The Fear of God: Should We Be Afraid of Him?

Love and Fear: Can They Coexist?

God is loving, merciful, and compassionate. Yet throughout Scripture we are commanded to fear Him. But who should fear God and in what way? Is the Old Testament view of fearing God the same as the New Testament? The Lord has not changed. God's holiness has not changed nor has His authority. What has changed, through Christ, is our relationship with Him and our standing before Him.

The Fear of God: Terror or Reverence?

Scripture not only commands us to fear God, but also helps us understand what that fear should look like. Christians are taught that this fear is a reverential fear, like we might fear a loving human father, and show respect for him and his authority over us. Psalm 103:13 gives us a picture of this relationship, reminding us that God has compassion on those who fear Him.

In Exodus 20:20 we read,

"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.”"

Moses had just come from atop Mt. Sinai having experienced God first hand. The people had seen the lightning and heard the peals of thunder. Understandably they were frightened. So on the one hand Moses is telling the people not to fear and on the other, telling them that the fear of the Lord should go before them to keep them from sinning. This is not a contradiction.

Moses didn't want their terror to be the motivation for their obedience. He wanted them to obey out of love and reverence, just as God does today. We are told not to fear hundreds of times in the Bible, but if we have a respectful and awe-filled fear it will help us not to sin.This kind of reverence for God affects the way we live and the choices we make.

The Beginning of Wisdom

According to Proverbs 1:7, the beginning of wisdom is fear of the Lord. Wisdom meant more than just being smart. Wisdom was living life in a way that aligned with God's will. It is our habits and moral choices lived out knowing that God is in control and we are His creation. Ask yourself, "What should I change to have the wisdom that Proverbs promises me?"

God Wanted More Than Outward Worship

Israel had a special relationship with their Creator because He established covenant relationships with them that had never existed before. In Exodus 4:22, He calls Israel "My firstborn son." And in Jeremiah and Hosea God calls Israel "His bride." In Exodus 25:8 God instructs them to build the Tabernacle. This wasn't done to make them fearful of Him but so that He could dwell among His people in a real physical sense.

The worship of God was different in the Old Testament. There were blood sacrifices of animals, there were priests, and eventually there was a temple. But the way that God wanted them to worship Him in their hearts was not different.

"For You do not desire sacrifice, or else I would give it;

You do not delight in burnt offering.

The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit,

A broken and a contrite heart—

These, O God, You will not despise." - Psalm 51:16-17

He wanted worship from the heart, not just going through the motions. This kind of worship required a changed heart. This promise of a new heart is found in Ezekiel 36:26-27 and in Jeremiah 31:33. It was fulfilled in the New Testament with the death and resurrection of Jesus and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

God's desire to dwell among His people tells us something important about the relationship He wanted with them. Love and fear in today's world often mean completely opposite things but in the Old Testament to truly love someone, especially God, meant to offer them the respect and honor they were due. Love for God was never intended to be merely an emotion or a feeling. We make a commitment to Him.

Why would fearing God keep us from sinning though? Because we don't want to disobey the Father who loves us and gave us new life. We should never be so comfortable with God's love though that we lose our reverence for His holiness.

When People Refuse to Fear God

We know that the people who should be fearful of God's wrath are those who have totally rejected Him. These people face severe judgment.

In Ecclesiastes 8:12-13 the author tells us,

"Though a sinner does evil a hundred times, and his days are prolonged, yet I surely know that it will be well with those who fear God, who fear before Him. But it will not be well with the wicked; nor will he prolong his days, which are as a shadow, because he does not fear before God."

The Old Testament gives specific examples of what happened to people who had no fear of Him. The Amalekites were wiped out because, lacking a fear of God, they attacked the weak and weary Israelites (Deuteronomy 25:17-18). King Belshazzar, in his arrogance was punished for failing to acknowledge the God who put him on his throne, even though he knew what had happened to Nebuchadnezzar. He suffered judgment (Daniel 5).

The Fear of God and the Holy Spirit

But now, in the New Testament, instead of going to a place like the Temple to experience God, His followers carry Him with them as the presence of the Holy Spirit.The Holy Spirit does not condemn us but convicts us and transforms our hearts. He makes possible our relationship with God as His beloved children.

In the New Testament, just as in the Old, we see examples of people who refused to fear God. The unrepentant thief on the cross mocked Jesus. He received no promise of paradise in contrast to the repentant thief (“Do you not even fear God?”, v. 40).

And in Acts 5:1-11 we read about Ananias and Sapphira who deliberately lied to the Holy Spirit which led to their own destruction. Their deaths demonstrated the seriousness of treating God and His holiness with contempt. Their failure led the entire congregation to have a greater respect and fear for the Lord.

Perhaps Revelation presents us with the clearest example of what happens to people who choose to honor and worship "the Beast" over giving honor to and fearing God. In Revelation 14:6-7 an angel from God announces to the world they should fear God and give Him glory and worship because judgment was coming. God mercifully gives them one last warning. Scripture also tells us that those who belong to Him already fear God.

Revelation repeatedly calls God's own, "those who fear your name"(Revelation 11:18; 15:3-4; and 19:5). This is contrasted with those who will end in the lake of fire, in Revelation 21:8 they are said to be cowardly, or fearful. Other persistent, unrepentant sins are also listed. These are not momentary failures, these are patterns of lives lived outside of God. This is not the fear of the faithful, this is the fear of those who value their own life above God. These people openly deny Christ.

Whom Should We Fear?

In Matthew 10:28 Jesus warned against this very thing. He tells the disciples who they should fear and who they should not,

"And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell."

There is no need for us to be scared of or panicked by the abuse of the world. Other humans do not have the final say on our soul, only God has that power.

In the very next verse Jesus reminds us that our Father has tender, loving care for His children. We may be disciplined but we will not be condemned (Romans 8:1). Our proper fear of God allows us to have a right relationship with Him, one that gives hope.

Because we are God's and He is in total control, we don't have to be afraid of persecution, losing our job, death, poverty, or any other obstacle. His perfect love casts out our fears of eternal punishment (1 John 4:18). But knowing that God is in control doesn't mean He is distant from the troubles we face. Our security comes from knowing that if He cares for a sparrow, then certainly He cares for you and me.

Living With Reverence for God

So a fear of God that is terrifying is reserved only for those who do not know Him. They must face a judgment of their soul. As Christians facing God's total holiness we can still be frightened, but our fear is different.

We recognize Who has authority over us and Who we serve. We know that without Him and the blood of His Son we would not have life. Because of this we should never treat Him casually or thoughtlessly. He is worthy of all of our praise, honor, and glory.

We cannot imagine God as He really is and perhaps that is why we often don't show Him the reverence He deserves. In Deuteronomy 10:12 God asks us to fear Him, be obedient, love Him, and serve Him with all our heart and soul. As modern Christians we often focus on love and our feelings to the exclusion of everything else. How casual have you become in your obedience and service to God? When we worship have we lost our sense of awe and wonderment of God?

Let's show the world the proper fear of God so they will not have to experience the terror of final judgment. That is a fear none of us should ever want to feel. But that is not the fear believers know. Thankfully we worship a God who cares for us with tender mercies. When we are His, He calls us beloved sons and daughters.