When you hear that it’s good to “fear the Lord” what comes to your mind? What do you think that looks like in someone’s life? I know that before it was explained to me, and I began to read and refer to Scriptures, I had my own interpretation. The picture that would come to mind is of a person trembling before God, knowing the fact that He is so much bigger and higher than all of us. However, while it’s true that God is those things, He also has shown to care so personally for us that He sent His Son, Jesus, to relate to us in human form. So, why would the Bible put it in the terms of “fear”? Well, we can know that the Word says that “God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7 NKJV). Therefore, when it comes to “fearing the Lord” it is not about being afraid of drawing close to such a big and powerful God, but about being in awe of Him. To fear the Lord is to have a deep respect and reverence for God’s power and holiness! We will be looking at verses in the book of Proverbs where most of the focus about having a healthy fear for the Lord is included.
The author of Proverbs is Solomon, the wisest man to ever live, who begins by stating in chapter one verse seven, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.” In Proverbs, fearing the Lord goes hand in hand with attaining His wisdom. Again, you may ask, “what does it look like to fear the Lord in order to get knowledge and wisdom?” Well, it is important to know Who you are being instructed to be in awe of. Therefore, it is good to start by reading the Word to gain knowledge about the characteristics of God and who He reveals Himself to be.
The fear of the Lord can come gently by God revealing Himself in the details, or He can come with thunder, hailstones, coals of fire, lightnings- in other words- with His Almighty power (Psalm 18:7-15).
God sent a flood before He set a rainbow in the sky. He is powerful and just to do what is needed at the proper time.
You need to know how much bigger God is than you, realizing He is all-powerful, all-knowing, present everywhere, and holy always!
When you know that fact, then you gain wisdom by seeking Him and His understanding more than yours and anyone else’s. Proverbs 14:26 tells us, “In the fear of the LORD one has strong confidence, and his children will have refuge.” This is not because of anything we do, but because of who the Lord is! When we have read the Bible, or heard and seen of His deeds, we can trust that He will take care of His people in ways that only He can! Knowing and believing that brings confidence to us when we face the unknown. As long as we go to the Lord, we will find how He is our safe place and protection against anything that tries to come against us! Fearing the Lord doesn’t look like always bowing down and meditating on who He is as if that’s you’re only job here. Yes, He is worthy of that praise, but that kind of dedication to Him is a level to be reached in heaven. Here, we have the choice to live life praising Him in the good and in the struggles and difficult times in life.
Proverbs 15:16 states, “Better is a little with the fear of the LORD than great treasure and trouble with it.” In other words, it is better to have little yet know the Lord, remembering the fact that He meets your needs, and how intentional He is to work with the small things you have to offer. Otherwise, yes, you can have great treasure in some ways, but if you don’t know the Giver of it all, you won’t be satisfied. In addition, you will struggle with gaining wisdom from the Lord in how to steward it all well. God can do a lot with your surrender to His plans, and your surrender of what you have, since it is all in His hands to begin with.
Fearing the Lord includes being able to remember how consistent He is at being our Defender, Provider, Healer, and Savior when the world seems to try to show us that we don’t need Him.
Philippians 2:10-11 reminds us “that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Everyone will see that there is an all-powerful, One True God one day, whether they believe in Him or not. Yet, God wants to partner with you in order to use you for great things for His Kingdom, but you have to remember Whose you are! Which leads to the last verse that I will touch on, even though there are plenty more you can read in the Word. We read in Proverbs 15:33, “The fear of the LORD is instruction in wisdom, and humility comes before honor.” Drawing near to the Great and Mighty God requires awe and humility. We truly can do nothing, and know nothing, unless we seek the Lord. He brings instruction in wisdom as He knows every little detail of you, your life, and the lives around you. Not only that, God knows all of history since He spoke the world into existence! So, there is no need to worry, He has the answers and He will work in accordance to His good and perfect will. We, however, need to learn to come into alignment with Him and His plans in humility. Proverbs 16:3 encourages us by saying, “Commit your work to the LORD, and your plans will be established.” God will honor the work that you do when you do it for Him and with Him! I hope you never forget that fearing the Lord is an everyday practice. You are meant to rely on who the Lord is and have life abundantly through Him (John 10:10)!
