September 15th, 2013
Today’s reading from Encounter with God

The Fear of the Lord

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Opening Prayer

Father, may I see Your vision for my life. Today, I want to seek Your approval and fulfill Your purposes for me.

Read PSALM 34:1-22

[1] Of David. When he pretended to be insane before Abimelek, who drove him away, and he left. I will extol the LORD at all times; his praise will always be on my lips. [2] I will glory in the LORD; let the afflicted hear and rejoice. [3] Glorify the LORD with me; let us exalt his name together. [4] I sought the LORD, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears. [5] Those who look to him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame. [6] This poor man called, and the LORD heard him; he saved him out of all his troubles. [7] The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them. [8] Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him. [9] Fear the LORD, you his holy people, for those who fear him lack nothing. [10] The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing. [11] Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the LORD. [12] Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days, [13] keep your tongue from evil and your lips from telling lies. [14] Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it. [15] The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, and his ears are attentive to their cry; [16] but the face of the LORD is against those who do evil, to blot out their name from the earth. [17] The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. [18] The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. [19] The righteous person may have many troubles, but the LORD delivers him from them all; [20] he protects all his bones, not one of them will be broken. [21] Evil will slay the wicked; the foes of the righteous will be condemned. [22] The LORD will rescue his servants; no one who takes refuge in him will be condemned.

Scripture taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. All rights reserved throughout the world. Used by permission of International Bible Society.

Meditate

“From a biblical perspective there is nothing neurotic about fearing God. ‘Fear of the Lord’ is the deeply sane recognition that we are not God” (Ellen Davis).

Think Further

I was brought up in Clan Munro country in the Scottish Highlands. On my way to school I would pass the historic clan crest mounted high in the village street with its motto: “Dread God.” This somber dictum hardly makes the most attractive advertising line! It might not appeal even to some churches! Yet, the clan motto reflects a strong biblical focus we can ill afford to lose. The popular meaning of both “dread” and “fear” may have narrowed over the years, but this does not alter the fact that both are biblical terms employed to describe a desirable response to God. What, then, is the fear of the Lord?

The author of Psalm 34 offers to tell us (11)! He adopts the role of a Hebrew sage who invites us to become his disciples. He tells us fearing the Lord involves three different, but related, activities. The first is reverent worship. The context of the psalm is adoration; the opening verses radiate a sense of the awesomeness of God. The psalmist invites us to join him in extolling the Lord (1-3) and to rejoice in what he has done for us (4,6; c.f. 1 Sam. 12:24).  The second activity is enthusiastic service (14). Fearing the Lord involves doing good to others and seeking peace. Peace does not simply arrive; it has to be passionately pursued. The third activity is honorable conduct (13,14). Fearing the Lord involves turning from evil: from a loose tongue, a proud heart, an immoral life (13; c.f. Prov. 8:13; Deut. 10:12,13). 

Perhaps the greatest blessing of fearing the Lord is our deliverance from all our fears (4). This word for fear is different; it describes the fear of divine judgment. The psalmist is anticipating Paul in Romans 8:1!

Apply

“Living in the fear of the Lord and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it [the church] increased in numbers” (Acts 9:31). What would living in the fear of the Lord look like in you and in your church?

Closing prayer

Mighty God, as my awe of You grows, my fears diminish. I praise You for all that You mean to me.

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