The Advent Part 84
Acts 2:43, “Then fear came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles.”
Holy fear or the fear of the Lord in a believer’s life is as necessary as love is. Although we have strayed in recent years from the teachings concerning the fear of the Lord, taking one verse, misapplying it and running with it until we could run no more, the word of God has much to say concerning the fear of the Lord.
Yes, the Bible does say in the fourth chapter of the first epistle of John that perfect love casts out fear, but it does not say that perfect love casts out the fear of the Lord. Perfect love does cast out fear for tomorrow, it does cast out fear of the unknown, it does cast out fear of being bold for Jesus, but it does not cast out the fear of the Lord, because the fear of the Lord is a good thing, and something every believer ought to possess.
Rather than attempt to make the case as to why we must possess the fear of the Lord myself, and with my limited vocabulary, I will defer to scripture and allow the word of God to do it for me.
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, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.”
Proverbs 10:27, “The fear of the Lord prolongs days, but the years of the wicked will be shortened.”
Proverbs 14:27, “The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life, to avoid the snares of death.”
Proverbs 15:33, “The fear of the Lord is the instruction of wisdom, and before honor is humility.”
Proverbs 16:6, “In mercy and truth atonement is provided for iniquity; and by the fear of the Lord one departs from evil.”
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.”
To sum up what the word of God says concerning the fear of the Lord, it is the beginning of knowledge, the beginning of wisdom, it prolongs days, it is a fountain of life, the instruction of wisdom, it leads to life, and by the fear of the Lord are riches and honor and life.
The fear of the Lord is simply defined as to hate evil, and the word also tells that by the fear of the Lord one departs from evil.
The fear of the Lord is not being scared of God, as some misinterpret it, but rather it is to love what God loves, and to abhor what God abhors.
Although I realize we got a bit scripture heavy in this post, there is still one other scripture that I want to point out, and it has to do with One who found His delight in the fear of the Lord, and the One of whom I speak is none other than Christ Jesus the Son of God.
Isaiah 11:1-5, “There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots. The spirit of the Lord shall rest upon Him, the Spirit of wisdom, and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord. His delight is in the fear of the Lord, and He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes, nor decide by the hearing of His ears; but with righteousness He shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; He shall strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, and with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked. Righteousness shall be the belt of His loins, and faithfulness the belt of His waist.”
Not only would the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord rest upon this Rod that would come forth from the stem of Jesse, but His delight would be in the fear of the Lord.
Seeing all the benefits of the fear of the Lord, seeing that the Christ delights in the fear of the Lord, why is today’s modern church so averse to the mere mention of it?
A more cynical soul than I would perhaps conclude that the reason the modern day church is so averse to the fear of the Lord is because it refuses to hate evil, as the fear of the Lord demands, and it likewise refuses to depart from evil. It is by the fear of the Lord that one departs from evil, it is by possessing the fear of the Lord that one automatically hates evil, yet many who call themselves Christians today have no problem or aversion with becoming assimilated with the world. Countless souls see nothing wrong or amiss with doing what the world does, loving what the world loves, speaking as the world speaks, and living as the world lives. I submit to you that the only way someone calling themselves a child of God can reconcile the notion being in the church and living like the world is to be void of the fear of the Lord.
The apostles were holy vessels which the Holy Spirit used to further the work of the Gospel as they were needed. If prophecy was needed, then the Holy Spirit would give the gift of prophecy, if miracles were needed, then the Holy Spirit would give the gift of miracles. Signs and wonders have always been among the Congregation of God, and this is why the gifts of the Holy Spirit are among us to this day that the Body of Christ might be built up strong and upright in the fear of the Lord.
With love in Christ,
Michael Boldea Jr.
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