Sermon Central
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The Fear Of The Lord
Contributed by William Akehurst on Jun 1, 2008 (message contributor)
Summary: According to 1 Chronicles 28:9, We all have a choice to make in this life…to DO IT or to DO IT NOT. And to understand what IT is all about…is the beginning of wisdom. Ps 111:10
THE FEAR OF THE LORD
By William Akehurst, HSWC
According to 1 Chronicles 28:9, We all have a choice to make in this life...to DO IT or to DO IT NOT. And to understand what IT is all about...is the beginning of wisdom. Ps 111:10
Key Verses: Psalm 111:10 and 25:4-5
Other Scriptures used:
Deuteronomy 6:5, 1 Chronicles 28:9, 2 Chronicles 12:14, Jeremiah 29:13
Psalm 25:4-5, 111:10, 19:9, 128:1, 112:1,7-8
10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom;
A good understanding have all those who do His commandments.
His praise endures forever.
Psalm 19:9 The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever;
Psalm 128:1 Blessed is every one who fears the LORD, Who walks in His ways.
What is this fear of the LORD?
Reverential Trust…including hatred of evil
Daniel Webster defines Fear and Reverence as this...
Respectful, worthy of deep respect or awe
To be respectful is feeling or expressing profound respect or aw
To esteem, a feeling or attitude of admiration and deference toward somebody or something
To not go against, or violate something. To pay due attention to and refrain from violating something
Awe...
Mixture of wonder and dread
a feeling of amazement and respect mixed with fear that is often coupled with a feeling of personal insignificance or powerlessness
Ability to inspire dread or reverence
To be extremely frightened…
We are to FEAR the LORD. That is to understand who HE is. To know HE holds the power of life and death. We are nothing in comparison to HIM.
In our country, We do not know what it is like to be under a leader as some other countries are. We see in Egypt in biblical times, that the Pharaoh thought of himself as the morning star, and that he was god himself. And the people feared him for their lives.
You did what you were told, or you died. It was that simple. Obedience…or punishment, which typically was death.
Could you imagine that type of leadership from a parent. “Eat your oatmeal or die”
But think about it. It could be that simple.
Pharaoh killed of the children of Israel because he thought there was a threat to his kingdom. He did what he wanted and no one could contest otherwise, or it would be their death.
I’m not comparing the Almighty with a simple ruler of Egypt. But we do not live in a society where we are subject to our leader, who dictates our every move. We do not know what it is like to be subjected to a ruler who tells us what to do.
Because we are blessed as a nation. And because of this blessing, we must understand and not lose sight of where this blessing was founded.
Our nation was founded “Under God” “In God We Trust”
We have so much…that we take what we have, for granted. We see material things, but it’s the things we have when the material things are gone that are what really matter.
We have the ONE TRUE GOD. To whom we owe our everything. He loves us, and we are to love HIM.
And to love HIM, is to SERVE HIM.
And in order to Serve HIM, we must know what he wants. He must show us HIS ways, and we must learn and do them.
Psalm 128:1 Blessed is every one who fears the LORD, Who walks in His ways.
Psalm 112:1 Praise the LORD! Blessed is the man who fears the LORD, Who delights greatly in His commandments.
When we have this FEAR of the LORD. This reverence and awe, we are blessed.
When we have this FEAR of the LORD, and delight in obeying HIM, walking in his ways, WE ARE BLESSED.
So how is it that we are able to know how to walk in His ways? We need to put our trust in Him and follow his commands. But where do we begin?
Start by Asking...
4 Show me Your ways, O LORD;
Teach me Your paths.
5 Lead me in Your truth and teach me,
For You are the God of my salvation;
On You I wait all the day.
The NIV says it this way...
Psalm 25:4-5 NIV
4 Show me your ways, O LORD, teach me your paths;
5 guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long.
My HOPE is in you ALL DAY LONG.
Seeking HIM every day, and all the day long. Preparing our hearts to serve HIM and to do HIS will. Seeking HIM.
Why do we need to seek HIM and prepare our hearts to serve HIM?
If we do not, then we are doomed to destruction
