Psalms 25:14 ESV
“The friendship of the Lord is for those who fear him,
and he makes known to them his covenant.”
For Those Who Fear Him
What does it mean to fear the Lord? It means to revere the Lord, to give honor and respect to him, to believe him and his word and to obey it. And it involves us surrendering our lives to Jesus Christ to be his and to do his will. And it means to love him. And to love him is to obey him, to walk in his ways and in his righteousness and holiness, and no longer in sin. It requires that we serve him with our lives, that we follow his plan for our lives, and that we go where he sends us, and that we say what he wants us to say.
But it also means that we take him and his word seriously. Not only do we embrace his promises to us who are his by genuine faith in him, but we have a fearful respect of his warnings, too. And so we take them to heart. For the New Testament Scriptures are filled with warnings to the church that, if we want to have eternal life with God, that we must no longer walk (in conduct) in sin. Sin should no longer be what we practice, but righteousness and holiness and obedience to our Lord should be what we practice.
So to fear the Lord is to believe what his word teaches about sin and to fear his judgment should we decide that we can go on living in sin without consequence. For this is all throughout the letters to the churches which warn us that if we walk in sin, if sin is our practice, and if sin is what we obey and not righteousness, and not holy living, and not obedience to our Lord, that we will not enter into the kingdom of heaven, regardless of what our lips have professed or what we think we believe in our hearts.
[See Scripture references at the end of this writing.]
He Makes Known His Covenant
God had a covenant with his people Israel prior to Jesus’ death and resurrection, prior to him dying on that cross for our sins, and only the Jews were recipients of that covenant, a covenant which we refer to as the Old Covenant. Now they were not saved by a strict adherence to all those ceremonial, sacrificial, purification, liturgical and dietary laws, for no one could keep them perfectly. They were saved the same way we are, by faith in God and in the promise of the Christ who was then to come (for us, who already came). But that faith required obedience to the Lord, in practice.
[Jn 1:12-13; Jn 6:44; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Eph 2:8-10; 1 Peter 2:24; 2 Pet 1:1; Tit 2:11-14; 1 Co 10:1-22; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 12:1-2]
But then God the Father sent his Son Jesus Christ to the earth to take on human form and eventually to be put to death on a cross for our sins. Now, at least by the prophet Jeremiah, the people of God of the Old Covenant were told that one day God was going to make a new covenant with them not like the old covenant he had with his people Israel (then Jews only). And the prophets of old foretold that the Gentiles would one day be included in Israel as God’s covenant people.
See: [Jeremiah 31:31-34; Isaiah 2:1-3; Isaiah 9:1-3,6-7; Isaiah 11:10,12; Isaiah 19:19-25; Isaiah 42:1-9; Isaiah 49:1-6; Isaiah 52:13-15; Isaiah 56:6-8; Hosea 1:10-11; Hosea 2:21-23; and more] Note: Some of these are more clear than others, so I can’t validate all of them, but the majority of them I believe are literal prophecies of the inclusion of the Gentiles into the nation of Israel. I know that Isaiah spoke much about the Messianic age.
So, there was an Old Covenant God had with just the Jews, but when Jesus Christ died and was resurrected from the dead, we (Jew and Gentile) who believe in Jesus Christ enter into that New Covenant relationship with God – Father, Son (Jesus Christ), and Holy Spirit. But those who refused to believe in Jesus as the Christ, who were under the Old Covenant, were cut out of Israel. And the Gentile believers in Christ were then grafted into Israel. So only those of genuine faith in Jesus Christ are Israel (of God) today.
So this isn’t a new Israel. It isn’t replacement theology. It is the same Israel, those of genuine faith in God, but under a new covenant. And under the New Covenant it requires faith in Jesus Christ. So those who refused to believe in Jesus who were under the Old Covenant were cut out of Israel while the Gentiles who believed in Jesus were grafted into Israel. And any Jews who would now choose to believe in Christ can be grafted back into Israel. So the Israel of God is both Jew and Gentile by genuine faith in Jesus Christ.
[John 8:18-19,38-47; Romans 9:4-8; Romans 11:17-25; Galatians 3:16,26-29; Galatians 4:22-31; Ephesians 2:11-22; Ephesians 3:6; 1 John 2:22]
So, what does it mean to believe in Jesus Christ? Basically it means what was talked about in this first section under the heading of “For Those Who Fear Him,” for it means to walk in the fear of the Lord, to obey him, in practice, to leave our lives of sin behind us and now to live holy lives pleasing to him, no longer as slaves to sin, but now as slaves to God and to his righteousness. For if sin is what we practice, and if righteousness and obedience to our Lord are not what we practice, then we don’t know God and we do not have eternal life in him, regardless of what we profess.
[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; Jn 6:35-58; Jn 15:1-11; Rom 1:18-32; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 4:17-24; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:5-11; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Heb 10:23-31; 1 Co 10:1-22; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; 1 Pet 1:17-21; Rev 21:8,27; Rev 22:14-15]
Now, this is not saying that we have to be perfect people who never sin against the Lord (see 1 John 2:1-2), but the word does teach us that if sin is our practice (our addiction, habit), and if righteousness and obedience to our Lord are not what we practice, that we don’t have genuine faith in Jesus Christ, and so heaven is not our eternal destiny. But for us who are walking in obedience to our Lord, in practice, we have the hope of a relationship with Christ here on the earth and heaven as our eternal destiny, by God’s grace.
Looking to Thee
By James Rowe (1865-1933)
Looking to Thee from day to day,
Trusting Thy grace along the way,
Knowing that Thou wilt safely keep all that is Thine;
Sure of Thy soul redeeming love,
Sure of a crown of life above,
Singing Thy praise I press along, Savior divine.
Looking to Thee for all I need,
Finding in Thee a Friend indeed,
All of the burdens of the day meekly I bear;
Neither the foe nor storm I fear,
Savior divine, for Thou art near,
Ready my cares and troubles all freely to share.
After a while in heaven bright,
Where there is neither sin nor night,
I shall behold Thee, face to face, Jesus my own;
Then with the saved ones gone before,
I shall with rapture, more and more,
Praise Thee forever, near the bright, beautiful throne.
Looking to Thee, Trusting thy grace,
I am as happy as a true soldier can be;
Nearing my own heavenly place,
Trusting Thy love I press along looking to Thee.
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