesh" be put to death.
In our weakness, He will enable us! Our goal must be His goal: that we would
be holy as He is holy. Pastor Warren affirms that truth, but by softening
God's revelation about Himself and His ways, he distorts our understanding
of holiness. By trivializing the authority of God's Word, he bends our view
of God's high standard for our lives in Him. Finally, when he quotes (in
various forms) God's promises while ignoring His much-needed warnings,
he builds
presumption, not genuine obedient faith. Many readers would hardly even know
what to obey!
They won't find answers
when they turn to the discussion questions in the back of the book. Those questions
are patterned to fit today's consensus process. This process for conforming individuals
to the group's views, involves guidelines such as:
Don't use words such as
"I know" or "I believe." Instead use words such as "I think" or "I feel" which
show your willingness to compromise and bend your views to fit the group consensus.
[See
Twisting Truth by Group Consensus]
Show respect and appreciation
for all positions, even those that clash with the Bible.
Most of the questions fit
this pattern. Subjective and open-ended, they invite feeling-based opinions,
not Scripture-based truths. And some of the questions beg answers that fit today's
communitarian ideals more than God's truth.
True to form, the first
two questions begin with "What do you think...." and "What do you feel..." None
looks to the Bible as a reference point. None encourages the reader to seek answers
from God's Word.
The natural outcome of this
comfortable, relational dialogue is a group synthesis of the various opinions.
In the end, everyone would feel good about themselves, about each other and about
God -- no matter how He might be portrayed. No cost, no self-denial, no separation,
no offense! Postmodern Christianity fits right into the changing world system. (This relational process will be discussed more fully in
the next two parts of this series.)
Remember, His ways are not our ways! He is the
sovereign King of the universe! To know and follow Him, we need to fill our minds
with His true Word, not popular interpretations or feel-good group affirmations.
Our wise and wonderful Lord says,
"He who
has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And
he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest
Myself to him.... If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father
will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. He who
does not love Me does not keep My words...." John 14:21-21
