Then the church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria enjoyed a time of peace and was strengthened. Living in the fear of the Lord and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it increased in numbers. (Acts 9:31)
At that time, the persecution of the churches temporarily stopped, so the church was able to enjoy a period of safety and security. Churches around the world have not lost their vigilance during the present time period of peace and security, nor have they become lukewarm, but have been experiencing more and more revival. At that time, the church was revived because of the comfort and power brought by the Holy Spirit. The reason why the church was received power from the Holy Spirit was that they feared the Lord in all things.
To fear the Lord in all things means to fear the Lord in everything, whether it is a big thing or small, whether in the open or in private. First of all, a church that fears the Lord must be obedient to the Lord, obeying the Lord's teachings in everything. Secondly, the church that fears the Lord also loves holiness and is far from evil. They dare not sin against God in anything and have the courage to confront sin.
Most churches are in a safe and secure situation, but many churches have not only not been revived, but they have also become lukewarm. Some churches even have fewer and fewer believers. Some churches want to be revived, so they do everything they can to attract people to the church. They organize events and make changes, but little comes from their efforts. The reason is that they put cart before the horse, and they ignore the most important thing-fearing the Lord in all things.
If you do not fear the Lord, you will naturally not obey the Lord and not follow his instructions. You will not even rely on the Lord and may fall into sin. For example, there may be disputes between different parties, and in order to attract people to the church, they do not preach the truth, are not faithful and present a biased gospel such as a theology of success.
If a church wants to fear the Lord in everything, each Christian should first be willing to change. The church is made up of people called by God. When each Christian can fear the Lord in words, thoughts, and actions, he can fear the Lord in everything. When every Christian in the church can fear the Lord, the church will fear the Lord in everything and will naturally revive.
(Note: The author of this article is a full-time co-worker in a grassroots church in Fujian)
- Translated by Abigail Wu
