Billy Joe Daugherty - What is the Fear of the Lord

Contents

Chapter 1

" What is 'the Fear of the Lord'?"

"Therefore, having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God."

2 Corinthians 7:1

'Filthiness of the flesh" includes wrong attitudes, actions, activities, and feelings. Holiness comes as a result of the fear of God. It is produced as a consequence of the fear of the Lord.

The Greek word for fear is PHOBOS, which means "that which is caused by being scared; that which may cause fright, dread, or terror; that which is caused by the intimidation of adversaries."

W. E. Vine says, "A reverential fear of God...is not a mere fear of His power and righteous reteibution , but a wholesome dread of displeasing Him. The reverential fear of God will inspire a constant carefulness in dealing with others."1

In other words, to "fear the Lord" is to have so much reverence and respect for Him that your greatest desire is to please Him.

Philippians 2:12 says, "...work out your own salvation with fear and trembling."

First Peter 2:17 says, "Honor all people. Love the brotherhood . Fear God. Honor the king."

Cornelius was a Gentile, but he feared God. His desire was to please God. Acts 10:2 says Cornelius was "A devout man and one who feared God with all his household, who gave alms generously to the people, and prayed to God always."

God spoke to Cornelius:

"...Cornelius!

"And when he observed him, he was afraid, and said, What is it, lord? So he said to him, Your prayers and your alms have come up for a memorial before God.

"Now send men to Joppa, and send for Simon whose surname is Peter.

"He is lodging with Simon, a tanner, whose house is by the sea. He will tell you what you must do."

Acts 10:3-6

Peter went to Cornelius' house, and all those at the house received Christ immediately.

They were baptized in the Holy Spirit and then baptized in water .

Ephesians 5:21 talks about the "fear of God." "Submitting to one another in the fear of God." If we don't fear God, we'll never submit ourselves one to another. The fear of God will precede the humble, broken, contrite spirit that produces a submission one to another.

Revelation 19:5 says, "...Praise our God, all you His servants and those who fear Him, both small and great!"

Hebrews 11:7 says, "By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household..."

Noah moved with obedience and reverence (fear of the Lord), because he had heard from God. Scripture says it was by faith that he moved with fear.

Most people have difficulty when you mention the word fear , because we've been programmed to "fear not." But to move in the fear of the Lord is to move with respect, reverence, and an overwhelming desire to obey God and please Him.

Chapter 2

"Fear of Man "

Many New Testament Scriptures say something about "fear not"

Second Timothy 1:7 says, "For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind."

The fear God speaks of in this verse comes from the same Greek word, PHOBOS, as fear of the Lord. It means "to be afraid, to be frightened, to be in terror." It also includes the thought, "to revere or be in awe of."

This particular Scripture is in the context of a letter written by Paul to Timothy. Timothy was afraid of giving his testimony. He was afraid of the Gospel and what its impact would be . So Paul said, "...Stir up the gift of God which is in you... Dont be ashamed or afraid of the testimony of the Lord, because God has not given you the spirit of fear" (2 Timothy 1:7, paraphrased).

Of what was Timothy afraid? He wasn't afraid of God. He was afraid of man. He was afraid of what man would do and say and think. God doesn't give us a man-fearing spirit. Neither are we to fear the devil in the sense of being afraid or in terror of him. He's to be in terror of us!

Chapter 3

"Fear of Death "

Hebrews 2:14-15 speaks of the fear of death.

"Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil,

"And release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage."

The resurrection of Jesus Christ has freed us from the fear of death. We're not to be afraid of death, because we know when we depart from the physical body, we'll be present with the Lord. We'll be with Him forever!

Revelation 21:8 (KJ) says, "But the fearful, the unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone... "

Obviously, there's a fear we're not supposed to have. An unbeliever who doesn't have a promise of life after death fears dying. He fears meeting God. Scripture says the people who are unbelieving and fearful will be cast into the lake of fire. Through receiving Jesus, the fear of death is removed .

Chapter 4

"Fear Not"

In both the Old and New Testaments when angels appeared, the first words they spoke were, "Fear not" In other words, "Don't get into terror" or "Don't be afraid."

The angel spoke to Zachariah in Luke 1:13. "...Do not be afraid... "

An angel spoke to Joseph, "...do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit" (Matthew 1:20).

An angel appeared to Daniel and said, "...Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard; and I have come because of your words" (Daniel 10:12).

Isaiah 41:10 says, "Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand."

Luke 12:32 says, "Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Fathers good pleasure to give you the kingdom."

This type of fear that brings torment and oppression is clearly not the fear of the Lord. It is to be resisted and cast out.

Chapter 5

"Fear of the Lord is Not Talking Ugly!"

"...let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God."

2 Corinthians 7:1

Psalm 19:9 says, "The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever." This implies that people who don't have the fear of the Lord are unclean.

Psalm 34:11-12 says:

"Come, you children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord

"Who is the man who desires life, and loves many days, that he may see good ?"

Do you want to see life and many good days? Verse 13 tells you how to do that.

"Keep your tongue from evil, and your lips from speaking guile."

The fear of the Lord will cause you to keep your tongue from talking ugly! Guile is that which is unclean and which is not in accordance with the Word of God. It means deceitful or cunning. Many things have uncleanness in them that aren't necessarily what we'd call socially cursing. For you to say things that contradict God's Word or that violate the principles of faith can wound your spirit and grieve the Spirit of God.

As you go through each day, it's important that you say, "Lord, I thank You that You are my Rock. You are my strength. I trust in You ." It's important that you not allow your lips to fall into the confession of what's happening negatively in the world and that your lips speak no guile.

Chapter 6

"Fear of the Lord Causes You to Run From Evil"

"Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it."