ChoicesSample

Will you choose the fear of the Lord?

What are your fears? Frogs, tornados, clowns, the dark, or spiders? That last one is a fear that will have grown men standing on a chair! I remember being deeply afraid of the dark. Even as an adult, I would dash from the driveway to my front door, first talking myself into the race as I sat in my car. 

Our fears can be deep-set and crippling, even if they seem unfounded and silly to those around us.  

Fears can be a hindrance, but fears can also be helpful. We only touch a hot stove once before we develop a healthy fear of being burned.  

The Bible offers two original language words for fear. One is phobos, a fear that either keeps us bound up with terror or causes us to flee in face of the unknown. There are hundreds of scriptures telling us not to have this kind of fear. The other word for fear is yirah, which is awe and respect. Yirah is a healthy fear, a fear which keeps us safe and protects us from danger, and undesirable consequences.

Nearly every book in the Bible has scriptures encouraging us to yirah, to “fear” God. The fear, respect, and realization of who God is sets a boundary of protection around our hearts, keeping us from evil and providing for us a place of safety. The fear of God is a place of humility—a posture of knowing who He is, and of realizing how much we need Him.

Satan is a master of deception. Through his evil tactics, we often have a deeper fear of him than we do of God. His lies keep us in bondage to fear of him, fear of the future, fear of death, fear of what people think, fear of things. All of these unhealthy fears drive us away from God. 

But the fear of the Lord drives us to Him. The fear of God isn’t something that comes naturally. It’s something we have to learn, something we have to practice. It is a choice we have to continually make.  

Fear of God has great rewards, but without it, we will drift away from Him.    

Choose the fear of the Lord. It will drive you toward Him.