Earlier we defined the Spirit of the Fear of the LORD. It imparts an overwhelming desire to please God and do His will—to obey Him.

Some people would say, “We are already pleasing to God. He sees us as perfect in Christ. The desire to please Him is a works mentality or a religious spirit. Grace has already freed us from all of this. Why should we fear Him?”

The Word says in 1 John 4:18, “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love.” And 2 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.

If we are not supposed to fear God, why does Paul tell us to “work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.” Philippians 2:12.

And, here this verse is in context: Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; 13 for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.

[It is God who gives us the ability to fear Him—the desire to please Him and obey Him. ]

14 Do all things without complaining and disputing, 15 that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world

Paul is giving guidelines here of what is needed to be blameless and without fault or fearing God—no complaining or disputing.

In 1 John 1:5-7, John gives us some more pointers: This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. 6 If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.

Walking in the light means walking in oneness with Him. With these truths in mind, is God contradicting Himself?

Let’s take a look at some other encounters when fear of the LORD came into play. 

Moses’ first encounter with God was when the Angel of the LORD spoke to him at the burning bush. Exodus 3:4-6.  God called to him from the midst of the bush and said, “Moses, Moses!”

And he said, “Here I am.”

5 Then He said, “Do not draw near this place. Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground.” 6 Moreover He said, “I am the God of your father—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look upon God.

Like Moses, when we experience something supernatural for the first time, we will likely be frightened as well. The Israelites did the same thing at Sinai.

Then it came to pass on the third day, in the morning, that there were thunderings and lightnings, and a thick cloud on the mountain; and the sound of the trumpet was very loud, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled. 17 And Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they stood at the foot of the mountain. 18 Now Mount Sinai was completely in smoke, because the Lord descended upon it in fire. Its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain quaked greatly. 19 And when the blast of the trumpet sounded long and became louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him by voice. 20 Then the Lord came down upon Mount Sinai, on the top of the mountain. And the Lord called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up. Exodus 19:16-20

 Now all the people witnessed the thunderings, the lightning flashes, the sound of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking; and when the people saw it, they trembled and stood afar off. 19 Then they said to Moses, “You speak with us, and we will hear; but let not God speak with us, lest we die.”

20 And Moses said to the people, “Do not fear; for God has come to test you, and that His fear may be before you, so that you may not sin.”  Exodus 20:18-20

Even though the Israelites witnessed His power in Egypt during the plagues and the crossing of the Red Sea, this was different. It was the first time the people heard God speak to them. Lighting, thunder, fire, smoke, and earthquakes accompanied God’s word. If we met God for the first time in this kind of setting, we too would be afraid.

When we don’t know God, when we haven’t seen how big He is or experienced His power, or if we sin [like Adam and Eve who hid when they disobeyed God] we too will tremble. But this isn’t what the Spirit of the Fear of the LORD brings to us. 

Daniel, didn’t sin and he heard God’s voice before, but this was his experience. Now on the twenty-fourth day of the first month, as I was by the side of the great river, that is, the Tigris, 5 I lifted my eyes and looked, and behold, a certain man clothed in linen, whose waist was girded with gold of Uphaz! 6 His body was like beryl, His face like the appearance of lightning, His eyes like torches of fire, His arms and feet like burnished bronze in color, and the sound of His words like the voice of a multitude.

7 And I, Daniel, alone saw the vision, for the men who were with me did not see the vision; but a great terror fell upon them, so that they fled to hide themselves. [Daniel didn’t run, but…]8 Therefore I was left alone when I saw this great vision, and no strength remained in me; for my vigor was turned to frailty in me, and I retained no strength. 9 Yet I heard the sound of His words; and while I heard the sound of His words I was in a deep sleep on my face, with my face to the ground.

Daniel lost his strength and fell on his face before God. John too fell on His face before Yeshua in Revelation 1:12-17.

I turned to see the voice that spoke with me. And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands, 13 and in the midst of the seven lampstands One like the Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to the feet and girded about the chest with a golden band. 14 His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and His eyes like a flame of fire; 15 His feet were like fine brass, as if refined in a furnace, and His voice as the sound of many waters; 16 He had in His right hand seven stars, out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged sword, and His countenance was like the sun shining in its strength. 17 And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying to me, “Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last.

The AWE of meeting God face to face, hearing His voice, and looking into His eyes of flame will be something we will never forget, but we do not need to be afraid of Him. The Spirit of the Fear of the LORD exposes who God is. And we realize how small, weak, and incompetent we are in comparison. We also realize that because He is all-powerful, all-love, and all-knowing, doing what He says is the wisest thing to do. It also gives us the best life.

I will close with this small portion David wrote in Psalm 34:11-14.

Come, you children, listen to me;

I will teach you the fear of the Lord.

12 Who is the man who desires life,

And loves many days, that he may see good?

13 Keep your tongue from evil,

And your lips from speaking deceit.

14 Depart from evil and do good;

Seek peace and pursue it.

No matter how many years you’ve known the LORD, there is always more to learn and put into practice. The Spirit of the Fear of the LORD will impart our ability to fear Him with a contrite spirit and to tremble at His word. (Isaiah 66:2) God doesn’t want us to be afraid of Him. He wants us to know Him intimately and walk with Him without fear.

Next time we will talk about the benefits of the Spirit of the Fear of the LORD.

Shalom ♥