Third. Wouldest thou grow in this godly fear? Then, as thou shouldest learn to distinguish of fears, so thou shouldest make conscience of which to entertain and cherish. If God would have his fear—and it is called His fear by way of eminency—" that his fear may be before you, that ye sin not" (Exo 20:20; Jer 32:40)—I say, if God would have his fear be with thee, then thou shouldest make conscience of this and not so lightly give way to slavish fear, as is typical for Christians to do.
There is utterly a fault among Christians about this thing; that is, they do not have the conscience of resisting slavish fear as they ought; they instead cherish and entertain it and weaken themselves and that fear they ought to strengthen.
And this is the reason that we so often lie grabbling under the black and amazing thoughts that are engendered in our hearts by unbelief; for this fear nourisheth unbelief; that is, now it doth, to wit, if we give way to it after the spirit of adoption comes, and readily closeth with all the fiery darts of the wicked.
But Christians are ready to do with this fear as the horse does when the tines of the fork are set against his side, even leaning to it until it enters into his belly. We lean naturally to this fear. After God has done good to our souls, it is hard to strive against it because it even has our senses and feelings on its side. But I say, if thou wouldest be a growing Christian—growing, I say, in the godly fear, in the fear that is always so—then make conscience of striving against the other, and against all these things that would bring thee back to it. "Wherefore should I fear," said David, "in the day of evil, when the iniquity of my heels shall compass me about?" (Psa 49:5).
What! Not fear in the day of evil? What! Not when the iniquity of thy heels compasseth thee about? No, not then, saith he, that is, not with that fear that would bring him again into bondage to the law, for he had received the spirit of adoption before. Indeed, if ever a Christian has ground to give way to slavish fear, it is at these two times, to wit, in the day of evil, and when the iniquity of his heels compasseth him about; but you see, David would not then, no, not then, give way to it, nor did he see the reason why he should. "Wherefore should I," said he? Aye, wherefore indeed? Since now thou art become a son of God through Christ, and hast received the Spirit of his Son into thy heart, crying, Father, Father.
Fourth. Wouldest thou grow in this grace of godly fear? Then grow in the knowledge of the new covenant, for that is indeed the girdle of our reins and the strength of our souls. Hear what Zacharias saith: God, says he, "hath raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David, as he spake by the mouth of his holy prophets which have been since the world began." But what was it? What was it that he spake? Why, "That he would grant unto us, that we, being delivered out of the hand of our enemies, might serve him without fear," without this slavish bondage fear, "in holiness and righteousness before him all the days of our life." But upon what is this princely fearless service of God grounded? Why, upon the holy covenant of God, upon the oath that he swore unto Abraham (Luke 1:69-74). Now in this covenant is wrapped up all thy salvation; in it is contained all thy desire, and I am sure, that then it containeth the complete salvation of thy soul; and I say, since this covenant is confirmed by promise, by oath, and by the blood of the Son of God, and that on purpose that thou mightiest serve thy God without slavish fear, then the knowledge and faith of this covenant is of absolute necessity to bring us into this liberty, and out of our slavish terrors, and so, consequently, to cause us to grow in that son-like, godly fear, which became even the Son of God himself, and becomes all his disciples to live in the growth and exercise of.
Fifth. Wouldest thou grow in this godly fear? Then labor even always to keep thine evidence for heaven and of thy salvation alive upon thy heart; for he that loseth his evidence for heaven, will hardly keep slavish fear out of the heart; but he that hath the wisdom and grace to keep them alive, and apparent to himself, he will grow in this godly fear. See how David words it, "From the end of the earth," saith he, "will I cry unto thee; when my heart is overwhelmed, lead me to the rock that is higher than I. For thou hast been a shelter for me and a strong tower from the enemy: I will abide in thy tabernacle forever. For thou, O God, hast heard my vows; thou hast given me the heritage of those that fear thy name" (Psa 61:2-5). Mark a little, David doth by these words, in the first place, suggests that sometimes, to his thinking, he was as far off of his God as the ends of the earth are asunder and that at such times he was subject to be overwhelmed, afraid: [And] second, the way that he took at such times, to help himself, was to cry to God to lead him again to Jesus Christ—"lead me to the rock that is higher than I"; for indeed without faith in him, and the renewing of that faith, there can be no evidence for heaven made to appear unto the soul. Therefore, he prays for first. Then, he puts that faith into exercise concerning the time that was past and also of the time that was to come. For the time past, says he, "Thou hast been a shelter to me, and a strong tower from the enemy"; and for the time to come, he said, "I will abide in thy tabernacle," that is, in thy Christ by faith, and in thy way of worship by love, "forever." And observe it, he makes the believing remembrance of his first evidence for heaven the ground of this his cry and faith, "For thou," says he, "O God, hast given me the heritage of those that fear thy name." Thou hast made me meet to be a partaker of the mercy of thy chosen, and hast put me under the blessing of goodness wherewith thou hast blessed those that fear thee. Thus, you see how David, in his distresses, musters up his prayers, faith, and evidence for eternal life, that he might deliver himself from being overwhelmed, that is, with slavish fear, and that he might also abound in that son-like fear of his fellow-brethren, that is not only comely, concerning our profession, but profitable to our souls.
Sixth. Wouldest thou grow in this fear of God? Then set before thine eyes the being and majesty of God; for that both begetteth, maintaineth, and increaseth this fear. Hence, it is called the fear of God, a holy and awful dread and reverence of his majesty. For the fear of God is to stand in awe of him, but how can that be done if we do not set him before us? And again, if we would fear him more, we must abide more in the sense and faith of his glorious majesty. Hence, this fear and God's name are so often put together: as fear God, fear the Lord, fear thy God, do this in the fear of the Lord, and thou shalt fear thy God, I am the Lord. For these words, "I am the Lord thy God," and the like, are on purpose put in, not only to show us whom we should fear, but also to beget, maintain, and increase in us that fear that is due from us to that "glorious and fearful name, the Lord our God" (Deut 28:58)
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