Fear God

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction (Proverbs 1:7).

According to the Bible, we need to fear God. This doesn’t mean we need to run away from him because he will strike us down for all our mistakes. That’s not the Biblical fear of God. Instead, we need to have great respect and awe for God, and allow him to dominate our lives.

The fear of God is not primarily about judgment. Those who do not have a relationship with God are under judgment, but they do not fear God (Romans 3:18). They are fools who don’t care about God. Only those who are in a healthy relationship with God can truly fear him in the Biblical sense.

There are two types of people in the world – those who fear God and those who don’t. The Bible says those who fear God are wise, and those who don’t fear God are fools.

If we fear God, we will obey him.

If we fear God, we will obey him. God is all-knowing. God knows more about us, the future, other people, and the world than we do. God’s plans are perfect. God loves us and wants the best for us. When we obey God his good plans come to pass, and he will keep us safe. This is wisdom.

Foolish people don’t obey God. They want to do whatever they want to do. They think their own plans are better than God’s plans. This is foolish and leads to unnecessary problems.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths” (Proverbs 3:5-6).

If we fear God, we will value the Bible.

If we fear God, we’ll value the Bible. The Bible is the only perfect book in the world. It was written by God. Wise people will value this infinitely valuable book. They will read the Bible because they want to know what God has said. They will allow the word of God to control their thoughts. When a wise person finds out he is thinking differently than the Bible, he will change his thinking because he knows God is a lot smarter than he is.

Fools don’t care about God’s word. They don’t fear God, so they don’t care about the Bible. They put their own thoughts above the Bible. Ignoring the only perfect source of wisdom and knowledge in the world is foolish.

Problems reveal where our fear is. Wise people fear God (respect and value him) so they run to God and to his word when they face problems. Fools don’t fear God so they run elsewhere.

We don’t need self-help methods. We need Jesus. We need the life of God inside of us. Our self does not need to be reformed, it needs to be crucified with Christ. Only the genuine life of Christ inside us can bring salvation to our souls.

Jesus warned us that if a person tries to save his soul in this world he will lose it, but if he loses his soul he will keep it unto eternal life. It’s foolish to try to save our souls through self-help or other human ways. People try to patch over their problems with fig leaves, but that doesn’t work.

Everything we need to resolve life’s issues is found in God and his word.God has given us all things that pertain to life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3). 

All Scripture is breathed out by God. It’s given so the man of God may be complete, perfect, and fully mature (2 Timothy 3:16-17). If we want to be complete, we need the Bible.

In Christ Jesus are hidden all treasures of wisdom and knowledge (Colossians 2:3). The wisdom of Christ is often hidden. Sometimes we don’t know what to do. The answer is hidden in Christ. Keep praying, keep reading the Bible, keep seeking out fellowship, and keep following God. The hidden wisdom of Christ will become manifested, though it might take time.

The Holy Spirit searches the deep things of God (1 Corinthians 2:10). He will reveal the hidden wisdom of Christ, giving us the knowledge we need.

The fear of God can keep us from sin.

The fear of God can keep us from sin. There are many opportunities for sin in this wicked world, possibly more than ever before. Fear from God will protect us from these evil things and keep us on the right path. Going in the way of sin is not a good option. The result of sin is death. Sin is like a wasteland and desert. Wise people want to avoid this.

Foolish people don’t care about sin. Whether a person believes in God or not doesn’t change the fact that sin causes problems. If you put vegetable oil in your gas tank, it will cause problems for your car. If you sin, it will cause problems for your life. Fear God, repent, and turn away from sin. If you sin, God can forgive you and cleanse your life.

If we fear God we will make his kingdom number 1.

Jesus told us to seek first God’s kingdom above everything else (Matthew 6:33). The kingdom of God will last forever. If we seek the kingdom of God, we will build something that will endure through eternity.

Foolish people pursue other things first, like how to make money or how to be happy in the world. The kingdom of God is secondary to them.

It’s foolish to big a gigantic house on the sand. That house will someday be destroyed. Don’t spend your entire life building things that will be burned up. The more important something is, the more stability it requires. The more expensive and valuable a house is, the more it needs a strong foundation. A hut of leaves can be put on the sand, but a mansion made of stones needs a stable foundation. Our lives are more important than houses, and therefore we should build them on something that has eternal value.That’s Christ and his word.

If we fear God we will trust him.

God will do what he said he would do. When we fear him we know that he is trustworthy. He will keep his word and do things we are unable to do. Let’s hold onto God when trouble comes. God will not lie. When we trust in God, we will see miracles happen.

A fool doesn’t trust God. He doesn’t believe that God will come through. When trouble hits, he starts complaining. It’s foolish to complain about a perfect God. God never makes mistakes. To complain about a perfect, all-wise, all-knowing, all-powerful God makes no sense.

Foolish people not only complain about God, but they run away from God when they face problems.God told the Israelites to go to the Promised Land, but they didn’t fear him so they didn’t believe him. They doubted he would give them victory. So they wandered around the wilderness for 40 years until they all died. This was a foolish decision, and they made this choice because they did not fear God.

Fear of God casts out all other fear. It destroys doubt and unbelief. It shatters the fear of people. It gets rid of the fear of death.

Fear God. Let him be number one in your life. He must be above everything else. That is the beginning of wisdom.