Tag: Fear of the Lord

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Our Accountability- Proverbs- Week 8- Day 3

On By Ben JenningsIn DevotionalLeave a comment

The fear of the LORD is the instruction of wisdom; and before honour is humility.

Proverbs 15:33


Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the LORD: though hand join in hand, he shall not be unpunished.

Proverbs 16:5

By mercy and truth iniquity is purged: and by the fear of the LORD men depart from evil.

Proverbs 16:6

Explanation:
All these verses speak to the kind of relationship that we have to our sovereign God. Our relationship with God is marked by accountability. From these verses we can learn some fundamental principles.

  1. Fear of the Lord comes from an understanding that we answer to Him. (15:33)
    I am not afraid of the police when I am keeping the law. I fear the police when I am breaking the law. Why? I understand that they have authority and that I am accountable to them when I break the law. The same is true with God. The truth is that we have all broken the law. The God that is sovereign and created us has a law that we have broken. He has a will to which we must submit. We are accountable to him for what we have done and will do.
  2. God will punish sin. (16:5)
    It has been stated in scripture time and time again that God hates pride. In verse 5 it says, “though hand join in hand”, a reference to the shaking of hands at the end of a negotiation. You can be assured that the prideful person will not go unpunished.
    Jesus Christ died for the sin of the whole world. He punished Christ on our behalf. If a person does not accept Him as Savior, then they will be punished for their sin for all eternity.
  3. An understanding of who God is and our accountability to Him will help us avoid wrongdoing. (16:6)
    When we understand this accountability, we fear God. When we properly fear God, we will depart from evil.

Application:
A right perspective on God’s sovereignty helps us to recognize our accountability. You and I answer ultimately to the God of the universe.
The good news is that He knew we could not perfectly keep His law, so He sent His Son to become one of us. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, lived a sinless life, and then died on the cross so that we can have our sins forgiven. God punished Christ for us.

For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

2 Corinthians 5:21

Repent of your sin and trust in Christ as your only shot for salvation. You and I are accountable to God. He wants to forgive us.


Response:
If you have not accepted Christ as your Savior, do that today and then tell me.
If you have, is there anything you need to confess to God to stay in right fellowship with him today?

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The Fear of the Lord- Proverbs Week 1- Day 1

On By Ben JenningsIn DevotionalLeave a comment

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.  

Proverbs 1:7

Explanation:

This verse is the foundational principle of the entire book of Proverbs.  The word “fear” has the idea of moral reverence, but does include dread or being scared.  One who understands the potential of the Lord has a reverent awe, and even a dread of Him knowing their own sinfulness.  The word translated Lord is the transliterated yehovah.  It means “self-Existent or eternal”, and is one of the most used names of God, showing up 6,521 times in the Old Testament.. 

Notice that the fear of the Lord is the result of special revelation.  The fear of the Lord is confirmed by natural revelation in this way.  When someone looks at the world they could come to the conclusion that something or someone more powerful than ourselves must have caused all of what we see in creation.  Yet, there is no fear of Jehovah God without knowledge of Him specifically.  We could not properly understand who Jehovah God is without His self-disclosure.  He had to reveal Himself to us.  In His amazing grace He has revealed Himself to us.  This is what Solomon says is the beginning of knowledge.  It is a right, reverent, and fearful response to God’s revelation about Himself. 

The Word “beginning” doesn’t just speak to chronology but also to priority.  One does not rightly understand themselves or the world around them properly until they take on God’s view of the World.  “What the alphabet is to reading, notes to reading music, and numerals to mathematics, the fear of the Lord is to attaining the revealed knowledge of this book.” (Waltke)

There is a contrast to the beginning of the statement.  Those that properly grow in knowledge begin with the fear of the Lord, but the contrasting person is the fool.  The attitude of the fool towards wisdom and instruction (also special revelation from God) is that He despises these things.  There is no reverence for the Lord.  There is a lack of fear.  

Application:

The fundamental question of so much of the book of Proverbs is the question that could be surmised from this verse.  Which person am I going to be?  Am I going to be wise, fearing the Lord and therefore caring most for his view of me?  Am I going to adopt his revealed word both in understanding and in obedience?  Or am I going to be the fool who despises wisdom and instruction?

Response:

Where do you need God’s wisdom and instruction in your life today?

Bibliography

Waltke, Bruce K. New International Commentary on the Old Testament: Proverbs. Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2004. E Sword Software.