Thank you for that. Turn with
me, if you would, to the book of Proverbs chapter one. I was making preparation for this passage of scripture
and originally had in my mind that I would be looking at Proverbs
one verses seven to nine. And I think I'm going to just
Look at the first half of verse 7. But I'll read the seventh verse. Proverbs 1, 7, The fear of the
Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and
instruction. We just looked last week, and
we saw where the Scripture is ending up with what we had considered. Verse 5, it says, ìA wise man
will hear.î Iíll tell you why a wise man
will hear, because God gives him ears to hear. Wise, wise
man, a wise man. Paul writing to Timothy in 2
Timothy 3.15, "...and from a child thou hast known the holy Scriptures,
which are able to make thee wise unto salvation." Not wise considering
the wisdom of this world, because the wisdom of this world is foolishness. Men think that they are wise. Scripture says this man, wise
man, he will hear. He'll hear. He'll attain unto
wise counsel, good advice. That's what that means, good
advice. I'm going to give you some good advice. And the interpretation, the eloquent
speech of it that sets forth the Lord Jesus Christ. You know, the Lord spoke to His
disciples in parables. He always preached in parables.
I said this, every scripture, All Scripture is parable until
the Lord opens your eyes to see them. That's why men can stand
in pulpits now and they preach out of the very same passages,
Freddie, that we preach out of. They don't see Christ in them.
John 3, 16. Men say, that just proves God
loves everybody and wants everybody to be saved and He's made salvation
possible. I can understand how men can
read that and think that. I understand that. But until
God opens your eyes to see what is said there, you don't see
that. It's a parable. Why do you speak
in parables, Lord? Because it's given unto you to
know the mystery of the kingdom of God, and to them it's not
given. That's why. Oh, the words of the wise. proper parable, and the interpretation,
verse 6, in their dark sayings. Then Solomon, and really the
mouthpiece of the Spirit of God is what it is, the means. This
is God speaking here. The Spirit of God speaking. All
inspiration. I mean, all Scripture is given
by inspiration of God. Profitable. The fear of the Lord. is the beginning of knowledge.
I want to talk for just a minute on the fear of the Lord. And this is what it comes down
to. It means reverence. But let me tell you the word
that comes to my mind. Respect. Respect. The fear of the Lord. I just want us to consider for
just a minute the respect of God. God who is due respect. The fear
of the Lord. Here is the first thing I know
about it. The fear of the Lord, the respect of Almighty God is
not natural to the old man. Psalm 3411, come ye children,
hearken unto me, I will teach you the fear of the Lord. Fear, respect, reverence for
Almighty God is not natural to man as he is born in Adam. Respect of God. is truly protection
and safety. This is safety. Psalm 347, the angel of the Lord,
Christ Himself, the angel of the covenant, the messenger of
God, the angel of the Lord, encampeth round about them that fear Him
and delivers Him. Fear the Lord. Respect. Respect for God is the evidence of a hearing
ear. The hearing ear and the seeing
eye, they're both of the Lord, to be able to hear. If you have
a hearing ear this morning to hear the gospel of Christ, you
hear the voice of the Master. I said last Wednesday evening,
As we met together to observe the Lord's Table, I think more
and more about what I heard Brother Scott and Brother Henry say.
We are no closer, you're never nearer to true worship than when
you meet together around the Lord's Table. And to be able
to meet together with God's people and to know that He is in the
midst. Two or three are gathered together
in my name." He said, I'm in the midst of you. And to know
that He's in the midst, I'm convinced. I am absolutely convinced He's
here. Carl, I think that the knowledge
of His presence is what makes me so anxious. Scripture says
be anxious for nothing, but I'll tell you what, there's a You stand right here and you
see things differently. Fear the Lord is the evidence of a new ear,
a hearing ear. Psalm 66, 16, Come and hear all
ye that fear God, that reverence God, and I will declare what
He hath done for my soul. Let me tell you what God's done
for me. It's what Brother Scott told me when I first came here.
He said, when you stand up, you tell the people what God's done
for you. And he said, that'll be enough. Because when you start telling
people what the Lord's done for you, you're going to start declaring
eternal election. You're going to tell them what
you are by nature. And you're going to tell them
how the Lord died He died for me. You're going to tell them
how the Spirit of God called you out of darkness. You'll preach. You tell them what the Lord's
done for you. The fear of the Lord, the respect of God reveals
the presence of Christ. Psalm 85, 9, "...Surely His salvation,
Christ, Christ, is nigh them that fear Him, that glory, may
dwell in our land. I'm telling you, there are a
few places, and I'm so thankful, where God has raised up some
respect for Him. I can go off on a tangent about
all this other mess that people are talking about. I'm talking
about there's a few places And the Lord has given me, by
His grace, the ability to know. There are some places I wouldn't
pull my car off the road to drive in to listen to what somebody
had to say. But there are some places that
I know and I'm convinced that God has raised up some men and
given them a heart and a respect for God Almighty. And I want
to hear what God has to say through those men. I want to hear what
the Lord has to say through His servants. The fear of the Lord, the respect of God Almighty,
that is the desire of the regenerate. You that know Him, you desire
to show Him respect. Psalm 8611, Teach me Thy way,
O Lord. I will walk in Thy truth. Unite my heart to fear Thy name. The Lord calls me to respect
You. The Lord calls me to have a heart that desires nothing
else. I want to be respectful. I want
to be respectful. I do. And it grieves me when I see
I'm not. Thanks be unto Him. I walked in absolute respect When I think about Him who walked
in absolute obedience and respect, and His obedience is charged
to me, and God Almighty looks upon me and says, Well done. The fear of the Lord is a commandment
to be kept by God's people. That's a commandment. keeping the commandments of God.
I've been working on that. He that keepeth my commandments. He that loveth me keeps my commandments. I want to deal with that. I don't
want to get into it right now, but I'm going to tell you something.
I'm not talking about doing that which justifies a man before
God. I'm not talking about that at all. But I'm going to tell
you that those that fear God keep His commandments. And I'll
just suffice it to say, the fear of the Lord, the respect of God
is a commandment that is to be kept. Psalm 89, 7, God is greatly
to be feared, respected, reverenced in the assembly of the saints,
and to be had in reverence of all them that are about Him. Fear the Lord. Fear the Lord
reveals that God has shown mercy. A man that reverences God. I'm
not talking about lip service either. Let me tell you something. You don't know my heart. And I don't know yours. And I'm
talking about something that only God Almighty knows. You know something about it for
each one of you. Fear the Lord. Respect. Respect. Respect. Reveals. If there's any respect for God,
it reveals that God has shown mercy to you. Psalm 103 verse
13, Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth
them that fear him. at reverence Him, at respect
Him. God pities Him, has mercy on Him. Psalm 130 verse 4 says, There
is forgiveness with thee that thou mayest be feared. Fear the Lord. I wrote down a few things that
are evident. Now that's what Scripture has
to say about the respect of God. Respect. Respect. Number one. Now I'm just talking
about this is the way we all are. Respect. We respect or we fear that which
is sacred. Let me tell you what I mean when
I say that. I mean sacred. You say, well, that's a good
biblical word. Sacred. Sacred. We respect that which is sacred,
one of a kind. That's what I mean, one of a
kind. I've seen pictures. I don't know if I've ever seen
anything. Well, I guess I have. I've seen
things that are one of a kind. There's not but one Eiffel Tower.
I've never seen pictures of it. I think that's, you know, there's
not a bunch of them. That's unusual. Holy. Holy. That's what it means. sacred,
holy. We respect or fear or reverence
that which is one of a kind. Isaiah 45, 5, I am the Lord. And there is none else, there
is no God beside me I girded thee, I encompassed
thee, though thou hast not known me." Now you think about how
many gods this world sets forth. Oh, well, there's Mohammed and
there's, you know, this guy. The Lord says, I am the capital
L-O-R-D. I am Jehovah. There's none else. Whenever God Almighty gives a
man respect for God, there is one God. One God. You say, I believe there's just
one God. It's His gospel. Is His assembly? Is His people worthy of your
respect? Or do you have another God that
you give yourself to? I'm not talking about somebody
that you... I'm talking about whatever a man serves. That is
his God. There's one God. One God. The fear of the Lord. The respect
of the Lord. God Almighty. To whom a man gives himself,
that's his God. We respect that which is sacred. Almighty God is sovereign. He's all the hope, the security
of His people. And my eternal security rests
in Him who pledges His strength and mercy to me." Turn with me
to John 6.63. John 6.63. The Lord is preaching and He says,
John 6.63, "...it is the Spirit that quickeneth the flesh, profiteth
nothing." Poor Neil, like you just said, that ought to put
an end to free willism. It is the spirit that quickeneth.
The flesh has no profit to it. The words I speak unto you, they
are spirit and they are life. But there are some of you that
believe not. For Jesus knew from the beginning
who they were that believed not and who should betray Him. And
He said, therefore, said I unto you that no man can, no man has
the ability to come unto Me except it were given unto him of My
Father." Boy, there must have been some
that had a problem with God's sovereignty. From that time,
many of His disciples, many of those that said they followed
Him, they went back and walked no more with Him. Then said Jesus
unto the Twelve, Will ye also go away? Now here is the sacredness. Here's the sacredness of Christ.
Here's the respect. Here's the fear of the Lord right
here. Then Simon Peter answered Him, Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast
the words of eternal life, and we believe and are sure that
Thou art that Christ. the Son of the Living God. Every
time you see the word Christ, that speaks of His humanity and
His deity in one. Christ. God in the flesh. So we respect that which is one
of a kind, sacred, holy. Secondly, you respect Just right
now, I'm talking about in every aspect of life and especially
before God. Let me tell you what you respect.
You respect that which is fair. You respect that which is fair. Lord said, Isaiah 45, 21, there
is no God else beside me, a just God. and a Savior, there's none
beside me, a just God, lawful, correct, and right." Let me ask
you something. Do you have any respect whatsoever? A judge. Let's say a judge in
the town. Do you have any respect for a
judge, a boss, somebody you work for? Have you got any respect
That one, it's not fair. He's not fair. There's the evidence. He showed favoritism to his buddies. Well, they belong to the same
club he does. No wonder I didn't get it. You have no respect for him. None. But I'll tell you this,
you reverence, or you respect, I have respect for one that is
fair. He's fair. May not like his decision
that he made concerning that, but you know what? He's fair. I'm a just God. Thirdly, we respect
that which is faithful. Revelation 19, 11, He that sat
upon him, that white horse, was called faithful and true. Faithful. Persuaded of the reliability. He's reliable. He's faithful. 2 Timothy 1, 12, For the witch
cause I also suffer these things. Nevertheless, I'm not ashamed.
For I know whom I have believed, I am persuaded that he is able
to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day." You know, boy, when we talk about
the frailty of this life, knowing that we are going to leave this
world, unless the Lord returns, we are going to leave this world.
We are going to die. We are going to die. And you know, it's not until a man is brought
to realize something of the frailty of his life, and you begin to
ask yourself this, wherein does my hope lie? Do you know the only thing you've
got? You that believe. Let me tell you what you've got.
You've got God's Word. You've got God's Word. That's
all you've got. You have nothing else. Whatever
you do, don't you put any faith in what you've done. Because
I'm telling you, it's not going to stand in that day. He's faithful. Paul said, I'm persuaded. And boy, that right there, you
can settle down. I'm persuaded that He's able
to keep that which I've committed unto Him against that day. What
have you committed, Paul? My safekeeping. My eternal soul. Without me, you can do nothing. The Lord said, let me ask you
this, do you absolutely believe that He who chose you, He that
redeemed you, He that lived for you, He that represents you,
He that says I'll bring you to Myself, do you absolutely believe
that He's able? Then you have respect for Him. I'll tell you another thing we
believe and have respect for. You have respect for that which
is strong. You respect a strong... well, in any situation, you respect
someone that is mighty. It's mighty. Hebrews 7. Let me read this to
you. 24 and 25. But this man, because he continueth
ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood. Wherefore, he is able also to
save them to the uttermost." That is, for evermore that come
unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for
them, he is able to save them to the uttermost. Psalm 24, 8, who is the king
of glory? The Lord, strong and mighty,
the Lord mighty in battle. Matthew 10, 28, fear not them
which kill the body, but are not able, not able, not able to kill the soul. That right
there eliminates everybody but one. Fear, don't respect, don't have
reverence to them that can't get the job done. He said, but rather, you have
respect for Him. You have reverence for Him that's
able to both destroy soul and body in hell. You best reverence
Him. In closing, we love those we respect. We
love them. And I'll tell you, we long to
be with those that we respect. And we stay with those that we
respect. Do you know what the problem
is? With the wicked, there's no fear of God before their eyes. Man by nature goes through this world, and he has this attitude. I can do what I want to do concerning God, when I want to
do it, and how I want to do it. And in fact, if I don't do it
some particular way, it doesn't really make any difference. And
the next thought that he has in his mind is just whatever
he thinks in his mind is going to be okay. Do you know why men and women can show such disrespect
for the worship of God? There's no fear of God. They
don't fear God. Do you know why a man or woman
will not cast themselves upon the mercy of God? No fear of God. No reference. Do you know why a man or woman
will believe that he is the author and finisher of his faith? By
his own free will. By his own works of righteousness.
And will walk in this world truly believing in his own dead heart. I have justified myself before
God. At hell, I'm in agreement. I
settled this thing about hell. Do you know why? Because there is no respect for
God. He doesn't love him. He doesn't desire to be with
him. He doesn't need him. Oh, but to those that God Almighty
has given a heart after Christ, They're going to say like David
says, Whom have I in heaven but you? Lord, if I have not you, I have nothing. When you walk out of this world,
let me ask you something. What are you trusting? Are you
trusting what you've done now? I'm just I'm just honest with
you. I am just flat out honest with you. I made a profession of faith
when I was nine years old. I did. I mean, I'm telling you,
this is this is personal word of testimony. Reason I went down. But my cousin, Larry, walked
down Calvary Baptist Church, Alexander, Louisiana. Nine years
old. I think he's nine, maybe eleven,
whatever. He went down. I went down because he went down.
And that preacher told me, because I prayed the sinner's prayer,
he had to tell me what it was. I quoted it after he did. He
baptized me. And I truly believed in my heart. I've done my obligation for God. Now, I'll be honest with you.
I didn't have any... After that, I didn't really want
to go. I didn't want to go. Besides that, once saved, always
saved. Ain't that right? I went down when I was nine.
I mean, how many times do you think I need to do it? I got to feeling bad
about it a few years later, so I decided to rededicate my life.
I went down a rededication. Some of you have never heard
of that term. Some of you have. All in the world it is, I've decided
to clean up my life. I better go ahead and make this
thing right. In fact, maybe I wasn't sincere when I was nine. But
I will be now. And I tried to drum up some sincerity. But you know what? I still didn't
have any respect of God. It was all based on what I did.
It was all based on how I felt. It was all based on the words
that I prayed. Did I pray the right words, Gary?
Did I say it the right way? Lord, I've sinned. No, I didn't
say that sincerely enough. Let me do it like this. Lord,
I've sinned. Maybe that was better. my rededication, my profession
of faith, my baptism. And you know why it was all about
me? Because I had no respect for God. When Almighty God grants repentance, there will be a respect for God. And I'm telling you, Everything
else that you think is important will play second fiddle. I'm
telling you, I'm telling you, and you can try to fool yourself,
you can try to fool me, you can try to fool anybody you want
to, but I'm telling you, unless Almighty God gives a man a respect
for God, respect, it'll be just a token outward lip service. Do you need Him? Do you need
Him? May Almighty God have mercy on
our souls for Christ's sake.