It is both obvious and found in the Scriptures that the wicked do not fear God. But in lieu of whom God is and the consequences of rejecting God’s salvation in Christ, is this wise and more importantly are Christians partially to blame?
Let’s take a look at what the Bible teaches on this subject and I would like to offer six reasons a Christian should seriously fear God. First of all should anyone every be afraid of God? I would suppose the first objection would be that:
God has not given us a Spirit of Fear:
2 Tim 1:7 NKJV - For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. (a spirit of timidity NIV)
The context of this passage though is expressly speaking about the fear of men. Paul was trying to encourage his son in the faith to stand boldly for Christ, not speak to his relationship to God in this passage.
Prov 29:25 – Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe.
Jesus speaks about our fear of man versus our fear of God and says:
Luke 12:4-5 – "I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that can do no more. But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after the killing of the body, has power to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him."
Considering the consequence of what man can do versus what God will do to those who fail to receive His grace and salvation, Jesus tells us we should not fear men who can only kill us but we should fear the One who can throw us into hell.
Isa 8:13 – The Lord Almighty is the one you are to regard as holy, he is the one you are to fear, he is the one you are to dread.
The problem is that the Wicked Do Not Fear God as the Bible teaches.
Ps 36:1-4 NASU – Transgression speaks to the ungodly within his heart; there is no fear of God before his eyes. For it flatters him in his own eyes concerning the discovery of his iniquity and the hatred of it. The words of his mouth are wickedness and deceit; He has ceased to be wise and to do good. He plans wickedness upon his bed; He sets himself on a path that is not good; He does not despise evil.
Rom 3:18 – "There is no fear of God before their eyes."
The Greek word used in the NT for fear is the word: phobos it is from this word that we get the word phobia. The word means “to be put in fear; alarm or fright” and the KJV translates the word “be afraid, exceedingly, fear, terror.” This seems to me to be quite different than just revering or reverencing God.
Rev 15:4 – Who will not fear you, O Lord, and bring glory to your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship before you, for your righteous acts have been revealed.
Jer 5:22 – Should you not fear me?" declares the Lord. "Should you not tremble in my presence?
Ps 76:7 – You alone are to be feared. Who can stand before you when you are angry?
Ps 90:11 NLT – Who can comprehend the power of your anger? Your wrath is as awesome as the fear you deserve.
Did you notice that in these passages God actually deserves to be feared and expects it from those who will bring Him glory? It is true what the Bible teaches:
Ps 111:10 – The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow his precepts have good understanding. To him belongs eternal praise.
That leads me to my first reason as to why we should fear the Lord: SO WE WILL HATE SIN.
Prov 8:13 – To fear the Lord is to hate evil.
Job 28:28 NASU – "And to man He said, 'Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.'"
Prov 16:6 NKJV – In mercy and truth atonement is provided for iniquity; and by the fear of the Lord one departs from evil.
We are to be so afraid of God, who is holy, that we want to avoid sin at all costs because we understand what it does to us, to those around us, and to our relationship with God. This I believe is why Jesus taught:
Mark 9:43-48 – If your hand causes you to sin cut it off. It is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go into hell, where the fire never goes out. And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than to have two feet and be thrown into hell. And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell, where "'their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.'
Consider the following passage, what emotion is God trying to illicit from us? God want us to fear Him so much that He wants us not to deliberately keep on sinning by rejecting Christ as the only sacrifice for sin.
Heb 10:26-31 – If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God. Anyone who rejected the Law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. How much more severely do you think a man deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God under foot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified him, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know him who said, "It is mine to avenge; I will repay," and again, "The Lord will judge his people." It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
In Deut 5:22-29, Moses is recounting the story of when God spoke to the nation of Israel when He proclaimed His Law to them. In this passage He describes how the people were so overcome with fear that they actually feared death. As a result they asked Moses to hear God for them and “whatever the Lord our God tells you. (They said,) We will listen and obey.” What was God’s response? Moses tell the people not to fear me? No. God said, “Oh, that their hearts would be inclined to fear me and keep all my commands always, so that it might go well with them and their children forever!”
The second reason I believe that we should all fear God is SO THAT WE WILL COME TO CHRIST FOR FORGIVENESS AND SALVATION. In Acts 13:7-12, the proconsul, who is described as an intelligent man, sent for Barnabas and Saul because he wanted to hear the word of God. But Elymas the sorcerer opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul from the faith. Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said, "You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord? Now the hand of the Lord is against you. You are going to be blind, and for a time you will be unable to see the light of the sun." Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking someone to lead him by the hand. When the proconsul saw what had happened, he believed, for he was astonished/amazed at the teaching about the Lord.
When the proconsul saw the power and the results of that power against wickedness he believed. Remember Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:1-11)? “Great fear seized the whole church and all who heard.” I am sure after that no one else lied about their giving to the church. God has used fear to awaken men’s hearts time and time again.
Reason number three to fear God is SO WE WILL REMAIN FAITHFUL. In the letter to the Romans, Paul, through the Holy Spirit, warns believers not to be proud of their salvation but to fear if they don’t continue in faith because they too will be rejected as were the Jews.
Rom 11:20-22 NKJV – Do not be haughty, but fear. For if God did not spare the natural branches, He may not spare you either. Therefore consider the goodness and severity of God: on those who fell, severity; but toward you, goodness, if you continue in His goodness. Otherwise you also will be cut off.
We must also be faithful to preserving God’s word and be afraid not to add or take away from Scripture. The Bible warns:
Rev 22:18-19 – I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book. And if anyone takes words away from this book of prophecy, God will take away from him his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.
Along with this passage, Deuteronomy 4:2 and Proverbs 30:6 give similar warnings about adding to or taking away from God’s word. Considering the consequences, we would all do well to heed this warning. Furthermore this carries into the actual message that is being preached.
We must also be faithful to the message of the gospel. If we would turn and preach another gospel we will be eternally condemned! I wonder how many preachers take this warning seriously.
Gal 1:8-10 – But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let him be eternally condemned! As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned! Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ.
We must not be seeking to please men in regard to proclaiming the gospel and yet that is what many churches really are trying to do. It is like they are trying to convince God what His word says rather than God convincing them of the truth. Does God in His gospel demand obedience, or has that passed away with the Law?
Eph 5:3-12 – But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God's holy people. Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person — such a man is an idolater — has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God's wrath comes on those who are disobedient. Therefore do not be partners with them. For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) and find out what pleases the Lord. Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret.
Yes God demands obedience and anyone who tells you different is a deceiver. The Bible teaches that in the Lord we CAN produce the fruit of righteousness and we can overcome sin – sin no longer has dominion over us. Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil and those works are called sin. As children of God we are to emulate the characteristics of our heavenly Father. He is holy and as a result of Him living inside of us we should be holy. This requires effort that is based in our faith in Christ and His strength.
Heb 12:14-17 – Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many. See that no one is sexually immoral, or is godless like Esau, who for a single meal sold his inheritance rights as the oldest son. Afterward, as you know, when he wanted to inherit this blessing, he was rejected. He could bring about no change of mind, though he sought the blessing with tears.
If we do not learn how to receive the promised gift of righteousness now we will regret it later. Paul warns us to “see to it” that we do not miss the grace of God and as a result be rejected as Esau was. Understanding our sinful tendencies, our hearts that are prone to wander, knowing the consequences for our sin, and receiving Christ’s sacrificial death as an atonement for our sins brings me to the fourth reason to fear God which is SO THAT WE WILL LOVE HIM MUCH.
Luke 7:41-43 - "Two men owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he canceled the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?" Simon replied, "I suppose the one who had the bigger debt canceled." "You have judged correctly," Jesus said.
Luke 7:47 – Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven — for she loved much. But he who has been forgiven little loves little."
If we don’t fear God we will have the tendency to not take our sins seriously. We will not see ourselves as truly needing salvation and power over sin. The outcome will be that we will not be as thankful or love God very much. That is why we need to look at the Law and the punishments directed toward those who disobey that Law. We will find ourselves as wretched and our sin exceedingly sinful.
Rom 7:9-14 NKJV – I was alive once without the law, but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died. And the commandment, which was to bring life, I found to bring death. For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it killed me. Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good. Has then what is good become death to me? Certainly not! But sin, that it might appear sin, was producing death in me through what is good, so that sin through the commandment might become exceedingly sinful.
What was the reaction of men who saw or heard God? Did they not plead for God to speak no more to them as the Israelites in Deut 5? Did they not fall like dead men and need to be strengthened to stand in God’s presence? Did they not exclaim they were sinners as Peter and Isaiah did?
1 Cor 6:9-11 - Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.
How can those who understand the wretchedness of their sinful condition who have now come to Christ and have received His salvation not love Him? We love Him because He first loved us and sent Jesus to die for us while we were ungodly. If we don’t understand what God saved us from how can we expect the world to recognize their need? If we don’t fear God and the consequences for our sin, how can those in the world be convinced they need Christ? So the fifth reason is SO THAT OTHERS WILL FEAR.
Prov 13:19 NKJV – it is an abomination to fools to depart from evil.
Since it is an abomination for them to depart from evil they “think that it is strange” and insult you now because they are surprised that you no longer join them in the same excesses of wild living ( 1 Peter 4:4).
This is especially true of those who follow the corrupt desire of the sinful nature and despise authority. Bold and arrogant, these men are not afraid to slander celestial beings; yet even angels, although they are stronger and more powerful, do not bring slanderous accusations against such beings in the presence of the Lord. But these men blaspheme in matters they do not understand. They are like brute beasts, creatures of instinct, born only to be caught and destroyed, and like beasts they too will perish (2 Peter 2:10-12).
If we live lives that are a contradiction to what we say the world should not do will not the world blaspheme God because of our hypocrisy? Many unbelievers become emboldened to speak and act against God because we don’t fear Him. How do they know we don’t fear Him? Because we do the things we condemn in others. As a result
If you … "brag about your relationship to God; if you know his will and approve of what is superior because you are instructed by the law; if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light for those who are in the dark, an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of infants, because you have in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth— you, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? You who say that people should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? You who brag about the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law? As it is written: "God's name is blasphemed among the Gentiles (or unbelievers also) because of you" (Rom 2:17-24).
See? Our hypocrisy and inability to lead godly lives does not honor God. What it does do is give occasion to sinful men to blaspheme. We see it all the time after a spiritual leader falls. The world is quick to pick up on this and they blaspheme that worthy name by which we are called.
The book of Revelation was not given to unbelievers, rather it was given to the Church so that they being moved with fear and compassion would diligently seek the lost. This is my sixth reason for fearing God; SO WE WILL SHARE CHRIST.
2 Cor 5:10-11 NKJV - For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad. Knowing, therefore, the terror of the Lord, we persuade men.
This passage lets me know that if we truly understood the fear of the Lord it would motivate us to persuade men and women to Christ. It is true that not everyone will come to faith if we give good reason to fear God but our job is to fully relate the message of God’s word and this is most certainly part of it. Be afraid…Be very afraid of the consequences of rejecting God’s salvation in Christ.
I am aware a message like this is not very popular. I do also believe that God wants us to move beyond fear and be motivated by love (perfect love casts out fear), but we should always have a godly fear of Him in the back of our minds. After all, didn't the Serpent esentially tell Eve not to fear God when he told her, "You shall not surely die?" Look in the Bible for yourself and you will see that this message merely scratches the surface.
Father help each of us to truly fear the consequences of sin and let that fear so motivate us as to seek your strength to overcome sin in our lives. May we gain greater love for you by understanding more of what you have saved us from and let our understanding of why You should be feared motivate us to seek those who are lost so that they too will be saved. In Jesus name.
