The word “beginning” means “the first.” If you want godly wisdom, you must put God’s fear first. The fear of the Lord is simply a holy awe of God; it is a reverence for who He is. Without this fear, you cannot attain godly wisdom, for it is the beginning of such wisdom.
This verse here tells us that the fear of God leads to wisdom; the Hebrew word is chokhma, which means “practical wisdom.” This is a wisdom you can use and serve the Lord with.
Proverbs 1:7, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.”
The fear of God leads to knowledge, the Hebrew word da’at meaning “mental knowledge.” This is a godly mental knowledge. Do you want to know God’s Word, and be able to defend your faith? It starts with the fear of the Lord.
Job 28:28, “And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.”
The fear of the Lord IS wisdom! Without a holy awe of God, we are nothing but fools! Fools who go to church and even serve God, but fools nonetheless; apart from the fear of God, we will never attain the wisdom of God.
TWO POWERFUL DETERRENTS IN LIFE: FEAR AND LOVE
A young child is not mature enough to obey out of love. Instead, he will obey out of fear. If he disobeys, he knows he will be punished. Over time, he will grow and come to obey his parents out of love; he does not want to disappoint them.
We obey the laws of the land out of fear; we fear the consequences of speeding, so we try to drive the speed limit. Some show a lack of fear of law by going above the law and committing illegal acts. We do not keep laws because we love the state or the government, but because we fear the consequences.
Exodus 14:31, “And Israel saw that great work which the LORD did upon the Egyptians: and the people feared the LORD, and believed the LORD, and his servant Moses.”
God used fear to keep the Children of Israel on the right track; this fear led to them believing the Lord also. They were not at a point yet to obey God out of love. In Deuteronomy 28, God gives a list of blessings and curses which would come to pass on the nation if they either obeyed Him or disobeyed Him. God wanted the fear of those curses to be instilled in their hearts so they would not depart from His ways.
John 14:15, “If ye love me, keep my commandments.”
Jesus took it a step further. Jesus taught us to fear the Lord, but He stressed love as well. In fact, Jesus told us that God sent Him because God loves the whole world (John 3:16). Love should be a motivating factor for us to keep God’s commandments, to walk in His ways.
Illustration: a husband/wife relationship must be maintained by love, not fear
So which one should be your motivating factor for obeying God, fear or love? The answer is both. We must have a holy awe for who God is, and at the same time, a deep passionate love for Him.
Illustration: when I got saved, I feared hell. Now I’m in a loving relationship with God. Fear and Love can work together.
THREE BARRIERS TO PUTTING GOD'S FEAR FIRST
1. Disobedience is a Barrier to Putting God’s Fear First
Ex: Cain (Gen. 4:3-8)
Cain put his own ways and ideas before the fear of God.
Jude 11, “Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Core.”
All of these men were disobedient to God because they did not have a fear of God; they did not have a holy awe for the Lord. Cain put his fruit first; Balaam put his greed first; Korah put his jealousy first. These three men all suffered consequences from God because they did not put His fear first.
Circumstances: Cain was the firstborn of Adam and Eve. He disobeyed God out of jealousy and pride. He thought his way was good enough. He was not submissive.
Results: He murdered Abel and became a vagabond. The disobedient Christian becomes a spiritual vagabond; he lives an aimless life of wandering.
2. Carnality is a Barrier to Putting God’s Fear First
Ex: Esau (Gen. 25:29-34)
Esau put his desires before the fear of God.
Hebrews 12:16, “Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright.”
Here we see two words used to describe Esau: fornicator (he gave into the sexual desires of his flesh) and profane (ungodly). Esau was driven by his flesh.
Circumstances: Esau was the eldest son of Isaac and Rebekah. He had the birthright of a spiritually wealthy inheritance, yet he sold that possession for a bowl of stew.
Results: Esau proved that he had no desire for the things of God. After Jacob tricks his father into getting the blessing, Esau hates his brother. Later he makes up with him and he goes on to live a prosperous life, but one that is devoid of God. The fleshly Christian may live a physically prosperous life, but his spiritual life is barren.
3. Irreverence is a Barrier to Putting God’s Fear First
Ex: Nadab and Abihu (Lev. 10:1-2)
Nadab and Abihu put presumption before the fear of God.
Circumstances: These men were in the ministry of the priesthood. They were to take this ministry seriously, being the sons of Aaron.
Results: They presumed upon their office and offered strange fire, and were killed instantly by God. The Christian who is in the ministry must especially have a fear of God; without it, presumption can quickly happen, and the consequences can be devastating.
THE WORLD DOES NOT FEAR GOD
Read Romans 3:10-18. Because there is no fear of God before their eyes, they feel no remorse for the sins in the preceding verses. They flippantly sin because there is a lack of fear. Cain, Esau, Nadab, and Abihu fit into this category; they were worldly, fleshly, irreverent sinners who should have known better. They had no fear or love for God.
IS IT POSSIBLE FOR A CHRISTIAN TO NOT FEAR THE LORD?
Judges 21:25, “In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes.”
This verse is describing God’s people! They did what seemed right to them; in other words, they had no fear of God. This was after Moses warned them about walking in the ways of the Lord and the consequences for their disobedience. You can sit here and listen to this message, and yet go out and live your life doing that which seems right in your own eyes.
The worldly Christian has no fear of God.
The fleshly Christian has no fear of God.
The backslidden Christian has no fear of God.
You fear the laws, but you don’t fear God; you fear the police, but you don’t fear God; you fear the government, but you don’t fear God; you fear your boss, but you don’t fear God!
Matthew 10:28, “And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.”
HOW IMPORTANT IS THE FEAR OF THE LORD?
Ecclesiastes 12:13-14, “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man. For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.”
Conclusion
Fear and love work hand in hand. If you tell me that you love God, but you live your life without the fear of God, no holy awe for who He is, I have to question that love. If you truly love God, you will keep His commandments. A life of disobedience, carnality, and irreverence proves that you do not fear God; most likely you do not love Him either. Fear leads to love. A child does not love his parents before he fears them; that fear will eventually turn into respect and love because of their love for him. You have one main duty for this life: fear God and keep His commandments.
