The Fear of the Lord

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. Proverbs 9: 10

I have read, heard and memorized this proverb...but...it still puzzles me...

So, I want to try to dig into it a bit today.  

I let my eyes wander back and forth on the verse, and I can't help but stop at the word "fear."  That's the one that catches my attention, and sort of makes me stumble in my understanding of this piece of Scripture.  Fear...I know a lot about fear...sigh...

Fear is my constant companion.  I fear illness.  I fear loneliness.  I fear uselessness.  I fear emptiness.  I fear condemnation.  I fear failure.  I fear lovelessness.  And the list goes on and on and on...and that's just the list of things I fear for myself...after having kids, the list of things I fear for my sons is endless!  I am so afraid for the safety, health and well-being of my boys that it's a miracle I allow them to even go to school!  (I tell you, I agonized about sending them to public school more than I have dreaded my own death...sigh...)

Fear paralyzes me.  It poisons my mind to the point that I have no room for any other thoughts, but the obsession of that which frightens me.  Fear enslaves me.  I become a puppet of that which makes me afraid.  Fear is the enemy's most effective tool in his quest to manipulate me.

So...how is it possible that the book of Proverbs...the quintessential book of wisdom...features fear...FEAR...as the beginning of wisdom?  I don't get it.

Well, perhaps it is because I'm allowing the lies and deceit of the devil to drown the voice of the Holy Spirit.  I'm allowing the devil's schemes to mask the truth.

In Biblical terms, when the word "fear" is associated with "of the Lord" the connotation is a positive reverence (admiration, adoration, devotion, respect, wonder etc.).  All the references to the "fear of the Lord" imply that attitude of being in a state of such awe, that our mind expands to begin to have a hint of an understanding of who the Holy One truly is!  And the more we gain such understanding, the more our reverence, admiration, adoration, devotion, respect...fear...increases because there is no other response to the infinite and amazing nature of Our God!  He is an AWESOME GOD!  And His breathtaking magnificence leaves us speechless and awestruck.

In Job 28: 28, God says:  'Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding.'

The more we know Our Heavenly Father, the closer to wisdom we get.  The closer to God we get, the more we understand the need to turn away from evil.  Rejecting sin grows of our growing closer to God.  And the closer we grow to God, the more our "fear" of Him increases.

It's a riddle, I know.  But it's a marvelous one, isn't it?

The fear Proverbs 9:10 talks about is not the one that paralyzes us.  It's not the enemy-induced emotion that we feel when we take our eyes away from Christ and allow ourselves to fall for the devil's plots.  The fear of the Lord is the one that binds us to Him...like Jon Courson says in his Bible commentary, "The fear of the Lord is to love Him, to hear His song so clearly that the siren song of sin is drowned out completely."

Therefore, I pray that the next time I feel the crippling, cold chills of the enemy-induced fear crawling up my spine, the Holy Spirit gives me the weapons to combat that attack and extinguish the paralyzing and enslaving effects of its flame...so I can stay focused on the liberating, awestruck wonder of My Lord, instead. In the Precious Name of Jesus. Amen!