Bill Forgeard > Recent Status Updates

“To fear the Lord is to be more alive; it is for our love, joy, wonder and worship of God to be more acute and affecting.” (page 168)

Left to our sinful fear of God, we will shrink from God in guilt and not enjoy all his goodness. Left to our fear of man, we will wilt before every criticism, unable to enjoy real fellowship. (Page 149)

Page 103: “The very shape of the gospel we proclaim will speak loudest about how we most essentially think of God.”

Page 90: “Knowing God the Redeemer in Christ will make our Christian fear distinct from the fear shown by the devotees of other gods. It is what we need if our fear is to be specifically and happily Christian.”

Chapter 4 considers fear of God as Creator, as distinct from fear of God as Redeemer. Contrasts the way believers and non-believers approach a Creator God with awe & trembling. Accepts Otto’s The Idea of the Holy (which influenced CS Lewis’ Northerness & aspects of Aslan) as far as it goes, but observes that Otto did not consider God as Redeemer, and thus approaches God in the same way as any religion.

“Fear which pleases him is not a grovelling, shrinking fear … It is an ecstasy of love and joy that senses how overwhelmingly kind and magnificent, good and true God is, and that therefore leans on him in staggered praise and faith.” (p67)

Spurgeon: “It is not because we are afraid of him, but because we delight in him, that we fear before him.” (p52)

Flavel (p25): “Why are ye afraid, O ye of little faith?” The less faith, still the more fear: Fear is generated by unbelief, and unbelief strengthened by fear.

Reeves: Anxiety grows best in the soil of unbelief.

That’s the best series preface I’ve ever read! Inspiring.