Fear of the Lord

I wanted to take some time to talk about a subject that many people avoid: “Fear of the Lord.” Fully describing the God of the universe is an impossible mental exercise, but we have been given glimpses of His character through the Bible. We know He is love (1 John 4:16), He is holy (1 Samuel 2:2), He is all-knowing (1 John 3:20), He is all-wise (Romans 16:27), and He is ultimately good (Luke 18:19)—which are all incredible attributes of God—but what about His power (2 Corinthians 6:18), His justice (Deut. 32:4), or His wrath (Romans 1:18)? And how does that press us towards a healthy fear of the Lord?

You may be saying, “Pastor Bryan, that wrathful God is the Old Testament God. We are under the New Covenant of Jesus Christ where ‘God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.’ (Romans 5:8, ESV) His wrath was put on Christ on the cross, not me. I choose to focus on God’s love.” And I would say that you are correct in your viewpoint of God’s love because He did pour out His wrath on His one and only Son out of grace. But that doesn’t change the reality of who God is, and I would argue that a theology of God that does not cause us to fear Him is a disproportioned theology.

So why should we fear the Lord? I thought I would first mention some of the top fears people have here in the U.S. According to Chapman University’s fear study for 2023, the top fear of people in the U.S. is corrupt government officials, followed by economic collapse, war, and serious illness or death of a loved one. They mention that in 2022, fear of illness or death of a loved one was ranked as the number two fear in the U.S. but dropped in 2023. I was surprised to see that fear of death (for oneself) did not make the top of the list, but I would say that fear doesn’t seem to kick in until the person is facing that reality head-on. One fear that I knew would not be on the list was a fear of the Lord.

People tend to minimize their fears, yet fear motivates almost everything we do. As parents, we fear for our children’s safety, so we put helmets on them, double-check that they are buckled securely in the car, and ensure we safeguard our homes so they aren’t inserting butter knives in the outlets! Some people would say that’s not fear; it's being smart, educated, or wise! Ooh, we may be on to something here. In fire school, while training on ladder options on the top of a 110’ ladder, I distinctly remember my instructor, when asked if he was afraid of heights, replied, “You should always have a healthy fear of working at heights. The moment you lose that healthy fear is when accidents happen.”

Did you know the Bible teaches similarly? Most people think of fearing the Lord as just “fire and brimstone” thinking. However, numerous verses talk about fear differently: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.” (Proverbs 1:7, ESV) Or: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice it have a good understanding. His praise endures forever!” (Psalm 111:10, ESV)

Embracing the fear of the Lord is the gateway to true wisdom! As we cultivate this holy fear, we invite knowledge and transformation, aligning our hearts with God's will. Let us seek to live each day with this profound reverence, allowing it to guide our decisions, relationships, and our journey toward spiritual growth in Christ. Now is the time to pursue wisdom by honoring the One who gives it. Will you take that step and let “The Fear of the Lord” be your number one fear?