|
 In
his Word Pictures In The New Testament, A.T. Robertson
comments, “The basis of ethical conduct rests on the nature of
God and our attitude toward him, otherwise the law of the
jungle." (Re. Rom. 1:18)
As
the first chapter of Romans clearly shows, man's view of God
influences his manner of life. The terms "Godliness"
and "worldliness" denote attitudes that are closely
correlated. Ignore or deny the existence of God and emphasis
will logically be given to the "here and now". We
should not be surprised, then, to see a faithless society more
and more oriented to materialism and pleasure-seeking. When God
is left out of our thinking and living, whether deliberately or
through neglect, the results are the same. The prosperous farmer
of Lk. 12 may have had good intentions about serving God later,
but his main concern thus far had been in laying up treasure for
himself---just as any atheist or infidel. And that's why God
calls him a fool.
Regrettably,
many are re-living the mistake of this foolish farmer by
allowing the cares, riches and pleasures of this life to crowd
out God and His word. Such ungodliness (wrong attitude toward
God) is like that mentioned in Rom. 3:18: "There is no fear
of God before their eyes". As another version puts it,
"They care nothing about God nor what He thinks of
them". When used in reference to God, this term
"fear" denotes reverence, regard, and respect. As Vine
puts it, "it is a wholesome dread of displeasing Him".
That it involves a disposition of heart can be seen in Deut.
5:29:
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"0
that there were such an heart in them, that they would fear me
and keep all my commandments..." The influence of such fear
flavors every facet of spiritual life.
For
instance, Prov. 1:7 shows how it relates to the attainment of
knowledge: "The fear of God is the beginning of
knowledge". That is, a recognition of the true nature of
God and His purposes is the foundation of real knowledge and
wisdom (Prov. 9: 10). Incidentally, here is why the man is
blessed "that walketh not in the counsel of the
ungodly" (Ps. 1:1). The conclusions of atheistic (either
practical or professed) scientists, psychologists,
anthropologists, etc. must forever be suspect because they leave
out God and His word.
Further,
fear of God encourages repentance and discourages sin. "By
the fear of the Lord men depart from evil" (Prov. 16:6).
When men fear God more they sin less. That such fear serves as a
deterrent to sin can be seen in Ex. 20:20: "...Fear not:
for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before
you, that ye sin not..." It is not hard to see that
sin flourishes where there is no fear of God. Recall that
Abraham feared Abimelech because he thought, "the fear of
God is not in this place" (Gem. 20:11). Perhaps we too
should fear men who do not fear God. Man's view of God
determines his view of sin: "The fear of the Lord is to
hate evil" (Prov. 8:13). Surely we can appreciate the wise
man's conclusion: "Fear God and keep his commandments: for
this is the whole duty of man" — Dan S. Shipley
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