What Man Fears Is His God

The LORD has given me a strong warning not to think like everyone else does. He said, “Don’t call everything a conspiracy, like they do, and don’t live in dread of what frightens them. Make the LORD of Heaven’s Armies holy in your life. He is the one you should fear. He is the one who should make you tremble. [Isaiah 8.11-13] 

How do we not think like everyone else does? In simplest language: "Fear nothing but God."

The world is fearful, but not fearful of God. 

The world is fearful of lack. 

The world is fearful of not being protected. 

The world is fearful of sickness and disease. 

The world is fearful of discomfort.

Because the world does not fear God, it fears everything else. To remedy this fear of everything else except God, the world has made for itself, a plethora of named idols found in the industries of debt, insurance, medicine and technology. Through fear, the world makes these idol industries "holy" unto itself, thus making them gods. No one can deny the monetary homage paid to these gods through interest payments, premiums, prescriptions, and must-have highly entropic gadgetry. What man fears is his god. The gods of debt, insurance, medicine and technology are abundant and widespread ...even in the Church.

Fear is trust.

Plainly put, because God promised in His Word every provision and protection for His own, one cannot fear Him and still fear anything else.

In the context of today's One Year Chronological Bible reading, Isaiah reveals the truth above, but also reveals the Messiah - Jesus Christ:

For a child is born to us, a son is given to us. The government will rest on his shoulders. And he will be called: Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. [Isaiah 9.6]

Why is this important? Because Jesus' demand upon His followers contains wording that addresses not only man's fear, but his ultimate fear of death:

If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me. [Matthew 16.24 (also, Mark 8.34 & Luke 9.23)]

To please God, our only option is to give up our own way, take up our cross, and follow Jesus.

When we "take up our cross" we effectively snub our nose at every other fear up to and even including death. When we give up our own way and take up our cross, we make Jesus (God With Us) holy in our lives AND NOTHING ELSE. If we fear anything besides God, He is not holy in our lives - He is not wholly ours and we are not at all His.

Father, our idolatry makes everything said here sound radical or even fanatical. But Your Word is no lie and Jesus is the Way, Truth and Life. May we find the courage to give up our own way, take up our cross, and follow Him. May we not be found thinking like everyone else, but be found fearing nothing but You! So be it.