For certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.

Jude 1:4

“The Only God”

Contend for the Faith

“And to man He said, ‘Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom;
And to depart from evil is understanding.’”

Job 28:28

The fear of the Lord is the instruction for wisdom,
And before honor comes humility.

Proverbs 15:33

Five Church Members Who Are Actually Atheists

If you have no fear of God it is not likely that you know Him.

Wednesday, August 02, 2023

By Dr. Joe McKeever

Reprinted from The Stand

On the surface, the preacher-eaters, church-dividers, and rabble-rousers who would destroy a church in order to have their own way insist they do believe in God. I say otherwise. Stay with me here…

Of course, they are religious. They’re church workers; they talk the talk.

The problem is some of these trouble-makers are living as unbelievers. No, they’re not alcoholics, not frequenting the brothels, and not criminals. However, their work in the church is being conducted in the flesh and for their own purposes. They are not people of prayer, not people of obedience, and not living Christlike lives. Even if they are religious.

Whatever belief in God they possess is theoretical. God was in Christ, yes. But He was in the past. And He will be in the future, they believe, when He takes them and others like them to heaven.

As for the present, alas, they are on their own.

What, you ask, would lead me to say such outrageous things about some people who are members of good Christian churches and who frequently get elected to high positions of leadership?

Two things:

1) I have six decades of dealing with them. I have met them in every church I ever served. However, it took me a long time to identify the problem.

2) The clue to their atheism is simple: There is no fear of God in them.

The fear of God is the key.

Again and again, Scripture insists that wisdom begins with fearing God. We take “fear” to mean awe and reverence. By its very nature, anyone fearing the righteous God is automatically humble and obedient.

Nothing of any significance spiritually begins without that awe and humility.

Want to see the fear of the Lord in action?

–Take a look at Job when he comes face to face, so to speak, with the Almighty. He exclaims, “I have heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees You. Therefore, I abhor myself, and repent in dust and ashes” (Job 42:5-6).

–Here is Isaiah having a similar experience: “Woe is me, for I am undone! I am a man of unclean lips, and dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts” (Isaiah 6:5).

–Simon Peter must have felt the same way when he exclaimed, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!” (Luke 5:8)

See a common theme there? The presence of the Lord–experiencing His nearness, knowing that “He is here, in this very place”–shrivels the ego, wilts the self-confidence, and overpowers one’s pride. Humility becomes the order of the day.

–It reminds us of Jacob who awakened from his life-changing dream, and exclaimed, “Surely the Lord is in this place and I did not know it! How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God! This is the gate of heaven!” (See Genesis 28) You meet God and fear is the order of the day.

A fear of the Almighty God of the universe is the healthiest possible thing for any resident of planet Earth. How much more His redeemed children.

In the fear of the Lord, there is strong confidence, and His children will have a place of refuge. The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life, to turn one away from the snares of death (Proverbs 14:26-27).

I love the way the Prophet Amos puts it in explaining his ministry. The lion has roared! Who will not fear? The Lord God has spoken! Who can but prophesy? (Amos 3:8)

Sometimes a good old-fashioned fear is the healthiest of all reactions. It is for good reason that the opening line of almost every biblical encounter with divine beings was the same: “Fear not!” Everyone who came face to face with the Lord or one of His messengers seems to have experienced the same knee-knocking, teeth-chattering, heart-stopping sensation.

Once in a while, we hear someone boast about what he will say to the Lord of the universe at judgment. It’s always self-justification as to why he did not come the same way as others. Well, one thing we can be sure of: we know precisely what such people will say in their defense at the great Judgment. God’s Word tells us…

In the parable of Matthew 22 (the king’s wedding feast), we read: But when the king came in (to the great hall where all his guests had assembled), he saw a man there who did not have on a wedding garment. He said to him, “Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?” And he was speechless.

That’s what the presumptuous one will say. Absolutely nothing.

Anyone trying to get to heaven by his own devices, coming his own way, bypassing God’s provisions, will have the ultimate comeuppance at Judgment.

No excuse. No defense. No speeches before the Almighty God at judgment. Just soul-searing fear.

Those who live without a proper fear of God become lawless and unrestrained. The pity is when they are put in charge of churches and try to dominate the congregation and the pastor.

“They say, ‘The Lord does not see, and the God of Jacob is not paying attention’” (Psalm 94:7).

Here are five church members whom I have seen practicing atheism in churches–

1) Those who, wishing to have their way, tear up the Lord’s church and think it is all right. Psalm 50:21 comes to mind: “You did these things and I kept silent, and you came to the conclusion that I was just like you.”

2) Those who lie about their giving and feel no guilt. Ananias and Sapphira were the first, but not the last by any stretch of the imagination (Acts 5).

3) Those who are holy terrors at home and holy joes at church. Can you say “hypocrite”? Look at the blistering the Lord gave the Pharisees of His day in Matthew 23.

4) Laymen who rule the churches with an iron hand. These are sons of Diotrephes (3 John 9-10). The Bible specifically says the Lord made the pastors/elders “the overseers, to shepherd the church of God” (Acts 20:28).

5) Church members who live by fear and not by faith are demonstrating unbelief in the living God. “Why did you fear?” Jesus asked the disciples in the storm-tossed boat. “Where is your faith?” (Mark 4:40)

The prayer of Elijah on Carmel is as valid today as it was thousands of years ago: “Lord, let these people know there is a God in Israel and that I am your servant.” (I Kings 18:36)

I recall a conversation with some pastor friends and their wives in a restaurant one day. The discussion fell on a brother who had committed adultery and lost his family, his reputation, and his ministry. One of the women at our table said, “I don’t worry about Frank. He’s too afraid of God to commit adultery.” Frank said, “You’ve got that right.”

All fear of God is not simply awe and respect, as important as those are. In my opinion, those don’t quite cover the subject. For people living a godless existence but passing themselves off as faithful, they need an infusion of pure, unadulterated fear!

–A healthy fear of the Lord of the universe means the prospect of standing in His presence at judgment after having failed Him strikes terror into our hearts.

–A healthy fear of God means I want to please Him above all else.

–A healthy fear of the Almighty keeps my ambition in check and my self-esteem in balance.

–A healthy fear of the Lord means I will fear no one or nothing else nearly so much.

Who shall not fear You, O Lord, and glorify Your name? For You alone are holy. (Revelation 15:4)