Christ's People Will Never Depart From God

I will put my fear in their hearts, that they shall not depart from me.—Jeremiah 32:40.

I WILL and they SHALL. Such is God's gracious way of saving his people: while proud legal hearts and self-righteous spirits, puffed up with notions of free-will, are ever contending for terms and conditions to be performed by dead sinners in order to be saved; or by creatures, insufficient of themselves to think a good thought, to secure and make effectual salvation to their own souls. But this fear of God is a blessing of the covenant of grace. Naturally the fear of God is not in our hearts. It is one black mark of an unregenerate person, "he has no fear of God before his eyes." How awful! how deplorable is this! Yet, naturally we fear not the power of the Lord, nor dread his wrath: nor are we at all sensible of our danger. What wonder of love! What matter of thankfulness, that the Lord hath put his fear in thy heart, O Christian! The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. It is perfectly consistent with the strongest faith, the most inflamed love, and the highest spiritual joy. Though by faith in Jesus we are delivered from a servile, slavish fear of God, which fills us with legal terrors; yet we are possessed of a filial, loving fear towards him, as to a tender and affectionate father.

This fear shall dwell in the hearts of saints all their days. This fear keeps souls from sinning against the God of love. The blessed effect of it is, "that they shall NEVER depart from me," saith the Lord. Thy soul, believer, being rooted and grounded in the truth as it is in Jesus, by the Holy Spirit, expecting life and salvation, through faith in him, shall NEVER DEPART from this good old way of the Lord, into bypaths of human errors and destructive ways of total apostacy and final unbelief. The Lord's fear shall preserve thee in thy Lord's truth. Though thine enemies, the world, the flesh, and the devil, should surprise thee into sin against thy Lord; should draw thee from sweet communion with him; yet shalt thou fear to "lie down in thy shame, while confusion covers thee." Thou shalt remember, Jesus ever lives to save to the uttermost all sinners who come unto God by him. Thou shalt fear to seek to any other object but him; so shalt thou return by faith and repentance to him. "Happy is the man that feareth always."—Proverbs 28:14.

Salvation is for ever nigh
The souls that fear and trust the Lord;
And grace descending from on high,
Fresh hopes of glory shall afford.

Christ's righteousness is gone before,
To give us free access to God;
Our wand'ring feet shall stray no more.
But mark his steps and keep the road.

- William Mason, A Spiritual Treasury for the Children of God, Volume 1, September 25