Respect is Due

Hab. 2: 20 But the Lord is in His holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before Him

The people gathered at the foot of the mountain. Many were silent. Others talked softly as if they were afraid of disturbing somebody. They were nervous and restless as they looked up at the mountain. For days they had been preparing to meet here with God. They had been told, “Don’t go too close to the mountain. If you do you will die!”

Suddenly a strange cloud began descending, getting darker and darker until it covered the mountain. They jumped as there was a bright shaft of lightening followed by a mighty crash of thunder. For several minutes lightning and thunder continued, then came the sound of a trumpet growing louder and louder. The ground shook and rumbled as their hearts pounded with terror; men sweating in fear, women and children clutching each other. And then above all frightening sounds came the voice of God...

This happened at Mt. Sinai over three thousand years ago as God called Israel together to give them His laws. The people were so afraid in the presence of God that they said to Moses, “You go and talk to God on our behalf. We are afraid to stand before Him”. If we were there we probably would have said the same thing!

Aren’t you glad that God doesn’t come to us like that anymore? Today we just kneel and talk to our loving heavenly Father. Our God is a gentle God. Our God? But isn’t He the same God? He is! The Bible says He does not change. Our kind and gentle Father is the same awesome God of Mt. Sinai. At that time He had to show His awesomeness so that the children of Israel would appreciate His greatness and His holiness. But He was the same kind, patient, loving Father He is today. He has not changed.

Today God deserves the same respect that the Israelites learned to have. We often take God for granted because He is patient and forgiving when we treat Him with disrespect. We still need to respect His name and not use it carelessly (including OMG!). We often disrespect Him by talking excessively, chewing gum and playing electronic games in church; by the careless way we dress for church services; by failing to kneel when required and by looking around during prayer; by sprawling in our seats and sleeping in church. God is God. Respect is due.

We need to fear God, but we shouldn’t show Him respect because we are afraid. We should respect Him because we love Him and appreciate His goodness. He deserves our highest respect. Don’t you think so?

Dear Lord, forgive me for the times I have been disrespectful to you and help me to show reverence to you at all times, in Jesus’ name, amen.