Jesus to Me - Martin Wiles

Her tears fell on his feet, and she wiped them off with her hair. Luke 7:38 NLT

“Fear God” was a command I often heard in my dad’s sermons. And I did.

Some years after my father’s death, I uncovered the only recorded sermon I have of his. I had forgotten what a fireball he was when he preached. Most of my memories are of him as a Southern Methodist preacher. He was strict—almost legalistic. Fearing God—literally--was a part of his theology, at least as a young preacher.

As a child, I took my father’s advice and feared God. Of course, I probably misunderstood the definition of fear at this young age, but I was scared. Scared of committing the wrong sin and having God annihilate me. Scared I might not make it to heaven after all. Scared I wouldn’t please Him regardless of what I did. A skewed interpretation, but mine nonetheless. And one that didn’t change for many years.

The sinful woman’s view of God must have been quite different than the pugnacious religious leader’s. She pranced into their legalistic religious gathering and marched right up to Jesus. Actually, she fell before Him, anointed His feet with her tears and then oil, and dried them with her hair. How bold. To think, she would march up to the Son of God and fall before Him. Perhaps she understood more about Jesus than her snobbish peers.

Somewhere along the way, my view of God changed as well. No longer was He a faraway deity I couldn’t approach. While I still held a healthy fear of Him—after all, He could snuff out my life by issuing a second long command—I came to understand He wasn’t out to get me. Yes, He has standards, and yes, I was obligated to obey them, but He was after a relationship with me. He wanted me to love Him with all my heart and serve Him consistently.

Fortunately, I avoided the other extreme view of God: that He is the grandfatherly type who will let me get away with sin. God is a God of discipline, but He is more interested in teaching than punishing me.

In the person of the Holy Spirit, God is as near as the breath we breathe. He calls us to a holy fear but more so to a loving relationship.

How does your picture of God affect your journey with Him?

Father, may my fear of You lead me to love You wholeheartedly and serve You diligently.

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