The Awe of God by John Bevere

A Five Star Book Review

Christians used to ask, What would Jesus do? We don’t do that much anymore, and there are probably plenty of theological reasons why. Perhaps a better question is, What does Jesus think about this?

Not many Christians ask this question anymore, either.

We go about our lives, make snap judgements based on past experience or learned doctrines, follow what feels right, and adopt worldviews injected into us via a constant drip of church and/or mainstream culture.

But do these positions have much to do with Jesus? How often do we pause to measure our beliefs and assertions against what God says about the matter? Or any matter?

Odds are we wouldn’t say and do many of the things we say and do if we truly feared having to defend them before the judgement seat of the Almighty. Nor would we support the things that God abhors, or excuse the things He commands us to oppose.

In his book The Awe of God, John Bevere explores all of this, and the many ways we’ve ceased living out of a proper, genuine, Biblical fear of God:

When we fear God we take on His heart. We love what He loves, and we hate what He hates. (Notice it is not to “dislike” what He hates; rather, it is to “hate” what He hates.) What is important to Him becomes important to us. What is not so important to Him becomes not so important to us.

— John Bevere, The Awe of God

The Awe of God

Now, with the exception of classics by C.S. Lewis and a few others, I don’t read a lot of Christian non-fiction. And most of the trendy bestsellers I’ve read—designed for structured bible studies—aren’t five star in my opinion; far from it.

So this one, which is expressly written for ministry with study guides and the whole nine yards, surprised me. It’s revelatory in its simplicity and convicting in all the right ways. Using his personal journey, he explains how Christians can easily and habitually forget who we’re talking to when we pray.

The Corinthians served a different Jesus, and Israel followed a different Almighty God. Are we seeing a pattern? It’s possible for us to create a deity with the given name of Jesus and yet not know the actual Jesus at the right hand of God. And what makes it more disconcerting is Israel and the Corinthian church experienced the Lord’s manifest power and miracles in their prayers being answered.

— John Bevere, The Awe of God

And how often do we do this? Just because God performs a miracle through us doesn’t mean He won’t reject us in the final judgement. Mock His instructions and He may say He never knew us. Set up an ungodly table, and He’s going to flip it over. Count on it.

How does the Jesus we manufacture for our lifestyle and beliefs resemble the actual Jesus, the one who will (perhaps today) come back with flames of fire on a white horse, with a robe dipped in blood, opening up a can of whoop*** on those who’ve embraced or defended the things He hates?

“You fear the sword and the sword is what I shall bring against you.”—Ezekiel 11:8, NIV

Bevere challenges us to consider our assertions against the reality of His presence—how we see ourselves and our culture, how we view history and current events, and how we respond to those around us:

Considering the great value Jesus has placed on my life, how do I now view myself? How does this affect how I view and treat those I encounter daily?

— John Bevere, The Awe of God

What We Fear

“The remarkable thing about God is that when you fear God, you fear nothing else, whereas if you do not fear God, you fear everything else.”— Oswald Chambers

A few weeks back, the actress Ellen Paige gave an interview online. Along with Bruce Jenner, Ellen Paige in recent years became one of the celebrity spokespeople for the trans movement, undergoing surgery and taking on the identity of a man she calls Elliot. The interviewer asked her what has brought her the most joy since her transition:

The comments on social media about her response are all over the map. Some Christians made fun of her, others dismissed her as a mentally ill wacko. Some Christians refer to these people as “it,” and I admit I’ve done so myself. If we live in fear of God though, we might have more compassion for their predicament, and measure our words.

The Holy Spirit whispered in my heart, “A spirit of pride and a spirit of religion go hand in hand, and they strengthen each other by hiding each other.” Pride keeps a person from admitting they’ve become religious, and religion covers up the pride by its spiritual behavior.

— John Bevere, The Awe of God

Later that night I told a bunch of guys at church about this interview and the response from callous Christians online. I was filled with grief and empathy for her. Despite her declarations of tears of joy, this is clearly a woman in deep turmoil, and undoubtedly wrestling daily with the forces of darkness in the heavenly realms who hammer her every time she looks in the mirror.

What does Jesus think about this? He weeps. He loves. And He wants We The Church to prepare ourselves to minister to these individuals when they finally surrender all of the lies and don’t know where to turn.

Contagious Hypocrisy

The fear of the Lord keeps us in touch with our heard motives, which is critically important, for the lack thereof leaves us vulnerable to the deception of hypocrisy.

— John Bevere, The Awe of God

Whether it’s war, politics, LGBTQ activism, denominational strife, medical issues, or countless other day-to-day topics of conversation, church culture at large has lost the fear of God. We don’t often ponder what our God-given role is within the world we inhabit. What does Jesus think about us closing churches in fear of a virus? Or shaming those who still live in daily fear of it? What does He (not us, and not that guy with the six-hour podcast) think and say about women in leadership? What does Jesus say about dropping bombs on civilians anywhere, be it on Palm Sunday or any other day of the year? What does Jesus say about Christians who brush it off, or make excuses for it?

If we’re not willing to wrestle with Jesus regarding issue A, B, or C, then we don’t know Him nearly well enough, and astoundingly, don’t fear being in opposition to Him.

Have I drawn a line in the sand? Have I determined to not adhere to the wisdom of society that is contrary to what the Word of God states? Am I willing to be persecuted for my belief in and obedience to His Word? How will I seek Jesus’ wisdom more forcefully in my daily decisions?

— John Bevere, The Awe of God

One Christian saying you’ll still find on the walls of countless grandmas’ houses is this: Wise men still seek Him. Those ladies probably had a much healthier fear of God than a majority of the modern Church.

“And you will know that I am the Lord, for you have not followed my decrees or kept my laws but have conformed to the standards of the nations around you.” — Ezekiel 11:12 NIV

The Church has not done a very good job at putting Him first, as a thousand minor offenses that get us off mission and disjointed doctrines that skew our loyalty can attest. The Awe of God is a brilliant, brief, and important reminder that We The Church have lost sight of a key component in following Jesus. We need to get good at fearing God again, and fast.

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