256: Tim Galbraith – With Moses on Horeb

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Welcome to good Chris Elfian
talks.

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I’m Levi.
And I’m Chris.

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And I’m Brian.
Thank you for joining us this

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week on this podcast.
We select one Talk a week to

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help us get the Bible in our
Daily News feed.

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We post a new episode at the
start of each week.

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With a short intro beforehand to
kind of set the stage for the

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talk you’re about to listen to.
And now, let’s talk more about

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this week’s talk.
This week’s talk is a lecture by

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brother Tim Galbraith from
Hyderabad, India.

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He presented this talk in 2001
at the Los Angeles Ecclesia here

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in LA.
This is a midweek class and it’s

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the first class in a series of
midweek classes that he gave

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leading up to A to a study
weekend back then.

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The title is with Moses in Horeb
because as he kind of touches on

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right at the beginning, this is
one example of of an interaction

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on the mountain, and this is the
first one.

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And he kind of makes the point
that Moses and horrib is he he

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he uses this as a as a jumping
pad to a discussion on the fear

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of the Lord.
So it’s pretty funny.

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I’m putting this title here on
the podcast because he barely

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talks about Moses at horrib.
It’s really a a really amazing

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study on the concept of the fear
of the Lord and how the fear of

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the Lord is the beginning of
knowledge.

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And then he broadens that really
over the whole scripture.

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And this is something I’ve known
from hearing Brother Tim in

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person.
Jess and I were in India many

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years ago and then I’ve heard
him when he’s been here in the

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States other times.
He is one of the best we have at

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just a comprehension of of the
total message of scripture and

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you’re going to hear it in this
class.

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It really is a broad study.
He goes all over the place to

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expand this concept of how the
fear of the Lord is the

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beginning but it is still
necessary and that that I think

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might be my favorite part.
Middle of the second-half at

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some point he talks about how he
still needs to remember to have

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the fear of the Lord for even
his thoughts.

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This is a really excellent
class, really fun to listen to.

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I’m thankful to have this
recording.

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Brother Chris, one of the Co
hosts here, has taken on a task

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of converting a lot of old
tapes.

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We’ve been sent tapes and been
put in touch with those who have

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a tape library.
So this is a class that’s online

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now on good on Chris Lefkin,
bibletalks.com but recently

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converted from the tape that it
was in 2001.

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So thank you Chris for doing
that work.

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It’s been really fun to listen
to some of these talks that we

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don’t have as of yet on any of
our Internet sites.

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So very thankful to share this
one.

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This is really again a study on
the beginning, the fear of the

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Lord’s beginning of knowledge.
But here is Moses that Horeb by

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brother Tim Galbraith.
Thanks, Brother Mark and good

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evening.
It’s lovely to be back after

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four years since I had the
privilege of being with you in

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this ecclesia.
We wanted this week to look at

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the question of our spiritual
growth, of getting closer to God

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as we go through our spiritual
walk.

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And of course there are steps.
That need to be taken if we are

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going to feel in our lives and
genuinely be closer to our God.

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And I thought it would be
profitable to go through this

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week looking at out of the many
mountain experiences which the

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Bible talks about, looking just
at 4 incidents, 4 situations

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that seem to epitomize our
growth as we draw closer to God.

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And as Mark told us, those four
experiences are first of all,

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this experience on Mount Horeb,
the experience with Elijah on

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Mount Carmel, the experience of
our Savior on Calvary, and the

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prospective experience of being
with redeemed on Zion.

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Now obviously, when we read this
scene in Chapter 19, there’s

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something that really comes to
the fore.

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And that is that there is a very
frightening experience for the

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people.
We are told in verse 16 that in

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the third day in the morning
there were thunders, lightnings,

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a thick cloud upon the mount,
the voice of the trumpet

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exceeding loud, so that all the
people that were in the camp

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trembled now for some reason.
God chose to scare his people in

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this beginning of the
experience.

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See, the covenant has not yet
been fully made.

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God is still in the process of
bringing the people unto

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himself, bringing them to the
covenant which he is about to

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make with them.
But for some reason he decides

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that this opening experience
that he’s going to give them as

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he gives his Lord to them.
Is 1, which makes them afraid.

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They’re told to keep well away
from this mountain.

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They are given signs that well
make them scared.

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The there is an earthquake that
the mountain we are told in

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verse 18 was on smoke and fire.
The whole mount quake greatly.

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There was a mighty earthquake.
Now in this step then of God

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bringing Israel unto Himself,
after all, that’s His purpose in

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verse 4, how I bear you on
eagle’s wings and brought you

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unto myself.
So here he’s bringing them unto

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himself.
He seeks to owe them with His

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mighty power, with His Majesty.
Now we can think why.

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According to the Proverbs, as we
read again and again, the fear

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of the Lord is the beginning of
knowledge.

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Let’s just look at a couple of
those references from Proverbs.

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Proverbs chapter one and we read
in verse 7.

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The fear of the Lord is the
beginning of knowledge.

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Again we read in the 9th chapter
and verse 10.

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The fear of the Lord is the
beginning of wisdom.

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And again in verse 33 of chapter
15, the fear of the Lord is the

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instruction of wisdom, and so
Knowledge, wisdom instruction.

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Again, says the wise man with an
awe, a fear, a reverence of God.

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And so it is that all the people
feared greatly when this

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happened.
Now not only did all the people

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fear, Moses himself was
frightened by this experience.

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Moses knew what was happening,
and yet he was exceedingly

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frightened by this.
Demonstration of God’s power.

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This we learn only from the New
Testament record in Hebrews

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chapter 12, verse 21 reads.
And so terrible was the sight

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that Moses said, I exceedingly
fear and quake.

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And so Moses himself was
frightened by the experience.

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Now that was in Hebrews 12 and
verse 21.

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Now if then the fear of the Lord
is the beginning of knowledge,

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beginning of wisdom, beginning
of instruction, is that where

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our walk before God starts?
And yes, it is.

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Of course we know that, unless
we have some knowledge of God.

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Then we can no way draw near to
Him, and unless we have some

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wisdom in choosing to draw an
eye to Him, we cannot draw an

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eye to Him.
And so, as again Hebrews Chapter

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11 tells us, verse six, that if
we are to draw near to God, if

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we are to come to God, we must
believe that He is we must have

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knowledge of His existence and
knowledge.

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Of his character.
Because how can we draw near to

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regard whom we do not know?
How can we make that choice back

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in Proverbs chapter one?
We read and we’ll pick up at

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verse 29.
Talking about those who refused

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the ways of God, for they hated
knowledge and did not choose the

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fear of the Lord.
It was their choice as a wise

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man whether they were going to
fear God or not.

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How people respond to
demonstration of God’s power is

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their choice.
And sometimes I used to think as

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a young child, look, why doesn’t
God just do something

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catastrophic, that something so
amazing that nobody can say,

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look, is there a God, Does God
really exist?

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And to realize as you read
through Scripture, it doesn’t

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matter what God did if people
choose not to fear God, if

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people choose not to heed him.
That they won’t do it.

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And Scripture is full of
examples of people who, despite

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the most catastrophic
situations, refuse to

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acknowledge, fear, respect God.
Just turn for example, to the

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Book of Revelation and the
judgments which are poured out

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there.
Very awesome judgments in

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Revelation chapter 16.
And we read here verses 10 and

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11.
And the 5th Angel poured out his

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vial upon the seat of the beast,
and his Kingdom was full of

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darkness.
And they gnawed their tongues

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for pain, and blasphemed the God
of heaven because of their pains

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in the source, and repented not
of their deeds.

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So they they had a clear choice.
That in these terrible

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situations they found
themselves.

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They could they could turn and
plead God, acknowledge that God

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had the right and the power to
deal as he was with them, but

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they would not acknowledge that.
They would not respect that.

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They would not fear that they
chose just to blaspheme.

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And that tells us also why.
God is calling out of the

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nations, the people for his name
and not simply plunking the

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whole human race into his
Kingdom.

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Again, many times we hear people
say, well look, really couldn’t

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God just in his kindness put
everybody into the Kingdom?

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But he couldn’t have a Kingdom
if he did that, because people

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would not.
Acknowledge God’s right to do as

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He wants in His Kingdom, and His
role just turned to Isaiah.

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Chapter 26 we read here starting
from verse 9, Isaiah 26.

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With my soul have I desired thee
in the night.

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Yay, with my spirit within me
will I seek thee early.

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For when your judgments are in
the earth, the inhabitants of

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the world will learn
righteousness.

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OK, so when Christ comes back
and sets up the Kingdom, the

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inhabitants of the world will
learn righteousness.

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But verse 10 Let favor be showed
to the wicked.

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Yet he will not learn
righteousness in the land of

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uprightness.
He will deal unjustly and will

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not behold the majesty of the
Lord.

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That word there, Behold.
Literally means to acknowledge.

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In other words, put him in the
Kingdom.

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Put him in a perfect situation
where everything is just fine

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and he will still not
acknowledge God’s right to do as

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God wants to do.
And so there are people.

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There are, unfortunately it
would seem, the majority of

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human beings who will not fear
the Lord regardless of whatever

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situation they may face.
Now fear of course is something

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therefore that people must have
of God.

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And that’s why you will find,
for example in the Acts of the

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Apostles, the apostles sometimes
addressing the the multitude and

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saying, men, brethren, ye that
fear God, how can?

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Because if people don’t fear
God, if we don’t fear God, then

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we are not going to listen to
what he says.

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And that is why God needed to
bring this horrible experience

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to Israel.
That they might hear, that they

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might listen because they fear
Him.

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Now, sometimes we don’t have
these experiences that that

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frighten us.
Sometimes we do.

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Sometimes things happen.
And as much as we know, every

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day is a day within God’s care
for us.

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Yet isn’t it true that when
tragedy strikes, when something

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really happens to us, in our
family, in our close nitty

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cleisures that we do, we get
frightened.

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What is God trying to teach us?
What really is going wrong in my

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life, in my family’s life, in my
cleisure’s life?

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Because we fear that God is
working there and we don’t

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understand why.
And that’s right, that we should

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do.
Not that we should trouble

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ourselves too much as working
out why, as we will see in a

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later study.
But it is important to recognize

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that yes, we should pause, we
should consider we should indeed

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respect and fear our God.
Now, that doesn’t mean that our

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whole walk has to be, as it
were, tailored out of fear.

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Fear was the beginning of the
experience for Israel, and fear

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of God may well be the beginning
of our experience.

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But we must grow.
We must grow until, as we will

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find by the end of the weekend,
as we find in first John chapter

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4 and verse 18 that perfect love
casts out fear.

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So we will get by God’s grace to
that situation where love.

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And not fear is the prime mover
of all that we do.

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But the starting point must be
with fear until love takes over.

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And there might be times that we
need to induce this.

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You remember back King David, of
course, At various times in the

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00:16:42,500 –> 00:16:47,980
Psalms he seems to deliberately
induce a sense of awe, a sense

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00:16:47,980 –> 00:16:51,880
almost of fear.
Of the greatness of his God, so

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00:16:51,880 –> 00:16:57,400
that he he really can feel his
own position before God.

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For example, in the 8th Psalm 1,
which is very famous, and verse

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00:17:05,520 –> 00:17:09,839
three and four, when I consider
the heavens the work of your

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00:17:09,839 –> 00:17:14,200
hands, of moon and stars which
you have ordained, what is man?

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00:17:14,200 –> 00:17:17,040
That you are mindful of him, the
Son of man, That you visit him.

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I mean, what am I?
Says David compared to this

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awesome universe.
So he induces a sense of awe of

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00:17:25,640 –> 00:17:32,680
his God, and that’s important.
In fact, in the 34th Psalm,

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David reminds us of the need to
always blow God up in our

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00:17:39,240 –> 00:17:42,600
thinking into much bigger than
He is.

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00:17:43,310 –> 00:17:45,070
At least much bigger than he is
in our thinking.

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00:17:45,070 –> 00:17:48,670
It’s impossible to to magnify
God in our thinking bigger than

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he is because he’s so vast.
But it’s the finding we have as

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human beings.
We cannot readily appreciate

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00:17:56,550 –> 00:18:01,070
that all the nations are us.
But a drop in a bucket, I mean

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00:18:01,070 –> 00:18:04,670
when we have one drop of water
in a bucket we we reckon it’s

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00:18:04,670 –> 00:18:07,910
empty.
We, we, we, we say, look,

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00:18:07,910 –> 00:18:10,310
there’s no water there.
It’s nothing.

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It’s the dust of the balance.
And that’s the the.

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00:18:13,120 –> 00:18:15,960
Prophet goes on to say, and as I
thought, he that he counts the

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nations as less than nothing,
absolutely nothing.

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So who are we?
What are we compared to this

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00:18:26,200 –> 00:18:31,200
great God?
And therefore, in the words of

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00:18:31,200 –> 00:18:36,960
Psalm 34, verse 30 magnify the
Lord with me.

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00:18:37,900 –> 00:18:40,020
Magnify.
We know what a magnifying glass

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00:18:40,020 –> 00:18:41,500
does.
It makes things bigger.

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00:18:41,740 –> 00:18:46,820
Let’s make God bigger in our
thinking, in our estimation,

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00:18:47,100 –> 00:18:51,580
says David.
And so we magnify the Lord.

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For those who fear the Lord, of
course, do that.

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But those who don’t fear the
Lord make God very small, so

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00:18:59,260 –> 00:19:02,020
that God has no power.
That they’re not.

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00:19:02,020 –> 00:19:08,710
They’re not frightened of God.
And again, the Psalms are full

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00:19:08,710 –> 00:19:12,590
of examples of people who are
not frightened of God.

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It’s in Psalm 78, I think, that
he makes mention of this,

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00:19:20,710 –> 00:19:28,230
talking about the wicked and the
terrible things that the wicked

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00:19:28,230 –> 00:19:37,120
do, and he goes through.
In Psalm sorry 73 Psalm 73 my

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00:19:37,120 –> 00:19:43,440
correction and he talks about
all the wicked things which the

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00:19:43,600 –> 00:19:49,920
wicked do and they say in verse
11 and they say how does God

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00:19:49,920 –> 00:19:52,720
know?
Is there knowledge in the most

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00:19:52,720 –> 00:19:55,440
High God?
God doesn’t know all these

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00:19:55,440 –> 00:19:57,200
things.
How can God know everything that

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00:19:57,200 –> 00:19:59,800
happens?
God is a small God.

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00:20:00,830 –> 00:20:04,190
What’s he going to know if I do
this or I do that?

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00:20:05,430 –> 00:20:07,710
But of course our God is not a
small God.

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Our God knows, knows, even the
hairs of our head, even in the

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00:20:15,630 –> 00:20:18,710
morning or in the evening after
we’ve combed it.

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00:20:18,710 –> 00:20:20,310
It might be less, but we don’t
know.

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But he knows.
And that’s the sort of God we

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have a God that that we we do
fear.

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And I think even as we walk
through our lives in Christ,

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there is always an element that
must be there of fear.

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00:20:42,290 –> 00:20:47,410
We know that when we have small
children, initially children,

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00:20:47,850 –> 00:20:52,290
very small children will to some
extent or buy us out of fear.

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00:20:53,370 –> 00:20:55,770
They know that if they do
something wrong that they will

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00:20:55,770 –> 00:20:59,040
suffer.
But gradually, and this is a

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00:20:59,040 –> 00:21:04,640
long process in a child, those
values which we are making the

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00:21:04,640 –> 00:21:07,800
decisions on will be
internalized by them.

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00:21:08,400 –> 00:21:11,880
So eventually they leave home.
And they don’t need the fear of

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00:21:11,880 –> 00:21:15,840
parents because they have
internalized from us and from

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00:21:15,840 –> 00:21:19,720
the Scripture the values that
will keep them in the right way.

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00:21:20,080 –> 00:21:25,040
They’ve internalized from us a
fear of God, but their parents

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00:21:25,040 –> 00:21:30,060
are no longer there, But God is
there, and they don’t want to

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00:21:30,340 –> 00:21:34,900
upset God.
And so it is that in the

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00:21:34,900 –> 00:21:38,780
beginning of our walk, this is
the case.

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00:21:39,020 –> 00:21:43,900
And it’s interesting that as the
Ecclesia grew in Acts of the

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00:21:43,900 –> 00:21:49,100
Apostles, the beginnings of the
ecclesia were marked often by

286
00:21:49,100 –> 00:21:54,350
incidents that, as it were
exact, the ecleasure, the new

287
00:21:54,350 –> 00:21:58,790
little ecleasure, growing with
fear that people might not take

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00:21:58,790 –> 00:22:03,870
lightly the decision to become
part of the family of the living

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00:22:03,870 –> 00:22:08,350
God.
Just turn to a few examples in

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00:22:08,590 –> 00:22:22,600
Acts chapter 2, verse 43.
And fear came upon every soul

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00:22:22,600 –> 00:22:25,760
and many wonders and signs were
done by the apostles.

292
00:22:27,360 –> 00:22:31,000
God saw to it with great things
that there was a certain measure

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00:22:31,240 –> 00:22:35,280
of fear that this was some great
thing.

294
00:22:35,280 –> 00:22:39,680
This was not something to be
dismissed lightly or to be just

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00:22:39,840 –> 00:22:42,200
tampered with just for human
pleasure.

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00:22:44,040 –> 00:22:50,440
And in chapter 5, this is really
driven home with the example of

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00:22:51,160 –> 00:22:55,400
Ananais and Safira.
And and why did this happen?

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00:22:55,400 –> 00:22:58,840
What was God’s purpose in
allowing this to happen in the

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00:22:59,320 –> 00:23:04,040
early church?
Oh verse 5.

300
00:23:05,160 –> 00:23:07,800
And Ananais, hearing these
words, fell down and gave up the

301
00:23:07,800 –> 00:23:11,800
spirit, and great fear came on
all them that heard these

302
00:23:11,800 –> 00:23:16,370
things.
This was God’s decision to

303
00:23:16,370 –> 00:23:21,090
induce fear.
And again verse 11 And great

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00:23:21,090 –> 00:23:26,210
fear came upon all the church
and many who heard these things.

305
00:23:27,210 –> 00:23:33,410
So the Ecclesia realized that it
was not a small thing to tamper

306
00:23:34,250 –> 00:23:39,970
with the things of the living
God, that yes, he was a God of

307
00:23:39,970 –> 00:23:43,010
love, who sought to bring them
unto himself, as he did with

308
00:23:43,010 –> 00:23:48,670
Israel, in a very loving way.
And yet he knew that it was

309
00:23:48,670 –> 00:23:52,950
necessary to instill in Israel,
and it was necessary to instill

310
00:23:53,190 –> 00:24:00,670
in the Ecclesia some fear of
God, that we who are so weak in

311
00:24:00,670 –> 00:24:05,710
the flesh, should not lightly
tamper with the things of God.

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00:24:07,230 –> 00:24:12,710
And later on in Acts Chapter 9
and verse 31 we see the result

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00:24:12,710 –> 00:24:18,600
of the development.
Then had the churches rest

314
00:24:18,600 –> 00:24:22,200
throughout all Judea and Galilee
and Samaria, and were edified,

315
00:24:22,640 –> 00:24:26,640
and walking in the fear of the
Lord and comfort of the Holy

316
00:24:26,640 –> 00:24:33,680
Spirit were multiplied.
And so it was that the Ecclesia

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00:24:34,160 –> 00:24:38,520
had to begin their development
this way.

318
00:24:39,760 –> 00:24:44,270
And when we jumped right forward
beyond our day to the beginning

319
00:24:44,270 –> 00:24:47,910
of the Kingdom era, when you
have a world which must be

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00:24:47,910 –> 00:24:53,670
brought to its knees to to
worship God in the Kingdom age

321
00:24:54,110 –> 00:24:59,310
again, it is ushered in by a
great demonstration of God’s

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00:24:59,310 –> 00:25:05,190
power inducing human fear.
If you return to Isaiah 2 as one

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00:25:05,190 –> 00:25:12,790
example of that, where we have
this very graphic description of

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00:25:13,390 –> 00:25:22,310
the fear of God induced by
mighty powers, verse 10 Enter

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00:25:22,310 –> 00:25:25,750
into the rock and hide thee in
the dust, for fear of the Lord

326
00:25:25,950 –> 00:25:30,390
and for glory of His Majesty,
the lofty looks of man shall be

327
00:25:30,390 –> 00:25:34,950
humbled, the haughtiness of men
shall be bowed down, and the

328
00:25:34,950 –> 00:25:38,150
Lord alone shall be exalted in
that day.

329
00:25:39,630 –> 00:25:43,450
And verse 21.
To go into the clefts of the

330
00:25:43,450 –> 00:25:46,930
rocks, into the tops of the
ragged rocks, for fear of the

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00:25:46,930 –> 00:25:50,010
Lord, and for the glory of His
Majesty.

332
00:25:50,530 –> 00:25:53,570
When he arises to shake terribly
the earth.

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00:25:55,890 –> 00:26:01,170
God does it because He knows
that that is the only way that

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00:26:01,170 –> 00:26:07,330
he is going to begin the process
of instruction and knowledge and

335
00:26:07,330 –> 00:26:12,960
wisdom for a world that has gone
so hopelessly wrong and and we

336
00:26:12,960 –> 00:26:16,480
can see it.
We can see every time we we open

337
00:26:16,480 –> 00:26:19,960
our papers or or switch on our
Internet news.

338
00:26:20,240 –> 00:26:24,080
We can see that the world is
going further and further away

339
00:26:24,080 –> 00:26:26,360
from the instruction of the
Lord.

340
00:26:26,840 –> 00:26:29,960
That there are laws being
ushered in in virtually every

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00:26:29,960 –> 00:26:34,200
country that contradict the
principles that the Bible is

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00:26:34,200 –> 00:26:37,360
teaching us.
And so it is that people will

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00:26:37,360 –> 00:26:41,080
have to be given this fear of
the Lord.

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00:26:41,710 –> 00:26:46,990
Now, once we have begun our
walk, once we have been

345
00:26:46,990 –> 00:26:51,590
instructed in the things of God,
once we have come to Christ, we

346
00:26:51,590 –> 00:26:54,070
have made our commitment through
baptism.

347
00:26:55,350 –> 00:27:00,710
Does does there need to be any
sense of awe, of fear of God?

348
00:27:02,350 –> 00:27:05,790
Well, I I think there does.
I think God at times had to

349
00:27:05,790 –> 00:27:09,300
rekindle in Israel this sense of
fear.

350
00:27:09,980 –> 00:27:13,300
Little ways, not not mighty ways
as he began.

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00:27:13,980 –> 00:27:17,380
Just turn for example to First
Samuel in Chapter 11.

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00:27:18,780 –> 00:27:24,020
Here we just see a small example
of how God caused his fear to

353
00:27:24,020 –> 00:27:30,140
come upon the people.
First Samuel Chapter 11, verses

354
00:27:30,420 –> 00:27:39,080
6 and six through to 8.
And the Spirit of God came upon

355
00:27:39,080 –> 00:27:41,920
soul when he heard those things,
and his anger was kindled

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00:27:41,920 –> 00:27:44,400
greatly.
And he took a yoke of oxen, and

357
00:27:44,400 –> 00:27:47,240
hued them in pieces, and sent
them throughout all the coast of

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00:27:47,240 –> 00:27:50,480
Israel by the hands of
messengers, saying, Peace

359
00:27:50,480 –> 00:27:54,360
overcometh not forth after soul.
And after Samuel so shall it be

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00:27:54,360 –> 00:27:59,440
done unto his oxen.
And the fear of the Lord fell on

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00:27:59,440 –> 00:28:01,520
the people, and they came out
with one consent.

362
00:28:02,520 –> 00:28:07,510
Understand that it wasn’t the
fear of soul that’s being talked

363
00:28:07,510 –> 00:28:09,550
about.
You might think, well the soul

364
00:28:09,550 –> 00:28:11,590
did this graphic thing and
people are a bit frightened that

365
00:28:11,590 –> 00:28:14,470
soul might cut them up if they
didn’t respond, but it doesn’t

366
00:28:14,470 –> 00:28:17,310
say that.
It says that the fear of the

367
00:28:17,310 –> 00:28:21,350
Lord because soul was simply the
Lord’s instrument.

368
00:28:21,350 –> 00:28:26,030
The spirit of the Lord verse six
had come upon him wasn’t soul.

369
00:28:26,030 –> 00:28:30,750
It was the Lord who was at work
here to bring this sense of fear

370
00:28:31,070 –> 00:28:34,790
so that the people would respond
as God wanted them to respond at

371
00:28:34,950 –> 00:28:41,320
that time.
Now open Luke chapter 12.

372
00:28:42,600 –> 00:28:45,840
Our Lord has something to say on
this theme.

373
00:28:50,080 –> 00:28:54,400
Luke chapter 12 and verse four
and five.

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00:28:55,320 –> 00:29:01,080
Now notice Luke chapter 12 is a
message first one to his

375
00:29:01,080 –> 00:29:03,160
disciples.
He began to sign to his

376
00:29:03,160 –> 00:29:08,170
disciples first of all.
And so this is a message to us

377
00:29:10,010 –> 00:29:13,370
this for I sound to you, my
friends, be not afraid of them

378
00:29:13,370 –> 00:29:16,410
that kill the body, and after
that have no more that they can

379
00:29:16,410 –> 00:29:19,170
do.
But I will forewarn you whom you

380
00:29:19,170 –> 00:29:23,650
shall fear.
Fear him which has, which after

381
00:29:23,650 –> 00:29:26,490
he has killed, have power to
cast into hell.

382
00:29:26,770 –> 00:29:31,650
Yeah, I sound to you, fear him.
And there’s a clear exhortation

383
00:29:32,290 –> 00:29:36,660
from the Lord to Don’t fear man,
but but do fear God.

384
00:29:37,620 –> 00:29:39,420
Don’t say, well, I I fear
nobody.

385
00:29:39,820 –> 00:29:44,180
I don’t fear man or God.
That’s what the unjust judge

386
00:29:44,180 –> 00:29:45,540
said.
I don’t fear God.

387
00:29:45,540 –> 00:29:49,220
I don’t fear anybody.
Jesus says don’t be like that.

388
00:29:49,900 –> 00:29:53,300
Certainly don’t fear man, but
fear God.

389
00:29:54,500 –> 00:30:00,500
In fact, the wise man at the end
of his experiment with life, as

390
00:30:00,500 –> 00:30:04,520
it were, and Ecclesiastes Trove
tells us that that’s the

391
00:30:04,520 –> 00:30:06,280
conclusion of the whole matter,
doesn’t it?

392
00:30:07,840 –> 00:30:10,480
In words which I’m sure you know
very well.

393
00:30:11,480 –> 00:30:16,880
Verse 13 of Ecclesiastes 12 Let
us hear the conclusion of the

394
00:30:16,880 –> 00:30:20,760
whole matter.
Fear God and keep His

395
00:30:20,760 –> 00:30:24,480
commandments, for this is the
whole duty of man.

396
00:30:24,480 –> 00:30:26,760
Notice, by the way, duty there
in italics.

397
00:30:27,040 –> 00:30:32,270
It reads much more completely if
we read it as Britain, fear God

398
00:30:32,270 –> 00:30:37,470
and keep His commandments for
this, the whole of man, that’s

399
00:30:37,470 –> 00:30:41,070
all we are.
It’s not just not a duty, it’s

400
00:30:41,310 –> 00:30:47,430
all that there is that is worth
having in life is a life in

401
00:30:47,430 –> 00:30:51,390
conformity with God’s
commandments because we fear him

402
00:30:53,070 –> 00:30:57,670
and the Lord.
Jesus Christ himself had an

403
00:30:57,670 –> 00:31:02,750
element of this as we read again
from a verse we know well in

404
00:31:02,750 –> 00:31:08,750
Hebrews chapter 5, a verse we
often turn through to show the

405
00:31:08,750 –> 00:31:13,790
Lord shared our nature.
And we read verse 7:00 and 8:00

406
00:31:14,390 –> 00:31:16,830
during the days of His flesh,
when he had offered up prayers

407
00:31:16,830 –> 00:31:20,390
and supplications, with strong
crying and tears unto him, that

408
00:31:20,390 –> 00:31:26,550
was able to save him from death
and was heard in that he feared.

409
00:31:28,600 –> 00:31:32,720
And the margin there has tried
to turn around and say all his

410
00:31:32,880 –> 00:31:37,920
his piety, because they have a
problem with the fact that Jesus

411
00:31:37,920 –> 00:31:46,800
feared his Father.
But he did indeed seek to do the

412
00:31:46,800 –> 00:31:51,160
Father’s will, because he stood
in awe of all that the Father

413
00:31:51,400 –> 00:31:56,170
represented.
And many great men of old, many

414
00:31:56,170 –> 00:32:03,930
great men of wonderful faith,
operated at a level of fear that

415
00:32:04,050 –> 00:32:10,290
God was not to be tampered with.
For example, Noah Noah in

416
00:32:10,290 –> 00:32:14,370
Hebrews 11 we are told prepared
an ark.

417
00:32:15,890 –> 00:32:20,590
Now why did he prepare an ark?
Verse 7 By faith now are being

418
00:32:20,590 –> 00:32:26,310
warned of God of things not seen
as yet moved with fear, prepared

419
00:32:26,310 –> 00:32:28,270
an ark to the saving of his
house.

420
00:32:29,430 –> 00:32:34,150
He was quite sure that God meant
what he said and that there was

421
00:32:34,150 –> 00:32:37,430
no tampering with God.
And I think this is the

422
00:32:37,710 –> 00:32:42,510
important thing that we have to
carry through our whole walk in

423
00:32:42,510 –> 00:32:45,870
Christ.
Sure, we will move gradually

424
00:32:45,870 –> 00:32:49,690
from a position of terror, as
some of the Israelites would

425
00:32:49,690 –> 00:32:54,610
have felt, to a position of
great security and of great

426
00:32:54,610 –> 00:32:58,250
love.
But I think in that movement we

427
00:32:58,370 –> 00:33:06,330
we must retain an element of awe
and of fear that our God is not

428
00:33:06,330 –> 00:33:11,450
to be tampered with.
And we’re reminded of that in

429
00:33:11,450 –> 00:33:17,310
the words of the New Testament
in the 12th chapter of Hebrews,

430
00:33:18,230 –> 00:33:23,070
having talked about the the
quaking, regarding Moses reading

431
00:33:23,070 –> 00:33:27,190
from verse 28 and 29, Wherefore
we, receiving a Kingdom which

432
00:33:27,190 –> 00:33:32,110
cannot be removed, be moved?
Let us have grace we may,

433
00:33:32,270 –> 00:33:36,270
whereby we may serve God
acceptably with reverence and

434
00:33:36,270 –> 00:33:41,230
godly fear.
For our God is a consuming fire.

435
00:33:43,360 –> 00:33:50,000
So we cannot ever, I think, say,
well, I don’t, I don’t have to

436
00:33:50,160 –> 00:33:54,720
fear God If we were perfect,
yes, in the Kingdom, yes.

437
00:33:55,880 –> 00:34:01,280
But let’s face it, there’s a
very clear test, I think, for

438
00:34:01,280 –> 00:34:07,760
myself as to why I need to have
a greater sense of the fear of

439
00:34:07,760 –> 00:34:09,719
God.
Maybe for yourself.

440
00:34:11,670 –> 00:34:19,190
My actions, which I do, are
usually within the law, both

441
00:34:19,190 –> 00:34:21,350
within God’s law and within
human law.

442
00:34:22,909 –> 00:34:29,590
My words are usually within
God’s law and with human law,

443
00:34:31,429 –> 00:34:37,510
but my thoughts are very, very
often outside of God’s law and

444
00:34:37,510 –> 00:34:41,480
even human law.
I sometimes in my mind think of

445
00:34:41,480 –> 00:34:45,560
doing things that I I’m I’m just
so blessed.

446
00:34:45,760 –> 00:34:50,639
I feel that people don’t know
about and why don’t I do them?

447
00:34:52,199 –> 00:34:55,960
Well, I don’t do very often
those things because what would

448
00:34:55,960 –> 00:34:59,320
people think?
I mean, I just couldn’t afford

449
00:34:59,640 –> 00:35:03,000
emotionally to do those things
because I couldn’t cope with the

450
00:35:03,000 –> 00:35:07,890
reaction of all the people I
love and many of the things that

451
00:35:07,890 –> 00:35:12,450
I might think about saying, I
won’t say because I know what

452
00:35:12,450 –> 00:35:17,610
people will think, but my
thoughts, they’re my own.

453
00:35:19,250 –> 00:35:20,610
But then they’re not our own,
are they?

454
00:35:22,330 –> 00:35:26,330
The Bible’s very clear that
every thought that we have, even

455
00:35:26,330 –> 00:35:29,770
before we think it, God knows
now.

456
00:35:29,770 –> 00:35:34,210
Why is it that my thoughts are
dirtier than my behavior?

457
00:35:35,800 –> 00:35:39,600
For the simple reason that I
have more fear of what you think

458
00:35:40,240 –> 00:35:43,000
right now perhaps than what my
God thinks.

459
00:35:43,320 –> 00:35:47,560
And I have to remind myself
constantly that it has to be the

460
00:35:47,560 –> 00:35:51,160
other way around and that God is
looking on the inside.

461
00:35:51,160 –> 00:35:54,480
God is looking on my thoughts,
God is looking on my heart.

462
00:35:56,280 –> 00:36:02,290
And therefore I have to see that
my thoughts, not just my words,

463
00:36:02,290 –> 00:36:05,930
not just my actions.
My thoughts must be brought

464
00:36:06,170 –> 00:36:12,210
under his control because he
knows what I’m thinking now on

465
00:36:12,210 –> 00:36:15,930
1/2 of me.
Of course I my motivation is is

466
00:36:15,930 –> 00:36:20,250
the motivation of love.
I want to please God, but there

467
00:36:20,250 –> 00:36:26,130
is definitely an element that
says, look, I I’m afraid to

468
00:36:26,130 –> 00:36:29,640
think like that because God
knows what I’m thinking.

469
00:36:30,200 –> 00:36:34,760
And I think for me that’s a
telling point that therefore

470
00:36:34,960 –> 00:36:39,600
there has to be still in my my
spiritual work, an element of

471
00:36:39,760 –> 00:36:44,760
fear of God.
And that’s in agreement with

472
00:36:44,760 –> 00:36:48,800
what the apostles write.
In the second chapter of

473
00:36:48,800 –> 00:36:53,880
Corinthians, Chapter 7, Paul
having in the previous chapter

474
00:36:54,160 –> 00:36:59,810
talked about the necessity of of
a pure and separated walk,

475
00:37:00,730 –> 00:37:03,290
begins in 2nd 15 seven verse
one.

476
00:37:04,490 –> 00:37:08,770
Having therefore these promises,
dearly beloved, let us cleanse

477
00:37:08,810 –> 00:37:13,610
ourselves from all filthiness of
the flesh and spirit, perfecting

478
00:37:13,610 –> 00:37:19,850
holiness in the fear of God.
Now we can cleanse ourself from

479
00:37:19,850 –> 00:37:24,450
all filthiness of the flesh,
very much because of the fear of

480
00:37:24,450 –> 00:37:32,290
man, but filthiness of the
spirit, perfecting holiness that

481
00:37:32,290 –> 00:37:38,650
requires the fear of God.
Again over in Colossians chapter

482
00:37:38,650 –> 00:37:50,710
3, reading this time from the
22nd verse, Servants obeying all

483
00:37:50,710 –> 00:37:54,190
things your masters according to
the flesh, not with I service as

484
00:37:54,190 –> 00:37:59,990
men pleases, but in singleness
of heart, fearing God that

485
00:37:59,990 –> 00:38:04,430
whatever we do for whoever we do
it, it is with the knowledge

486
00:38:05,670 –> 00:38:09,710
that I’m doing this to God and
God is not to be tampered with.

487
00:38:11,150 –> 00:38:14,550
I don’t do little things on the
side that people don’t see

488
00:38:14,550 –> 00:38:19,740
because God knows and God is not
to be tampered with.

489
00:38:20,540 –> 00:38:27,140
He’s a God of love, but he’s a
God of great power and justice.

490
00:38:28,660 –> 00:38:42,140
Again in Peter’s first epistle,
First Peter and Chapter 2, verse

491
00:38:42,140 –> 00:38:46,840
17, Honor All.
Love the brotherhood.

492
00:38:47,680 –> 00:38:52,280
Fear God, Honor the king.
That’s a pretty quick

493
00:38:52,280 –> 00:38:54,960
exhortation, isn’t it?
4 injunctions in one little

494
00:38:54,960 –> 00:38:57,440
verse.
Honor everybody.

495
00:38:57,680 –> 00:39:01,040
Give respect to everybody.
Love your brothers.

496
00:39:02,080 –> 00:39:08,680
Fear God, Honor the authorities.
And see when he had to pick out

497
00:39:08,680 –> 00:39:12,760
one thing that that was needed
for for these believers was to

498
00:39:12,760 –> 00:39:16,040
remind them that the
responsibility to God was to to

499
00:39:16,040 –> 00:39:18,400
fear God.
Now we know that that’s not a

500
00:39:18,400 –> 00:39:21,920
fear of absolute terror.
That’s not just shaking in your

501
00:39:21,920 –> 00:39:24,440
shoes as the Israelites started
out.

502
00:39:25,520 –> 00:39:30,040
It is a a healthy respect and
reference for God.

503
00:39:30,320 –> 00:39:36,180
But that underlying thought, as
I said before, our God is a

504
00:39:36,180 –> 00:39:39,740
consuming fire.
We don’t tamper with God.

505
00:39:40,580 –> 00:39:43,820
We we don’t take the things of
God, like, and that’s what Anna

506
00:39:43,820 –> 00:39:47,180
and Safari did, didn’t they?
They just didn’t have the fear

507
00:39:47,180 –> 00:39:49,660
of God.
They they thought, we’ll get

508
00:39:49,660 –> 00:39:51,700
away with it, we’ll get some
advantage.

509
00:39:51,980 –> 00:39:54,700
And they didn’t see it as
something so terrible.

510
00:39:55,580 –> 00:39:58,500
I thought, oh, well, that’s just
a little bit of way of like

511
00:39:58,780 –> 00:40:00,740
making extra money.
It’s not hurting anybody.

512
00:40:00,740 –> 00:40:02,020
At least they’re getting half
the money.

513
00:40:02,020 –> 00:40:08,130
They could get nothing.
But it was tampering, tampering

514
00:40:08,130 –> 00:40:14,170
with God, And God answered in in
our most dramatic way.

515
00:40:14,970 –> 00:40:18,050
And I think that’s a lot of our
problem, isn’t it, that we tend

516
00:40:18,050 –> 00:40:21,930
to play down the seriousness of
our sin?

517
00:40:22,490 –> 00:40:26,170
We tend to say, look, it’s only
something small, It doesn’t

518
00:40:26,170 –> 00:40:28,730
matter so much.
Anyway, just this once, it’s

519
00:40:28,770 –> 00:40:35,310
okay and I think God goes out of
his way in the Bible to to show

520
00:40:35,310 –> 00:40:38,910
us again and again that that sin
is horrible.

521
00:40:40,110 –> 00:40:41,830
And let’s look at it right at
the beginning.

522
00:40:41,990 –> 00:40:45,390
He he started out OK, they took
a fruit they were told not to

523
00:40:45,390 –> 00:40:46,950
do.
And we think, well, who suffers

524
00:40:46,950 –> 00:40:49,070
from that weather?
What’s the real problem?

525
00:40:50,150 –> 00:40:53,790
But then God in the very next
sin recorded has a brother kill

526
00:40:53,790 –> 00:40:57,230
his own brother and says that’s
why it matters.

527
00:40:58,230 –> 00:41:02,350
You think just something little.
But if it’s not my standard,

528
00:41:02,350 –> 00:41:06,070
whose standard is it?
The next thing from just taking

529
00:41:06,070 –> 00:41:07,590
a piece of fruit is killing your
brother.

530
00:41:08,990 –> 00:41:12,630
And God gives us these two
extremes to to show to us that

531
00:41:12,790 –> 00:41:16,430
sin is like this and sin is
deadly.

532
00:41:16,430 –> 00:41:18,110
Why?
Why does he use a second?

533
00:41:18,710 –> 00:41:21,670
He uses the most deadly animal
that that we have.

534
00:41:21,670 –> 00:41:25,510
Because it bites you.
You look OK, but inside that

535
00:41:25,510 –> 00:41:29,560
poison is killing you.
You look at the human kingdoms

536
00:41:29,560 –> 00:41:33,680
described in the Bible that are
are controlled by the flesh,

537
00:41:33,680 –> 00:41:36,640
controlled by sin.
They’re always grotesque

538
00:41:36,640 –> 00:41:38,200
animals.
Wild animals.

539
00:41:38,480 –> 00:41:41,160
Daniel Chapter 7 that kill and
devour.

540
00:41:41,160 –> 00:41:43,080
They’re destructive.
Why?

541
00:41:43,080 –> 00:41:46,960
Because God is telling us that
sin is destructive.

542
00:41:46,960 –> 00:41:50,240
Don’t sin.
I have to.

543
00:41:51,000 –> 00:41:54,040
I have to bring vengeance upon
sin.

544
00:41:54,480 –> 00:41:58,060
So don’t sin.
And of course if you do sin,

545
00:41:58,740 –> 00:42:03,340
seek forgiveness and say sorry
about it and a world that

546
00:42:03,340 –> 00:42:19,340
doesn’t has to be destroyed.
Philippians Chapter 2 and here I

547
00:42:19,340 –> 00:42:24,110
think Paul brings together two
very important principles

548
00:42:24,390 –> 00:42:28,590
regarding our work.
Remembering that that fear,

549
00:42:29,470 –> 00:42:36,190
remembering that that awe and
reverence is necessary, that we

550
00:42:36,190 –> 00:42:40,590
might be instructed, that we
might learn that we might have

551
00:42:40,590 –> 00:42:42,910
knowledge and wisdom.
Fear of the Lord is the

552
00:42:42,910 –> 00:42:46,550
beginning of knowledge,
instruction, wisdom.

553
00:42:47,790 –> 00:42:54,320
OK, Livings 2 versus verse 12.
Wherefore, my beloved, as ye

554
00:42:54,320 –> 00:42:57,720
have always obeyed, not in my
presence only, but now much more

555
00:42:57,720 –> 00:43:03,480
in my absence, work out your own
salvation with fear and

556
00:43:03,480 –> 00:43:09,040
trembling.
Now notice Paul is first of all

557
00:43:09,040 –> 00:43:14,040
pointing out in this chapter.
Look, don’t listen to me simply

558
00:43:14,040 –> 00:43:16,400
because I’m there.
And while Paul’s saying it, you

559
00:43:16,400 –> 00:43:18,440
know, we don’t want to upset
Paul.

560
00:43:18,600 –> 00:43:22,120
We’re a bit afraid of Paul, so
we have to agree with him.

561
00:43:23,000 –> 00:43:25,320
No, he says.
You’ve done it in my presence.

562
00:43:26,200 –> 00:43:28,320
Now do it much more in my
absence, whether I’m there or

563
00:43:28,320 –> 00:43:31,160
not.
It’s not a fear of me that

564
00:43:31,160 –> 00:43:37,520
should control your behavior.
It’s not a fear of the of some

565
00:43:37,560 –> 00:43:42,460
senior brother or sister who
might see us that controls our

566
00:43:42,460 –> 00:43:47,580
behavior.
Work out your own salvation with

567
00:43:47,580 –> 00:43:50,100
fear and trembling.
It’s up to you.

568
00:43:52,020 –> 00:43:56,660
You.
You can’t depend on the faith

569
00:43:56,660 –> 00:43:58,940
and control of your brothers and
sisters.

570
00:43:59,020 –> 00:44:03,420
Ultimately it’s up to you and
you having a relationship with

571
00:44:03,420 –> 00:44:08,610
God yourself where you fear God,
not that the cleisure fears God

572
00:44:08,610 –> 00:44:10,530
and you’re a member and so
that’s the way it is.

573
00:44:10,810 –> 00:44:14,050
You personally have a fear of
God.

574
00:44:14,050 –> 00:44:20,810
I personally need a fear of God
and why do I need to have this?

575
00:44:20,970 –> 00:44:23,090
He says.
Why do I need to have this

576
00:44:23,090 –> 00:44:30,010
respect for God verse 13.
Because it is God that works in

577
00:44:30,010 –> 00:44:34,290
you both to will and to do of
his good pleasure.

578
00:44:36,780 –> 00:44:41,420
God is the force that is working
in you, and if you don’t have

579
00:44:41,420 –> 00:44:45,820
respect to that, then there’s
going to be terrible chaos in

580
00:44:45,820 –> 00:44:50,540
your life.
You have to acknowledge God’s

581
00:44:50,540 –> 00:44:54,820
authority, God’s power, because
that’s the power that’s now

582
00:44:54,820 –> 00:44:56,780
inside you in Christ Jesus
working.

583
00:44:58,440 –> 00:45:01,960
And it’s important that we tie
these two verses together, as

584
00:45:01,960 –> 00:45:06,200
Paul does, that we work out our
own salvation with fear and

585
00:45:06,200 –> 00:45:08,920
trembling.
And that’s not saying that we do

586
00:45:08,920 –> 00:45:14,520
it ourselves.
That’s saying because for it is

587
00:45:14,520 –> 00:45:22,040
God who’s working in you, and it
is God therefore that you must

588
00:45:22,280 –> 00:45:25,240
respect.
And if we don’t have that

589
00:45:25,240 –> 00:45:30,100
respect of God, then God cannot
work in us.

590
00:45:31,100 –> 00:45:37,100
God can not do his will, He
cannot do his pleasure.

591
00:45:38,300 –> 00:45:43,780
And so it’s necessary, even,
says Paul, that right now we

592
00:45:43,780 –> 00:45:46,660
have this sense of fear before
God.

593
00:45:47,660 –> 00:45:51,580
And I think very often as
members of an ecleisure, we we

594
00:45:51,580 –> 00:45:56,500
can depend very much on the
ecleisure, perhaps sometimes

595
00:45:56,500 –> 00:46:00,250
even too much, rather than
depending on our God.

596
00:46:00,730 –> 00:46:06,130
I think God taught Israel very
important lesson because they

597
00:46:06,130 –> 00:46:09,690
were a big congregation.
It was very easy for them to

598
00:46:09,690 –> 00:46:13,370
sort of just be one of a nation.
They were born Israelites, so

599
00:46:13,370 –> 00:46:15,690
we’re God’s people.
That’s the way it is.

600
00:46:16,570 –> 00:46:20,890
It was very easy for them to
lose a sense of an individual

601
00:46:21,050 –> 00:46:26,850
relationship with God And the
law which God gave through Horeb

602
00:46:27,620 –> 00:46:33,020
again and again brings us to the
point of an individual

603
00:46:33,340 –> 00:46:38,500
relationship with God that we
each must have born of a fear of

604
00:46:38,620 –> 00:46:42,860
his great power and of his great
love to call us to himself.

605
00:46:43,340 –> 00:46:47,460
It’s a little example of that if
you just turn to the book of

606
00:46:47,460 –> 00:46:49,620
Leviticus and the very
beginning.

607
00:46:49,620 –> 00:46:53,220
The whole book is full of this,
but just at the beginning of the

608
00:46:53,220 –> 00:46:55,900
book.
As an example, Leviticus chapter

609
00:46:55,900 –> 00:47:03,750
One, the ridiculous one, is
about the burnt offering that

610
00:47:04,350 –> 00:47:09,670
had to be brought by anybody who
was going to approach the Lord

611
00:47:09,670 –> 00:47:11,550
and wanted atonement for their
sin.

612
00:47:13,310 –> 00:47:16,950
And we read in verse three of
this offering that had to be

613
00:47:16,950 –> 00:47:20,150
brought and it was a male
without blemish.

614
00:47:20,150 –> 00:47:23,270
So of course it is the Lord
Jesus Christ that is being

615
00:47:23,270 –> 00:47:26,980
talked about, the Lord Jesus
Christ, the one through whom we

616
00:47:26,980 –> 00:47:34,660
have the Atonement, first four,
And He shall put his hand upon

617
00:47:34,660 –> 00:47:40,500
the head of the burnt offering.
Now if you’ve got a reference

618
00:47:40,500 –> 00:47:45,180
Bible, you will find the cross
reference there gives you a host

619
00:47:45,180 –> 00:47:49,820
of examples, and there are many,
many more where the Bible tells

620
00:47:49,820 –> 00:47:53,980
us you shall put your hand on
the head of the offering.

621
00:47:54,960 –> 00:47:57,480
Why the head?
Why not the side?

622
00:47:57,560 –> 00:48:00,120
Why not grab the tail?
Why not the leg?

623
00:48:00,960 –> 00:48:04,600
Why the head?
Because the head of the body is

624
00:48:04,600 –> 00:48:11,360
Christ, and unless each one of
us has our own individual

625
00:48:11,360 –> 00:48:16,680
relationship with God through
Christ, we cannot go forward in

626
00:48:16,680 –> 00:48:20,360
our growth.
You cannot have a relationship

627
00:48:20,360 –> 00:48:25,190
with God by holding the leg,
some strong member of the

628
00:48:25,190 –> 00:48:30,590
eclesia, by holding the side,
any other part of the body,

629
00:48:30,590 –> 00:48:34,750
because you are not joining the
eclesia, you’re joining God

630
00:48:34,750 –> 00:48:37,990
through Christ.
The hand must be on the head,

631
00:48:38,590 –> 00:48:42,710
and then it will be accepted to
make atonement for him.

632
00:48:45,030 –> 00:48:50,570
And so it is that the fear of
God is an important element in

633
00:48:50,570 –> 00:48:54,130
developing this individual
relationship with God.

634
00:48:55,450 –> 00:48:59,410
Not fear of the ecclesia, not
fear of family or brothers and

635
00:48:59,410 –> 00:49:03,090
sisters.
Fear of God through Christ

636
00:49:03,090 –> 00:49:08,010
Jesus.
And it’s for each one of us, if

637
00:49:08,010 –> 00:49:13,610
we are going to, if we are going
to walk in a way that draws us

638
00:49:13,610 –> 00:49:17,530
close to God, we’re going to
have to remind ourselves

639
00:49:17,530 –> 00:49:21,250
constantly that this is where
our contact point has to be.

640
00:49:21,530 –> 00:49:26,970
And it’s interesting that Paul
in Colossionist Chapter 2 picks

641
00:49:26,970 –> 00:49:34,530
up on this point of holding the
head and he says Colossionist 2

642
00:49:35,290 –> 00:49:42,490
talking about those who were not
fearing God but seeking to puff

643
00:49:42,490 –> 00:49:47,510
themselves up.
He says verse 19 not holding the

644
00:49:47,510 –> 00:49:51,750
head from which all a body by
joints and bands having

645
00:49:51,750 –> 00:49:55,190
nourishment, administered and
knit together, increases with

646
00:49:55,190 –> 00:50:00,590
the increase of God.
It’s essential that each one of

647
00:50:00,590 –> 00:50:06,550
us hold on to the head, that
each one of us has our

648
00:50:06,790 –> 00:50:10,510
individual relationship with
Christ.

649
00:50:11,910 –> 00:50:18,860
And even men, as we said, are of
great faith, were men and women

650
00:50:19,380 –> 00:50:23,860
who were required to experience,
sometimes again, the fear of

651
00:50:23,860 –> 00:50:26,460
God.
And Elijah, who we’re going to

652
00:50:26,460 –> 00:50:30,900
look at more in our next study,
is one who had to go back to

653
00:50:30,940 –> 00:50:37,060
Horeb to learn this lesson, that
he was small, he was nothing,

654
00:50:37,580 –> 00:50:42,320
that God was everything.
Just let us close by taking

655
00:50:42,720 –> 00:50:49,960
thoughts from that experience in
First Kings and Chapter 18,

656
00:50:51,920 –> 00:50:55,440
Chapter 19.
Rather, this is after the Carmel

657
00:50:55,440 –> 00:50:59,440
experience in First Kings
Chapter 19.

658
00:51:00,520 –> 00:51:06,640
And here is Elijah, feeling
distressed, and he’s run all the

659
00:51:06,640 –> 00:51:12,560
way down to Hoeb.
We find in verse 11 of First

660
00:51:12,560 –> 00:51:18,320
Kings 19 that the Lord passed
by, and a great and strong wind

661
00:51:18,320 –> 00:51:21,960
rent the mountains and break in
pieces of rocks before the Lord.

662
00:51:22,720 –> 00:51:25,960
But the Lord was not in the
wind, not the wind and

663
00:51:25,960 –> 00:51:27,800
earthquake.
But the Lord was not in the

664
00:51:27,800 –> 00:51:30,800
earthquake, and after the
earthquake of fire.

665
00:51:30,800 –> 00:51:36,360
But the Lord was not in the
fire, and after the fire a still

666
00:51:36,640 –> 00:51:41,980
small voice.
Now Elijah had just done

667
00:51:41,980 –> 00:51:47,540
dramatic things.
He just put the fear of God into

668
00:51:47,540 –> 00:51:50,940
the people by slaying 400
prophets of bail.

669
00:51:53,220 –> 00:51:59,260
But here God is having to say to
Elijah, you also Elijah, you

670
00:51:59,260 –> 00:52:05,020
need the fear of God.
He brought great power, he said.

671
00:52:05,020 –> 00:52:07,100
But Elijah, I’m not always in
that.

672
00:52:09,010 –> 00:52:13,370
And it was through the still
small voice which, when when

673
00:52:13,370 –> 00:52:17,530
Elijah heard it, he wrapped his
face in his mantle and went out

674
00:52:17,530 –> 00:52:20,210
and stood.
That still small voice was

675
00:52:20,850 –> 00:52:24,850
almost more frightening than
these great signs of power.

676
00:52:25,970 –> 00:52:30,850
Elijah had to be humbled.
He had to be instructed that,

677
00:52:30,850 –> 00:52:34,490
Elijah, you are nothing.
I don’t need you, Elijah.

678
00:52:34,880 –> 00:52:37,400
I’ve got 7000.
People in Israel have about the

679
00:52:37,400 –> 00:52:40,000
need to bail.
If you want retirement, Elijah,

680
00:52:40,000 –> 00:52:42,440
that’s fine.
I’ll appoint somebody else.

681
00:52:42,600 –> 00:52:45,480
That’s not a problem for me.
You’re not indispensable.

682
00:52:46,080 –> 00:52:52,400
He thought he was.
He’d lost to some degree, his

683
00:52:52,400 –> 00:52:55,520
fear of God.
That he was nothing.

684
00:52:56,040 –> 00:52:59,280
That God was everything.
That it wasn’t he.

685
00:52:59,920 –> 00:53:03,570
I alone am left, and I rely to
you you’re not.

686
00:53:03,770 –> 00:53:06,890
It is God that worketh in you to
will and do of his good

687
00:53:06,890 –> 00:53:11,530
pleasure.
And we have to remember that

688
00:53:11,890 –> 00:53:15,730
that will humble us, to realize
that we are nothing.

689
00:53:18,130 –> 00:53:23,610
So here we stand, brother and
sisters, stand now centuries

690
00:53:23,610 –> 00:53:31,610
later, but still standing in awe
of the great and mighty God.

691
00:53:33,570 –> 00:53:37,850
You know of him because of his
great power, but because of his

692
00:53:37,850 –> 00:53:41,970
great love.
And we hear the still small

693
00:53:41,970 –> 00:53:46,850
voice and we almost wrap
ourselves in embarrassment and

694
00:53:46,850 –> 00:53:50,010
think, is that is that really
calling me?

695
00:53:50,970 –> 00:53:58,570
And it is God is calling us to
respond to journey to the

696
00:53:58,570 –> 00:54:02,380
Promised Land.
We’ll begin our journey with

697
00:54:02,380 –> 00:54:05,420
fear.
That fear grows to a holy

698
00:54:05,420 –> 00:54:11,820
reverence that we can walk
humbly with our God until Jesus

699
00:54:11,820 –> 00:54:27,300
comes.
Thank you for listening to the

700
00:54:27,300 –> 00:54:29,020
good Christadelphian Talks
Podcast.

701
00:54:29,780 –> 00:54:32,860
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702
00:54:32,860 –> 00:54:34,640
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710
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719
00:55:22,430 –> 00:55:24,430
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