Approaching God With Reverence
By Manju Bharwani Yu (August 5, 2007)

No one would contradict that reverence is due to Almighty God. Have you ever gaze up the heavens lately? With today’s technology, we know about galaxies, planets and the perpetuity of space. In light of the universe’s intricate and magnificence, we stand in awe and wonder to God who created all of it. We are small and insignificant creatures. And If that is the case then, why do we even think for a moment that our concerns are the absolute center of the universe; and why is it us and not God who becomes the vital focus of our prayer. Often times, when we come to God in prayer, we forget that it is not about us. It is not about our demands and request. God knows all our needs even before we ask. “God is not who you think He is; He is who He says He is.” (1)

Last Sunday’s sermon, was an eye opener for me and I know for many of us who heard it. The message shared by Pastor Butch gave me the understanding and awareness that we need to take a second look on how we approach God in our prayer or our worship. Our attitude in our approach to God must be in full reverence. While we may approach God confidently, and God acknowledges us as a loving Father full of compassion and love, we must not neglect the manner on how we draw near to His presence. God must be approach in full reverence. Though we have the invitation and the relationship to come to God as his children, His Fatherhood should not negate our reverence to the One Who made the Universe.

Pastor Butch gave us several insights as to what it mean to “hallow” the Name of God in Matthew 6: 9-13. In this verse, we see an instance where Jesus taught his disciples how to approach God in prayer. In the first part of this prayer, the word "hallowed” which means "holy" was mentioned. To "hallow" means to sanctify, to be perfect, and free from defilement. It also means to have a different quality of being, to be extraordinary, set apart. God is separate from us in that He is undefiled. In other words, this prayer can mean to say: “May your nature and reputation be honored and kept unblemished.” There are three important ways on how we can approach God’s Holy Name as shared by Pastor Butch:



First, to “Hallow the Name of God” means To Take God Seriously: To take God seriously, is to take Him as He is, not what we make Him out to be. He is not our servant that we can order him around and do what He’s told. But rather, it’s other way around. We are His servants. To hallow God’s Name is to come to Him in serious respect, and reverence. Although we have free access to God, when we take advantage of His ‘open-door policy’, we need to take Him seriously because of Who He Is and what He stands for! We need to put Him back in His rightful place and recognize that we are weak and nothing in our power can move Him. We need to revere Him as our Maker and should be taken seriously when we come before His presence.

Second, to “Hallow the Name of God” means To Honor Him: “Hollowed be thy Name” also means, “to honor and respect” his Name. By starting with God’s holiness in the Lord’s Prayer, we recognize that prayer is not mainly for our advantage. Although, in the corporate world, we see people spend so much time building their names and reputation. They love to have their names in lighted billboards, and on doors or diplomas. People like to build their standing in the society. A name can also represent quality, consistency and attributes of a brand or a company. In other words, name is an important aspect of being and standing in a person and society. In the same way, by hallowing God’s Name, we are making known His reputation, proclaiming His character and praising Him for Who He is and all that He has done. Psalm 102:15 declare, "The nations shall fear the Name of the Lord." Let us not take His Name lightly and approach it sloppily; We need to understand that His Name is about Who He is and what He has done for us.

Third, to “Hallow the Name of God” means To Revere God: I was able to experience the Singapore National Day Parade (NDP) last year 2006. It was such a wonderful sight to see people cheered and honored their nation and all it represented. Even in their preparation process, it was evident that serious respect was given to the nation by hanging their nation’s flag on their windows and porches, as a symbol of their respect and devotion for their nation. In the NDP, Singaporeans would stand and place their hands over their hearts in salute as they sing the national anthem. In the same way, when we revere God, we honor His reputation, His character and His nature. We need to set God apart from everything that is ordinary and profane, and give Him the place He deserves and demands in our lives. As a result, Christian should live a life worthy of God’s high reputation. And because we are not just his servants and image bearer, we are also bearers of His blameless Name, thus our lives should bring honor to Him.

As Pastor Butch summarized, he brought us to a profound question in the words of Martin Luther; "How is God’s Name hallowed among us?" His answer: "When both our life and doctrine are godly and Christian." Let us live our lives worthy for God. If you have second thoughts about all this, my challenge to you is to take a second look at the heavens and see for yourself that you really do not have an excuse not to revere Him, He is our Maker and He deserves our full respect and reverence.

End Notes:
1 Quote by Clarice Fluitt
Picture #1 taken by Garik and Picture #2 taken by Wuilly Leiva, from Guatemala. Both are Pastor Butch's batchmates in Haggai Institute, Maui (2005)