Fear Of The Lord

In the past, I have found myself bumping up against the scriptures that tell us, in no uncertain terms, that we should “Fear the Lord.” I bump against them because they strike me as a massive obstacle that I must somehow overcome–kind of like a big rock pile that is very difficult and dangerous to climb-yet promises an amazing view once conquered.

Oh, I know He is much bigger than I, a lot smarter, and certainly a whole lot more powerful. I know He created me and has the ability to destroy me at will. I think the reason I don’t fear Him is because He is so much greater than I. My mind can’t visualize, let alone comprehend Him. How am I supposed to fear something my senses can’t even take in. It’s like expecting an ant to fear Mt. Everest. Even if the ant could physically take in the vastness of the mountain, it has no possibility of comprehending what it is looking at.

I’m kind of a geek about life. I like to investigate and understand things. Most of the passages that talk about the “Fear of the Lord” are in the Old Testament. Since the Old Testament was written in Hebrew, I thought maybe studying the Hebrew word that gets translated “fear” would help me understand it better. Turns out the Hebrew word can
mean either terror or reverent awe. The translator chooses which one. They depend on their knowledge of the languages involved, of God Himself, and of the context where the word is found, to decide. 

Understanding works in much the same way. We read something and then try to understand what it means. Take the word “hood.” Could be the thing that covers the motor on your car, a mountain, the big flap thingy on the back of a sweatshirt, or even the place where you live. The reader decides what the writer intended by relying on his knowledge
of the writer, his knowledge of the rest of the book or article, and by how the word is used (its context). Say I am reading a book written by a mountain climber about mountain
climbing in the Northwestern US. The writer uses the phrase “the hood.” I won’t even be tempted to think she is talking about the neighborhood where she grew up or the hood of
her car. Unless she specifically tells me otherwise, I will assume she is talking about Mt. Hood in Oregon.

I’ve begun to see my understanding of the “fear of the Lord” needs to be reconsidered. Instead of me fearing to be with God, I think God wants me to fear being apart from Him. This kind of fear would have the immediate effect of causing me to run toward Him rather than away from Him. This understanding fits much better with the idea of “Reverent Awe” instead of terror. It also fits much better with the rest of Scripture. Jesus made it pretty clear that God doesn’t want us to fear being in His Presence. After all, Jesus said that we would be able to call God “Abba Father.” That means He wants us to call Him Daddy. Nor does He want us to walk in fear that we might mess up so badly He would have to throw us out of His Presence. Jesus’ death made certain that the Father would never react that way to those who know Him and have called upon the name of the Lord. I think God wants us to be like children, who, for fear of the dark, run to the loving parent who is greater than the  boogey man of the darkness. I think God wants us to love Him so much, that we fear even the thought of life without Him. The New Covenant believer should then fear God’s absence
and love God’s Presence.