Should Christians Be Afraid of God? - article by Joel Hempel
Like fire at the tip of a candle, Pastor Scott said the Book of Revelation is full of scary stuff in last Sunday's sermon. But much of it can be understood as symbolic and interpreted as good news; he reminded us. For example, if 144,000 people were not a symbolic number of Christians saved for heaven, that would mean that most of the 1,800,000 Missouri Synod Lutherans would not be joining the rest of us GLC members in the next life with Jesus.
But there is another kind of fear in Sunday’s sermon text that is not symbolic. Quoting an angel, John wrote, “‘Fear God and give him glory because the hour of his judgement has come’…” (Rev. 14:7).
What does it mean to fear God? Are we to be afraid of God? Well, there are at least two ways of answering that question. The first answer is yes! We are to be afraid of God. Only a fool would act as if God is not all-knowing and all-powerful. Only a fool would consider God's will and his Word irrelevant for life.
German Theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer warns Christians not to cheapen God's grace. Just because God’s grace has saved us does not mean we can do whatever we want, knowing it goes against God's commandments. Contributing to a healthy fear of God is the wake-up call in Matthew 7:21-23: “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” In other words, being a Christian means, we are to live the life of a Christian.
However, a Christian has no reason to be afraid of God. Because when we are ushered into the Christian faith by the power of the Holy Spirit, we want to serve God's will; we desire to be faithful to his Word. That is, the Christian respects and honors our Lord by dedicating her life to him. This respecting and honoring of God and his will is the second way of understanding the command, “Fear God!” That is, respect who God is! And who is he? We look to Jesus for that answer.
One of the best Bible stories for understanding who God is in relation to us is John 6:16-21. This is the familiar story of the disciples on the Sea of Galilee in a fishing boat when a storm blows in. Suddenly, Jesus appears on the water, walking toward them. "They were afraid," John reports. "But [Jesus] said to them, 'It is I; do not be afraid.'" In other words, in the presence of Jesus, there is no reason to be afraid.
As the incarnation of God, Jesus only gives us reasons to respect, not fear who he is and what he does for us. He is the one who washes feet, embraces children, forgives an adulteress woman, quiets storms, releases Peter from his guilt and shame, and empowers his followers with the Holy Spirit so we can live the life to which we have been called.
