The spirit of obedience.
The clearest proof of the fear of God is obedience. To walk the narrow path, we must first be equipped with knowledge and understanding of God’s glory. The bible says the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom. However, a lot of people do not understand the context of fear from the bible and I am going to talk about it. Growing up, I was afraid of some people and hid from them. So it was a kind of separation from them. However, this is not what the Bible means when it says to fear God, because God does not want you to be separate from Him but rather, close to Him.
To fear God is to love Him
“There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.” I John 4:18. The fear we should have for God is not a fear of punishment. There are people who just fear God because they do not want to go to hell. No child of God wants to go to hell; however, that should not be our primary focus when building a relationship with God.
To fear God is to obey Him
“And Moses said to the people, ‘Do not fear; for God has come to test you, and that His fear may be before you, so that you may not sin.’” Exodus 20:20. The fear of the Lord is a fear that gives deep reverence for God so that we may not sin. A Godly fear is one that involves being obedient, standing firm on God’s word and living according to His will.
To fear God is to understand His power
Think about powerful women of God in the bible like the midwives, Shiphrah and Puah, who feared God more than man and decided not to follow Pharaoh’s command to kill the baby boys of the Hebrew women (Exodus 1: 17). What did you learn from this story? For me, I learnt that the fear of God in this context is the understanding of His power. The power of God is above that of man, and when you understand this, you begin to obey God over man.
How to be a God-fearing person?
- Know God’s word: In order to fear God or even follow his word, we must first know him. We need to spend quality time with God.
- Obey God: When you have that consciousness of your sinful nature and feel remorseful when you sin, you have the fear of the Lord.
- Keeping to your word: a person who fears God keeps to their word. For example, think of Hannah, who vowed to give her son to God all the days of his life if God blesses her with a son. What is one thing you notice about Hannah? She kept her vow. “When you make a vow to God, do not delay to pay it; For He has no pleasure in fools. Pay what you have vowed. Better not to vow than to vow and not pay” Ecclesiastes 5:4-5.
The reward of the fear of God
“Who is the man that fears the Lord? Him shall He teach in the way He chooses. He himself shall dwell in prosperity, and his descendants shall inherit the earth. The secret of the Lord is with those who fear Him, and He will show them His covenant.” Psalms 25:12-14. The reward of fearing God is a closer relationship with Him. A man who fears God shall prosper; they shall inherit the earth; they are equipped with the secret of the Lord and will see the covenant of God; they gain wisdom; they shall be rewarded with blessings just as God rewarded the midwives, Shiphrah and Puah, with a family of their own.
Prayer
Thank God for His word and deeply adore Him. Ask for forgiveness of sins. Ask him for forgiveness for not keeping any vows you’ve made. Ask God to help you to be obedient. Ask Him to bring you closer to Him. Most importantly, ask Him to teach you to love Him. Ask for understanding of His word that you may know Him and live according to His will. Ask Him for His guidance to always keep your vows. Thank Him for powerful women like Shiphrah and Puah, whom we could model from.
