By S. S. Peter

"And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell." (Mt. 10:28)

From this verse the word of God is trying to tell us we should not be afraid of anyone who is only able to kill the body but is not able to kill the soul or spirit. Nobody can kill the soul and spirit. Our God is a Creator. No one is able to see the soul and spirit. God is the Creator of spirit, soul, and body, and He has created us in His image. We belong to God. The devil is a liar. He’s a destroyer. He’s a killer. But he has no power over our souls and spirits. In short, the word of God is trying to teach us, we should not be afraid of man. We should not be afraid of our enemies, but we should fear God. Our God is not a scary God. Our God doesn’t want to scare us. The Bible says, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved." (Jn. 3:16-17) So from these verses we know that God is not a scary God. God is love. (1 Jn. 4:8,16). God loves mankind. That’s why He sent His only begotten Son to die on the cross of Calvary. The word of God says we are the temple of the living God. Jesus Christ purchased us with His precious blood. (1 Cor. 6:19-20) We belong to Him. So that’s why the word of God is saying to glorify God with your body, soul, and spirit because we belong to Him. So when we read this verse, we should fear God. That means we should give respect to God. We should give reverence to God. We should love God, and we should adore God. We should worship God. We should obey God. That’s what God wants from mankind, from you, and from me. And when we love the Lord and fear the Lord, something good happens to us. We’re going to learn from the word of God what the fear of God can do unto us.

Proverbs 1:7 says, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction." See what God is saying? The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. If somebody respects God, if somebody loves God, if somebody shows reverence to God, that person will have the knowledge of God. The knowledge and wisdom flows from God, but the word of God says the foolish despise the wisdom and instruction. That’s why the fool says in his heart, "There is no God." (Psa. 14:1, 53:1) That’s why all people who do not believe in God suffer in this world.

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding." (Prov. 9:10) See what the word of God is saying? The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and the knowledge. So when we fear God, when we respect God, when we love God, the wisdom of God and the knowledge of God starts in our hearts and in our minds. The holiness of God gives us understanding about God. When we live a holy life, when we live for Jesus, when we live for God, God gives us His wisdom, His knowledge, and His holiness. We can understand much more about everything, because God is the beginning of wisdom. God is the beginning of knowledge. How do we get it? As we fear God, as we love God, as we follow God. That’s the way we get our wisdom and our knowledge. The word of God says in James 1, if anyone lacks wisdom, God will give them the free wisdom of God and the knowledge of God. We do not have to spend money to get wisdom and knowledge from God. He gives to everyone liberally.

So, dear friends, what do we need to live in this world? We need God’s knowledge, God’s wisdom, God’s holiness, and God’s understanding, as we fear the Lord. "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; a good understanding have all those who do His commandments. His praise endures forever." (Ps. 111:10) Praise the Lord. The psalmist also says, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom." And when we have the wisdom of God, we will understand God’s ways, and we will do God’s way. We will do His commandments. We will obey the Lord. Why do people obey someone? They have respect for that person. They love that person. And if someone gives you a commandment by love, you will obey it. Jesus Christ said, "I have given you a new commandment. Love one another." He showed us love. The word of God says we did not know what love was, but God first loved us. He gave His only begotten Son to die on the cross of Calvary, and He showed us love.

So we can only love the Lord, understand God, and do His commandment when we have respect for God, when we love God, and when we understand what He has done for us. Many people do not know what God is, but we know God because Jesus Christ revealed to us God the Father. The word of God says, "No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him." (Jn. 1:18) Praise God. We can come to the throne of God by the grace of Jesus Christ, by the love of Jesus Christ, by the blood of Jesus Christ. We can come to God.

The word of God is saying, "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; a good understanding have all those who do His commandments. His praise endures forever." (Ps. 111:10) Praise the Lord. God blesses all the people who love God, praise God, worship God, and believe in God. "Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to depart from evil is understanding." (Job 28:28). See, again we see it here. It says, "Behold the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom." When you fear God, that itself is wisdom of God. Only fools despise God. Only a fool doesn’t understand God, but the people of God love God. And the word of God says, "And to depart from evil is understanding." How do we depart from evil? We do not have our own power to stay away from Satan to depart from evil. We can only do it by the grace of God. God gives us power to live a holy life. The word of God says all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. There is not a single man who lives a holy life without God. So, dear friends, we can only live a good life or a holy life through our Lord Jesus Christ, who is the wisdom and power of God. Then we will stay away from all the filthy things of this world.

"The fear of the Lord prolongs days, but the years of the wicked will be shortened." (Prov. 10:27) Someone reading this may be sick and afflicted. The doctor might have said, "There is nothing we can do. We have done everything possible, but now you can go home." I have seen many, many people. Doctors told them, "There is no hope." I can give a few examples of how God gives extra life, or strengthens your life, or prolongs your days. One day there was a young man who came to me in the middle of the night, and he said, "I have some disease, and there is no cure for the disease. The doctor told me, ‘You’re going to die within a couple of weeks.’" I told him, "Give your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ. Confess your sins and say, ‘Jesus, forgive all my sins. Touch me and heal me. I will serve you and tell the world what Jesus Christ has done for me.’" He received Jesus Christ as his Lord. The next day he went to the hospital for a check-up. They could not find a trace of the disease that he had. Twenty years later, that man is completely healed and is testifying to many people. They were giving him twenty days. God prolonged his life. Now, more than twenty years later, I am telling you this story.

"The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life, to avoid the snares of death." (Prov. 14:27) Dear friends, the fear of the Lord is a fountain of life. God will give new life. The Bible says, "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Jesus Christ our Lord." (Rom. 6:23) Do you need life from God? Then just believe Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. He will give you this life. "Praise the Lord! Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who delights greatly in His commandments." (Ps. 112:1) The man who believes and trusts God is blessed, the word of God is saying. Psalm 128:1 says, "Blessed is every one who fears the Lord, who walks in His ways." The fear of the Lord is a blessing. The word of God says God is so loving and kind. He gave His Son for us to die on the cross of Calvary. That’s the mercy of God. "For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is His mercy toward those who fear Him" (Ps. 103:11). Can you imagine how far heaven is from the earth? No man knows, no scientist knows, and no one will ever know how far heaven is from earth. God’s mercy is that wide. You cannot measure the length. That’s the way God’s mercy is. "Bless the Lord, O my soul; and all that is within me, bless His holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all His benefits: who forgives all your iniquities, who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from destruction, who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies, who satisfies your mouth with good things, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s." (Ps. 103:1-5). See how God’s mercy is. He forgives us. He gives us health. He heals our diseases. That’s God’s mercy and God’s love. "And His mercy is on those who fear Him from generation to generation." (Lk. 1:50). Can you imagine? God is trying to say here that His mercy and kindness is good to His people from generation to generation. Many people who live in sin carry diseases and curses from generation to generation. If anyone comes to God, believes Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, and tries to fear God, God is going to remove all kinds of sickness, disease, and curses from their lives. God wants to bless you and take away all the fear, anxiety, doubts, sickness, and disease from your life. He wants to bless you because the word of God says, "The Lord takes pleasure in those who fear Him, in those who hope in His mercy." (Ps. 147:11) So what is the word of God saying? God takes pleasure in you because you fear God, and God’s mercy is upon those people who fear Him. Dear friends, our God is so loving and so kind. The word of God says when we were yet sinners, Jesus Christ died for us. He is so kind. He is so merciful. The word of God says in Ephesians 2:4-8, "But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God." Praise God.

If someone believes Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior, God will take away the curses, sickness, disease, and the problem they are facing today. The word of God says, "Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree’)" (Gal. 3:13). Jesus died for you on the cross of Calvary. He took your disease, sickness, sorrow, and pain on the cross. "Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed." (Isa. 53:4-5). From these verses we know if you believe in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, He will save you, He will heal you, He will deliver you, and He will set you free from all the fear, doubt, and anxiety. When you give your life to Jesus Christ, you will be a born-again child of God. According to Hebrews 1:14, He will send the ministering spirits, angels, to minister to you and protect you from all the harms and dangers. When we have these kinds of blessings and protection, why do we have to be afraid of anyone or anything? As we read in the beginning, in Mt. 10:28, "And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell." From this verse we know man has no power to destroy your soul, but God has power to destroy both soul and body in hell. Our God is love, and our God is consuming fire also. He sent His Son to die on the cross of Calvary for you and for me. Today, He is a Savior, but tomorrow He will be a judge. The Bible says in Hebrews 9:27, "…it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment." So each and every person will be judged, and no one will escape the judgment of God. But for the believers there is no judgment. "Most assuredly I say to you, he who hears my word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life." (Jn. 5:24). "There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death." (Rom. 8:1-2). From these verses we know that if we believe Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, there is no condemnation, but we have eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

So, dear friends, please do not be afraid of anything. Jesus is the answer for all our problems. Please call upon Him and say, "Lord Jesus, come into my heart. Be my Lord. Be my Savior. Please forgive all my sins and wash me with your precious blood. Please take away all the fear, anxiety, doubts, and suffering from my life. Give me your grace and let me live for your glory. In Jesus’ name I pray."

If you pray a prayer like this, I believe God will take fear away from your heart, and you will never be the same. You will be transformed. "Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new." (2 Cor. 5:17). Let me pray for you.

Lord Jesus, I pray for this person who is reading this message. Please take away all the fear from his or her heart. Give them your peace and your joy. Supply all their needs according to your riches in glory. Give them a victorious life on this earth and prepare them for your coming. Touch them, heal them, deliver them, and set them free from all problems. In Jesus’ name, I pray.

May God richly bless you and use you more and more for His glory.