The Fear of The Lord

I'm reading in Proverbs1:7, it says, the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. Fools despise wisdom and instruction. 

In book of Ecclesiastes, Solomon says, "Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of men."

We see this idea of fearing God riddled throughout the scripture. 

It's a strong theme and yet today many people don't even understand what that means. 

And how they can grow in their fear of the Lord? 

Can you talk to us about what it means to fear God. How we can grow in our fear of the Lord. And why it's so important?  

Different Aspects of Fear .

Well , first of all, we need to look that there are different aspects of the fear of the Lord. 

The unbeliever should fear the Lord, in what way? As judge. As righteous judge who is angry every day. 

So there is a sense in which you know the unbeliever who is living in rebellion against God ; who is not reconciled through Christ Jesus.

For him to fear the Lord is to fear that aspect of his holiness and his righteousness, that manifests itself in wrath. 

Now, for the believer, it is different. It's that first fear that I talked about who drives you, that drives you to Christ. And coming to Christ, we are now reconciled through him. And we bear the righteousness of God in Christ. Our legal standing before God, our immutable legal standing before God is the righteousness of God. 

So we're clothed in the righteousness of Christ. So obviously, the word reverence there or fear is going to change. I think when the most perfect examples of what it means to fear the Lord is actually found in the Lord's prayer. 

Where he says, our Father who art in heaven. And you know we hear today, I've heard this for 30 some years you know. Abba, Father. So we can call him daddy or in Spanish papito or something. That's not what that means . The closest thing I've seen on earth to what I think, it means Abba, Father has been in several different people, groups. In Africa, where a child will come to their father, with knowing that their father loves them, knowing that they are endeared to their father and yet they will almost do something like this 🙏 , and drop down and some children almost bow in the presence of their father. When we say daddy, it's almost this trite to flip it, Santa Claus flip it. 

So here in the Lord's Prayer, it's our Father , all that. That means and then, who art in heaven .

Our Father is the creator and sovereign of the universe and it's maintaining those two things. Now people will ask me, you know, okay what does it mean to fear the Lord? 

It is to reverence him. When it says hallowed be thy name , what it's saying, there actually is that God in my heart, in my estimation, in my value of him would be put in a completely other category. 

He is not like me. Just bigger or better. He's not like me at all. When we talk about God, we're talking about a completely other category. Or some theologians have talked about the otherness of God. And it is that, why do I not take his name in vain. Because he is in that category infinitely separate above all other things. In nobility and beauty. And holiness and justice. And righteousness. 

He is a completely other. Okay, now so people say, I want to grow in the fear of the Lord. And my reverence for him, my respect for him which begins with my estimation of him. 

Okay, you can't have reverence without a high estimation. How do you get a high estimation? 

And here again, we go back to the Word of God. How has God revealed who He is. The more I know about God biblical true knowledge, if I'm unconverted, the more I  know about the biblical God, the more I'm going to hate him. 

But if I'm converted and I have a renewed heart and I love righteousness, the more I know about God, the more I'm going to love him. Do you see that? 

And so it all goes back to scripture. You know, and people will often say when hearing about the fear of the Lord that that's an Old Testament idea. And so there's an illiteracy to the reality, that Jesus says, you know in Luke 12:5 , I'll tell you who to fear, yeah . "But I'll tell you whom to fear. Fear God, who has the power to kill you and then throw you into hell. Yes, he's the one to fear."

 The fear of the Lord is not just isolated to the Old Testament but it is the anthem of even Jesus's preaching.

The Anthem of Jesus 

I think here is something that is very important. Even if it was only isolated to the Old Testament, the Old Testament is still the inspired scriptures, you know. So I don't know where people, you know, it's this lie again that plays the Old Testament off the New Testament and vice versa. 

Jesus is different than the Old Testament God, all these different things. And again it's just a lie of the devil. 

So even if it wasn't in the New Testament but it is, yeah and it is. I'll tell you what, it is this constant who is man's , let me say this tongue-in-cheek. Who is man's greatest defender? It's always the devil. It's always, in the garden, what does the devil do?

"Did God give that command? Would he be that miserly, I mean, I want a vouch for you. I think you need to be able to eat from that tree. How dare God keep you from that tree." So the devil is always on man's side against God .

And that's the same thing that happens here. Really, I mean, is God a megalomaniac. That he would want you to fear him. No. That is. Just see. 

If he can't destroy it utterly, then he just says, "Oh that's just an Old Testament thing. And you know in the Old Testament, it was just man's interpretation. 

Primitive man's interpretation of God and there's a better interpretation in the new, I mean he will even play the Old Testament in the New Testament  against one another.

And so, what we need to see is that what is reference. It is simply seeing God in greater and greater light of the scripture, to discover who he is, and the more majestic, the more wonderful, the more you know holy and just and loving and all these things we see the greater and greater our estimation. And the greater and greater our reference. I remember, you know, there are men who I know, godly men, who will say, Paul call me, by my first name and I go.  I can't . I just can't, well, I mean I'm almost 60.  I can't. And they say why, I just  have too much respect, honoring. Yes and that's that's created because I know this man. I've seen him now for years and I can't just call him by his first name yeah you know. And then, it's the same way. All these years of growing in my knowledge of God, he's just too wonderful not to show that respect and when I don't. Because when we sin, it strikes the heart. Or if I say something trivial, it strikes my heart. Why? Over 35 years of growing in the knowledge of God. That's why Jeremiah, you know, don't boast in wisdom, riches, strength.  

Boast in this it's no God his attributes. And as we fear God, you said it is to have a proper and high estimation of him. Consequently, we will have a reasonable estimation. Even though not to the degree that we should of ourselves. Yes and as we do so, we'll be able to be useful for Christ. Honoring to him because we'll see God rightly. And then we'll see our self right.

 Now we're talking even in eternity. Yeah, all right, we're talking about a progression dynamic as opposed to static. I mean even at the end, if we can say it this way, in eternity of eternities, we will stilI have not sounded the depths of the glory, of the beauty, of the power, of the holiness of God. 

No matter how far we travel in, to knowing who he is, there's still more to know. And that is what makes heaven, heaven. That's like eternity, eternity. It's an ongoing constant dynamic discovery of more and more about the glory of God which leads to greater and greater heights of joy and fulfillment as the creature so good, the fear of the Lord is what God deserves. But it is also the beginning of wisdom. So thank you for helping provide clarification on what that means and how we can grow in our Fear of God.

 So thank you , Paul. 

You're welcome.