THE FEAR OF THE LORD MEMORY VERSE: The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. Prov. 1:7 BIBLE PASSAGE: Psalm 111 INTRODUCATION: There are two types of fear, a wrong kind and a right kind. The Bible is full of passages that tell us to “fear not” e.g. in (Gen.15:1, LK. 2:10, Rev.1:17 and John 6:20). But this lesson is about the right kind of fear, the fear of God which the Bible recommends that we ought to have. This fear of the Lord of clean, wholesome and brings wisdom (Job 28:28 and Ps.19:9). It is a good thing to fear the Lord. WHAT DOES THE “FEAR OF THE LORD” MEAN? The fear of the Lord is that deep feeling you must have in order to be able to obey God. It is a reverential trust of God coupled with a hatred of evil. You cannot serve God or keep His commandments if His fear is not in you (Dan. 6:13, Ecc. 12:13, Prov. 8:13). The fear of the Lord is a treasure to him that has it (Prov. 15:16). It is a fountain of life (Prov. 14:27) and it is godly i.e. It is God-sanctioned (Heb.12:28). WHY MUST I FEAR THE LORD? I must fear the Lord because He commanded it and His command I must obey (Dan.13:4). But apart from that, there are several other reasons why a Christian should fear the Lord. For instance we should fear Him: (a) Because of His holiness (Rev. 15:4); (b) Because of His greatness (Dan. 10:12-17); (c) Because of His goodness (1 Sam. 12:24). (d) Because of His forgiveness without which we would all have ended up in hell (Ps. 130:4 and (e) Because of coming judgements; Judgements against which there are no appeals! (Rev. 14:7). WHY IS IT NECESSARY TO FEAR GOD? There are several reasons why it is necessary to fear the Lord. For example, (a) The fear of the Lord is necessary to worship (Ps. 5:7); (b) It is necessary in service (Ps. 2:11); (c) It is necessary to keep us from sin (Exo. 2:20); (d) It is necessary for administration of justice (11 Chr. 19:6-9); (e) It is necessary for good government (11 Sam. 23:3). (f) It is necessary for the perfecting of holiness in our Christian lives (11 Cor. 7:1). WHAT ARE THE RESULTS OF FEARING GOD? If you fear God, then certain things will follow. One, fearing God brings pleasure to the Lord (Ps. 147:11). When you please God, then surely you can expect abundant blessings from Him. The Bible says that if a man’s way pleases the Lord. He will make his enemies dwell with him in safety i.e. you would not have to worry about your enemies again. Two, if you fear the Lord, His pity will increase upon you (Ps. 103:13). When God pities a man, that man is not likely to suffer punishments or adversities. Three, the fear of God makes a man acceptable to God (Acts 10:35). Surely, we all want to be acceptable to God. Four, the fear of God brings down His mercy (Ps.103:17). When God decides to be merciful, then His anger is automatically withdrawn. But for the mercy of God where would we be today? Five, the fear of God brings blessings (Ps. 112:1). Surely, we all want the blessing of God. To obtain these blessings, we must fear Him Six, it brings long life (Prov. 10:27). Nobody wants to die young. We all must fear the Lord. Seven, it brings answers to prayers (Ps.145:19). The prayers of those who fear the Lord are always quickly answered. Their salvation is also sure. Even if this is the only result of fearing the Lord, then we should fear Him. Eight, it brings separation from evil (Prov. 16:6). Today, there is little fear to God and consequently an abundance of evil. It is the few people who fear the Lord who live a holy life, which explains why their prayers are quickly answered! Nine, it brings confidence (Prov. 14:26). Why should a man who fears the Lord be confident? Because, once you fear God you do not need to fear any other thing; neither man (Is. 8:12-13) nor other Gods (11 Kings 17:38),Nor earthly calamities (Lk. 21:25-28). Surely, blessed is the man that fears the Lord. Lord, please teach me to fear Thee. QUESTIONS 1. How many types of fear are there? 2. What do we mean by the fear of the Lord? 3. Why should you fear the Lord? 4. What are some of the outcomes of fearing the Lord? FURTHER READINGS: The following passages will tell you more Exo. 14:13, Isa.43:1, Dan. 4:10, Prov. 29:25, Job. 15:24, Jos. 4:23-24, Mal. 3:16, Prov. 15:16, 19-23.
Posted on: Tue, 23 Sep 2014 12:33:50 +0000
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