To him the word "Fear" was a bad or negative word. Fear is what keeps us alive and as long as it isn’t immobilizing, it’s not a problem. In this book, Michael Reeves explains that the fear of God is not a gloomy fear marked by anxiety but a heartfelt and happy enjoyment of God as Creator and Redeemer. I know I have. Questions in this Episode. in all its fullness to as many people as possible. And, of course, the ultimate example of fear and perfect love working together is Jesus Christ. What Is the Fear of the Lord? —Michael Horton. I think the problem is fear gets a bad rap in our culture. In the blog post on How to overcome fear in life, we looked at worldly fears, in this post we look at the fear of God. Christianity Today strengthens the church by richly communicating the breadth of the true, good, and beautiful gospel. Perhaps it’s the word “fear” that confuses people. Do we need to fear Him because God is angry and mean? Or it’s the kind of fear that a slave would have at the hands of a malicious master who would come with the whip and torment the slave. Click here for reprint information. It’s natural to fear that we might mess up our lives, but our union wi ... Just because we all experience fear doesn't mean we have to live with it. When Luther struggled with that, he made this distinction, which has since become somewhat famous: He distinguished between what he called a servile fear and a filial fear. As we learn more about the surprising good news of the fear of the Lord, we will discover the vital role we play in displaying to the world the awesomeness of our God. What does that mean?” and other questions can be found in our Questions Answered section. King Solomon, the author of those words, wrote “Fear God.” Here he is not referring to being afraid of God. It is not a fear that we should feel as though will hinder our life in any way. When the Bible refers to the “fear of the Lord,” it means having a deep respect, reverence and awe for God’s power and authority. The “fear” that brings God pleasure is not our being afraid of him, but our having a high and exalted, reverential view of him. But do not have God speak to us or we will die.”Then, in verse 20, Moses says something seemingly contradictory to the people, but really it’s not contradicting at all: Do not be afraid. As sinful people, we have every reason to fear God’s judgment; it is part of our motivation to be reconciled with God. So how do we marry this dichotomy? It’s that kind of dreadful anxiety in which someone is frightened by the clear and present danger that is represented by another person. The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. A Humble Fear Of God. Each issue highlights new, ready-to-download Bible studies at ChristianBibleStudies.com, and other tools to help you become a dynamic teacher of God2019s Word. Copyright © 2013 by Christianity Today International/ChristianBibleStudies.com. Servile refers to a posture of servitude toward a malevolent owner. Matthew 10:28 ESV / 6 helpful votes Helpful Not Helpful. If they fear God, they are more likely to keep their word and treat others with kindness. Find her numerous books at JoHannahReardon.com, including her book No More Fear, which ponders the attributes of God. It makes us aware of danger, but it can be harmful, too. He warned us at every turn to fear God, not men—and he confirmed that in everything about his life and death. That is, to fear God is to believe that we are subject to Him and that He may exercise power over us. Why does the Bible and GOD ask us to fear Him? What exactly is the fear of God? Some people fear loss of income. For those individuals, the future holds judgment (Hebrews 10:31). One last point: If we really have a healthy adoration for God, we still should have an element of the knowledge that God can be frightening. Q. So, in what sense are we to fear God? In his book The Joy of Fearing God, Jerry Bridges says: We cannot separate trust of God from the fear of God. Fearing God does not mean we should be scared of Him necessarily, scared in a way that we should not want a relationship with Him. Your gift enables our worldwide outreach. Fear of God refers to fear or a specific sense of respect, awe, and submission to a deity. Fearing God means to honor God. Fearing God means respecting, obeying, submitting to God’s discipline, and worshiping Him in awe. Moses chose leaders to help him on the basis that they feared God and wouldn't take bribes (Exodus 18:21) and told the Hebrews that God met with them in a terrifying display of his power so that they wouldn't sin (Exodus 20:20). The type of fear we should have for the Lord is not a fear of being scared for our safety or our lives. Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, but love from the Lord is its completion. Do the words “fear + God” spark a bit of…discomfort in your bones? It was because the midwives feared God that they obeyed him instead of the authorities by sparing the Hebrew babies (Exodus 1:17). Psalm 66:16 It is written, “Come and hear, ALL YOU THAT FEAR GOD.” Acts 13:16 “Then Paul stood up, and beckoning with his hand said, Men of Israel, and you that FEAR GOD, give audience.”; Acts 13:26 “Men and brethren, children of the ‘stock of Abraham, and whosoever among you FEARS GOD, to you is the word of this salvation sent.” 2 – Where Does God’s Word Say to Fear God? I often hear people explain the fear of the Lord as a mere respect or reverence. My friend was surprised to find out that in the Bible ‘the fear of the Lord’ and ‘the love of God’ stand side by side. In the New Testament, ‘fearing God’ comes up a couple of times too. A little fear is a good thing because that makes us cautious when climbing ladders, using power tools, or driving a car. Fearing God in the New Testament. Fearing the Lord means to be in awe of his holiness, to give him complete reverence and to honor him as the God of great glory, majesty, purity and power. “ Throughout the Bible we are told to fear God. This Bible study helps us define this universal emotion. I mean at first glance that seems kind of counter-intuitive doesn’t it? To fear God is absolute reverence and awe for an Almighty God, the Creator of all things. “Throughout the Bible we are told to fear God. God has come to test you, so that the fear of God will be with you to keep you from sinning. Okay, that might be possible if it weren't for the "flip side." In fact, Romans 3, a classic chapter on sin, says that our chief sin is that we "have no fear of God at all" (Romans 3:18). Rather than causing someone to be afraid of God, a proper “fear of the Lord” leads one to love Him. Every Christian is to fear the Lord, which doesn’t mean to be afraid of the Lord, but to be in awe of God’s glory and power. To “fear him” means to stand in awe of him: “Let all the earth FEAR the Lord; let all the inhabitants of the world STAND IN AWE OF HIM!” . In this regard, Luther is thinking of a child who has tremendous respect and love for his father or mother and who dearly wants to please them. They fear the loss of a relationship because they turned their spouse into an idol…So, to fear God alone drives out our fear of other things and other people and other places. People subscribing to popular monotheistic religions might fear divine judgment, hell or God's omnipotence. The Mosaic Law cites fear of God as a reason to treat the disabled and elderly well (Leviticus 19:14, 32). The fear of the Lord is a pervasive and important topic, and I think it is needed today, because we are so quick, I think, to solve the problem of God’s fearsomeness with the gospel that we may not give people a chance to really let them sink in how deeply sinful they are or how fearful God really is. The Next 500 Years: 2017 National Conference, God in Our Midst: The Tabernacle and Our Relationship with God, Naming Ligonier the Beneficiary of a Bank or Investment Account, Gifts That Provide Income and Tax Benefits. The servile fear is a kind of fear that a prisoner in a torture chamber has for his tormentor, the jailer, or the executioner. “It is a frightening thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Heb. That’s often lacking in contemporary evangelical Christianity. The words of God in Gen. 22:12 are spoken after Abraham was about to sacrifice his Son Isaac on the altar. The wicked refuses to fear God. Quite the contrary. It refers to the fear that a child has for his father. The only ones who are to "fear" God in the sense of "being afraid" are those who have not placed their faith in Jesus Christ. JoHannah Reardon is a former managing editor of ChristianBibleStudies.com. To fear God means to dwell upon his beautiful, glorious holiness which is the very opposite of sin and evil, and to revere God and know that he loves us so much that he desires us to hate and turn away from sin. It’s odd how little we talk about the fear … That's why hearing someone is God-fearing actually makes us trust that person more. I mean…why should we fear a loving God, right? What does it mean to “fear” God? What does it mean to fear God? What does it mean to fear God? 10:31). 1. You… Yet, the scriptures tell us time and again to fear the Lord; the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. It can negatively impact our health. His praise endures forever! Human Fear. I think this distinction is helpful because the basic meaning of fearing the Lord that we read about in Deuteronomy is also in the Wisdom Literature, where we’re told that “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” The focus here is on a sense of awe and respect for the majesty of God. W hat does it mean to fear God or fear the Lord? If God is a loving and caring God then why should we fear him? But the Bible uses the word fear at least 300 times in reference to God, so we make a mistake when we downplay it. The fear of danger is not the type of fear that is referred to in Ecclesiastes 12:13. It is like the relationship between parents and children. “The fear of God isn’t fear of Him, it’s fear of being without Him.” -John Bevere Have you ever wondered what does it mean to fear the Lord? Pharaoh brought disaster on his nation because he did not fear God (Exodus 9:29-31). Question: "What does it mean to have the fear of God?" For the believer, the fear of God is something much different. Question: "What does it mean to have the fear of God?" 10:31). To trust him and to abhor wickedness amounts to the fear of the Lord. He is a loving, merciful, longsuffering, compassionate God. Fear only God, who can destroy both soul and body in hell" (Matthew 10:28). We trust Him only to the extent that we genuinely stand in awe of Him. One last point: If we really have a healthy adoration for God, we still should have an element of the knowledge that God can be frightening. Have you ever asked yourself these questions? They fear loss of their job. With love like that, what is left to fear but God? “It is a frightening thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Heb. What does that mean?” and other questions can be found in our Questions Answered section. And lest you think this is only an Old Testament idea, note that Jesus states this stronger than anyone when he says, "Don't be afraid of those who want to kill your body; they cannot touch your soul. So it's clear from these passages, that fearing God is good because it saves us from caving into our own sinful nature. Fear can also be a good thing. Category: Articles. The fear that the Bible tells us to avoid is concern mixed with anxiety or dread; it is the feeling of alarm we have when we expect trouble or danger. William D. Eisenhower puts it this way in his article 'Fearing God" in Christianity Today: And, of course, the ultimate example of fear and perfect love working together is Jesus Christ. The mission, passion and purpose of Ligonier Ministries is to proclaim the holiness of God He has a fear or an anxiety of offending the one he loves, not because he’s afraid of torture or even of punishment, but rather because he’s afraid of displeasing the one who is, in that child’s world, the source of security and love. Answer: For the unbeliever, the fear of God is the fear of the judgment of God and eternal death, which is eternal separation from God (Luke 12:5; Hebrews 10:31). For the believer, the fear of God is something much different. Scripture is full of examples of how fearing God is a positive rather than a negative thing. We need to make some important distinctions about the biblical meaning of “fearing” God. In Matthew 10, Jesus said not to "fear those who can… The believer’s fear is reverence of God. These distinctions can be helpful, but they can also be a little dangerous. Fix that problem! He spoke lovingly but frankly to all and didn't mince words when people needed to face their sin and repent. Jesus said the most important commandment is to love the Lord with all your heart, your soul and your strength. As sinful people, we have every reason to fear God’s judgment; it is part of our motivation to be reconciled with God. In the Bible we get a few glimpses into heaven, and we see the heavenly creatures worship Him around His throne continually, crying out “Holy, holy, holy!” and covering their faces. We are invited to call Him Abba, Father, and to have the personal intimacy promised to us, but still we’re not to be flippant with God. Psalm 111:10 ESV / 9 helpful votes Helpful Not Helpful. Followers of Christ are not to live in a state of anxiety. To see God in all his glory and then respond to … Many Christians like to soften this up by taking away the fear God can instill by casting people into hell and replacing this with fear meaning “respect”. The Fear Of The Lord Brings Great Reward. There's been something that's been eating away at me about our relationship with God. What type of fear is it speaking about? For example in Genesis 42:18, Joseph wins his brothers' trust when he declares he is a God-fearing man. Abraham raised the knife by which he would have slain Isaac, and that is when God told Abraham to stop. Jesus taught, "But I will warn you whom to fear: fear him who, after he has killed, has authority to cast into hell. Jan 12, 2018 For somebody who's not a believer in Christ, to fear the Lord, I think it really means you're supposed to be afraid of the Lord, that there's a reality that he is our maker and that because he's a good God, because he's a holy God, because he's a just God, there's a day coming that Jesus tells us that, every idle world, that we're going to be given account for, and I don't know about you but that's … In 2 Corinthians 7:1 it says: “Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God.” Here fearing God is connected to holiness. Answer: For the unbeliever, the fear of God is the fear of the judgment of God and eternal death, which is eternal separation from God (Luke 12:5; Hebrews 10:31). We have higher expectations than simply anticipating trouble. God said, “…for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.” from R.C. 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