April 23

Since you call on a Father who judges each one’s work impartially, conduct yourselves in reverent fear during your stay as foreigners. — 1 Pet 1:17 BSB

Our life here is but a vapor, a brief journey through a foreign land. We are pilgrims and strangers, passing through this world, which is not our home. The Apostle Peter instructs us to pass this time of our earthly journey with godly fear. We are surrounded by enemies, both seen and unseen, who seek to harm us. Therefore, we must walk with great caution, aware of how easily we could slip, fall, and bring sorrow to our souls, grief to our friends, and joy to our enemies.

Our life is not one of ease, but a battle, a race, a struggle. We wrestle not only with flesh and blood but with principalities, powers, and spiritual wickedness in high places. Our greatest enemy, though, is ourselves. We must view our own flesh as our most dangerous foe. This fear is not a slavish fear, full of torment, but a holy, reverential fear—the fear of a child toward a loving Father. It is the first mark of covenant grace and is described in Proverbs as “a fountain of life, turning one away from the snares of death.”

How essential it is to live our earthly lives in this godly, reverential fear! And let no one think that such fear is inconsistent with the highest faith or the sweetest experiences of love.