Ecc. 12:13 THE FEAR OF THE LORD
Intro. Recently, we were shocked by the story of a
seven year old boy who carried a gun to school and
shot a classmate. It has been nearly a year since two
misguided young men walked into their school killed 13
people and wounding many others, stunning our nation.
We are reminded by those in the middle of the battle to
save the lives of the unborn that over 4,000 babies are
aborted in this country every single day. Our televisions
and movie screens are filled with depictions of violence,
death, sex and blaspheme. Last night, a new show
debuted with the title of "God, Bob and the Devil".
We have children killing children, adults killing
unborn children and our homes flooded with images of
violence and irreverence. I think we would all have to
admit that we are living in a "perverse and crooked
generation." There is no denying that truth, but the
question I have is why? Well, I think the answer is
found in Romans 3:18, "There is no fear of God
before their eyes." That is the answer! Men simply do
not fear the Lord in our day! Be that as it may, this is
one topic about which the Bible has much to say. I
would like to take a few minutes this evening to talk
about the matter of the fear of the Lord. As I do, I know
that this message will not change the world, but my
desire is to let the Lord use it to change me, and
hopefully to change you as well. I would like to speak
from this verse and draw from other passages of
Scripture as well and we consider the Fear of the Lord.
I. THE FEAR OF THE LORD DEFINED
A. The Bible tells us that Solomon was the wisest
man who ever lived, 1 Kings 4:31. Therefore,
when he says that the entire sum of life is to fear
God, then we ought to take note of just what he
is talking about.
(Ill. In truth, we have a great misunderstanding
concerning this matter of fear. Webster defines
fear as, "an unpleasant often strong emotion
caused by anticipation or awareness of
danger." We have all felt this kind of fear at one
level or another and it is truly unpleasant. Surely
this cannot be the idea Solomon has in mind!
The word used for fear in this verses, and most
other verses in the Old Testament dealing with
this subject is the word, yare. This word means
"to stand in awe of, to reverence, honor and
respect." It does not mean that we cringe and
tremble at the mention of the name of God. But,
it does mean that we honor Him, that we respect
Him and that we reverence Him. It means that
we stand in awe of His greatness.)
B. Basically, what this means is that when we are in
the presence of the Lord, we will not treat Him like
He is our good buddy. We won't desire to slap
Him on the back and hang out. It means that
when we are aware of His presence, we will react
with awe and reverence. It might hep us to look
at how several in the Bible reacted when they
were brought into the presence of the Lord.
1. Job - Job 42:1-6
2. Isaiah - Isaiah 6:1-5
3. Simon Peter - Luke 5:1-9
4. Saul of Tarsus - Acts 9:1-6
5. John the Beloved - Rev. 1:10-17
There are others that could be mentioned, but
these are sufficient to prove the case that when
you come into the presence of the Lord, there will
be reverence and awe.
C. The bottom line is this: when we are walking in
the "fear of the Lord", we will find ourselves in
awe of His greatness and power. We will think
much of Him and little of self. He will loom very
large in our hearts and in our lives.
Does this describe the way you see God? Do you live
in fear of the Lord? Is there a way that you can tell?
Yes, your actions prove whether of not you fear the
Lord. Notice:
I. The Fear Of The Lord Defined
II. THE FEAR OF THE LORD DESCRIBED
A. Solomon seems to tell us that the fear of the Lord
is demonstrated in a live that "keeps the
commandments of God." Simply stated you
and I prove what we think of the Lord by the way
we live our lives! This too is shown by the Word
of God.
B. There are several passages in the Bible that deal
with this matter of fearing the Lord. They teach
us the truth that what we do proves what we think
of God. You will live no better than the level at
which you honor and reverence God! If you see
the Lord as being high and holy, if you see Him
as being a God of judgment, if you see Him as
being One Who hates sin, then you will live like
you believe that. If, on the other hand, you have
the idea that God just winks at sin, that He might
not really judge the world, the you will live at a
much lower level. It is true, your live will tell the
world what you think of God!
Notice these passages from the Word of God:
Pro. 14:2, "He that walketh in his uprightness
feareth the LORD: but he that is perverse in
his ways despiseth him."
Pro. 3:7, "Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear
the LORD, and depart from evil."
Deuteronomy 6:2, "That thou mightest fear the
LORD thy God, to keep all his statutes and his
commandments, which I command thee, thou,
and thy son, and thy son's son, all the days of
thy life; and that thy days may be prolonged."
Proverbs 14:27, "The fear of the LORD is a
fountain of life, to depart from the snares of
death."
Proverbs 16:6, "By mercy and truth iniquity is
purged: and by the fear of the LORD men
depart from evil."
C. Jesus put it this way, "If ye love me, keep my
commandments.", John 14:15. The Bible, and
the Lord Jesus equates fearing the Lord with
doing what He said! Again, just as simply as I
can put it, the Bible teaches us that we prove our
fear of the Lord by ordering our lives ina manner
that shows love, respect and reverence for Him,
above all other things!
Again, I must ask, does this describe the way in which
you live your life? Does your lifestyle say, "I love the
Lord!"? It should! Now, we know what the fear of the
Lord is and we know how it is demonstrated. Let's take
a few minutes to understand why it is so important.
I. The Fear Of The Lord Defined
II. The Fear Of The Lord Described
III. THE FEAR OF THE LORD DEMANDED
A. As wise king Solomon concludes his remarks in
this passage, he tells us that fearing the Lord and
keeping His commandments is the "whole duty
of man." His counsel is that all we really need to
worry about in life is fearing the Lord! If we can
handle that, then everything else is a piece of
cake!
(Ill. This seems to be the same idea that Jesus
tried to convey to the people in His day, Matthew
22:37, "Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love
the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with
all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38 This is
the first and great commandment. 39 And the
second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy
neighbour as thyself. 40 On these two
commandments hang all the law and the
prophets." You see, if I can love God with all my
heart, then I will have no trouble walking in His
will and neither will I have any trouble loving my
neighbor. In fact, if I can love God with all my
heart, which is in essence to fear Him, then I will
be able to keep His commandments and honor
Him with my life. Does that sound reasonable to
you? That is what the Lord is teaching us!)
B. Now, let me say a word about this matter of
fearing the Lord. I am not referring to a fear that
the Lord is waiting behind me with a club and
when I make a mistake, He is going to bash me in
the head. It isn't the fear that the Lord will reach
out and put His hand on me in some horrible
fashion. For me, the fear of the Lord is that God
will take His hand off me!
(Ill. Remember Israel when they had sin in their
camp, Josh 6. Because Achan did not walk in the
fear of the Lord, God took His hand of power of
the nation of Israel and they were beaten by their
enemies! What I am trying to tell you is verses
like Pro. 14:2 and 16:6 teach us that the fear of
the Lord will motivate you to live a clean life. It
will help you to live a life that is pleasing to the
Lord, one that honors Him and one that He can
bless with His great power. For me, it is not the
fear of chastisement, it is the fear of being
shelved. This was a fear that Paul the Apostle
had, "But I keep under my body, and bring it
into subjection: lest that by any means, when
I have preached to others, I myself should be
a castaway." 1 Cor. 9:27.)
C. Whatever your motivation for walking in the fear of
the Lord, it must be done! It is the Lord's will and
it will result in power and anointing in your life.
God isn't asking you to walk in fear that He will
take some kind of celestial ball bat and beat you
senseless. He wants you to live a life that He can
use and bless. He wants you to walk in awe of
Him. He wants our hearts to be so filled with
respect for the Lord that we would die than
dishonor Him and His name! That is the essence
of fearing the Lord!
Conc: If you and I would be honest this evening, we
would have to admit that more often that not, we fear
many other things ahead of fearing God. We fear
people's opinions of us. We fear illness. We fear
poverty. We fear a multitude of things, but too often,
we simply do not fear the Lord as we should.
However, when we turn from that sin and decide to
walk in the fear of the Lord, we can be assured that
there are some special blessings that will come our
way. Notice:
Proverbs 19:23, "The fear of the LORD tendeth
to life: and he that hath it shall abide satisfied; he
shall not be visited with evil."
Proverbs 3:8, "It shall be health to thy navel, and
marrow to thy bones."
Yes there are blessings to those who walk in the
fear of the Lord and curses pronounced upon those
who do not. Which lifestyle best describes your's?
Friend, as we wrap up these thoughts on the Fear
of the Lord, let me ask you a question. What motivates
you to live your life the way you do? Can you honestly
say that everything you do, you do because you fear the
Lord? According to Solomon, that is the only way to
live. Do you need to make some changes to get
yourself lined up with the will of God in this matter? If
so, the altar is open for you to come and to do that right
now.
