September 11 - Fear To Follow.

1 Samuel 12:14
“If ye will fear the LORD, and serve him, and obey his voice, and not rebel against the commandment of the LORD, then shall both ye and also the king that reigneth over you continue following the LORD your God:”
 
All throughout the Scriptures there are conditional blessings from the Lord. We can find many of them by looking for an if that is followed by a then.
 
“If…then…”
 
1 Samuel 12:14
“If ye will fear the LORD, and serve him, and obey his voice, and not rebel against the commandment of the LORD, then…”
 
The Lord used Samuel to speak unto the people of Israel and continue to teach them of the repercussions of their demanding a king.
 
Would the Lord use King Saul in the lives of His children? Absolutely. 
But it was not what the Lord had intended for them. 
 
In order to continue following the Lord, the people had to first fear Him.
This is a fear of reverence and respect for Who He is, a holy fear.
 
If we do not first fear Him, we cannot make wise decisions.
 
Proverbs 9:10
“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.”
 
Fearing the Lord leads to serving and obeying Him.
 
Joshua 24:14
“Now therefore fear the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the LORD.”
 
Some are fearful to follow Him simply because they are unwilling to give up things the flesh craves; yet, they still desire to follow.
 
Job 28:28
“And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.”
 
If we want to follow the Lord, we must first have a holy fear Him.
 
 
Bible Reading:
Isaiah 3-4   |    Revelation 17