#DailyDevotion Christians, Live In The Fear Of The LORD
Psalm 34 11Come, sons and daughters, listen to me, and I will teach you how to fear the LORD. 12Do you love life? Do you desire to live long, and enjoy good things? 13Then stop talking evil and saying deceitful things; 14turn away from wrong and do good; be eager for peace and pursue it!
Here the psalmist instructs us in what the fear of the LORD consists. He tells us in verse 13. To fear the LORD is to stop talking evil and saying deceitful things. It is to turn from wrong and do good. It is be eager for peace and pursue it. This is similar to how the author of Proverbs describes it. There he says in ch. 8, “13Fear the LORD and you’ll hate evil. I hate conceit and pride, wicked behavior and perverse speech.” If you don’t follow this instruction you don’t fear the LORD.
David asks us if we love life, desire to live long and enjoy good things. If we do, then we should fear the LORD. He is getting this from the Torah. In Deut. 11, it is written, 8“Keep all the commandments I’m now ordering you to do so that you will be strong, go in, and take the land you’re about to cross into and take over, 9and you will live long in the land the LORD swore to your fathers to give them and their descendants, a land flowing with milk and honey.” As Christians who have no home in this world, the land we are looking for, which is promised, is the New Heavens and New Earth. It’s not that we earn it because we do such things. It is the response of faith to the promise of the gift. When we have faith in the promise of the free gift of the forgiveness of our sins, we will live in the fear of the LORD. Unfortunately, we will not always live in the fear of the LORD perfectly. Which is why James calls us to confess our sins to one another. It’s why we go to the pastor for absolution. It’s why we have the gift of the LORD’s Supper. To receive the forgiveness of sins and to be strengthened in our faith in Jesus Christ our Lord.
15The LORD’s eyes are on the righteous; His ears hear their cry for help. 16But the LORD’s face is against those who do wrong, and He will wipe out all memory of them from the earth. 17When the righteous cry, the LORD hears and rescues them from all their troubles.
To have one’s eyes on someone is to care for that person. The LORD’s eyes are on those who believe in Jesus and trust His work on the cross is their salvation. To trust God’s promises is to be righteous. So He cares for us and He hears our cry for help. We are not being ignored. However, the LORD’s face is against those who do wrong. Those who do not trust His promises He will wipe out all memory of them from the earth. On the Last Day as we are ushered into the heavenly Jerusalem, He wipes away all our tears. He will give us such an awesome and amazing life we will not bring to mind the bad things or bad people we endured in this life. As it is, when we cry to the LORD, He hears and rescues us from all our troubles. Mind you, He does it in a way that is best for us and His Church, not what we demand. His ways and thoughts are above our ways and thoughts. You can trust His promise. He is faithful. If you doubt it, look to Jesus Christ crucified to know He keeps His promises.
Heavenly and Merciful Father, continually give us Your Holy Spirit that we may trust in You and perpetually live in Your fear, so we may live long in the land You will give us and enjoy all good things. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.