The Joy of fearing God (1 of 2)

Fear does terrible things to us. It can create anxiety over the future.  It can prevent us from doing things.  And It can reduce our ability to enjoy life. I want us to think about a different kind of fear: Fear of God.

Fear of God is different to being afraid of God. True fear of God is awe and deep respect. This causes us to enjoy and glorify God and motivates us to actions.

Fear of God is the solution to worry over the future. Why? Because we can be sure that God supervises everything that happens to us. (Psalm 34:7)

The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, & he delivers them. 

Fear of God puts us in the right state of heart and mind to grow in the best way.

( Prov 1:7) ‘The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge’

 (Prov 9:10) ‘The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom’

Wisdom is knowledge correctly applied.

Let’s explore this a bit!

We experience the fear of God as we live our lives in awe of him. 

-  Awe is an emotion in which dread, honour, devotion and wonder are mingled.

-  Awe is a submissive and admiring fear inspired by good authority.

-  Awe is fearful respect inspired by a supernatural person––a God.

Jesus is the perfect example of what it is to truly fear God. 

The Spirit of the Lord will rest upon him––the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of power, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord––And he will delight in the fear of the Lord. (Isa 11: 2-3)

In his humanity Jesus sees God from our perspective and he responds by living in joyful, respectful and loving awe/fear of God

Some people have no fear of God ‘There is no fear of God before their eyes’  (Romans 3:18) These people either don’t believe God exists or they don’t care, or they think if God does exist he isn’t interested in them.

Should we be afraid of God? Adam ignored God then he was afraid and hid from him. (Gen 3:10) We should be afraid of God if we ignore his instructions.

Back to the positive fear of God––‘respectful awe’ 

Bible commentator John Murray says: ‘The fear of God is the soul of Godliness’

He explains, ‘The fear of God in which Godliness lives is the fear which powerfully produces adoration and love.  It’s the fear which is made up of awe, respect, honour, and worship, and all of these on the highest level of activity.

 It’s the reflex in our consciousness of the supreme majesty & holiness of God.’ 

True fear of God keeps us on the right path as we journey through life. True fear of God is more than just a feeling or an attitude, it’s a feeling and attitude that changes our lives in the most wonderful ways.

I must bring in a warning at this point: If we don’t  understand the grace of God and his acceptance of us through Jesus we can easily fall into a performance or religious relationship. That’s when doing becomes more important than being.

If we live like that we will see God as a hard taskmaster who distributes punishment and occasional rewards. Our rule for life will be ‘perform or perish.

 True fear of God produces trust in God.

We can’t separate trust in God from fear of God.  We will trust him only to the extent that we genuinely live in awe of him: The eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love (Ps 33:18)

We may not see God doing miracles as he did in the old days, but we can read about them and be amazed: Let all the earth fear the Lord.....For he spoke, and it came to be, he commanded and it stood firm.  The Lord foils the plans of the nations; he thwarts the purposes of the peoples.  But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations. (Ps 33:8-11)

How to develop a healthy fear of God

We need to recognise his presence and encounter God through the world the Scriptures and his involvement in our lives These responses should awaken in us the awe, respect, humility  and worship that is our right response to our God.

This God of ultimate power not only reveals himself in the world and word.

God appeared in space and time in the person of Jesus Christ. In Jesus we see God in a man. In Jesus we see true fear of God in a person. We also see the joyful relationship with the creator that comes from truly fearing him.

The Voice of God and Human Thoughts

David; writer of psalms, shepherd, soldier, great King of Israel, major sinner and prophet learnt about God by observing the natural world, believing the bible and applying both to his life.

In the Psalm 19 David talks about the outward word of God (Bible) and the inward thought about God that comes from looking at the natural world

This is still the main way God reveals himself to us.

Outward Word: Through the bible

Inward thought: Thinking about what God has done and is doing.

David as shepherd or soldier  perhaps feeling a bit lost or lonely looks into the night sky and his thoughts bring him to say  "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands." (1).

Declare: Announce, give a report, bring news, Make a loud statement. 

Glory: Reveals what God is like - Expression of his active presence.

Proclaim: Shout out, illuminate, Inescapable announcement––God did this!

The heavens speak of the existence, intelligence and power of God. The skies, infinity of space proclaim the work of God––both complex and beautiful

God is not hiding and he is not silent

The voice of God is heard throughout the cosmos, in all languages. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them. Yet their voice goes out into all the earth (2-4)

The apostle Paul in the New Testament uses the natural world as part of his proclamation of the gospel  (Acts 14:15b-17 and Romans 1:19-22)

(4-6) David contemplates the sun and sees through its blinding heat that the power behind it is God. He and millions of others have looked at the universe from a great distance and still been amazed. Try it!.

We know more about the cosmos than David did. Do we get it?

David does not stop at ‘Star gazing’, he acknowledges that God has also spoken through the written word––The scriptures are of great value to him.

The law of the LORD is perfect, refreshing the soul. The statutes of the LORD are trustworthy, making wise the simple. The precepts of the LORD are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the LORD are radiant, giving light to the eyes. (7-8)

David didn’t just read the bible he applied it to his life. As he did this he found his soul revived, his mind developed, his heart warmed, his eyes opened and his life was enriched.

Israel’s great king learnt through his experience that God's word (bible) was perfect, trustworthy, right for his life, illuminating––giving him understanding and warning him of danger He learnt from his bible, to fear the Lord and to know the Lord and he wanted more of God, his thirst for fellowship and relationship with God was overwhelming. That's what a taste of the glory of God can do.

David felt from observing the universe and applying God's word that there was still a gap, an emptiness. He knew he was an unworthy person in need of help. He admitted his need of protection, acceptance and cleansing from sin. Who can discern their own errors?  Forgive my hidden faults.  (12)

David speaks directly to the only one who can help, the one who will love and accept him even in spite of his hidden faults. He knows God will forgive, heal, help and accept him.

What should we do with the voice of God if we hear it in the natural world and the written word?

We could respond as David did: May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.

On the Beach