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| Dear Heavenly Father, Teach us to fear and reverence you as we should. Protect us from the evil one. Let us all learn something new from this study. Add to our knowledge and understanding of you. Give me the words you want me to write. Thank you for your Word. In Jesus Christ’s name, Amen What is fear? I Googled the definition of fear and this is the first definition I saw. Fear is an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat. This website mentions the following from a Bible Dictionary. https://steppesoffaith-56895.medium.com/what-does-it-mean-to-fear-the-lord-79ef2... “In the Greek language, fear has many different translations. Phobos, which is where “phobia” comes from, means dread or terror. But the translation eulabeia means caution, reverence, apprehension but “especially holy fear.” A slightly different version of eulabeia is eulabeomai, which means “to beware” and act with reverence produced by holy fear, which we see in Hebrews 11:7. “By faith, Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household.” The translation phobeo also means “reverential fear” as we see in Mark 6:20 and Ephesians 5:33. Notice the difference between phobos and phobeo. One word means terror, and the other means reverential fear.”
I wrote these two items previously and they go along with this study. If we have the proper reverential fear of God, we do not have to fear his wrath. Either way, it it wise to have a reverential fear of God and respect for him. By the way, I wouldn't object if you were to write a review for those two things.😉 👑FEAR THE LORD!👑 “He who fears God has nothing else to fear.” Charles Spurgeon When you fear God, you fear nothing else, but if you do not fear God, you fear everything else. (Oswald Chambers) Proverbs 14:26-27 26 In the fear of the Lord is strong confidence: and his children shall have a place of refuge. 27 The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life, to depart from the snares of death. https://counselingoneanother.com/2019/05/28/22-benefits-of-fearing-god/ This link takes you to a list of benefits of fearing God. What does it mean to Fear the Lord? I have a few different thoughts on this. For one, if you are not saved by His grace and Believe in His only Begotten Son, the Bible says you are condemned. John 3:16-18 ▼ What is this condemnation? Why is someone condemned in God's eyes? It is when we are guilty of sin and reject God's ways. John 3:19-20 ▼ What does it mean to be condemned? https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/condemned Being condemned means pronounced guilty and sentenced to punishmen, especially sentenced to death. It can also means declared to be reprehensible, wrong, or evil, and officially declared to be unfit for use. https://av1611.com/kjbp/kjv-dictionary/condemn.html Here is the definition from a Bible dictionary. It basically means the same thing, but with implications of utter rejection from God. Romans 6:20 ▼ Guilty! What is the penalty for being guilty? Before we accept Christ as our savior, we are condemned to death under God's law. We have good reason to fear when we are not under the Grace of God by the blood of Christ in faith. Romans 6:23 ▼ In this situation we fear God's judgement because he has the power to take the life of your soul. Matthew 10:28 ▼ In this situation, it is a fear like the Israelites would have had of their taskmasters. Exodus 1:9-14 ▼ This is the type of fear that makes the sinner want to flee from God's presence. This is the type of fear Adam and Eve had when they fled from him and hid in the garden. Genesis 3:8-10 ▼ Some people hate the police because they are afraid of going to jail or getting into trouble with them. In reality, if you are doing nothing wrong, why should you fear them? Let me use the example of parents with their children. When a good parent is teaching their child, they will set rules with clear boundaries. “If you don't follow these rules, this is the consequence. (time-out, spanking, loss of privileges, etc...) The Bible is God's rule book. He has set healthy boundaries so we can pursue a healthy relationship with Him. He loves us like a Father loves their children. Romans 8:10-15 ▼ God did not go and make up a bunch of rules to oppress us like the Egyptian taskmaster's. He made a list of rules for us to follow with our best interests in mind. He is a loving God with good intentions towards us. Jeremiah 29:11 ▼ Because we are God's children and in a relationship with him, we fear him because we reverence him. We love him and we don't want to offend him. We want to defend him. We don't want him to be angry or upset with us because we don't want anything to get in the way of our relationship with him. Proverbs 16:6-7 ▼ The Fear of Man Some fears are healthy. Having healthy, beneficial fear is not a sin. Fear becomes sin when it prevents us from doing the will of God. Revelation 21:8 ▼ When we fear what man can do to us more than God, this prevents us from doing God's will and is a sin. The fear of man is a snare to us. It causes our hearts to be troubled. We can become paralyzed by our fears. Fear can be a good thing when it is productive and protective bringing wisdom. It can become unhealthy if it begins interfering with normal activities. The fear of the Lord is a healthy fear to have because it brings us closer to God. Proverbs 29:25 ▼ Life is of a far better quality with love and the fear of the Lord. It is of a far less quality with trouble and fear. The greatest riches and the finest dinner doesn't make trouble and hatred any easier to deal with. Being in the right relationship with God and with others is worth so much more than any earthly treasure. Proverbs 15:16-17 ▼ Depending on how strongly we love and fear God, this can determine our ability to separate ourselves from sin and to step out into faith in Christ. We are influenced by who and what we love. 1 John 4:15-19 ▼ When fear comes, we should turn away from the earthly things we find refuge in, such as: comfort, power, control, or approval. We should take refuge in God alone. When we have a healthy fear of the Lord, fleeing to him in obedience, love, praise, worship, honor, and service will automatically follow. You must chose your fear. Fear man, and reap a snare to your soul. Fear God, and reap all His benefits such as wisdom, eternal life, and so much more. Fear God or the things of this world. Psalm 130:3-5 ▼ When you choose to fear God, he delivers you from all other fears. ▼
Conclusion I wanted to include fear of the Lord in the Armor of God series to make a point. We must choose who we are going to be afraid of before the spiritual battle even begins. We will act upon what we fear. We can choose to be afraid of God and obey him, or we can choose to fear other things; man, discomfort, pain, suffering, Satan, etc... The Bible only tells us to Beware of Satan, not to fear him. However, it tells us several times to Fear God. Joshua 1:7-9 ▼ I think Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 sums it up well. 13 Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. 14 For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil. Fearing the Lord is to be consumed by your love for God, fueled by your faith in Jesus Christ, and characterized by your obedience to God. True wisdom is to fear God, submit our lives to Him, be in constant communication with the Lord, and study the Word of God. We need to seek to understand life from God's perspective. Psalm 128:1-2 ▼ Resources ▼ Jesus is my permanent anchor!  |
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