The Blessings of the Fear of God
The prince of Yahweh's host said to Joshua: "Put off your shoe from off your foot; for the place whereon you stand is holy." Joshua did so. — Joshua 5:15
Having therefore these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God. — 2 Corinthians 7:1
Author
Faustino de Jesús Zamora Vargas
Summary: Like the new generation before Jericho, we are called to leave unfaithfulness behind and move forward in faith toward what God wants for us. Blessing requires reverent fear, renewal of the covenant, consecration, and obedience. We must remove from our hearts anything that hinders his purposes and remember that he freed us from slavery to sin. Though sin may stand in our way like Jericho, we do not conquer by our own will or with our own weapons: the battle belongs to God. He has given us his Spirit, his Word, and his Son, and has promised never to abandon us. As we walk in reverent fear of him, we recognize that he is the author of our victories.
We stand at the gates of a Jericho that blocks our way to where God wants us to go. But we are already at the gates of the promised land. We need only an act of faith and spiritual consecration to move forward and begin the conquest.
A new generation of men and women, ready to put behind them the unfaithfulness of the previous generation, who died in the wilderness and would not see the land of promise. The nomadic life in the wilderness is over; the manna has ceased. We have come home. We can settle down and now eat the fruit of the land flowing with “milk and honey,” but commitment is still required. God’s blessings will come with consecration and reverent fear of him. The conquest will be real if we trust that it is his battle, not ours. His will, not ours; his weapons, not ours.
The symbolism of the book of Joshua is astonishing for the people of God. God wants to move us forward. He has given us the most valuable resources for every kind of conquest: his Spirit, his Word…his Son. We often forget this. We must renew our part of God’s covenant and be faithful, because he has promised never to forsake us under any circumstances. We must circumcise our hearts as often as necessary, throw into the fire whatever makes us inconsistent, wavering, lukewarm, and fleshly, and from time to time celebrate the Passovers that remind us that we were once slaves to sin and that he brought us out of the refuse heap of human misery. Let us honor the Lamb. Sin is like Jericho. It stands in the way of the purposes of the Lord of the church. When the church walks in the fear of God, he conquers for us.
A new generation of Christians is rising today in every part of the world and wants to take on the role that a good portion of the previous generation could not fulfill. Many fell by the wayside. Because of their lack of faith, their unfaithfulness, their apathy, their scant fear of the Lord of history. God commands the circumcision of our inner person as a sign of consecration to his eternal purposes. Consecration that affirms what we are by his grace, consecration to live according to his will and in obedience.
Behind us lay the Jordan, the wondrous event of the waters divided by God. But victory will be assured if the covenant interrupted by sin is renewed and the people consecrate themselves by cutting away from the flesh, as a symbol of spiritual healing, everything that does not glorify God, everything that hinders his purposes. It is our own story. We need renewal—of mind, spirit, and body—so that we can see the Angel of the Lord as commander of the army of the Most High, take the dirty sandals off our feet, and worship him (Joshua 5:13–15). In the fear of God we will be blessed, because he is the author of all our victories.
May God bless his Word!
Suggested reading: Joshua 5