Fear God and Work Righteousness

Richard Thetford

When the apostle Peter went to the household of Cornelius he stated, ".....In truth I perceive that God shows no partiality. But in every nation whoever fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him" (Acts 10:34-35). Peter points out that the only ones that will be accepted by God are those who "fear Him" and "work righteousness." We must understand that each and every one of us "....must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad" ( 2 Corinthians 5:10). We further learn that in James 4:4 the Word of God says, "Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God." These inspired Bible passages teach us that in order for us to go to heaven we must do what God tells us to do. We cannot compromise, nor can we tolerate anything that will keep us from being in the proper fellowship with God. Friends are good to have, but we must choose our friends wisely. A true friend is one who will look out for our best interests also. A friend will not want us to do anything that will compromise our values or jeopardize us from being with our Lord eternally. In Proverbs 1:7 it says that "the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, But fools despise wisdom and instruction." The Christian that does "fear God" will increase in knowledge so as to ensure an eternity with Him. Are the things we are doing in our body (the things we say, the things we wear, the things we do) pleasing to God? Let’s make sure they are so that we can look forward to our eternal home with Him!