The Beginning Of Wisdom
“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all who practice it have good understanding. His praise endures forever!”
Yesterday, I wrote about how the fear of the Lord is integral to friendship with God. God desires to be friends with those who fear him. He desires to be friends with those who have deep honor and respect for him, his ways, and his words.
Simply put, fearing the Lord is honoring him and respecting him. But why should we give God this glory? According to Psalm 111, we honor and respect him because of who He is and his wondrous works. God’s nature commands honor and respect.
There is none like God on earth or in heaven! No one and nothing thinks, feels, and acts how he does towards all of creation!
In light of these truths, the Psalmist concludes that it is wise to fear God. because he sees and cares about our every word and action. That is why we hear biblical writers like Paul reference the judgment seat of Christ.
In 2 Corinthians 5:9-10, Paul says, So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.
Our words and actions matter because God sees and hears it all. This reality is not meant to make us fear failure and sin. Instead, it is designed to produce conviction and confidence that living a holy life in Christ matters and that will be rewarded. It reveals to us that one day we will give account to Jesus, the only one worthy to judge the living and the dead.
We do not get ourselves into heaven. Jesus already did that for those that confess him as Savior and Lord, but there are eternal rewards that await us. These rewards will reveal the way our lives moved Jesus' heart.
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom because those that are wise honor and respect God. They see how his nature and wondrous works reveal how worthy he is of honor and respect. They understand that how they think, speak, and act matters to God and will be judged by Jesus when he returns. This does not cause them to be afraid. It causes them, in the grace of God, to reach for wholehearted love and radical obedience.
What we need right now is an increase in the fear of the Lord in the Church. I encourage you to shift your prayers for revival to start praying for the fear of the Lord to increase in the Church and in your life. Revival will always be the result!
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