Whom Do You Fear?
“And do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna." (Matt 10: 28)
To fear the
Lord is different from how we think of fear in the world. Fear of God is to be in awe before His
majesty, to humbly and obediently follow His ways, a desire to never offend Him
by our actions. It is a fear of
separating ourselves from the one who is our only hope. To fear the
Lord is to give one’s life to Him, accepting His will in all things.
Fear of
Satan, the one who can destroy both body and soul in Hell is a visceral fear,
fear of total, complete, and eternal damnation.
Fear of eternity without the love of God and with no way to beg
forgiveness and receive salvation. Those
opportunities die with the body, while the soul must eternally pay the cost of
refusing them.
The forces
of Satan, both the spiritual demons and the people who serve his will should be
the subject of fear for they can take not only our life, but our very
soul. The enemies of the faithful are
many and vile; they seek nothing less than our eternal destruction. These are the ones who should be the object
of our fear.
The armies
of God, the angels, the saints, and all his faithful children are our defense
and our hope. They provide a safety-net
of love, faith, and hope to overcome the fear and the threat of Satan. Our greatest fear should be to separate
ourselves from the Creator, to turn our back on God, the Father, the Son, and
the Holy Spirit, to forfeit the eternal life He desires for us.
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