‘The
fear of the Lord leads to life’ (Proverbs 19:23). ‘The friendship of
the Lord is for those who fear Him’ (Psalm 25:14). Lord, we read these
words, and we think, ‘What a strange combination – friendship and fear!’ We ask, ‘How can there be friendship where there is fear?’ Here, we have a special kind of friendship – ‘the friendship of the Lord’ – and a special kind of fear – ‘the fear of the Lord’.
Why is this friendship and fear so special? It’s because You, Lord,
are special! You are the God of perfect holiness – ‘Holy, holy, holy is
the Lord Almighty.’ Help us to come before You in ‘the fear of the Lord’
– ‘Woe is me! I am undone; I am a man of unclean lips…’. You are the
God of perfect love. You He call us into friendship with Yourself –
‘Your guilt is taken away and your sin forgiven’ (Isaiah 6:3,5,7). We
rejoice in ‘the friendship of the Lord’. Help us to respect You with
‘the fear of the Lord’.
By Your grace, Lord, You call us to be Your soldiers and servants. Help us not to be "fearful and fainthearted" (Deuteronomy 19:19). Help us to be "good soldiers of Jesus Christ" (2 Timothy 2:3). When we hear your challenging question: "Who is on the Lord's side?", may we give our committed answer: "By Thy call of mercy, by Thy grace divine, we are on the Lord's side; Saviour, we are Thine."
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