Amazing Love is one of my favorite songs by Chris Tomlin. What you hear playing is an instrumental version of Tomlin's song. One part of the chorus goes like this:
Amazing Love, I know it's true
It's my joy to honor you,
In all I do, I honor you
The Lord brought this song to my mind this morning as I began writing this blog posting. Right away, the question "Why?" came to my mind. Then I thought, perhaps it's because he wants to draw our attention to his AMAZING LOVE for the Father. It was amazing love that led him to the CROSS first for the Father who sent him to the earth. It was the Father's will that he die for us providing salvation for all of mankind.
It was amazing love that he would honor the Father by obeying him, glorifying the Father by doing the work of the Father. This AMAZING LOVE was shared with mankind which was foreknown and planned before the foundation of the world. Just as we sing that it's our JOY to honor the Lord Jesus in a song such as Amazing Love, it was the JOY of Jesus to honor the Father's will and suffer a torture stake.
[Heb 12:2 KJV] 2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of [our] faith; who for the JOY that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.
[Act 2:23 NIV] 23 This man was handed over to you by God's deliberate plan and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross.
[John 17:1-7 NIV] 1 After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed: "Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. 2 For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him.
3 Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. 4 I have brought you glory on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do. 5 And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began.
6 "I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world. They were yours; you gave them to me and they have obeyed your word. 7 Now they know that everything you have given me comes from you.
DELIGHT in the FEAR of the LORD
[Isaiah 11:2-3 NASB] 2 The Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him, The spirit of wisdom and understanding, The spirit of counsel and strength, The spirit of knowledge and the FEAR of the LORD. 3 And He will DELIGHT in the FEAR of the LORD, And He will not judge by what His eyes see, Nor make a decision by what His ears hear;
Amazing love comes through the words of Isaiah 11:2-3 cited above where it speaks prophetically of Jesus Christ (Yeshua Ha Maschiach) having the spirit of the LORD YAHWEH (JEHOVAH) resting upon him. The spirit of the Lord, which consists of wisdom, understanding, counsel, strength, knowledge and the FEAR of the Lord are all wonderful facets of the Father's very being and essence. You may be wondering in what manner is the fear of the Lord a facet of his being. In the context of the Father's spirit, I am led to believe it is referring to his awe inspiring greatness, fierceness and power.
Jesus walked in the purpose and calling of the Father exemplifying the only begotten Son of God while being God himself. It is a paradox, a mystery I'm positively sure we will someday understand when we all get to heaven. In the meantime we simply believe by faith receiving it as truth, as it says, [John 1:1 NASB] 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
If Jesus, being God could fear the LORD YAHWEH, his Father and our heavenly Father, so should we. Isaiah 11:3 drives home the point of Jesus not fearing the Lord out of compulsion because it clearly states that he DELIGHTS in the FEAR of the LORD. "Delight" in Hebrew is "ruwach", Strong's #H7306.
Looking in Strong's concordance I see "ruwach" is found in the KJV (11) times by which (8) of the (11) times it is translated as smell and only (1) time as "delight". Ruwach is a primitive root that means to blow, breathe and literally to smell and by implication metaphorically to "delight" and "enjoy". Also by way of significance to "perceive".
I love digging deep getting to the root of things. I find it further interesting what Gesenius Lexicon says about the root word meaning of "ruwach". It says, "...to smell (as is done by drawing the air in and out by the nostrils,...to smell with pleasure, to be pleased with the smell of anything. ...hence generally to delight in. "His delight (speaking of Jesus) shall be in the fear of the Lord". The signification of a SWEET SMELL is often applied to that which PLEASES."
This is an awesome revelation that the fear of the Lord can be a delight because of the "SWEET SMELL" of the Lord. That doesn't negate the meaning to fear God in the way we are more inclined to understand. We most often think about the fear of the Lord in terms of having a deep sense of awe, respect and reverence for the Lord and of course being afraid and scared of God in the sense of displeasing him. We want to be doers of the Word. [James 1:22 KJV] 22 But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.
John Bevere, an excellent teacher has put out an awesome in depth study on the fear of the Lord and I will share a few tidbits or highlights most appreciated. Most I think understand the basic principles on the fear of the Lord, which are to embrace and esteem God, to shun evil, to hate evil and depart from evil. These are all significant parts of the equation "to fear God".
Yet, Bevere's study helped me see another side of the equation, for it really does involve having a sense of dread and anxiety. In this case, it goes further. It means to feel afraid, scared and even moreso feeling terrified. Yes, that is feeling afraid, scared and terrified of being away from God.
When I heard John Bevere say that in his video teaching, I was like YES! I would have given him a high five if I could have. That's it. That's the meat in the pot of Fear of God stew. There's no worse feeling than feeling God is not with us. We may feel lost, abandoned, alone, and hurt when far away from God. But that's only if we DELIGHT in the FEAR of the LORD like Jesus! To delight in the fear of the Lord adds FLAVOR to the pot of stew.
Consider how profound that is, delighting in the fear of the Lord. Now I understand how the fear of the Lord draws us closer to God which is his desire for each of us. Jesus was close to the Father and it was evident he ENJOYED the time he spent with the Father. He often separated himself from everyone including his closest disciples to spend time in prayer and intimate association with the Father. I am learning to stay focused on my quest to draw close to the Father and the Lord Jesus with the help of our helper the Holy Spirit.
Let's go back to where we began speaking of what Gesenius Lexicon says about the root word meaning of "ruwach". It says, "...to smell (as is done by drawing the air in and out by the nostrils,...to smell with pleasure, to be pleased with the smell of anything. ...hence generally to delight in. Understanding the root meaning of delight as it is used in the context of Isaiah 11:3 brings into focus the dynamics at play in our close association with the Lord.
The "SWEET AROMA", the smell of the Lord will draw us in to him in close association just as it did our Lord Jesus. The sweet smell of his Spirit permeates the air as we soak in his presence sensing his love, joy, peace, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, patience, humility, wisdom and the awesome beauty of His holiness.
[Galatians 5:22-23 NASB] 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
[Psalm 29:2 KJV] 2 Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name; worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.
We can dwell with the Lord spending intimate time just talking, worshipping and praising him in a comfortable setting we've set up in our home, or workplace if we have the luxury of our own private office space. Another private setting favorable for intimate time with the Lord can be in our cars. I've heard of some that are married with children say to steal away private time with the Lord, they go out to their car. Basically anywhere can be a sanctuary if we are alone in our thoughts of communication with the Lord.
I have come to "delight in the FEAR of the LORD" just as Jesus (Yeshua) when I turn on my worship/soaking music. I set the atmosphere for the HOLY SPIRIT which is what ushers in the sweet smelling aroma of God's spirit. The peaceful setting is condusive to enjoyable bible reading and meditation, conversations with God and just simply RESTING in his presence. Drawing close to HIM means everything to me.
My hope is that you also will come to "delight in the FEAR of the LORD" by holding God in the highest esteem and awe, being afraid or scared of being away or apart from God, shunning evil and best of all, enjoying the presence of God as you spend intimate time with him basking in the SWEET AROMAS of his presence.
Scriptures for reference:
[Act 2:23 NIV] 23 This man was handed over to you by God's deliberate plan and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross.
[Heb 12:2 KJV] 2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of [our] faith; who for the JOY that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.
[John 17:1-8 KJV] 1 These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee: 2 As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him.
3 And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. 4 I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do. 5 And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.
6 I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word. 7 Now they have known that all things whatsoever thou hast given me are of thee.
8 For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me; and they have received [them], and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me.
[Psalm 73:28 KJV] 28 But [it is] good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, that I may declare all thy works.
[Heb 10:22 KJV] 22 Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.
[John 15:26 KJV] 26 But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, [even] the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:
[John 16:28 KJV] 28 I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world: again, I leave the world, and go to the Father.
[John 17:5 KJV] 5 And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.
[Luke 4:42 NLT] 42 Early the next morning Jesus went out to an isolated place. The crowds searched everywhere for him, and when they finally found him, they begged him not to leave them.
Amazing Love, I know it's true
It's my joy to honor you,
In all I do, I honor you
The Lord brought this song to my mind this morning as I began writing this blog posting. Right away, the question "Why?" came to my mind. Then I thought, perhaps it's because he wants to draw our attention to his AMAZING LOVE for the Father. It was amazing love that led him to the CROSS first for the Father who sent him to the earth. It was the Father's will that he die for us providing salvation for all of mankind.
It was amazing love that he would honor the Father by obeying him, glorifying the Father by doing the work of the Father. This AMAZING LOVE was shared with mankind which was foreknown and planned before the foundation of the world. Just as we sing that it's our JOY to honor the Lord Jesus in a song such as Amazing Love, it was the JOY of Jesus to honor the Father's will and suffer a torture stake.
[Heb 12:2 KJV] 2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of [our] faith; who for the JOY that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.
[Act 2:23 NIV] 23 This man was handed over to you by God's deliberate plan and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross.
[John 17:1-7 NIV] 1 After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed: "Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you. 2 For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him.
3 Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. 4 I have brought you glory on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do. 5 And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began.
6 "I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world. They were yours; you gave them to me and they have obeyed your word. 7 Now they know that everything you have given me comes from you.
DELIGHT in the FEAR of the LORD
[Isaiah 11:2-3 NASB] 2 The Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him, The spirit of wisdom and understanding, The spirit of counsel and strength, The spirit of knowledge and the FEAR of the LORD. 3 And He will DELIGHT in the FEAR of the LORD, And He will not judge by what His eyes see, Nor make a decision by what His ears hear;
Amazing love comes through the words of Isaiah 11:2-3 cited above where it speaks prophetically of Jesus Christ (Yeshua Ha Maschiach) having the spirit of the LORD YAHWEH (JEHOVAH) resting upon him. The spirit of the Lord, which consists of wisdom, understanding, counsel, strength, knowledge and the FEAR of the Lord are all wonderful facets of the Father's very being and essence. You may be wondering in what manner is the fear of the Lord a facet of his being. In the context of the Father's spirit, I am led to believe it is referring to his awe inspiring greatness, fierceness and power.
Jesus walked in the purpose and calling of the Father exemplifying the only begotten Son of God while being God himself. It is a paradox, a mystery I'm positively sure we will someday understand when we all get to heaven. In the meantime we simply believe by faith receiving it as truth, as it says, [John 1:1 NASB] 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
If Jesus, being God could fear the LORD YAHWEH, his Father and our heavenly Father, so should we. Isaiah 11:3 drives home the point of Jesus not fearing the Lord out of compulsion because it clearly states that he DELIGHTS in the FEAR of the LORD. "Delight" in Hebrew is "ruwach", Strong's #H7306.
Looking in Strong's concordance I see "ruwach" is found in the KJV (11) times by which (8) of the (11) times it is translated as smell and only (1) time as "delight". Ruwach is a primitive root that means to blow, breathe and literally to smell and by implication metaphorically to "delight" and "enjoy". Also by way of significance to "perceive".
I love digging deep getting to the root of things. I find it further interesting what Gesenius Lexicon says about the root word meaning of "ruwach". It says, "...to smell (as is done by drawing the air in and out by the nostrils,...to smell with pleasure, to be pleased with the smell of anything. ...hence generally to delight in. "His delight (speaking of Jesus) shall be in the fear of the Lord". The signification of a SWEET SMELL is often applied to that which PLEASES."
This is an awesome revelation that the fear of the Lord can be a delight because of the "SWEET SMELL" of the Lord. That doesn't negate the meaning to fear God in the way we are more inclined to understand. We most often think about the fear of the Lord in terms of having a deep sense of awe, respect and reverence for the Lord and of course being afraid and scared of God in the sense of displeasing him. We want to be doers of the Word. [James 1:22 KJV] 22 But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.
John Bevere, an excellent teacher has put out an awesome in depth study on the fear of the Lord and I will share a few tidbits or highlights most appreciated. Most I think understand the basic principles on the fear of the Lord, which are to embrace and esteem God, to shun evil, to hate evil and depart from evil. These are all significant parts of the equation "to fear God".
Yet, Bevere's study helped me see another side of the equation, for it really does involve having a sense of dread and anxiety. In this case, it goes further. It means to feel afraid, scared and even moreso feeling terrified. Yes, that is feeling afraid, scared and terrified of being away from God.
When I heard John Bevere say that in his video teaching, I was like YES! I would have given him a high five if I could have. That's it. That's the meat in the pot of Fear of God stew. There's no worse feeling than feeling God is not with us. We may feel lost, abandoned, alone, and hurt when far away from God. But that's only if we DELIGHT in the FEAR of the LORD like Jesus! To delight in the fear of the Lord adds FLAVOR to the pot of stew.
Consider how profound that is, delighting in the fear of the Lord. Now I understand how the fear of the Lord draws us closer to God which is his desire for each of us. Jesus was close to the Father and it was evident he ENJOYED the time he spent with the Father. He often separated himself from everyone including his closest disciples to spend time in prayer and intimate association with the Father. I am learning to stay focused on my quest to draw close to the Father and the Lord Jesus with the help of our helper the Holy Spirit.
Let's go back to where we began speaking of what Gesenius Lexicon says about the root word meaning of "ruwach". It says, "...to smell (as is done by drawing the air in and out by the nostrils,...to smell with pleasure, to be pleased with the smell of anything. ...hence generally to delight in. Understanding the root meaning of delight as it is used in the context of Isaiah 11:3 brings into focus the dynamics at play in our close association with the Lord.
The "SWEET AROMA", the smell of the Lord will draw us in to him in close association just as it did our Lord Jesus. The sweet smell of his Spirit permeates the air as we soak in his presence sensing his love, joy, peace, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, patience, humility, wisdom and the awesome beauty of His holiness.
[Galatians 5:22-23 NASB] 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
[Psalm 29:2 KJV] 2 Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name; worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.
We can dwell with the Lord spending intimate time just talking, worshipping and praising him in a comfortable setting we've set up in our home, or workplace if we have the luxury of our own private office space. Another private setting favorable for intimate time with the Lord can be in our cars. I've heard of some that are married with children say to steal away private time with the Lord, they go out to their car. Basically anywhere can be a sanctuary if we are alone in our thoughts of communication with the Lord.
I have come to "delight in the FEAR of the LORD" just as Jesus (Yeshua) when I turn on my worship/soaking music. I set the atmosphere for the HOLY SPIRIT which is what ushers in the sweet smelling aroma of God's spirit. The peaceful setting is condusive to enjoyable bible reading and meditation, conversations with God and just simply RESTING in his presence. Drawing close to HIM means everything to me.
My hope is that you also will come to "delight in the FEAR of the LORD" by holding God in the highest esteem and awe, being afraid or scared of being away or apart from God, shunning evil and best of all, enjoying the presence of God as you spend intimate time with him basking in the SWEET AROMAS of his presence.
Scriptures for reference:
[Act 2:23 NIV] 23 This man was handed over to you by God's deliberate plan and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put him to death by nailing him to the cross.
[Heb 12:2 KJV] 2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of [our] faith; who for the JOY that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.
[John 17:1-8 KJV] 1 These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee: 2 As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him.
3 And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. 4 I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do. 5 And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.
6 I have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world: thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word. 7 Now they have known that all things whatsoever thou hast given me are of thee.
8 For I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me; and they have received [them], and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst send me.
[Psalm 73:28 KJV] 28 But [it is] good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord GOD, that I may declare all thy works.
[Heb 10:22 KJV] 22 Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.
[John 15:26 KJV] 26 But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, [even] the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:
[John 16:28 KJV] 28 I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world: again, I leave the world, and go to the Father.
[John 17:5 KJV] 5 And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was.
[Luke 4:42 NLT] 42 Early the next morning Jesus went out to an isolated place. The crowds searched everywhere for him, and when they finally found him, they begged him not to leave them.
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