What does it mean to fear God? As a believer in Jesus Christ, and filled with the Holy Spirit, there is perhaps nothing in your life that you need more, than the Fear of the LORD. It positions you for God’s blessing in your life, it is the beginning of wisdom.
The Fear of the LORD is to hate evil, rejecting every impure path. The Fear of the LORD is to Love God so much you would never do anything to displease or disappoint him. The Fear of the LORD is doing what God tells you to do, completely with an undivided heart. The Fear of the LORD is keeping his commands, and putting your hope in God, and having a fearful reverence for the Holiness of God.
We need to Fear the LORD because God tells us to, because it is the beginning of wisdom, and it teaches you wisdom; because it is a fountain of life, it makes you pure in God’s sight, it keeps you from the deadly traps the devil has set for you. It helps you depart from evil, so you can get God’s blessing. Walk Daily with someone who Fears the LORD. If that is their pursuit, wisdom has already begun in their life! You will walk in wisdom too, if you walk with them.
If you Fear the LORD, God says you will lack nothing, He will bless you. If you learn to fear the LORD, God will give you riches and honor and life, He’ll give you the Angel of the LORD as your bodyguard, you will dwell in safety, you will not fear evil, God will be your help and shield. If you learn the Fear of the LORD you will live longer, God will make you confident, and keep your children safe. If you learn the Fear of the LORD. God will make sure that it will be well with you, and through the Fear of the LORD, the Kingdom of God is multiplied through you! that means you'll have fruit in your life!
If The Fear Of The LORD Is To Hate Evil, What Does That Verse Really Mean?
Proverbs 8:13 - The fear of the LORDis to hate evil: pride, arrogance, an evil lifestyle, and perverse speech, I despise. Fear: Yirah: Moral reverence, a dreadful exceeding fearfulness.
LORD: Supreme in Authority
Hate: To utterly reject and turn from immediately, like a physical reaction to a putrid smell.
Evil: Anything that would displease God, any thought or behavior less than complete Humility and Holiness. Pride: To mount up, enlarge oneself over others Arrogance: Swelling, considering yourself higher Evil Lifestyle: The pursuit of pleasures, entertainment, the things the world offers.
Perverse:A reluctance to obey. Turning it over in your mind until you go back to the contrary. Someone who is perverse is reluctant to obey, they are not quick obeyers. Hearing the truth, but rather than obeying immediately, having the habit of turning it around in your mind until you rationalize delayed or incomplete obedience. A Dreadful Exceeding Fearfulness Proverbs 114:8 - Tremble O earth at the presence of the Lord, at the presence of the God of Jacob.
Jeremiah 5:22 - Should you not fear me? declares the LORD, Why don’t you tremble in my presence? I made the sand as a boundary for the sea, an everlasting barrier it cannot cross. The waves may roll, but they cannot prevail, they may roar but they cannot cross it.
Daniel 10:7-10 - I, Daniel was the only one who saw the vision, the men with me did not see it, but such terror overwhelmed them that they fled and hid themselves. So I was left alone, gazing at this great vision; I had no strength left, my face turned deathly pale and I was helpless. Then I heard him speaking, and as I listened to him, I fell into a deep sleep my face to the ground. A hand touched me and set me trembling on my hands and knees… (it goes onto say) “consider carefully the words I am about to speak to you, and stand up, for I have now been sent to you,” and when he said this to me, I stood up trembling.
Exodus 33:18-23 - Then Moses said, “Now show me your glory,’ And the LORD said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim my name, the LORD, in your presence... "But,” he said, "you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live.” Then the LORD said, “There is a place near me where you may stand on a rock. When my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft in the rock and cover you with my hand until I have passed by. Then I will remove my hand and you will see my back; but my face must not be seen.
Exodus 34:5-8 - hen the LORD came down in the cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed his name, the LORD. And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation.” Moses bowed to the ground at once and worshiped.
I Chronicles 13:9,10,12 - When they came to the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah reached out his hand to steady the ark, because the oxen stumbled. The LORD’s anger burned against Uzzah, and he struck him down because he had put his hand on the ark. So he died there before God… David was afraid of God that day and asked, “How can I ever bring the ark of God to me?
Isaiah 6:4-5 - at the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke. “Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty.” Then one of the seraphs flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it he touched my mouth and said, “See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for." The Fear of the LORD
LORD: Supreme in Authority
Luke 6:$6 - Why do you call me, Lord, Lord, (in other words -Why do you call me ‘Supreme in Authority, Supreme in Authority’), and do not do what I say?
(For example, you do not hate evil, or turn people from their sin, or separate yourself from those who refuse to turn. To love people is not to accept or join them in their lifestyle, but to turn them from worldliness to Godliness to save them from death, to show them a better way, full of joy and the blessing of God!)
Luke 6:47-48 - I’ll show you what he is like who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice. He is like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but count not shake it, because it was well built.
The Fear of the LORD means to tremble at his presence, to bow down, and to immediately put into practice what He says. (A quick and complete obeyer).
The Fear of the LORD is to hate Evil
Hate: Saw-nay: to utterly reject and turn from immediately - like the physical reaction to a putrid smell. Odious), to consider something utterly repulsive to you, to consider it as an enemy of your soul and an enemy of your relationship with God. And therefore Turn From It Immediately, and completely – having nothing to do with it! To HATE.
The Fear of the LORD is to have absolutely nothing to do with Evil or the appearance of evil in yourself or others
Evil: ra-ah – (Raw – Aw) Anything that would grieve God, that would displease or disappoint him. Any worldly thought, attitude, word or action; any compromise of purity or righteousness. Anything less than complete Holiness, not aligned with God’s Word or his will. Anything worldly, prideful, sensual, bad, hurtful, or harmful to others.
Evil: To spoil, make bad, or good for nothing, make worse not better, that brings distress, heavy, mischievous, noisome, trouble, wrong, a breaking into pieces, not a building up.
Evil – any action or behavior- less than what God wants for his chosen, pure and holy people. The Fear of the LORD is to immediately and completely reject any participation in - or appearance of evil, anything that is less than fully pure, humble, righteous and holy toward God and others.
The Fear of the LORD is to utterly reject and turn from Pride & Arrogance.
Pride: to mount up, to rise up, to increase, be risen, triumph, to enlarge oneself over another or others, taking the high place, not the low place, not preferring others, (or honoring the preciousness of others). Arrogance: swelling, highness, haughtiness, majesty, ornament. Considering yourself higher, or attempting to position yourself higher.
The Fear of the LORD is to make a complete break from an evil or compromising way of life.
Evil Behavior;Evil Way: the lifestyle or path taken, the mode of operation, or course of action that displeases the LORD.
Evil Behavior, anything not aligned with God’s Word, the pursuit of worldly pleasures, is the exact opposite of the Fear of the LORD. Enjoying the entertainments, the enticements, the pleasures of the world, leads to the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh, and the pride of life. Seeking the pleasures of the world and companionship of the world, fondness and friendliness with those who pursue these things.
When it comes to your friends, you are either turning them from worldly pursuits (evil behavior), or joining them in it. To not say something, is to hurt them. Love tells the truth, and rescues from death. The Fear of the LORD is to hate evil, and all evil behavior.
Perverse Speech:Froward speech: perverse or fraud: to turn aside, turn about, or turn over in the mind, to change or overturn, (justify), pervert, return, overthrow, be converted back, to the contrary. (Froward: perverse; turning from, with aversion or reluctance, not willing to yield or comply with what is required. Unyielding, ungovernable, disobedient.)
This means that when you hear truth, when the Holy Spirit is trying to convict you, perhaps to change something or someone in your life, to make a different choice, a better choice… rather than receive itand obey: change your behavior immediately, you turn it around in your mind. You think about it, rather than immediately obey it. This is because you are reluctant to obey, and the more you think about it instead of obeying, you naturally will come up with another way of looking at things, another way to go back, changing it slightly, thinking of it differently, to rationalize or excuse your unwillingness to immediately turn from it in repentance and obedience, until you justify in your mind - continuing in the wrong. Perverse – it's the exact opposite of the Fear of the LORD. Perverse: reluctant to obey, turned aside or turned away from the right, disposed to be contrary, stubborn, wayward, ungovernable, un-leadable, to be turned away, distorted from the right, obstinate in the wrong. Capricious: apt to change suddenly, fickle, changeable, fitful, wayward, Petulant: making slight attacks on people, saucy, sourness of temper, to attack, Peevish: disposed to murmur.
So Why Learn The Fear Of The LORD?
God tells us to, and He’s looking to show himself strong on behalf of those who do!
Why Fear the LORD? Your life depends on it! Your blessing depends on it! Your relationship with God depends on it! Your ability to hear the voice of God depends on it!
The Fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, you cannot walk in wisdom without it. Ask God to teach you the Fear of the LORD! Cry out to Him for it!
Find a friend whose heart is to fear the LORD and Walk Daily with them!
If their heart is to Fear the LORD – they have already begun to walk in wisdom! You will too! If you walk with them.
Do the 30 Day Fear of the LORD Challenge - 30 days reading a PRISM Topic or Relationship Topic from the Fear of the LORD Packet
PRISM Topic – You Are Not Fearing God For Nothing! PRISM Topic – Fear God Summary PRISM Topic - The Fear of the LORD Relationship Topic – Learning the Fear Of The Lord Relationship Topic - The Fear God Verse PRISM Topic – 8 Things To Fear God Right Now PRISM Topic – Is the Fear Of the Lord For The Old Testament Only? Relationship Topic - Can't Fear God
You will see what God will do for those who Fear Him, He makes a distinction! His Word is true, He will bring incredible blessing in your life!
Learn the Fear of the LORD. Ask Him, Turn immediately, He will teach you.
A PRISM Topic: is God’s Word on a single subject. A Relationship Topic is a perspective from God's Word on relationships. A PRISM Topic Packet is a grouping of PRISM or Relationship Topics of similar subjects... part of the M: Meditate on theWord of PRISM – (5 Things You Can Do Daily in God’s Word) to transform the way you think. Ask God what PRISM Topic or Relationship Topic He wants you to meditate on today.Take your PRISM Topic, Relationship Topic or Packet with you! Come back to them multiple times a day! “It is to be with him, and he is to meditate on it day and night, so that he may learn to fear the LORD…” - Deuteronomy 17:19 PRISM Topics - RELATIONSHIP Topics - PRISM Topic Packets