Fear The Lord and Obey

‘Tomorrow at this time I will rain down the worst hail that has ever occurred in Egypt from the day it was founded until now. Therefore give orders to bring your livestock and all that you have in the field into shelters. Every person and animal that is in the field and not brought inside will die when the hail falls on them.” Those among Pharaoh’s officials who feared the word of the Lord made their servants and livestock flee to shelters, but those who didn’t take the Lord ’s word seriously left their servants and livestock in the field.’

Exodus 9:18-21

In our text today, God was about to send another plague over Egypt and this time it was hailstones. God said, “If you have any livestock or family outside ask them to come in.” This word divided the officials of Pharoah into two camps; the ones who believed God’s word and obeyed and the ones who didn’t believe or fear Him.

The Bible says that those who obeyed feared the word of the Lord. These were Egyptians, Pharoah’s officials. They probably worshipped the gods of Egypt too. Yet, something about the four plagues they had experienced made them know that God was not to be trifled with. These are the people who learn early. They were not about to risk their lives by acting stubbornly. These men thought to themselves, “What if?” What if this thing God is saying He does it? They feared Him and obeyed.

Quick Question

How many times do we look into the word and fear the word enough to obey it? I’m asking myself this as I’m asking you. Do you fear the word of the Lord enough not to touch the things He considers sacred? When He says flee do you flee? Do you fear the word of God enough to obey? We can grow callous to the words we read because we have heard them all before, but we are responsible for the things we’ve heard or read.

Beloved, it is futile to recite the scriptures but not live it out. The letter killeth, it is obedience to what the Spirit is saying that gives life. When you open your bible daily, ask God to instruct you and grant you grace to obey what you read. Fear Him enough to live right, to be a person of integrity, and to do all He expects of you. Obeying God’s word always brings a reward. A reward for you and a reward for your house. When you obey God’s Word, you are in safety. You are protected. But when you disobey Him, you expose yourself to fear, anxiety, and the attacks of the enemy.

Prayer

Ask the Lord for His mercy in the places where you have stepped away and where you have acted in disobedience to His word and then ask Him to help you to be more obedient to His instructions. Father teach me to obey your word. Let my heart be open and yielded to you such that I fear you, I listen to your voice, I hear your word and I obey.

In Jesus’ name, amen.