I am taking a Bible study that focuses on who our Heavenly Father really is, and one of the first ideas that we are studying is having a fear of God, and what that looks like.
“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.” Proverbs 1:7
This verse is stating that in order to gain wisdom, we must first have a fear of The Lord. This can be hard for Christians to grasp because we are taught that, “if our God is for us, then who can stand against us?” Romans 8:31, so why would we fear the very being that is on our side no matter what? Does this seem oxymoronic? Our God is always on our side, He loves us more than anything, and yet we are supposed to fear Him.
Before I started this study, I always thought I was a God fearing woman. I don’t know why I fear Him, but I know that I do and I really can not define it. I am in awe of God, hold Him in high reverence, and I am afraid of Him.
“The LORD is my light and my salvation; Whom shall I fear? The LORD is the defense of my life; Whom shall I dread?” Psalm 27:2
I also know that because I fear The Lord, I do not need to be bound by fear on Earth. If God is greater than all things on the Earth (because he created them), then why would I fear anything, besides Him who has created all things? When we do have fear, like driving in the winter, walking in the woods (I live in an area with a high cougar population), illness, a fear of dangerous people, is it sinful because we should only have a fear of God himself? And does a fear of things on earth reflect a deficit in our Faith? Since I fear walking in the woods because of cougars, does that mean I do not think God is in control of his creation, and if I am going to die at the paw of a cougar, it is because The Lord has allowed it, so then why should I walk in fear when I have no control over the situation.
The long and short of my question, is it sinful to be fearful of things on this earth, when we should really only fear The Lord, is open to your own interpretation. I am not a Bible scholar, I do not know my Bible well enough to conclusively answer that question, I do know that for myself, I have great peace knowing that the only one I need to fear is The Lord. And these other things do not frighten me.
“Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10
mrsmandaz 