This said, one thing that always confused me was "the fear of the Lord". I hear it everywhere. Some of my favorite passages contain that call- "Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised" (Proverbs 31:30). But what does it mean to fear the Lord? Proverbs gives a better glimpse into it, "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight" (Proverbs 9:10) So fearing the Lord is part knowing the Lord. Job adds to this, "Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding" (Job 28:28). So to obey God's commands (not begrudgingly but with a thankful heart) is to understand and fear the Lord (see Psalm 34 for more). But even reading all this, it wasn't clicking in my brain.
Last night, I reached the final "chapter" of Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan. Christian (the main character) is explaining to his fellow traveler Hopeful what fear of the Lord is. He describes it simply:
1. "By its rise; it is caused by saving convictions for sin."- so the fearing the Lord opens our eyes to our need of Him. The knowledge that we are dead in our sins and have need for the Redeemer.
2. "It driveth the soul to lay fast hold of Christ for salvation."- knowing our sins and how they overwhelm us drives us to Christ, the One who lived without sin and yet was forsaken on the cross for our sake, that we may have life.
3. "It begetteth and continueth in the soul a great reverence of God, His Word, and ways, keeping it tender, and making it afraid to turn from them, to the right hand or to the left, to anything that may dishonour God, break its peace, grieve the Spirit, or cause the enemy to speak reproachfully."- so knowing our sin, and our need for Christ, laying all of our trust upon Him who saves, and in the deepest of gratitude for the Ransom He has given for our lives, to do that only which honors Him and gives Him glory. We should show Him deep reverence (or respect, but reverence I think it a better word choice because it shows the gravity of the situation) and desire the very things His Word teaches us that He desires.
In other words, the fear of the Lord isn't for those looking for a casual relationship with God (if there is such a thing). After 6 years, I'm finally learning that to fear the Lord is walk humbly with Him (Micah 6:8), to grow in knowledge of Him by reading His Word (Deut. 4:6-9), and to give Him the deep reverence He deserves (Psalm 18 and Isaiah 53). Praise You Lord for continuing to open my eyes!
This is interesting because our women's study talked about this last night. The Hebrew word for "fear" in Psalm 36, which we were studying, is a strong word, according to our study guide. It can even carry a sense of dread, but maybe not so much of being terrified or horrified, but feeling very tiny and inadequate in his presence. Of course, the word for God's "love" (hesed) for us in the same psalm is a strong and big word, too. I am so thankful for his mercy! Thanks for your post, Maggie!
ReplyDeleteThat's wonderful Lynne! I'll have to look at that Psalm. I remember talking with my dad about fearing the Lord. The way he took it was fear in the sense of being frightened of Him. At the time, I thought it meant deep respect, but it goes far beyond that!
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