God Has the Power to Destroy Us

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[i]"Fear Him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell' (Matthew 10:28).[/i]

God can look us into our grave, and with a breath blow us into hell, and shall we not fear Him? Is it easy to wrestle with flames? "Who knoweth the power of His anger?" (Psalm 90:11). What engines or buckets can quench the infernal fire? We are apt to fear men who have power in their hand to hurt us, but what is their power to God's? They threaten a prison; God threatens hell. They threaten our life; God threatens our soul, and shall we not tremble before Him? O, how dreadful when the great fountains of God's wrath shall be broken up and all His bitter vials poured out! "Can thy heart endure, or can thy hands be strong in the days that I shall deal with thee?" (Ezekiel 22:14).

[b]Objection:[/b] But are not we bidden to serve God without fear? (Luke 1:74)

[b]Answer:[/b] We must not serve God with such a fear as the wicked do. They fear Him as a Turkish slave does his master; they fear Him in such a way as to hate Him, and wish there were no God. We must not serve God with this hellish fear, but we must serve Him with an ingenuous fear, sweetened with love. There is a difference between [i]fearing God,[/i] and [i]being afraid of God.[/i] The godly fear God as a child does his father; the wicked are afraid of God as the prisoner is of the judge. Fear causes a watchful eye, and a working hand. Fear banishes sloth out of its diocese. The greatest labor of holy fear in religion is far less than the least pain the damned feel in hell. There is no greater spur in the heavely race than fear.

- Thomas Watson, from "The Great Gain of Godliness", 1686.

Fear causes a watchful eye, and a working hand. Fear banishes sloth out of its diocese. The greatest labor of holy fear in religion is far less than the least pain the damned feel in hell. There is no greater spur in the heavely race than fear.

A good word from Watson.

Thanks Bro. Paul

A good word from Watson

very powerful words indeed

PaulWest wrote:

I think it is a healthy thing to have the proper fear of God distilled in our walks. The fear of God for us, His children, comes from a revelation of God's awesome love. The deeper the revelation of God's all-encompassing goodness, the more I fear to displease Him. The greater the love, the greater the fear of displeasing the source of this unfathomable love. The mercy of God instills fear in the conscience; the grace of God is seasoned with fear and leaves its bittersweet taste long after our sin has been forgiven.

Thank you brother Paul,

Those were beautiful words displayed concerning the proper fear of God.

The proper fear and love for God should always be present in the heart of the one who is truly experiencing the salvation of grace and mercy. The true child of God should always know he was spared the wrath of God only because of God’s grace and mercy in Christ Jesus.

1Th 5:9 For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,

I desire to love God with all my heart through the dependence of the Holy Spirit filling me with His Love.
God’s fear, in my heart, keeps me evermore depending on His grace to keep me doing those things that please Him, and evermore fleeing and hating those things that caused me to deserve His wrath.

I am overwhelmed because of His Love for me, and I dread the very thought of displeasing Him. It is a fear motivated by the Love of God for us, a people deserving His wrath!

I am overwhelmed because of His Love for me, and I dread the very thought of displeasing Him. It is a fear motivated by the Love of God for us, a people deserving His wrath!

The more my failures become apparent to me, the more my fear of God grows - not because of the rod of wrath's pain, but because of the loving embrace that follows. Ah, this is the wonder of God's way in teaching fear! It is because of the unspeakable love, the forgiveness, the power of His blood that I fear repeated transgressions. I am not afraid of going to hell so much as the fear of displeasing God after all the good and love He's shown me. It's a completely different type of fear! It's more compelling than the carnal fear of going to hell. Unbelievers have the fear of hell, the dreaded undercurrent that lurks silently in the basement of their hearts and consciences. But this fear alone is not able to change them, or influence them to repentance; the fear of death is there to silently torment them and gnaw away at their minds while they live in pleasure - even if they refuse to admit it.

But we have passed from death unto life, and the fear of the dead no longer has tormenting power. This fear has been replaced with the fear of the living sons and daughters of God, our Father. Our infinitely good and loving Father, by Whom the very thought of sinning against sends shudders through our quickened spirits. We love Him so much, that we hate sin with alike passion...but with a transforming passion and power than the carnal fear of hell could never in a million years instill.

Brother Paul