I mean at first glance that seems kind of counter-intuitive doesn’t it? Fear can be one of 2 things, a Godly fear or a worldly fear. These distinctions can be helpful, but they can also be a little dangerous. —Michael Horton. We’re always to maintain a healthy respect and adoration for Him. As sinful people, we have every reason to fear God’s judgment; it is part of our motivation to be reconciled with God. 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. King Solomon, the author of those words, wrote “Fear God.” Here he is not referring to being afraid of God. I think the problem is fear gets a bad rap in our culture. 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. Pharaoh brought disaster on his nation because he did not fear God (Exodus 9:29-31). 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. 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. That’s often lacking in contemporary evangelical Christianity. As sinful people, we have every reason to fear God’s judgment; it is part of our motivation to be reconciled with God. The “fear” that brings God pleasure is not our being afraid of him, but our having a high and exalted, reverential view of him. I mean…why should we fear a loving God, right? 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. Fear only God, who can destroy both soul and body in hell" (Matthew 10:28). Matthew 10:28 ESV / 6 helpful votes Helpful Not Helpful. With love like that, what is left to fear but God? 94 Bible Verses about What Does It Mean To Fear God. This Bible study helps us define this universal emotion. For those individuals, the future holds judgment (Hebrews 10:31). The servile fear is a kind of fear that a prisoner in a torture chamber has for his tormentor, the jailer, or the executioner. You… As sinful people, we have every reason to fear God’s judgment; it is part of our motivation to be reconciled with God. So, in what sense are we to fear God? Anxiety, discouragement, worry, and panic can result from fear. Yet, the scriptures tell us time and again to fear the Lord; the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Fear is what keeps us alive and as long as it isn’t immobilizing, it’s not a problem. 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. Rather than causing someone to be afraid of God, a proper “fear of the Lord” leads one to love Him. Jesus said the most important commandment is to love the Lord with all your heart, your soul and your strength. And Paul says to work toward complete holiness because we fear God (2 Corinthians 7:1). If they fear God, they are more likely to keep their word and treat others with kindness. 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. 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. Fix that problem! Luther distinguished between that and what he called filial fear, drawing from the Latin concept from which we get the idea of family. Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, but love from the Lord is its completion. A little fear is a good thing because that makes us cautious when climbing ladders, using power tools, or driving a car. The mission, passion and purpose of Ligonier Ministries is to proclaim the holiness of God 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. It refers to the fear that a child has for his father. The wicked refuses to fear God. Do the words “fear + God” spark a bit of…discomfort in your bones? A Humble Fear Of God. Fearing God means to honor God. 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). I know I have. For the believer, the fear of God is something much different. God said, “…for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me.” Question: "What does it mean to have 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. Donate Now. The fear of danger is not the type of fear that is referred to in Ecclesiastes 12:13. 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. The believer's fear is reverence of God. To him the word "Fear" was a bad or negative word. 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. What does that mean?” and other questions can be found in our Questions Answered section. in all its fullness to as many people as possible. 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. To fear God is absolute reverence and awe for an Almighty God, the Creator of all things. But he also demonstrated love beyond human understanding when he lived out his words, "There is no greater love than to lay down one's life for one's friends (John 15:13)." It makes us aware of danger, but it can be harmful, too. Fearing God in the New Testament. So it's clear from these passages, that fearing God is good because it saves us from caving into our own sinful nature. The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. How can we fear God while he expels all fear? Question: "What does it mean to have the fear of God?" In Matthew 10, Jesus said not to "fear those who can… The church has become weakened by humankind’s need to please and fear of criticism. 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!” . 2 – Where Does God’s Word Say to Fear God? 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. 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. Perhaps it’s the word “fear” that confuses people. W hat does it mean to fear God or fear the Lord? “Throughout the Bible we are told to fear God. Christianity Today strengthens the church by richly communicating the breadth of the true, good, and beautiful gospel. Abraham raised the knife by which he would have slain Isaac, and that is when God told Abraham to stop. 10:31). The subject becomes even more mysterious when we read something like 1 John 4:18 that says that "perfect love expels all fear." Fear can also be a good thing. What does it mean to fear God? Jan 12, 2018 What does it mean to fear God? People subscribing to popular monotheistic religions might fear divine judgment, hell or God's omnipotence. 1. We need to make some important distinctions about the biblical meaning of “fearing” God. Questions in this Episode. Category: Articles. We have higher expectations than simply anticipating trouble. The type of fear we should have for the Lord is not a fear of being scared for our safety or our lives. In the New Testament, ‘fearing God’ comes up a couple of times too. So how do we marry this dichotomy? 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 … He spoke lovingly but frankly to all and didn't mince words when people needed to face their sin and repent. 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. But the Bible uses the word fear at least 300 times in reference to God, so we make a mistake when we downplay it. Do we need to fear Him because God is angry and mean? If God is a loving and caring God then why should we fear him? Click here for reprint information. It is like the relationship between parents and children. Servile refers to a posture of servitude toward a malevolent owner. The Ligonier Ministries site requires Javascript, but you’ve got Javascript disabled. 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. God has come to test you, so that the fear of God will be with you to keep you from sinning. So how does fear of God, who is perfect love, take away fear? “It is a frightening thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Heb. His praise endures forever! Some people fear loss of income. from R.C. Fear of God refers to fear or a specific sense of respect, awe, and submission to a deity. 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