Moses used “fear” in two senses. The first is to be afraid as we often think of it – as the people were demonstrating by recoiling from God. This is a fear we can cast aside in Christ, because for those of us in Him, there is no condemnation (Romans 8:1). We do not have to be afraid of judgment. Holy God has brought us close to Him. He has adopted us as His children through His Son’s righteousness and sacrifice on our behalf.

Our identity as God’s children is precisely what fueled Moses’ second use of “fear.” This speaks of reverence, of ascribing weightiness to God. God is no less holy. He is no less just. God’s punishment of sin did not go away; it was poured out on Jesus. For this reason, we fear Him – we never forget who He is and what it took for us to be declared right with Him. We never forget the Cross. We never forget the Gospel.

• Do you tend to have the proper fear of God? Or are there times when you are afraid of Him, forgetting about grace? Or do you take Him too lightly, forgetting about His holiness?