THE FEAR OF THE LORD
Proverbs 2:3-12
The fear of the Lord is one of the things that God requires from man. In fact, it can be regarded as the highest priority of man’s worship. This is expressly stated in Deuteronomy 10: 12: “What does the Lord require of you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways, to love Him, to serve the Lord”. The need for man to fear the Lord is reiterated in the Book of Proverbs. The fear of the Lord comes with a reward. It is the beginning of wisdom. And wisdom is vital to live a fulfilled life.The call to fear God is not a call to be afraid of God. God is no scary being. They are two different things. The fear of God means respect and reverence for God, developing out of your understanding of the greatness and awesomeness of who God is.
Man cannot be motivated to fear God if his knowledge and understanding of God is limited. It is the understanding of the character and attributes of God that can motivate your respect and reverence.The desire for wisdom should draw you to seek more of God. If you find God, you find wisdom. “…if you call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding, if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures, then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God” (Proverbs 2:4–5).
Godly knowledge comes by seeking God fervently through reading the Bible, talking to Him in prayer, and seeking His will for our lives. Fearing the Lord opens the door to closer relationship with Him with all the antecedent benefits – long life (Proverbs 10:27), protection from evil (Proverbs 1:7), wealth and honour (Proverbs 22:4).
Memory Verse: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction” (Proverbs 1:7)PRAYER: Help me to love and fear you oh Lord
