“You reject all those who stray from Your statutes, For their deceit is falsehood.”
Psalms 119:120 My flesh trembles for fear of you, and I am afraid of your judgments.
1 Samuel 6:20 Then the men of Beth-shemesh said, “Who is able to stand before the LORD, this holy God?
Hebrews 12:28-29 Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.
Philippians 2:12 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling,
Isaiah 66:2 All these things my hand has made, and so all these things came to be, declares the LORD. But this is the one to whom I will look: he who is humble and contrite in spirit and trembles at my word.
2 Chronicles 34:27 because your heart was tender and you humbled yourself before God when you heard his words against this place and its inhabitants,
2 Chronicles 34:21 “Go, inquire of the LORD for me and for those who are left in Israel and in Judah, concerning the words of the book that has been found. For great is the wrath of the LORD that is poured out on us, because our fathers have not kept the word of the LORD, to do according to all that is written in this book.”
The Psalmist considered the righteous judgments of God, he looked to his own life and understood that it was more in the hands of God than the works of man. He used God’s word as a measuring line for viewing thoughts and actions of his own life. He realized condemning judgements come upon those who reject and stray from His word and the principles revealed in them. He understood that without a heart, mind, and soul deep desire to seek and know God, longing to please Him, yielding to His leading and directing, humbly serving, and obeying Him – man is prone to desires that are not God honoring. He knew God’s judgements against man for their neglect and complacent view of His word and application in their life. He knew that just below the surface of every heart is a desire to serve self first rather than God.
How are we to know God apart from His word? How much more patience will God have on us for being complacent and neglectful? How are we to know what pleases God, apart from His word? How are we to know what displeases God, apart from His word? Neglecting the His word, that is ever available before us, gives no excuse for not knowing.
The world has a way of distorting our perception of what it means to humbly serve, honor, glorify, follow and obey God. Through His word we find what is pleasing and acceptable in the sight of God. We have a choice each day to seek and serve and obey His leading. I just don’t see how we do this without the continual feeding of our heart, mind and soul with His word. We ought to tremble at the thought of how complacent our lives have become, how much time we neglect thought of Him, how many times we are even listening for that quiet small whisper of leading from Him.
“It is only as we tremble before the exalted and holy God that we will ever see the world and its distorted values to be the empty things they are. If we do not tremble before God, the world’s system will seem wonderful to us and consume us pleasantly.” (Boice)