Fear God not man

Exodus chapter 1 sees the Israelite people trapped in a life of slavery in Egypt, making bricks and building cities for the Egyptians. And because they are getting stronger and stronger while doing so, and the Pharaoh is worried about them overthrowing him, he declares that the midwives are to kill all the baby Israelite boys as they are born.
“But because the midwives feared God, they refused to obey the king’s orders. They allowed the boys to live, too.
So the king of Egypt called for the midwives. “Why have you done this?” he demanded. “Why have you allowed the boys to live?”
“The Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women,” the midwives replied. “They are more vigorous and have their babies so quickly that we cannot get there in time.”
So God was good to the midwives, and the Israelites continued to multiply, growing more and more powerful.  And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families of their own.” Exodus 1:17-21
The midwives fear God. They take Him as their ultimate authority. They live based on His will. Pharaoh is not the overall power in their lives. They care more about pleasing God than pleasing the man Pharaoh. So much so that they are willing to risk their lives and defy Pharaoh in order to stay true to God.
And because they take that stand God rewards them. They are faithful to Him, and He is faithful to them. They know they need to defy corrupt, evil orders and not go along with them. They know pleasing God matters more than pleasing man. But I think it is something we often forget.
When was the last time you took a stand for God? When was the last time you went against popular opinion because of your faith? I know I don’t do it too often. Sure, I don’t go around killing baby boys, but then that isn’t a huge issue in the UK today. But there are many issues where we let the fear of man stop us from speaking up about our faith. When we worry what people will think, so we don’t share what we believe. When we fear the backlash which will come if we proclaim the Biblical standards about marriage or drinking or sex. When we keep quiet about what the Bible says on an issue so as not to come across as judgemental.
Today, take a leaf out of the book of the Israelite midwives, and fear God, not man. Seek to earn His favour, not your classmates or co-workers. It might not get you many ‘likes’ on Facebook, but we have a Truth which the world needs to hear. Don’t let the fear of what man will think hold you back from sharing God’s Truth, that we have Saviour, Jesus Christ, who is the only way to heaven.