"The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man."

Ecclesiastes 12:13

Without faith it is impossible to please God, but for so many people the fear of the opinion of others becomes a stumbling block in growing in faith and thus in pleasing God. At the heart of the fear of man is a desire to please God separate from His grace and the finished work by which Jesus completed all things.

Fear is not all a bad thing. It is through fear that we protect ourselves from certain dangers -- when we're afraid of getting burnt, we keep our hands off the stove or when we are afraid of hurting someone we tame our tongues.

The times that fear becomes detrimental to us and our souls are when it leads to a desire to steer clear of the ways of God. We can be afraid of circumstances or people in a way that leads us away from God. When we become afraid of failure or the future, we can be manipulated to idolize money or work. When we become afraid of losing a position we hold, we could easily fall into malpractices -- lying, stealing or cheating -- in attempts to hold on to that position.

One of the most destructive fears is the fear of man. The fear of man causes us to look for the approval of others instead of the approval of God. One example we see of this is when King Solomon married the Egyptian princess. God had ordered him and all the people of Israel to refrain from doing so.

But because it seemed like a good political move that would please the people, Solomon chose to disobey God. The rest of it is history.

How often do we feel peer pressure? I'm sure it's pretty often for most, and when we fall in this pressure, we feel compelled to put things in our hands. We try to earn our own favor, win our own battles or produce our own results instead of trusting in God.

The fear of man is most detrimental to our faith in God. Instead of trusting in an all knowing Father who makes all things work together for our good, we end up trusting in ourselves or in the opinions of others.

God desires that we put our utmost trust in Him and work with all our hearts and according to His grace to pursue the Lord's pleasure and purposes. Isaiah 55:9 tells us, "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts."

Do you fear God most or is the fear of man still inhibiting you from growing in your faith and trust in God?