Let’s talk… THE FEAR OF GOD IS GOOD

Fearing God is good because it saves us from caving into our own sinful nature. That’s why “God-fearing” actually makes us trust more. If we fear God, we are more likely to keep our word and treat all with kindness. In Romans 3:18 says that our chief sin is that we “have no fear of God at all”. So how does fear of God, who is perfect love, take away fear? William Eisenhower puts it this way in his article ‘Fearing God” in Christianity Today. He points out that most people think the world and what is in it is the ultimate threat in life and God’s joy is to stop it. Yet the Bible says Fear God! When we fear the world, we give it unwarranted power but the world’s threats are temporary. When we expect God to balance world stress, we end up reducing Him to being equal with the world.“…I discover that God poses an ominous threat to my ego, but not to me. He rescues me from my delusions, so he may reveal the truth that sets me free. He casts me down, only to lift me up again. He sits in judgment of my sin, but forgives me neverthe-less. Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wis-dom, but love from the Lord is its completion.” The ultimate example of fear and perfect love working together is Jesus Christ. He warned us at every turn to fear God, not men—and he confirmed that in everything about his life and death. He spoke lov-ingly but frankly to all and didn’t mince words when people needed to face their sin and repent. But he also demonstrat-ed 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).” With love like that, what is left to fear but God?”Purpose of fearWise King Solomon put it this way in explaining his reason for writing the book of Proverbs: “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge” (Proverbs 1:7). In Psalm 34, King David also tells us about learning the fear of the Lord: “Come, you chil-dren, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the LORD. … Keep your tongue from evil, and your lips from speaking deceit. Depart from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.A healthy fear of God includes the fear of the consequences of dis-obedience. There may be times of temptation or trial when we may forget some of the better reasons for obeying God, and that is when we had better think of the consequences (Exo-dus 20:20).Reverence of God helps us to take Him and His beneficial laws serious-ly. Being in harmony with the spiritual laws that govern the universe has astounding benefits. Hebrews 10:26-31 tells us: “For if we sin will-fully after we have re-ceived the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries.”“Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanc-tified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know Him who said, ‘Ven-geance is Mine, I will repay,’ says the Lord. And again, ‘The LORD will judge His people.’ It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”Reverence of God helps us to take Him and His beneficial laws serious-ly. Being in harmony with the spiritual laws that govern the universe has astounding benefits. Many of these come in this life, but the greatest benefits will be expe-rienced in the life to come (1 Timothy 4:8; Psalm 16:11). Revela-tions 3:16, Jesus tells the lukewarm Christians in Laodicea that He is about to spit them out of His mouth—condemn them. Yet, He is giv-ing them a last time to repeat. Saved means to be obedient, to repent and turn towards God—not to do as we please. Christians need to have a fear of God when being disobedient. Family rulesChildren learn their family rules partly through fear of correc-tion (Hebrews 12:9-11). Of course, when they grow older, they should continue to follow the rules out of love. God also trains us to obey for our own good while inviting us to actually be His children.We live in a world that is deceived and ruled by Satan; we must not be children of Satan (John 8:44). Instead, we should learn the way of God’s family—the way of love. God is love (1 John 4:8), and His laws can be summarized as love for God and love for fellow man (Mat-thew 22:37-40).Those who know Christ do not live in fear of the future; that is, they are not afraid of God’s con-demnation. Instead, they have a proper view of God based on His love for them. John wrote, “By this is love perfect-ed with us, so that we may have confidence for the Day of Judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world. There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love” (1 John 4:17-18). Ultimately, “And his mercy is for those who fear him from gener-ation to generation” (Luke 1:50). A proper view of God includes a deep reverence and respect for our Creator and Savior. In Christ, we need not be afraid of God, but we are to fear Him, knowing it is only by His grace we are saved and can experi-ence a relationship with Him (Ephesians 2:8-9)