The Fear of the Lord

The concept of the fear of the Lord can be found all throughout the Scriptures. If you were to open your Bible you would discover that both the Old and New Testaments address it frequently. Just recently I have had the privilege and the blessing of spending a bit of time in the book of Proverbs. It seems that every time I read a passage from that book, I am amazed at the scope of content covered in those 31 chapters. While the deep well of wisdom that can be found in Proverbs is shocking, I have been struck specifically by the verses in Proverbs dealing with the fear of the Lord. While the children of God rejoice that there is no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1) and while we are told to draw near to the throne of grace with confidence because we have such a great high priest (Hebrews 4:16), we must also remind our souls on a daily basis (or more) that God is God!

"It is he who sits above the circle of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers" (Isaiah 40:22);
"The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth" (Isaiah 40:28b); and
"Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases" (Psalm 115:3).

The book of Proverbs deals with the fear of the Lord in an amazing way. In a sense it shows that the journey of the child of God begins with the fear of the Lord, is sustained by the fear of the Lord, and is carried through by the fear of the Lord.

When God reaches down to rescue a soul, He gives him new life. In this new life we are given eyes and ears to see and hear the truth.
"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom" (Proverbs 1:7)
When God saves us, we recognize that He is holy, awesome, and powerful and that we are sinful, lost, and weak. This right comprehension of the reality of who God is and who we are will result in the fear of the Lord. This salvation wrought by God is where the person begins in wisdom; this is where for the first time the person truly fears the Lord.

"The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil" (Proverbs 8:13)
As we walk in this world it is God's will that we be sanctified (I Thessalonians 4:3). This sanctification is a work of grace by the Spirit in our lives. As we grow in Christ-likeness (Romans 8:29) the Spirit convicts us of sin, and shows us what we must put to death in our lives. If we do not hate evil, we will not be as eager to put the remaing evil in our lives to death. Therefore, the fear of the Lord sustains and motivates us in our battle against sin as we seek to "work out our salvation with fear and trembling" (Philippians 2:12).

"The fear of the Lord is instruction in wisdom" (Proverbs 15:33)
We are not only to be people who hate evil, but we must also seek instruction in wisdom. We, as the children of God, must humbly and joyfully submit to the instruction that has been revealed to us in God's Word. We ought to be children who delight in the law of the Lord! (Psalm 1:2) We must cling to the testimonies of the Lord (Psalm 119:31) and run in the way of His commandments (Psalm 119:32). We must hate evil and love the instructions of God.

"The fear of the Lord leads to life" (Proverbs 19:23)
Not only is the fear of the Lord the beginning of wisdom, the hatred of evil, and instruction in wisdom; but it also leads to life! The destination of those who fear the Lord is a place of eternal bliss in the glorious presence of the Most High God! Because of Christ's righteousness that covers us and death that paid for us, we can be assured that even as he rose again, we are no longer subjected to the fear of death! (Hebrews 2:15) For in fact,
"The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life" (Proverbs 14:23).
The reward for walking in the fear of the Lord is life eternal...

Are we walking in the fear of the Lord?

"The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil." (Ecclesiastes 12:13-14)