Explaining the Fear of the Lord
The kids and I had a discussion recently about the fear of the Lord and what that truly means. It can be a little more difficult to explain to children. Even adults sometimes misunderstand the phrase “fear of the Lord”. So, I thought I’d spend some time on that today and share an analogy that came to mind to describe this “fear”.
This month we have been reading through a YouVersion bible reading plan called The Wisdom of Proverbs. It’s a good introduction to the book by reading a chapter of proverbs each day of the month accompanied by a short explanation each day. Reading a proverb a day is one of my daily routines that I’d like to instill in my own children. I learned as a youth that this practice is one of the best ways to grow in wisdom.
Wisdom comes from the fear of the Lord
As a result of reading the bible, we’ve learned that the beginning of wisdom, knowledge, and understanding comes from the fear of the Lord.
“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.” Proverbs 1:7 (NIV)
“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” Proverbs 9:10 (NIV)
“Fear of the LORD is the foundation of true wisdom. All who obey his commandments will grow in wisdom. Praise him forever!” Psalm 111:10 (NLT)
“And this is what he says to all humanity: The fear of the Lord is true wisdom; to forsake evil is real understanding.” Job 28:28 (NLT)
Therefore, if we want to be truly wise and grow in wisdom, we must learn this principle of having the fear of the Lord.
What is this “fear”?
The fear of the Lord has been defined as a specific sense of respect, awe, and submission to God. The Hebrew word for this fear is “yare” which means to be morally reverent. It is to recognize the power or position of something and to respect it as such.
This is different from an alternate definition of fear, “phobos”, which means to have alarm or fright or to be afraid with exceeding fear or terror. This is NOT the term used to describe the fear of the Lord that we are to have.
We need to fear God—not to be afraid, just to have a reverential respect. However, a healthy fear of the Lord also includes the fear of the consequences of sin or disobedience. The fear of the Lord is more than just a feeling. It is a deep respect and awe followed up by obedience, submission and worship.
“And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to observe the Lord’s commands and decrees that I am giving you today for your own good?” Deuteronomy 10:12-13 (NIV)
“Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind.” Ecclesiastes 12:13 (NIV)
An analogy of reverential fear
An analogy for the fear of the Lord came to me one morning years ago during one of my quiet times. I recently went and pulled out my old journal to see what I had written about it previously. Here is what it said…
“It makes me think of when you are driving down the road and you spot a police officer. As a result, your heart might jump a bit and you immediately check your speed and wonder if you are doing anything wrong. Then you quickly correct anything you shouldn’t be doing.
You are not afraid of that police officer, but you have a reverential respect for him/her. You know that they have some authority and power and that they can and will use it if you are violating any laws. Consequently, violations are going to cost you something. Officers protect and bring about justice, and if you are out of line they will do what’s necessary to protect others or even to protect you from yourself. Just seeing them tends to make you straighten up. Their mere presence is a deterrent to any wrongdoing.
We need to have a similar healthy “fear” of the Lord. He has the ultimate power and authority. God has the ability to protect, and He will bring about justice (in His timing). He will sometimes even protect us from ourselves.
His presence should be a deterrent to any wrongdoing, and because he is always present we should always be on alert. We should frequently be checking ourselves, “checking our speedometer” per se, to correct any misbehavior. Whether or not there’s an immediate consequence, wrong behavior will cost us something.
“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 6:23 (NIV)
When we’ve accepted Jesus, we have eternal life and are forgiven of any wrongdoing or sin, but we are still called to live by the Spirit not by flesh (Romans 8:4). Our good works should be outward evidence to others of our changed life (Matthew 5:16, Ephesians 2, James 2). We should begin to self-correct, and we should always have a healthy fear of the Lord–the ultimate authority.”
Another explanation
I’ve heard the fear of the Lord explained in another way too. It was in one of my most favorite books from childhood, of all places: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. You see, in this allegory book C.S. Lewis uses Aslan, the lion, as a symbol or representation of Jesus.
The characters in the book “fear” Aslan as we are to fear God. They have a respect and awe for him as well as an understanding of the power that he possesses. They comprehend that this power can be dangerous to those who would cross him or to those who would hurt the ones he loves. I love the conversation in the book where the girls, Lucy and Susan, are learning about Aslan from Mr. and Mrs. Beaver.
The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe quote:
“Is—is he a man?” asked Lucy. “Aslan a man!” said Mr. Beaver sternly. “Certainly not. I tell you he is the King of the wood and the son of the great Emperor-beyond-the-Sea. Don’t you know who is the King of Beasts? Aslan is a lion—the Lion, the great Lion.”
“Ooh!” said Susan, “I’d thought he was a man. Is he—quite safe? I shall feel rather nervous about meeting a lion.” “That you will, dearie, and no mistake,” said Mrs. Beaver; “if there’s anyone who can appear before Aslan without their knees knocking, they’re either braver than most or else just silly.”
“Then he isn’t safe?” said Lucy. “Safe?” said Mr. Beaver; “don’t you hear what Mrs. Beaver tells you? Who said anything about safe? ‘Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good. He’s the King, I tell you.”
(Source: Lewis, C. S., and Pauline Baynes. “Chapter 8.” The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. New York: HarperCollins, 1994. 79-80. Print.)
It’s been said that God is not safe, but He is good. God will fight for and protect those He calls his own.
“For the LORD, the Most High, is to be feared, a great king over all the earth.” Psalm 47:2 (ESV)
Take Some Practical Steps to Understand and Exercise the Fear of the Lord:
- Understand that the fear of the Lord will make you wise and that we all have a duty to fear God. Those who want to be wise beyond measure, obtaining true prosperity in life, must first learn to fear God.
- Realize that the fear of the Lord does not mean to be afraid (with fright or terror). The word used in the bible depicts a different kind of fear. God is a loving father and does not want his children to be afraid of Him.
- Know that the “fear” the bible depicts means to show a reverential respect, recognizing the power, position, and authority that God holds. He is a king, after all, and should be addressed and treated as such.
- To show true fear, take that position of reverence a step further by following it up with obedience, submission and worship of God on a regular basis. It is more than just a mindset or attitude. It is also action. Do your actions show that you fear the Lord? Would any of your actions change if He was standing physically before you? Whether you see Him physically or not, He is still there.
- Keep in mind that God is not safe, but He is good. To demonstrate this point practically, think of other things that are not safe but are still good. Think of things that could cause harm if not treated with the proper care and respect and in the way they were intended. Like fire. Fire is good when used for warmth, cooking, as a source of energy, etc. However, when we don’t treat fire with the proper respect and in the way it was intended, it can be dangerous. Other examples could include electricity, knives, and medication. Can you think of any others?
What are some ways that you have learned the fear of the Lord? Give us some ideas by leaving a comment below.
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Thank you for sharing your wisdom on the subject of fearing God. It helped me to better understand what this fear really means.