A Fear of God
by Mihran Kulhanjian
My dear Friends,
Fear the Lord all the days of your life. Why must we fear God? If God is a loving God why must He be feared? Because they do not know God they do not fear God. If you know God, and believe, this fear is a reverence of God, His power and His discipline on the rebellious, those who disobey God's law. The word “reverence” means to have a deep respect for God, His holiness, goodness and power (Hebrews 12:28-29). Believers are in awe of Him.
In society we are taught to be fearless and brave, independent and self-reliant, self-sufficient and proud. But God says just the opposite. God wants us to rely on Him. Trust Him. Turn your life over to Him. Surrender and submit yourself to Him, the one who gave you life and the power to take it and cast you into hell. Jesus said: “And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matthew 10:28, Luke 12:4-5). Fear God who has the power to cast you into hell or delivery you into the blessing in heaven.
God says pride is a sin. God hates pride (Proverbs 8:13). God hates the arrogant. The first to sin was Lucifer. Lucifer was a beautiful angel who wanted to be equal with God. He was created by God but now wanted the power to rule like God. Lucifer was full of pride. After Lucifer sinned his name was now Satan. He is also known as the devil and is again called the dragon in the Book of Revelation. It was pride that destroyed Lucifer. Watch yourself and do not fall into pride. This is serious. The prideful dishonor God. What must we do? Humble ourselves and serve Him who gave us life and everything we have. In our society, humility is seen as being timid or weak. But to God humility is strength. Humility is godly and it is the base point of holiness. To be first you must be last. Through His grace God gave His Son [Jesus], a sacrifice for the atonement of the sins of man; and He gave heaven to all who love and obey Him. The Bible says in Proverbs 1:7, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.” Why do you think this is? When we fear God we begin to learn about God. As we learn of God [from the Bible] we realize His power, His majesty, His glory, His love for us, His hate of sin, His will for us, His promises for us, and we learn about His attributes. We learn the truth; the whole truth. “God is love” [1 John 4:8]. God is also wrath. “God is a just judge, And angry with the wicked everyday” (Psalm 7:11). But He also loves the wicked that He sent His only Son to die for them so that they might be saved from the eternal death. He still loves people who are wicked, but did not create them as wicked, and is not pleased with them—He is “angry with the wicked every day.”
The Apostle Paul writes in Romans 3:10-18 explaining the reason for all the sin in the world:
As it is written:
“There is none righteous, no, not one;
There is none who understands;
There is none who seeks after God.
They have all turned aside;
They have together become unprofitable;
There is none who does good, no, not one.”
“Their throat is an open tomb;
With their tongues they have practiced deceit”;
“The poison of asps is under their lips”;
“Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.”
“Their feet are swift to shed blood;
Destruction and misery are in their ways;
And the way of peace they have not known.”
“There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
Paul wraps it up with "There is no fear of God before their eyes." The wicked do not only not fear God they assuredly deny His existence. And false Christians, pretending to play Christian, do not fear God evidenced by their lack of repentance and their love of the world. "There is no fear of God before their eyes." There is no friendship with God among the wicked.
God created man and woman in His image. In His likeness He created them. But Satan turned man and woman wicked. God gave all human beings free will. He wants us to choose Him over sin, over the devil. When you sin and remain in sin you are a child of your father the devil. Jesus is clear about this. God is Father to His children. A child of God does not continue in sin. A child of God is born in the spirit of God (John 3:3-6). He realizes God and the pattern of sin in his life changes. Premeditated and willful sinning changes, gradually the child of God purges willful sin. And a love for God develops. When a person is born again in the spirit he is no longer a slave to sin. Intentional sin or premeditated sin is an option. Sin has no control over a Christian with the Holy Spirit living in him. He does not make a practice of sinning and is conscience of sin. We must be God conscious not self-conscious. God gives His children discernment and wisdom. Like any parent, God loves His children but He also is angry with the disobedient, those who turn from God—those who have no fear or respect or love for God. They are prideful and a product of the world. They live godlessly in the fresh and not godly in the spirit as Jesus commands.
The Bible tells us that God is a jealous God. Why is this? The Second Commandment says this:
“You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and the fourth generation of those who hate me” (Exodus 20:4-5 ESV).
Some people might not understand the word jealous and how God uses it here. God it saying that He is God and that which is rightfully His [worship of Him] should not be directed to false gods or idols or anything. God deserves credit for what He has created by His goodness. This is not the “envy” definition that most people think when they think of the word jealous. Being jealous of things or people that do not belong to you is sinful jealousy (Galatians 5:20). But being jealous of something that belongs to you is a righteous jealousy. For instance a husband has a right to be jealous when another is pursuing his wife because his wife belongs to him (2 Corinthians 11:2). And a wife also has a right to be jealous when another woman is pursuing her husband, because her husband belongs to her. They made a covenant under God when they were married.
In this modern age many Christians believe that the fear of God is not the right way to look at God. They believe that it is an Old Testament idea to scare people into submission through hell fire and damnation. That went out thousands of years ago they say. Is this true? Of course not: Do not be deceived. God does not change: He is the same today, yesterday, and forever [Hebrews 13:8]. And there is a heaven and there is a hell. And all those who do not believe Jesus Christ as the only Son of God will go to hell because they are already condemned because they do not believe in the only Son of God [John 3:16-18].
The fear of God is a good fear to have. In society we are taught that fear is bad. And why would God want us to fear Him; fear will only drive people away from God some say. The people who are driven away from God are the prideful; they feel they do not need God, or they follow false ridiculous gods and religions created by man and the devil. The God haters or deniers, self-absorbed, the usual reprobate, filled with pride, and self-assurance, arrogance and anger—the child of the devil will never see the kingdom of God unless they are born again and realize the true God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and the Son who is God, Jesus The Christ.
If you love this world you are an enemy of God (James 4:4). You cannot love this world and love God, because God is not of this world. And the children of God [believers in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior] are not of this world. You may not understand this now, but once you are saved and believe and follow Christ, you will understand.
“Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God” (James 4:4).
When I started learning about God I became afraid and uncertain about my salvation. I had no real love for God. It was the fear of God and His judgment on me that changed my attitude and a false perception of God that I lived with for many years as a lukewarm Christian. God changed me. He revealed the truth to me. I thought about my sin life. It was fear that opened my eyes to truth. Realizing what God the Father did by His love for us and what Jesus did brought my conviction of sin front and center. I was terribly ashamed, and like the apostle Paul, I did not know truth. I was born again as a new creature in Christ. My story is not unique, per say, but different, as each conversion is different. We experience God personally. Millions of people, young and old have been born again in the new birth and each has had a personal experience. Prior to the new birth, I called myself a Christian for over forty years. But I was not. I rarely went to church [Christmas and Easter sometimes]. I prayed once in a while, carelessly [asking for things and thanking Him once in a while]. I was always under the impression that God wanted self-reliant follows. My idea of pride was different than God’s idea of pride. I was wrong. I did not know God, but He knew all about me. I never read the Bible. When I was in college I was asked by a friend to attend a Campus Crusade’s meeting. My internal response was “I don’t need that stuff. That’s for weak people. I am already a Christian.” Boy was I messed up. Looking back, I wish my friend pressed harder on me to go.
The people who do not fear God [God haters and deniers], are only deceiving themselves and one day they will be judged, and if they continue with their hatred of God by disregarding Him, they will send themselves to the infernal fires of torment, hell. God does not mess around with unrepentant sinners. I have a fear of God. This is a reverent fear. I am in awe of His power and majesty. He has no tolerance for sin. He has given all of us plenty of warnings. God put in us a conscience, the ability to know Him and to know truth. Truth is not relative. God's Word is truth. We either turn to God or dismiss Him. If you dismiss Him long enough you will die in your sin, and there is only one place you are destined for; because you are already condemned for not believing [John 3:18] your destination is determined. Believing means obeying the Word of God.
When we are living Godly the fear of God dissipates but does not fully leave us because He is on our mind, we understand better and respect and revere God. He is now our Father in Heaven and we address Him as Father when we are born again in the Spirit of God. We become His children. And as His children we want to please Him and thank Him and bring glory to Him. We do not do this out of fear, but out of our gratefulness and love for Him. But as children new in the faith, we fear of displeasing our father. As mature sons and daughters we have conditioned ourselves to please our Father Christ did in everything we do. As a mature believer, one knows what pleases God and what does not.
Remember, He loved us first. We build a relationship with God. He is our Father, our Abba Father, and we cry out to Him (Romans 8:15). Jesus uses the word Abba, a word of intimacy and endearment meaning daddy. We begin to do good works because the fruit of the spirit is now in us as we mature as believers (Galatians 5:22-23).
Fearing God is healthy. It is this fear that brings us near to Him. And it is the realization of His love for us that brings us closer to Him. Believers revere God because of His power. We know what God has done, is doing and will do. This reverence of God is seen in Hebrews 12:28-29: “Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear. For our God is a consuming fire.”
How many times does the Bible use the words “fear the Lord?” Here are a few of them from the Psalms and Proverbs:
Psalm 34:11-14
Come, you children, listen to me;
I will teach you the fear of the Lord.
12 Who is the man who desires life,
And loves many days, that he may see good?
13 Keep your tongue from evil,
And your lips from speaking deceit.
14 Depart from evil and do good;
Seek peace and pursue it.
Psalm 111:10
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;
A good understanding have all those who do His commandments.
His praise endures forever.
Proverbs 1:7
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge,
But fools despise wisdom and instruction.
Proverbs 8:13
The fear of the Lord is to hate evil;
Pride and arrogance and the evil way
And the perverse mouth I hate.
Proverbs 9:10-11
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,
And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.
11 For by me your days will be multiplied,
And years of life will be added to you.
Proverbs 14:26-27
In the fear of the Lord there is strong confidence,
And His children will have a place of refuge.
27 The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life,
To turn one away from the snares of death.
Proverbs 19:23
The fear of the Lord leads to life,
And he who has it will abide in satisfaction;
He will not be visited with evil.
Proverbs 22:4
By humility and the fear of the Lord
Are riches and honor and life.
Do you see an underlying theme with "fearing the Lord?" The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, the beginning of wisdom, the fountain of life, and leads to life. And the fear of the Lord is to hate evil. Riches and honor and life come from humility and the fear of the Lord. Everyone should fear the Lord if they want a better life.
Psalm 25:12–14
Who is the man that fears the Lord?
Him shall He teach in the way He chooses.
13 He himself shall dwell in prosperity,
And his descendants shall inherit the earth.
14 The secret of the Lord is with those who fear Him,
And He will show them His covenant.
Can you see that "The secret of the LORD is with those who fear Him, and He will show them His covenant." What is the secret? It is a close relationship with God. The secret is friendship with God. It is being right with God. It is recognizing and revering who God is: His power, His righteousness, His holiness, His supreme being, His wisdom, His love and His wrath. Fear brings you closer to God and God wants you close. He wants you to walk with Him. He has created you for friendship with Him. He has offered you a complete salvation. Are you going to accept it. You will have to accept Him first. Or will you run from Him and do it your way and perish. You have a choice. God says choose Him and choose life.
When we fear God we get to see who we are. We are weak, sinful and disgraceful and needy. And we ask the question: Why would God want us? God offers Himself to us because He loves us and wants the best for us. Do you believe this? I do.
Derek Prince said it this way about Psalm 25:
It is important to understand that God chooses His pupils primarily on the basis of character, not intellectual attainment, not academic degrees, not social privilege, but on the basis of their heart attitude toward Him. He looks for a man who fears the Lord, who has reverent respect and fear for the Lord. He says such a man as that He will instruct in the way chosen for him. Such a man will spend his days in prosperity; his descendants will inherit the land.
Then it goes on to say something even more wonderful: “The Lord confides in those who fear Him.” Another translation says, “The secret of the Lord is with those who fear Him.” I think there’s no greater privilege in our relationship with another person than when that person comes to such a place of confidence that he’ll share his secrets with us. And it really staggers me to think that if we have that attitude of reverent fear toward the Lord He’ll even share His secrets with us and He’ll make known His covenant to us.
You see, all God’s blessings are based upon His covenant and when He makes known His covenant to us then it opens the way to enter into all the blessings which God has provided.
Fearing God is respecting God; it's honoring Him, His power, His goodness, His wrath. and His love for His creation. It is good to fear God. Fear and love motivate us to know God. This type of fear is a healthy, an empowering fear because we can do all things through the One [Jesus] who empowers us within (Philippians 4:13).
The wisest and riches man who ever lived was King Solomon. The Book of Ecclesiastes is an autobiography of Solomon when he was out of fellowship with God. His wealth, knowledge and wisdom, in later life consumed him transgressing the Laws of God. He became indulgent is self-pleasure and became vain and finally came to the conclusion that the fear of the Lord is to obey the commandments of God and that it is the whole duty of man.
Fear God and keep His commandments,
For this is man’s whole duty. (Ecclesiastes 12:13)
Summing up. The fear of the Lord is to know the Lord. When you know the Lord you fear the Lord. This fear is not an unholy fear as nonbelievers have, but a reverence for God. We [true believers] fear Him because of His power, His great love for us, His holiness and that He is the truth. He is the one and only God.