Personal Object Lessons - Questions and Queries

“Ask and it shall be given you;” Matthew 7 v 7

My life is full of questions. I always seem to be trying to find out ‘Why?’ In this respect I have continued to be like a small child who constantly asks why in order to understand the world around them.

Children invariably go to their parents, or care-givers, for their answers. Usually they get what they are seeking. The child learns step by step and the emerging world becomes less daunting to them. As I have grown up I, like most people, believe that I have outgrown my parents’ knowledge. I stopped going to them for answers in my early teenage years. Many queries remained unasked and therefore unanswered for many years after that.

What I have found is that it is usual to seek answers from a source that you trust. From a source that you believe can provide the answer you are searching for.

I still have an enquiring mind and I like to read so I have managed to find out some answers to a few burning questions that had remained with me for years. However, there are some areas that stump me and it’s at times like this that I may turn to the Bible. Matthew  7 v 7 says “Ask and it shall be given you”. I wondered if this was accurate for all things that I could desire so I read further. In John 14 v 13 it states, “And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do”, that sounds just perfect, but this is not a formula for selfish requests, the verse continues in this way, “that the Father may be glorified in the Son.”

Therefore the request to God has a precondition, they will be granted as long as the Father is glorified by fulfilling the request. I wanted to know how I could know if God would be glorified by what I was asking.

As with many questions, one generates another. I have frequently found myself to be in a spiral of queries and not able to see the way out of them all. Again, I reach for the wisdom of trusted friends or the guidance to be found in the Bible. I reason that if I don’t get the full answer from one place then at least I will have gained some light and be able to look in another place for the rest.

This is what the Bible has to say about asking for things, “Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.” Mark 11 v 24. Therefore in exercising faith my desire and belief are fulfilled. There is an additional verse in 1 John 3 v 22 that explains why the requests are granted; it’s about obedience to the commandments of God. “And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.”

It appears that all our questions will be answered if we act in accordance with God’s commands.

The obvious next question for me is “What are God’s commandments?” As I said, one question often leads to another. I always gain insight from my search, but sometimes I end up with many more questions than answers. So I go back to the beginning and ask all over again.

In this way, I think that I never grow up; I remain child-like as I constantly seek guidance and direction from God. And I don’t think that’s a bad thing.

©MHMorgan 2011

Personal Object Lessons - Fear

“Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.” Psalms 1 v 11

Fear is not an emotion that most people look forward to or enjoy experiencing. This verse in Psalms chapter 1 tells us to serve the Lord with fear and at the same time to rejoice with trembling. It may seem like a contradiction to talk about fear and rejoicing at the same time. Therefore we need to fully understand the type of fear that the Bible refers to when it is related to serving God.

When we are happy and rejoicing we are in a positive state of mind and it is this condition that the psalmist is referring to when he notes that we should rejoice with trembling. Usually we think that we would only tremble and shake in an involuntary manner when we are affected by great fear or anxiety. This fear of the Lord is most likely to mean an emotional, and possibly physical, reaction brought on by the excitement and the joy of knowing more about Him.

When we approach God we need not be afraid; this is not the type of fear that is being referred to in this verse. The fear that is used in relation to God is instructing us to regard God with reverence and awe.

Awe is a feeling of reverential respect mixed with wonder or fear. We often experience this feeling when faced with unusual sights of nature like vast fields, mountains, lakes, volcanoes and icebergs. These examples of nature are evidence of the creative power of God and they are primary examples of why we approach Him with fear - reverence and wonder - and why we rejoice with trembling: because we are beginning to understand the magnificence of all He has made – especially us. We, as human beings, are wonderful examples of God’s creative genius.

When we begin to understand God’s unlimited brilliance then we can do nothing else but praise Him. Knowing the complicated structure and capacity of the human being makes us marvel at the creative powers of the One who made us.

“I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.” (Ps 139 v 14.) As we learn more about God and about His love for us, and all that He provides for our care, we are drawn to serve and praise Him constantly.

The more we know, the more we want to know; we begin a deeper search for more knowledge about ourselves and about our Creator. In our search we are constantly amazed at the untapped resources that we have within each of us; catching just a glimpse of the possibilities of ourselves makes us realise the unlimited power of God. This is one reason why we fear and rejoice in unison. We then begin to grow in wisdom.

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Ps 111 v 10.) This statement is repeated in Prov 9 v 10 where the second part of this verse says “and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.” Therefore if we want to increase in wisdom we have to serve God and the first step in service is getting to know the One you serve. In order to have a good relationship with God, and we need to have reverence and awe when we come to Him and that respect for God needs to permeate all that we do and in all that we are in relation to all that He has done and all that He is. Prov 1 v 7 reiterates that the fear of the Lord is the source of knowledge “but fools despise wisdom and instruction.”

The first chapter of Psalms warns us to remember the wise instructions and laws of our parents as we begin to serve God. Service is a personal act and each of us has a unique relationship with God. To get to this place of intimacy we have to conduct an individual search for which we are advised to look carefully and thoroughly as if we are seeking precious metals and hidden treasures (Prov 2 v 4) and we are promised that if we do this “Then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God.” (Prov 2 v 5.)