Fear of Man
“The fear of man in the presence of the Lord is arrogance and vanity.”
Author: Aaron Simms
These are words the Lord spoke to me during a church meeting just last week. I immediately began to ponder what they meant in that moment, and it just kept getting deeper and simpler to me at the same time. The fear of man is….arrogance. It is vanity, in light of eternity. What would it be like to be thrust into heaven, into the presence of the Lord Almighty, before His throne? What would it be to witness the twenty-four elders casting their crowns, and the living creatures crying “Holy, Holy, Holy!”? What would hearing the new song of the Elders while observing the golden bowls full of incense (our prayers) be like? I don’t know exactly, but we can get an idea by taking a humble look at Revelation chapters four and five in God’s word. I haven’t even gotten to the Lamb (our Lord Jesus) standing, worthy and able to open the book, when no other being in existence was found worthy. It takes the breath away to ponder this scene. In this context, try to imagine yourself there as an invited guest, or better yet, a humble, unprofitable servant—but invited nonetheless.
Now imagine you’re not the only invited guest. And imagine somehow being concerned with what another guest thinks of what you are saying or thinking in that moment. If possible, imagine being more concerned with their opinion in that moment, than the Lamb’s opinion, or the One who sits on the throne. Imagine Moses being concerned with how Miriam thought he looked as He approached the Lord. It sounds ludicrous to say out loud.
As we assemble according to God’s Word (Heb. 10:25), it is good to consider these things. If I am rightly fearing the Lord and not fearing those in the meeting, this will govern my motives for my words and actions. If I am fearing man, I will begin to speak to impress others, or act to please man and not God. Religion performs to avoid disapproval. May we not be performers, but lovers of God and of each other. I pray that our relationships with God and with each other won’t have to change much (if any) when He comes again! May we fear God always.
These are words the Lord spoke to me during a church meeting just last week. I immediately began to ponder what they meant in that moment, and it just kept getting deeper and simpler to me at the same time. The fear of man is….arrogance. It is vanity, in light of eternity. What would it be like to be thrust into heaven, into the presence of the Lord Almighty, before His throne? What would it be to witness the twenty-four elders casting their crowns, and the living creatures crying “Holy, Holy, Holy!”? What would hearing the new song of the Elders while observing the golden bowls full of incense (our prayers) be like? I don’t know exactly, but we can get an idea by taking a humble look at Revelation chapters four and five in God’s word. I haven’t even gotten to the Lamb (our Lord Jesus) standing, worthy and able to open the book, when no other being in existence was found worthy. It takes the breath away to ponder this scene. In this context, try to imagine yourself there as an invited guest, or better yet, a humble, unprofitable servant—but invited nonetheless.
Now imagine you’re not the only invited guest. And imagine somehow being concerned with what another guest thinks of what you are saying or thinking in that moment. If possible, imagine being more concerned with their opinion in that moment, than the Lamb’s opinion, or the One who sits on the throne. Imagine Moses being concerned with how Miriam thought he looked as He approached the Lord. It sounds ludicrous to say out loud.
As we assemble according to God’s Word (Heb. 10:25), it is good to consider these things. If I am rightly fearing the Lord and not fearing those in the meeting, this will govern my motives for my words and actions. If I am fearing man, I will begin to speak to impress others, or act to please man and not God. Religion performs to avoid disapproval. May we not be performers, but lovers of God and of each other. I pray that our relationships with God and with each other won’t have to change much (if any) when He comes again! May we fear God always.
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