““Do not lay a hand on the boy,” he said. “Do not do anything to him. Now I know that
you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.” Genesis
22:12 NIV.
As children of God, we should fear God and not be afraid of Him. The fear of God will
draw you nearer to Him while being afraid of Him will make you hide from him. Before
the fall of man, Adam was having fellowship with God. When he fell into sin, he became
afraid of and hid from God. “So he said, “I heard Your voice in the garden, and I was
afraid because I was naked; and I hid myself.” Genesis 3:10.
True fear of God is measured by our level of prompt and complete obedience to the
word/instructions of God as was demonstrated by Abraham in our text.
True fear of God will attract many benefits such as:
Blessing of increase, promotion, victory and being a channel of blessing to others. “The
angel of the LORD called to Abraham from heaven a second time and said, “I
swear by myself, declares the LORD, that because you have done this and have
not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your
descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the
seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies,
and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have
obeyed me.” Genesis 22:15-18. NIV.
Access to the secrets of the Lord. No wonder God revealed to Abraham His intentions
regarding Sodom and Gomorrah before it happened. This privileged information was
instrumental in saving Lot. “The secret of the LORD is with those who fear Him, And
He will show them His covenant.” Psalm 25:14.
Wisdom begins with the fear of the Lord. The benefits of wisdom are tremendous. “Fear
of the LORD is the foundation of wisdom. Knowledge of the Holy One results in
good judgment.” Psalm 9:10 NLT.
THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK
Opportunities usually come suddenly and only prepared minds recognize and take
advantage of them.