Grace is Scary

 What do you think is the most fear producing thing God has ever done?In other words, if you want to motivate yourself to fear God, what would you say is the one thing you should think about that is most likely to do that?I am not sure I have the final answer to that, but I appreciate Jonathan Edwards suggestion, that one of the things that should produce the most fear of God in us, is the ways in which He has shown us His grace and mercy.He writes,"The Greatest work of mercy that Ever was the work of Redemption. If we look at the sufferings of Christ, we Indeed tast nothing but the sweetness of it. But Christ tasted the Bitter. The work of Redemption is altogether a work of love & Grace towards us but it was a work of strict Justice & terror with Respect to our mediatour who stood for us.God never appeared a more terrible (i.e. awesome) being, never so much manifested the awfullness of his majesty & Justice as he did in strictly Requiring of his only son a person of Infinite dignity the debt he owed to Justice as our surety and in fully executing that direfull Punishment & vengeance upon him that was due unto us for sin.There is no work that God ever wrought towards the Children of men that has so Great a tendency to make beholders . . .so Deeply sensible of the awfullness & dreadfullness of Gods majesty and how dreadful a thing it is to offend him. (than Christ's work on the cross.)This work that is Eminently a work of Grace above all others is also above all others a work... (that should produce fear and awe in those who consider it.)"