“Fear” means to morally revere; cause to frighten, make afraid. It holds within it both awe and reverence – regarding God as holy – as well as fright and trembling – knowing of God’s mighty power and righteous judgment.
I found many verses within the books of Psalms and Proverbs that teach us the facets and benefits of fearing the Lord. Proper and wholesome fear of God will keep us from evil (dreading His fearsome wrath) and guide us on the right path (respecting His wisdom and love for us).
Are you ready to dig in and find out what the Bible says on this important subject? Me too!
The Bible is its own best commentary, so when I wanted to better understand the fear of the Lord I opened the Bible and began to look up every verse in which this phrase is used. I found many verses in the Psalms and Proverbs that identified the facets and benefits of properly fearing the Lord and it is from the verses found in these two books that I will focus our study.
“Trust in the LORD with all your heart,
and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and
He shall direct your paths. Do not be wise in your own eyes. Fear the LORD and
depart from evil. It will be health to your flesh and strength to your bones.”
(Proverbs 3:5-8 NKJV)
Simply put, you need to let go of your own thoughts of what you THINK is right and humbly seek God’s instruction to KNOW what IS right, trust Him and do it His way.
God’s way is the best way and His instructions and commands are only ever for our good (consider Deuteronomy 10:12-13), so when we are instructed not once but twice to let go of our own ways and thoughts of what we think is right and instead trust in the Lord, acknowledge Him, and fear Him, we had better listen!
Do you respect and reverence God enough to change your thoughts and ways so that they conform to His thoughts and ways (Romans 12:1-2, Matthew 7:21-23)? When you humble yourself before God, truly seeking His wisdom and His guidance by opening His word and honestly reading it, you will learn what is right and you will also learn what is evil (consider Hebrews 5:12-14); being able to discern between the two will help you stay on the right path, a path made clear by God’s loving instruction, a path that strengthens and benefits you as you follow it!
Are you ready and willing to fear the Lord and depart from evil? Your own thoughts and notions could be leading you astray, open and read God’s word today!!
You can do it! So can I!!
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