Do we want that level of God's presence? The fear that came on the early church is also called a "sense of awe" in Acts
2:43. We often downplay the fear of God by saying that it really means "reverence." But the Greek word used in Acts 5:11 and
Acts 2:43 is phobos, which can be translated "exceeding dread, alarm or terror."
We love the ecstatic joy and the goose bumps that accompany revival meetings. But revival is not fun and games. Are we
ready for the terror?
As I pray for revival in my own life and in my nation, I have started praying regularly for the fear of the Lord. And
I think it will manifest in some key areas:
1. Truthfulness. When we walk in close fellowship with the Holy Spirit we will feel an immediate sense
of conviction if we say anything false or misleading. That conviction will hound us until we repent and repair the damage
we have done with our mouths. We will hear the word of the Lord echoing in our conscience: "Do not lie to one another" (Col.
3:9).
I realized a few years ago that I sometimes lied when someone asked me if I had read a certain book or knew of a certain
celebrity or sports figure. Even if I did not know anything about the subject of the conversation, I would nod and pretend
that I was informed. I recognized later that I did this out of insecurity, hoping to appear knowledgeable. I had to repent
of pride and ask God to help me be honest.
This may seem minor, but little white lies breed serious deceit. If we have no fear of God, we will exaggerate and think
nothing of it. This can become a crisis when church leaders, in their zeal for revival, are careless when reporting miracles,
healings or numbers of conversions. Exaggeration is lying. If we build a ministry by stretching the truth, we stand on shaky
ground. Christ's kingdom cannot be built on hype.
We often assume that the sin of Ananias and Sapphira was greed. But the Bible actually says they were struck dead because
they lied to the Holy Spirit (see Acts 5:3). They sold a piece of property and pretended to give all the money to the apostles
when in fact they had kept some of the proceeds for themselves. They were trying to look good in the eyes of church leaders.
They were attempting to buy favor and influence-and God caught them in the act.
2. Sexual purity. All of us know that the American church is facing a sexual crisis. Some denominations,
such as the Episcopal Church, have bowed to the spirit of Baal to embrace homosexual practice as acceptable behavior. Recently,
Episcopal bishop Gene Robinson announced that gay marriage is a new truth revealed by the Holy Spirit.
Thankfully the charismatic world hasn't slipped to that level of depravity. But we have never witnessed so much moral
failure in our ranks. Many ministers are living double lives and hiding their girlfriends and out-of-wedlock babies. In my
city, one prominent minister had an affair with a stripper and went right on preaching from the same pulpit without skipping
a beat.
If I am walking in the fear of God, I will not peek at pornography, entertain fantasy or cross a sexual boundary. And
if I am in church leadership, I will never allow ministers with questionable sexual reputations to defile the congregation
by allowing him to lay hands on them or impart his defilement. I don't care how "anointed" a man of God is or how accurate
his prophecies are. If he has been engaging in immorality and has not been restored properly, he will infect people with his
sin if we give him a platform.
3. Financial integrity. We should learn from the example of Eli's reprobate sons, Hophni and Phinehas,
that God does not wink at extortion-especially when it involves money that has been given to God. These "worthless" men were
judged severely because they had their hands in the offering plate (see 1 Sam. 2:12-17).
The eighth commandment forbids stealing. Yet in the "Spirit-filled" church today, ministers think nothing of robbing
the saints. Too often the collection of the offering turns into a circus involving manipulation, theatrics and the twisting
of Scripture-as well as arms-to meet a budget goal. Why should we be surprised when God's presence lifts at that point in
the service?
If we truly fear the Lord we will be conscious of the fact that He watches how we handle money in His house. He sees
every dollar that is given. Heaven keeps accurate accounting. God knows how we word our financial appeals and if we use the
money for one thing when it was pledged for another.
4. Reverence for God. In some charismatic churches today, leaders have introduced a trendy new teaching
that compares God to drugs. They proclaim that "Jesus is my D.O.C."-my "Drug of Choice." In a bizarre attempt to be relevant
with our culture, they compare a spiritual encounter with God to a heroin overdose. In one instance, a group of people pretended
to shoot invisible needles into their arms as they prayed for one another and asked God for His anointing. And this was in
a so-called "revival service"!
One minister in Oregon refers to God as "Jehovahjuana"-implying that the Lord can give you a marijuana high. Another
conference speaker in California put a plastic Jesus from a nativity scene into his mouth and encouraged a group of teens
to "smoke baby Jesus." The kids all laughed and everyone thought this was a hoot.
Actually, mishandling the name of the Lord in such a flippant manner, and comparing God to an illegal drug, is what the
Bible calls blasphemy. We do not have permission to dishonor His character by changing His name to something sinful and degrading.
How desperately we need the dreadful fire of His holy presence! I hope we will all cry out together the prayer of David
in Psalm 86:11: "Teach me Your way, O Lord; I will walk in Your truth; unite my heart to fear Your name."
