07 - FEAR OF THE LORD: Some Final Thoughts

We are coming to the end of our brief introduction to this perspective of the Fear of the Lord. It is, admittedly, a bit different than that which is normally considered on this topic. Yet, I hope that I have been able to satisfy you, the reader, which it is scripturally based, and adds to our understanding of the spiritual warfare that is being waged around us in our society and in our lives. It is on the forefront of the ultimate conflict for the soul of humankind.

It has also underscored that our only effective protection from evil are the Scriptures and Jesus Himself. Paul tells us to wear the whole armor of God so as not to succumb to the devil’s deceit.

"Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” (Eph. 6:11-12)

Jesus Embodies the Fear of the Lord

One vital indication of how central these four ethical principles are to God’s plan, is how often we observe them in the life and ministry of Jesus. Either the Scriptures tell us, or He has expressed it in His own words: “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life;”^[1] “I am gentle and humble in heart;”^[2] “my shalom I give to you;”^[3] and Luke tells us that Jesus, ‘went about doing good.’^[4] 

Satan is the Antithesis of the Fear of the Lord

On the other side we have His antithesis, as embodied in the person of Satan. The Scriptures describe him in the following manner: “he is called, liar and the father of lies”;^[5] The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray.^[6] He is also brought into strong connection with the promotion of evil and pride.

John, the Apostle, expresses the antithesis most starkly, “The one who does what is sinful is of the devil, because the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to destroy the devil’s work.” (1 John 3:8)

Through His life, death, and particularly His resurrection, Christ is already victorious over the forces of Satan. By so doing, He has provided the power for those who believe and fear Him to live lives of truth, peace, humility and goodness. Christ, and his creative activity, is the arch-type of the Kingdom of God, and embodies the Fear of the Lord in His person.

In the Upper Room, Jesus told His Disciples, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33). Because He has overcome everything Satan could throw at Him, we can overcome as well.

Some Final Thoughts

In this last installment, let me add a few thoughts on what the realization of these concepts in the Christian life might look like in real life.

The society in which we live needs to experience living examples of the benefits of people who live lives of goodness, peace, truth, and humility. Each of these attributes can only be demonstrated fully in community. God’s ordained place for that to happen is in local congregations, in the Church, and in the broadest sense, society itself. However, it can be argued that our dominant culture has sold out to individuality and freedom of expression. Because the people of the Church live in this society, they have tended to lose touch with the need for and the power of community.

Nevertheless, as we live out the Fear of the Lord, in community, our commitment to truth, goodness, humility, and shalom we are doing the work of Christ. Society is no longer interested in hearing about do’s and don’ts. It will be intrigued by seeing the people of God, living out the Fear of the Lord in a positive, life changing fashion. In the process, God will be working to form us more and more into the likeness of Christ. We are told that it will not always be easy, but when we accept Him into our lives, He empowers us to live out these principles.

As pastors and Christian leaders, we will be able to influence people in ways that make God’s heart glad. That knowledge brings us closer to an understanding of why the Fear of the Lord had such prominence in the Scriptures, particularly the Wisdom Literature.

If understood as we have portrayed them, the four attitudes of the fear of the Lord seem to be directly connected to the Ten Commandments (Eccl. 2:13). It is possible to see how living out these four attitudes can shape our minds and actions into a lifestyle that renders us willing and ready to keep the Ten Commandments.

Goodness, peace, truth, and humility, are personified in Jesus, and their antithesis, evil, strife, untruth, and pride are incarnate in Satan. The former are significant hallmarks of God’s intention for the world and the Christian lifestyle; and in the latter we see how Satan is working to destroy peoples’ lives, and ultimately to bring down societies and civilizations.

Finally, the Fear of the Lord, as we have discovered, is not only about taking God seriously in everything He says and commands. It offers us a lifestyle that places us squarely in the center of the spiritual battle for the soul of humankind.

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^[1]   John 14:6.

^[2]   Matthew 11:29.

^[3]   John 14:27.

^[4]   Acts 10:38.

^[5]  John 8:44

^[6]  Revelation 12:9

06 - FEAR OF THE LORD: Pursuing Peace or Sowing Strife

One of the most powerful concepts expressed in the Old Testament is found in the Hebrew word, shalom. This word means a great deal more than the absence of conflict, it is more than just a greeting. It means to wish that every facet of an individual’s life (financial, relational, vocational) be blessed with tranquility, health, and prosperity. It is this peace which David is writing about in Psalm 119:165: "Great peace have they who love thy law, and nothing can make them stumble."

Isaiah was also referring to shalom when he penned the following words: "The fruit of righteousness will be peace; the effect of righteousness will be quietness and confidence forever." (Isa. 32:17)

Jesus, when He used shalom in the New Testament, insisted that it include not only our friends and relatives, but also our enemies and those who would despitefully use us. In this sense the word shalom and the Greek word agape seem to have quite a bit in common.

Isaiah's described Jesus, the Messiah, as the peacemaker who embodies every facet of what shalom means to the Hebrew mind.

"For unto us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be upon his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his gov­ernment and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David's throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the Lord Al­mighty will accomplish this." (Isa. 9:6-9)

So here again, the concept of the Fear of the Lord, as described in the Old Testament Wisdom Literature, begins to flower and blossom in the New Testament. But it goes deeper than that. Paul, for example, connects the Hebrew understanding of peace with doing good, "but glory, honor and peace for everyone who does good: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile" (Rom. 2:10).

In I Thessalonians 5:25, Paul ties the peace of God to the concept of holiness: "May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ."

Here, Jesus is not only peace Himself. He is also the giver of the perfect peace that everyone is seeking. "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid” (John 14:27).

With all of the appliances, electronics, and IT devices available to make our lives easier, one would think that we would have time to become quiet and achieve at least a modicum of inner peace. However, it seems that our lives have become even less peaceful than before.

Where there is less peace, there is more strife. In the Scriptures, strife is often connected with pride. Where there is strife, there is pride, but wisdom is found in those who take advice (Prov. 13:10). We see here another connection with the Fear of the Lord being the beginning of wisdom.

Satan is the archetype of prideful strife in all of scripture. It was because of pride that He was expelled from heaven.

Since the Garden of Eden, Satan has aspired to deceive humankind into rebellion against Christ as well, just as he did. Here we see, in our study of the Fear of the Lord, the ultimate conflict for the soul of humankind. John, the Apostle, tells us that his ultimate plan is to conspire to draw all of humankind into making war against God.

“And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison. And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea." (Rev. 20:7-9)

But God will be victorious.

05 - FEAR OF THE LORD: Humility and Pride

To live in pride is to live independently from God, "going it alone" without God's help and ignoring His commands. The sentiment of the highly cited popular song, “I Did It My Way,” captures this thought well.

In Isaiah 5:21, we read: "Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight." Also in I Peter, "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble,” (5:6). The proud person rebels against correction, and says, “I do not need God’s help.”

"He who ignores discipline despises himself, but whoever heeds correction, gains understanding. The fear of the Lord teaches a man wisdom, and humility before honor." (Prov. 15:42)

The "Evil One's" most used ploy is to convince us that we don’t need God. If he can't succeed at that, he will try to convince us that the spiritual disciplines, the ways God uses to reveal Himself to us, aren't important. He will do anything to get us to go on our own and "become like the gods."

This lack of humility was also seen in the life of the children of Israel. God made them an offer.

"If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land." (II Chron. 7:14)

In this passage, pride is connected to "wicked ways," and humility is connected to seeking God's face, praying and turning from our wicked ways. God's promise is, then, to hear their prayer, forgive their sins and heal their land.

God proved His faithfulness to keep His promise in II Chronicles 32:26 where we read, "Then Hezekiah repented of the pride of his heart, as did the people of Jerusalem; therefore the Lord's wrath did not come upon them during the days of Hezekiah."

Humility

In the New Testament the call to humility is just as prominent theme. It is brought into connection with submission to God and those in authority over us.

"Young men, in the same way be submissive to those who are older. Clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time." (I Pet. 5:5-6)

We tend to consider meekness and humility as being weaknesses. They are, in fact, full obedience. Christ was totally obedient to his Father, and He wanted His disciples to do the same. He spoke in Matthew's gospel about His humility.

"Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." (Matt. 11:29)

A yoke is, among other things, a symbol of submission. Jesus spoke openly to His disciples about His submission to His Father.

¹⁹ Jesus gave them this answer: “Very truly I tell you, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.²⁰ For the Father loves the Son and shows him all he does. (John 5:19-20)

¹⁰ Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in me? The words I say to you I do not speak on my own authority. Rather, it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work. (John 14:10)

He is the only one who can claim absolute humility, the only one who can never be accused of pride. Jesus testifies that only by His complete obedience and dependence on what the Father said made it possible for the Father to do His work through Him. Jesus was the embodiment of humility. It was the source of His power.

The entire New Testament underscores Jesus’ desire for us to become like Him. In order to do that, He is calling us to develop that same complete dependence on the Father’s presence and direction in our lives.

Might the Church’s lack of power be the influence of our culture’s teaching that we depend on our own individual strength, rather than upon God?

What do you think?

04 - THE FEAR OF THE LORD: Doing Good & Shunning Evil

It is in the Garden of Eden that we first see the significance of good and evil when  Adam and Eve were forbidden to eat from the tree of the knowledge of “good and evil” (Gen. 2:9).   In disobeying God’s command, they, and all humankind after them have been tainted with the knowledge and practice of evil.  God's stated purpose in the Scriptures is to impart the knowledge of good to humankind. It is only through the power of God, and His salvation in Christ that those who take Him seriously can live lives marked by goodness.

The antithesis of goodness is evil. In Isaiah’s depiction of the "seven deadly sins," we read: "Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness before light and light before darkness, who put sweet for bitter and bitter for sweet."(5:20). Here we see how God views those who reverse the meaning of good and evil. If there is no repentance, then values, actions, and attitudes such as these, found in the children of Israel (and by extension, in us as well), will reap God's judgment.

In the New Testament, the difference between Good and Evil takes on additional significance.

"When tempted, no one should say, "God is tempting me." For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone…Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows." (James 1:13, 17)

We also read that God cannot be tempted to do evil nor does He tempt anyone. His desire is the opposite. His desire is to redeem humankind, make them good, and give them good gifts. Jesus did not mince any words concerning good and evil, and how they come about.

"You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil out of the evil stored up in him." (Matt. 12:34-­35)

He connects the good and the evil tongue with being good or evil inside, suggesting that the four components of the Fear of the Lord have their origin in the core of our beings. They are entwined with our basic thoughts and attitudes, and govern how we think and what we do.

So that no one is confused about what Good is, Matthew relates Jesus’ conversation with the rich young ruler. This intelligent and good person asked Jesus the question: "What good thing must I do to get eternal life?" (Matt. 19:16). Jesus then named those Commandments which pertained to his relationships with other people. This, according to the young man, he had done. Jesus then hit on the heart of the matter. He replied, "If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." (Matt. 19:21).

Jesus puts the young man's real loyalties to the test. Where is the focus of his worship? Notice that Jesus refers to Himself and the necessity of following Him as being the same as his allegiance to Yahweh. Which is more important, helping the poor and following Jesus, or his possessions?

The apostle Paul shows us in Romans 12:9 what we are to do with good and evil: "Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good." In v.21, he asserts that there is a struggle between good and evil that takes place in our lives: “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” He elevates goodness as being more powerful than evil. Evil is overcome by good.

What are your thoughts?

03 - FEAR OF THE LORD: The Truth and the Lie

Truth is indispensable. We need the truth from those who make decisions affecting our lives. We need truth in the classroom that shapes our minds, values, and societal behaviors. We need the truth in the media, which we depend on for facts to make informed decisions. And last, but not least, we need the truth to be the foundation of long term meaningful relationships. Imagine a society in which nothing can be known to be true!

We have already observed that truth is one of the foundation stones of the Fear of the Lord. We have also seen that Solomon elevated these basic elements of the Fear of the Lord, to be equal in importance to the Ten Commandments.

¹³Now 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. (Ecc. 12:13).

Words have tremendous power. They can build up and enlighten, or they can destroy and misinform. There is not a person or a society on the planet who has not been blessed and/or cursed with words. Solomon speaks of his decision to use his tongue to praise God's righteousness.

“The tongue that brings healing is a tree of life, but a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit…" "My tongue will speak of your righteousness and of your praises all day long." (Prov. 15:4; Psa. 35:28b) 

Jesus said in John 14:6: "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." Jesus is the truth. When we have Him, we have within us His presence out of which His truth can become visible to others.

Jesus taught about the truth, dispensed knowledge of the truth, He is the truth. "To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, "If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:31-32). If we, as the disciples Jesus, do what He says, we will have the truth and the truth will be set free within us.

Satan—the "Father of Lies"

Satan, on the other hand, is equated with the lie. He will quote scripture out of context and try to get us to believe the partial truth. His ultimate purpose is to use the lie to separate us from our true selves, from each other, and finally from God Himself. Later on in John 8, Jesus compared these same questioners to Satan and described them and him in the following manner:

"You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father's desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies." (John 8:44)

Conclusion

Here we find a very huge contrast. Jesus is the truth, and Satan is the lie. By itself this is not new. However, here we are placing it in the context of the meaning of the Fear of the Lord, which is so pervasive throughout all of scripture, but particularly in the Wisdom Literature. We will be seeing similar parallels as we move forward in this study.

Whether one tells and/or lives the truth, or tells and/or lives the lie is a decision one makes. Both are good indications of one’s heart disposition; and they put on display the character of the person using them.

Is there anything you would like to add to this conversation?

02 - FEAR OF THE LORD: Four Attributes

In our introduction we named four lifestyle principles distilled from the concept of the fear of the Lord, as articulated by kings David and Solomon, found in the wisdom literature. Together they constitute a way of life that God loves. Their antithesis, we are told in the Scriptures, are actions that God hates. This concept seems to have great importance. Here are representative scripture references for each concept to underscore their importance. First, of all:

THE TRUTH	THE LIE
“Finally brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things" (Phil. 4:8-9).	“The Lord hates a lying tongue and a false witness who pours out lies” (Prov. 6:16-19).

Loving the truth is not just answering questions truthfully. It means doing the right and truthful thing, even when you know no one is watching, particularly when you know you will not be caught. It means living your life with absolute integrity, promoting truth in every aspect of public life, and shunning rationalization in all of its forms. This is, obviously a short list, but it is essentially an abhorrence of all things deceptive. Secondly, we see:

PURSUING PEACE	SOWING STRIFE
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” (Matt. 5:9).	“The Lord hates…a man who stirs up dissension among brothers" (Pro. 6:16, 19).

In the Old Testament the word for peace is shalom. It does not mean only the absence of fighting. It is harmony and wholeness in every aspect of life, which flows from promoting reconciliation between God, people, and the world. It connotes an attitude of giving so that other people can experience unity, abundance, and success in material prosperity, bodily health, and happiness in relationships. Thirdly:

HUMILITY	PRIDE
"God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble" (I Peter 5:6).	"Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight" (Isaiah 5:21).

Humility is not talked about, but lived out. It includes being a servant to those lower than yourself, sharing the burdens of others, considering others first, and giving God and others the credit for any success you may have. It specifies the need to have nothing to do with pride and arrogance. Finally:

GOOD	EVIL
“Trust in the LORD, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed” (Psa. 34:3).	"Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness before light and light before darkness, who put sweet for bitter and bitter before sweet" (Isa. 5:20).

One synonym for goodness is kindness. It means forgiving those who harm you, seeking justice for the poor, demonstrating a gentle spirit toward the disadvantaged, and acting for the good of all people, showing mercy, and working for the common good of society. It also means having absolutely nothing to do with evil of all kinds.

In our next post, we will take a closer look at the concepts of the truth and the lie.

01—FEAR OF THE LORD – Introduction

Back in the late 1970’s, while Mary-Esther and I were pastoring the West Berlin Church of the Nazarene, one of our German parishioners gave me an audio cassette. On it, a German pastor presented a new way of understanding “the fear of the Lord” in scripture. Over the years, as I have reflected on it, the concept has slowly matured in my mind. It is still a work in progress, but I have not yet read anything quite like it.

When the average parishioner is asked, “What does the biblical concept of the ‘fear of the Lord’ mean,” the answer will vary widely. The one most people give will tend to gravitate toward being afraid of God’s wrath if we don’t do what He wants. John Calvin writes of a Christian standpoint which points to a sincere desire not to disappoint Him or to disgrace His name.

The Scriptures themselves seem to indicate that the practice of the fear of the Lord elevates the human condition. Here are a few examples from scripture that speak to the benefits of fearing the Lord.

1.      “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” (Prov. 9:10; Psa. 111:10)

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

3.      Isaiah even brings this theme into connection with his prophecy about Jesus, A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.  The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him—the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of might, the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord— and he will delight in the fear of the Lord. (Isa.11:1-3)

When Solomon wrote Ecclesiastes, he was likely an older man. He had seen and experienced, in abundance, everything human beings long for – love, wealth, and power. He was arguably the wealthiest man in the world (his annual income of gold alone was $3 - $4 billion in today’s value), and was king of the most powerful nation in the Middle East.

He wrote about how all his possessions, his wives and concubines, and his power did not satisfy him. He considered them all vanity and/or useless. In the last paragraph of Ecclesiastes, he addressed some final remarks to his son and articulated an all-important principle. He told his son to beware of anything that would seduce him away from a life of wisdom:

"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." (Eccl. 12:13)

The significance here is that Solomon links these two commands together and seems to give them equal billing. We know to obey God’s commandments. They formed the basics of the code of ethics in both the Old and New Covenants. But in addition to his, from this perspective, the question becomes, “What makes fearing God so crucial? What makes it such a bottom-line issue?” What is it about the fear of the Lord that leads to wisdom? What makes us fear to let God down or dishonor His name?

There must be something more fundamental to a godly life, both for individuals and society. There are several places, found in the wisdom literature, where light is shed on the answers to these questions.

As a child, on his father David’s knee, Solomon first learned and gained an appreciation for wisdom and the Fear of the Lord. It was David who wrote: "Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord. Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days, keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies. Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it." Psa. 34:11-14, (quoted in 1 Pet. 3:10-12)

Later, it was Solomon who passed on his father’s teaching when he wrote in Prov. 8:13:

"To fear the Lord is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil behavior and perverse speech."

In these two passages we see both positives and negatives of four practical principles which go to the core values of this concept. We will examine each of these in greater detail in future posts.

1.                  A commitment to truth,

2.                 A pursuit of peace,

3.                A life of humility, and

4.                A life-style of doing good.

In Ecclesiastes, Solomon seems to be suggesting that these values or attitudes constitute the fear the Lord, and when present, create in us the desire to keep the Commandments. To “Fear the Lord” means to commit to do what God loves, and not do what God hates, no matter what it may cost.

Each of these four positive attributes also have their counterparts: 1) telling the lie, 2) sowing strife, 3) being prideful, and 4) doing evil. We will see further implications of this relationship later in our study.

We also see how the seven deadly sins encapsulate the antithesis of the Fear of the Lord. The words evil, pride, the lie and the spreading of dissention are all found there.

"There are six things the Lord hates, seven that are detestable to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a man who stirs up dissension among brothers." (Pro. 6:16-19)

My current working definition of the fear of the Lord is to take God seriously and obey Him above everything else in all He commands and does.

In the next several posts we will attempt to unpack each of these four ethical principles and show their significance to the Christian witness in complex culture*. There are many ways in which each of these four concepts are intertwined with major biblical themes. Furthermore, if practiced as a lifestyle, they provide the attitudes that render in us a desire to keep the Commandments.

Tune in next time for more. What do you think?

*See a previous post on my concept of “complex culture”.