Isaiah 33:6, NIV
He will be the sure foundation for your times, a rich store of salvation and wisdom and knowledge; the fear of the Lord is the key to this treasure.
The last few weeks we have been looking at the topic, “Living a Life With Meaning and Purpose.” We started our study by looking at Ecclesiastes and how Solomon stated thirty-five times of how many aspects of life are “meaningless”. We saw how finally in the second to the last verse of the book he tells us what gives meaning and purpose to a person’s life. “Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole [duty] of man.” Ecclesiastes 12:13
We also learned that the terms, “the fear of God” or “the fear of the Lord” are only used four times in the New International Version of New Testament. One of the verses that we focused on was Acts 9:31, “Then the church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria enjoyed a time of peace. It was strengthened; and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it grew in numbers, living in the fear of the Lord.” We ended our study by asking some questions. If the church today is “living in the fear of the Lord” as were the believers of Acts 9:31; what should that look like? What is it that others will see and experience? How does it happen?
Having a loving and intimate relationship with God and knowing His Word puts a Christian in a position to be taught to fear God by the many means He chooses to use. Psalms 34:11 NIV, Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord. If the fear of the Lord has to be taught to us, then we must be willing to put ourselves in an attitude to listen to the Lord to learn from to the Lord.
An important aspect to realize concerning “Living a Life With Meaning and Purpose” in “The Fear of the Lord” is that there are characteristics in the relationship with Christ in a Christian’s life that should be sought for the fear of the Lord to be a reality.
A good example is found in Proverbs 2:1-5 which tells us that are seven things that Christians must do to understand the fear of the Lord. All seven points are part of the learning process mentioned in the previous paragraph (Psalms 34:11). It is also important to note that thye word “if” is used three times, this means it is conditional or certain conditions must be met. The use of the word “if” means it is my choice, my decision, to submit or surrender, and that there is also something I need to do. Please note that the word “if” is underlined in these five verses.
Proverbs 2:1-5, NIV
1 My son, a) if you accept my words and, b) store up my commands within you, 2 c) turning your ear to wisdom, d) and applying your heart to understanding, 3 e) and if you call out for insight, f) and cry aloud for understanding, 4 g) and if you look for it as for silver and search for it as for hidden treasure, 5 then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God.
When I look at my life I must also prayerfully consider what are the hindrances or obstacles that prevent me from fearing God. We have already looked at Psalms 34:11 NIV, Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord. One hindrance is ignorance from not being willing to put myself in a position to be taught by God.
Looking again at Proverbs 2:1-5 but from a negative point of view we come up with 7 more obstacles what would prevent me from fearing the Lord. Compare the points below with the verses above.
Proverbs 2:1-5, NIV
Ver. 1, a) choosing to reject God’s Word by choosing not to live by Word b) and not storing up God’s commands within me.
Ver. 2, c) turning my ear to advise or opinions that are contrary to God’s word d) and applying to my heart worldly understanding or philosophies that are not in agreement with God’s Word.
Ver. 3, e) being complacent with what I know and even lazy seeking out God. f) Being prideful, thinking that my thoughts, my points of view, and my positions on many topics are mine and do not need to line up with God’s word.
Ver. 4, g) Having an attitude that I do not need to change because this is the way I am.
The result will be, Ver. 5, I will never understand the fear of the Lord nor find the knowledge of God.
Fearing God is a personal choice which involves humility, surrender, knowing who God is and trusting what God says. In Proverbs 1:24-29, NIV we read that God can and will speak to us using many different people and means. When we reject God speaking to us by these many different means they become obstacles and hindrances to fearing Him.
24 But since you rejected me when I called and no one gave heed when I stretched out my hand, 25 since you ignored all my advice and would not accept my rebuke, 26 I in turn will laugh at your disaster; I will mock when calamity overtakes you – 27 when calamity overtakes you like a storm, when disaster sweeps over you like a whirlwind, when distress and trouble overwhelm you. 28 “Then they will call to me but I will not answer; they will look for me but will not find me. 29 Since they hated knowledge and did not choose to fear the Lord, Is it possible that some Christian’s prayers are not answered because they do not fear God?
My prayer is, we now have a deeper understanding when we read the following verses, that they will have more meaning and we will realize how they apply to our relationship with God as we learn to fear Him.
Psalms 111:10 NIV, The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow his precepts have good understanding.
Pastor John
