Have you ever heard the words used by friends, family, or even your paster that we should have “the fear of the Lord”? Sometimes certain language can get us to scratch our heads with confusion. Don’t worry, you are not alone. Let’s dig deep into the Word and see why the meaning of fearing the Lord as a follower of Jesus Christ isn’t the same as the worldly definition of fear (to be in distress).
Psalm 112:1 says, “Praise the LORD! Blessed is the man who fears the LORD, Who delights greatly in His commandments.”
Proverbs 1:7 speaks, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.”
Proverbs 9:10 declares, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.”
Proverbs 14:27 says, “The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, To turn one away from the snares of death.”
Proverbs 16:6b explains, “And by the fear of the LORD one departs from evil.”
Proverbs 8:13a declares, “The fear of the LORD is to hate evil.”
For a follower of Jesus Christ, the fear of the Lord means to have respect, honor, and awe for Him. Another part of fearing the Lord is to repent from sin and then run into the Lord’s arms with thanksgiving. Repenting might be another term some of us are unaware of. To repent is more than an apology; it means to turn away. I hope reading these verses gives you a better understanding of what it means to have the fear of the Lord. I also encourage you to ask the Lord to increase the fear of the Lord in your life. This increase is a beautiful thing because we not only get our eyes on Jesus but our gaze remains on Him, and this, my friends, is life-transforming.
In conclusion and as noted, one aspect of fearing the Lord is turning away from sin, but there will be times we do stumble. For the times you mess up, which we all will do, remember this verse in Proverbs 24:16a: “For a righteous man may fall seven times and rise again.”
