John Bevere - What Is God's Treasure
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Solomon writes that the fear of the Lord is the key to all of life. He learned this the hard way. As you saw in chapter one, he started out on fire for God—wise, the wisest King that had ever ruled Israel, and the wisest King on Earth at the time. He was very successful because he not only embraced the fear of the Lord but was anointed to teach it and write about it. However, he didn't value it greatly; he didn’t treasure it, and he let it go. As a result, he became a pessimistic cynic and wrote the book of Ecclesiastes, where he penned statements like, "The day you die is better than the day you are born."
Wow, who would write that? Everything in life is vain. What goes around comes around. What’s lost can't be recovered. Only a jaded person can write this. But what I love is that God gives us insight—a window into King Solomon's soul—because at the end of his life, he concludes with the statement: "This is the conclusion." As a matter of fact, I'm going to read it. This is the last verse of Ecclesiastes: "All has been heard; the end of the matter is: fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man—the full original purpose of his creation, the object of God’s providence, the root of character, and the foundation of all happiness." Now, Isaiah the prophet says in Isaiah 33:6, "There shall be stability in your times."
So Solomon didn't have stability; he was a bit rocky. But Isaiah says what's going to create stability for our times. And boy, are we living in a day and an hour where we need stability? Our society is so topsy-turvy, changing so rapidly right now; we need stability. But Isaiah says, "Hey, the stability of our times and the abundance of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge is found in the fear of the Lord," and God calls it his treasure. I want you to stop and think about that with me: God calls the fear of the Lord his treasure.
Now think about treasure. I mean, if you look at the Gold Rush in San Francisco and Sacramento in 1848, that's when it all began. It was when all the people rushed to California to find treasure—the gold that was hidden in the mountains. Well, over 300,000 people in seven years went to California looking for gold. They dropped everything; they moved to find this perishable treasure. It wasn't the true treasure that lasts forever and ever, like the fear of the Lord. But boy, the population of California increased over a hundred times in that seven years because people were looking for treasure.
Hey, if you think about our treasure today, what do we do? We put it in safes, we develop security systems to protect it, and we put it in banks where people think it will be safe. Let me tell you, we handle our treasure carefully. We should handle the fear of the Lord with all diligence and carefulness. That’s why I'm delighted that you’re reading this book. And so, Father, in the name of Jesus, I pray for my brother, my sister, who is journeying through this book. I'm asking Holy Spirit that you would open our eyes to see and our ears to hear, and give us a heart to perceive and understand the word of God, particularly on walking in holy fear.
I'm asking that my friend's life will be changed forever and ever and ever as a result of what you do in them, Holy Spirit, as they journey through this book. We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen. I really hope you enjoyed that video, and here's the really cool news: I have 42 other videos that correspond with each of the 42 chapters in the brand-new book, The Awe of God. Why did I do this? Because I want to see the core concepts go deep into your heart so that your life is transformed. So go to one of your favorite outlets—whether it's Amazon, Books-A-Million, Barnes and Noble, or JohnBevere.com—and order a book, not just for you but for your friends. Then go to Appendix A in the back of the book, scan the QR code, and it will bring you to all 42 videos. Hey, let your transformation journey begin now!