Sunday, May 12, 2013

REVERENTIAL AWE VS. HOLY TERROR



THE FEAR OF IAUE

REVERENTIAL AWE VS. HOLY TERROR

Proverb 16:6  By mercy and truth iniquity is purged: and by the fear of IAUE men depart from evil.

Many times in my 40+ year walk in the Spirit, I have heard many preachers and teachers speak on “the fear of the LORD,” and absolutely every one of them defined it as the “reverential awe” of “the LORD.”

As I stated in my last study, “the fear of the LORD” does not exist; because that is NOT what the Scripture actually says in ANY of the verses where this phrase is found in English translations.  It should be rendered, “the fear of IAUE.”  Why is this important?  For starters, if the Scripture does not call it the fear of the LORD, then neither should we.  Secondly, if we wrongly call it, and study it as the fear of the LORD, we will arrive at wrong conclusions, like “reverential awe.”

Reverential awe does not cause men to depart from evil.  Awe is what one experiences when one looks at a mountain range, or the sea shore, or an expansive view.  We are amazed at the wonder and greatness; but it does not change our lives.  By the fear of IAUE, men depart from evil.  When we recognize the omniscience, the omnipresence and the omnipotence of our Creator, and we are aware that He not only cares about how we live our lives; but we understand that He holds us accountable for our actions, words and even our thoughts, the knowledge of His unlimited ability to discipline us to correct our choices in life changes us.  It makes us think twice before we consider departing from the path of Truth to act selfishly. 

You might say, “That sounds good; but it has not been my experience that He disciplines me so quickly in response to my misbehavior.”  There is a reason for that.

2 Cor 10:5  Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of Elohim, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Messiah;
6  And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled.

Genuine discipleship is not promoted in the contemporary Christian world nearly as much as is having a better life.  The result is we tend to be more focused on ourselves than on our Master.  The intimate attention and discipline of the Master is reserved for those who have actually bowed their knee to Him.  Once you reach that place of rejecting your own importance and you realize that Messiah died for you as an exchange of life; you know that you are no longer your own.  You have been bought with a price, and the life you now live is not your own.  That purpose of heart will initiate your adventure into genuine discipleship.  It is then that your every act of disobedience will be answered. 

While we are concerned about the affairs of our own lives instead of knowing and doing His will, we are still living for the advancement of our own kingdom instead of His.  The very first lesson of discipleship is:

Matthew 11:29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

No yoke.  No discipleship.  Once in the yoke, you are no longer in control; and your life is harnessed to live for the will of the Master.  While you retain control of your life, you are still your own “god.”  The fear of IAUE becomes alive within the one who realizes that there is no one beside IAUE, none like Him; and none other before whom you will have to give an account of your life. 

Before we can make true advances in our discipleship, it is critical that we understand a fundamental truth.  Many believers acquire extensive academic information from teachers and preachers and from their own study of the Scripture.  The Scripture itself says it is good for doctrine; but that is not the be-all and end-all of the purpose of the Scripture.  The increase of knowledge is like watching commercials on television.  It is the marketing phase that creates in one the desire to obtain the product.  In this case, the Scripture is the “letter” (doctrine, or teaching) which points toward the “spirit,” which is the life. The letter alone produces death; but the spirit produces life; and the life is the objective. 

2 Corinthians 3:6  Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.

The problem is, most believers are satisfied with the marketing, and never obtain the actual product being advertised.  Messiah made this point to the Jews who opposed him.

John 5:37  And the Father himself, which hath sent me, hath borne witness of me. Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his shape.
38  And ye have not his word abiding in you: for whom he hath sent, him ye believe not.
39  Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me.
40  And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.

The Hebrews studied the Scriptures thinking they were an end unto themselves, that knowing the Scripture produced life; but the Scripture’s purpose is to reveal Messiah; and they rejected Him.  They missed the point entirely. All they had was death. 

The spreading of the marketing of any product is not the goal.  If no one actually buys the product, the marketing is useless.  Becoming an expert on the marketing is what advances ministries, today.  It is the reason why the world looks at the church and sees nothing to desire.  It is like observing an assembly that proclaims the wonder of a picture of a sizzling steak.  The world needs to see the change in a life that has actually tasted the steak, so the steak becomes desirable, and not the picture of the steak. 

Proverbs 23:23   Buy the truth, and sell it not…

Truth has a purchase price.  The real purpose of all marketing is to get you to pay for the product.  The masses are not paying the price to possess truth, which is why they only have the shadow and not the substance of the doctrines they believe.  This is why you, the reader, have been sitting in the middle of the congregation Sunday after Sunday knowing inside yourself that there has to be more than what has contented the masses. It is why the Sunday “worship service” tends to focus more on exciting your emotions than your spirit, to renew your enthusiasm over the marketing.  If you possessed the actual product, you would not need a cheerleader.

The problem is, I cannot give you the product.  All I can do is to attempt to create the desire within you for the product.  It is your responsibility to draw unto the Father to seek the revelation that can only be given from Him; discover what the cost is to possess the Truth (“He must increase, and I must decrease.”), pay the price, then trust in IAUE to give birth to the life within you.  This is the process for absolutely everything you learn from the Scriptures; and if you do not understand this; then following this blog will not benefit you any more than will attending church. 

This brings us back to the fear of IAUE.  It is the beginning of knowledge and the beginning of wisdom, and by it, men depart from evil.  If you only have the marketing of the fear of IAUE, you do not tremble at the thought of disobeying His will. Your academic understanding does not have the power to change your life. When the Father reveals His fear to you, you will never be the same.

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