I noticed that my younger daughter can hardly do without sitting on my laps and jumping all over me daily, savouring the moment with her Dad. But the mum pointed something to me recently. She said; “Dear, despite that your daughter enjoys being with you all the time, she fears and listens to you. I love that balance.”
Friend, one of the portraits of a healthy Christian or church is the dual operation of the fear of the Lord and the comfort of the Holy Spirit working in equal measures (Acts 9:31). These two forces were responsible for the edification and multiplication of the early church. You need them in your life, too.
There are Christians who are full of the fear of the Lord but are lacking in the comfort of the Holy Spirit. You also have some who are full of the comfort of the Holy Spirit; they know how to enjoy loving moments with the Holy Spirit, but the fear of God is alien to them. These ought not to be so.
Depending on the type of ministry that you are exposed to, particularly while growing up, you are likely to go with either of the extremes. But you need to maintain balance if you would live in the perfect will of God for you and enjoy the fullness of the blessings of Christianity. You must be exposed to a balanced ministry.
A balanced ministry is one that exposes you to both the terror of the Lord and the gentleness of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:11,10:1). Yes, the terror of God is not meant to terrify or destroy us. It is to bring us into the consciousness of the sacredness of our walk with the Lord.
The gentleness of Christ is that part of the ministry of the Holy Spirit that exposes you to the love of God and the freedom you have in relating with God as you walk with Him. The fear of the Lord helps you to honour and respect God and not treat Him with disdain (Malachi 1:6). You need both. You need to be a balanced Christian.
‘Demola Awoyele
Lead Pastor,
Destiny Impact Church
Akure, Nigeria