“But What of Fearing God”

Mark 8:38 ³⁸For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”

            Let’s talk about fearing God.  In the past I preached to you that the fear of God is like respecting Him.  That was not entirely everything there is to know about fearing God.  There is actually much more to learn about fearing God, and I need to pass this on to you.  First, I apologize that I did not teach you this before. 

As Paul Harvey would say, "And now the rest of the story."  Fearing God can take on many forms especially when you consider the love God has for us and the anger God is capable of having when we reject Him completely.

            St. Mark points out that we should fear God's rejection as we might reject Him.  To summarize St. Mark if we are ashamed of Christ then He will be ashamed of us. So, are you ashamed of being a Christian?  Are you ashamed to speak out that Christ is your savior?  And, are you too ashamed to share the gospel? 

To some in our unbelieving world, they think we believe in a fairytale.  Others try to use their knowledge of science (or actually lack of knowledge) to put down anyone who says they believe in God.  The truth is if you are ashamed to admit unwaveringly that you are a Christian, Christ sadly might have good reason to be ashamed of you.  This would be something to fear.

Mark 8:27–33 ²⁷And Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi. And on the way he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” ²⁸And they told him, “John the Baptist; and others say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets.” ²⁹And he asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the Christ.”

            What if we rewrote this by saying "and "The Body of Christ (The Church) asked who do you say I am?" What do you think some would say we are?  Of course you need to understand the cultural setting of the audience Jesus was addressing.  Jesus spoke to the apostles who have been with Jesus both day and night and on most of His journeys. 

What if Jesus had approached a different audience, one that had not followed Him or stayed with Him day and night?  What would the answers Jesus would receive from the unbelieving world be like?  Some might say The Body of Christ (the Church) any more just appears to be a Christian social club that includes rituals and some sort of worship to a non-existing higher power. 

            The way our churches are falling away from being in the word of God, being a Christian social club might fit whether we are offended by that or not.  What resemblance to the church of the apostles do we have, our churches are more like the seven churches St. John writes about in the second and third chapters in the book of Revelation or the church of the Corinthians, and Colossians.  We can be offended by this and that is good because we might actually try to do something about it by painting a better picture of the Church.

            Why are our churches failing?  The churches don't grow because the congregations have given up.  Is it because we no longer fear God.  We have preached Law and Gospel, and at times too much law and at times too much gospel.  Have we watered down Christianity to the point that we just think it was too bad that we heard about those Christians who were just martyred?  I bet they feared God more than they feared their executioners.

But what of fearing God, I fear that I tried to appease you at times and withheld the meaning of fearing God you should have in you.  Because quite frankly we should fear God and be trembling in our seats.  Why fear God?  God got angry with a world that stopped worshiping Him and baptized it by flooding it and killing all the sin that rotted the earth He had created.  God got angry at two cities that turned to lust and even tried to pervert that which is God's.  Both cases you have heard about even if you did not read the scriptures about them.  God wiped these two adulterous cities out of existence. What part of fearing God do we not understand?

Mark 8:34–38 ³⁴And he called to him the crowd with his disciples and said to them, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. ³⁵For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it. ³⁶For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his life? ³⁷For what can a man give in return for his life?

            Is it all about you?  Is it all about me?  No, it is all about God and what He will create when it is all said and done.  Why deny ourselves to follow Jesus?  Don't we believe we can do both, sin with the world and follow Christ and then believe it's ok as long as we define God in the image we want Him to be in.  What's there to fear, God promised not to destroy the earth with a flood, and we certainly have not seen God destroy those cities we label as adulterous.  We won't see a flood, but the brimstone is coming for all who do not believe.

            What we fail to see is that all of our cities big or small are falling more and more away from God.  Some have made the statement that the synod and the pastors should do something about the schools and what they no longer allow, or stop them from teaching against God.  But the questions is, are we not all believers and are we then not all in this together.  Why are we not all doing something to stop the world from destroying our freedom to worship God? 

            I know what you're going to ask, what can we do about it?  I am only one and what can one do?  We can start by putting all other things aside, deny ourselves, and pick up our cross ask God to use each of us to be a tool in growing His Church. 

            The Body of Christ is asking, who do you say I am.  Some say we are the children of God.  Some say the church of the Apostles.  Some say we are the parts of the Body of Christ working together to populate heaven.  And, some say we are the Body of Christ working towards the growth of the Kingdom of God.  But who do you say we are?

Romans 5:10–11 ¹⁰For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. ¹¹More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

            You see we give up and it would seem we would fear that God has given up, but the good news is He has not.  For Christ died on the cross to save us from ourselves.  Christ was pierced for our transgressions.  Christ was nailed to a cross to receive us in our worst times with open arms.  Christ was buried to take our sins to hell, and Christ was raised to populate heaven, giving us eternal life and relationship with our creator God, savior Christ, and counselor Holy Spirit.  Amen.