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Fear of the Lord #3

August 29, 2023 / admin / 0 Comments

See the opening two posts here and here.

There are three movements within the fear of the Lord. The first of these is: The Fear of the Lord comes before wisdom.

Mark that again: if you want wisdom from God you’re going to have to travel into and through the fear of the Lord. You will never know the mind of God, find the will of God, and walk the path of God without the fear of the Lord.

“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge” (Proverbs 1:7a). “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom” (9:10a). As “the beginning of” both knowledge and wisdom, the fear of the Lord has priority over both. The fear of the Lord comes before wisdom from God arrives.

Consider what is meant by “the beginning of.” The fear of the Lord is not simply the first step in a long journey. Necessary and essential but, once taken, soon left behind for all the other strides to come. No, the fear of the Lord is more fundamental than that. It points to the chief thing, the principle thing, the most fundamental element upon which all things to come are built.

I remember hearing Dr. Bruce Waltke say that the fear of the Lord is to wisdom and knowledge what the first rung is to the whole structure of a ladder. If you would ascend, you will have to make use of that first rung. But every other upward step depends on the ongoing reality and foundation of that first rung! Without it you’ll be making a sudden and unwanted descent.

Similarly, it has been said that the fear of the Lord is to wisdom and knowledge what the ABC’s are to the English language. Every word is formed from some combination of the letters of the alphabet. Without the alphabet there is no English language, there is no communication, and there can be no depth of relationship.

The fear of the Lord is to wisdom and knowledge what the notes of the musical scale are to a symphony. Without them there is no music.

At the head of the path leading to everything you want out of life is the fear of the Lord. There is no way around it. No fear of the Lord, no wisdom. You must embrace it and travel through it if you will have the wisdom that enables life to be all God desires it to be.

Fear of the Lord #2

August 28, 2023 / admin / 3 Comments

See the opening post in this series here.

Yes, the fear of the Lord is a key, a fountain, and a passageway. Notice too that the fear of the Lord is the front cover, back cover, and spine of God’s book of wisdom, Proverbs.

It is the front cover: “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction” (Proverbs 1:7).

It is the back cover: “Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised” (31:30).

And as a book opens on the hinge of its spine, so the first and the second halves of Proverbs turn on Proverbs 9:10: “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.”

The first mention of fear in the Bible is found when Adam and Eve, due to their sin-shame, have hidden from God. When questioned about this new wrinkle in their relationship to God, Adam answered, “I heard the sound of you in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked, and I hid myself” (Genesis 3:10).

But I suggest to you that fear existed before that moment. Adam was experiencing a newly distorted, twisted, ugly, life-draining fear. But prior to their grab for independence fear had been a beautiful, healthy, loving, life-giving reality. You were created for that fear. Sin has made fear destructive. God’s original intent for fear was that it be the key to everything in our relationship to Him, an unceasing fountain issuing forth in life, the passageway through which we entered into the glories of relationship to Him.

What we need is not an eradication of fear, but a resurrection of fear as it first was . . . and by God’s mercies, ever will be throughout eternity.

It is profoundly simple: The fear of the Lord is the key to everything about life.

Fear of the Lord #1

August 27, 2023 / admin / 5 Comments

Today I set before you a key, a fountain, and a passageway. These are not three separate items. They are one item which at one and the same time is a key, a fountain, and a passageway.First, a key. Isaiah dangles before us a tantalizing possibility: God “will be the sure foundation for your times, a rich store of salvation and wisdom and knowledge.” Sounds inviting. How do I get in on this kind of relationship to God? The prophet continues: “the fear of the LORD is the key to this treasure” (Isaiah 33:6, NIV). Can you see the treasure chest laden with riches? In your hand is the key to unlock it and make it yours.

Second, a fountain. “The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life” says Solomon (Proverbs 14:27a). Bubbling unceasingly, crystal, cold, clear water! The “water of life” (Rev. 21:6; 22:1, 17)! Stop! On your knees! Drink!

Finally, a passageway. “The fear of the LORD leads to life” (Proverbs 19:23a). Like the secret door that opens to a world of wonder previously unknown and unimaginable, the fear of the Lord opens to possibilities you’ve never yet considered. Put your hand upon the door. Swing it open. Step forward. Step through.

Hearts at Rest in the God of Rest

July 24, 2023 / admin / 0 Comments

Too often our hearts deceive us into thinking …

The Lord is my slave-driver, He will never be satisfied.

He compels me to try harder.

He makes me labor more furiously;

He leads me into noisy activity.

He implores me to ignore the emptiness within and just keep going;

He prods me in the paths of perfectionism for His reputation’s sake.

As I walk through valley of the shadow of burnout, I fear a breakdown;

But no one can see the real me;

Your expectations and your people goad me on.

You prepare a list of expectations before me in the presence of my peers;

You provoke me on and on,

My cup is emptier than ever.

Surely serenity and rest will elude me all the days of my life,

and I will dwell in the land of the stressed forever.

How marvelous that by God’s grace, through Jesus, the Good Shepherd, our hearts may say …

The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.

He makes me lie down in green pastures.

He leads me beside still waters.

He restores my soul.

He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me;

your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;

you anoint my head with oil;

my cup overflows.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life,

and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

The Promise-led Life

June 21, 2023 / admin / 0 Comments

“And now, O LORD, you are God, and you have promised this good thing to your servant.” (1 Chron. 17:26)

We happen upon David as he prays (vv.16-27) in response to God’s gracious initiative to him (vv.1-15). The Lord had promised to build David a “house” (i.e., a dynasty). In so doing, God promised to put one of David’s sons on his throne and that son would be the one to build Him a “house” (i.e., a temple). We can see, thus, the keyword throughout this chapter is “house.” In response to this divine grace and promise David responded in humble, overwhelmed faith.

Though this is a unique moment in God’s saving plan, David’s response to the Lord illustrates what should be our response to God in His gracious dealings with us through Jesus. He has told us that in Jesus “all the promises of God find their Yes” (2 Cor. 1:20). We too, then, like David, should sit before the Lord (1 Chron. 17:16) amazed by His grace, an open Bible before us, our finger on the promise of God, praying, “O LORD, you are God, and you have promised this good thing to your servant.”

In this way, by faith, through Christ we claim the gracious promises of God made to us.

Consider more closely David’s response that we might be the more careful to make it our own.

We begin by approaching the “LORD.” The English translation uses all capitals to signal that the original Hebrew text has here God’s personal name, Yahweh. This name was revealed to Moses at the burning bush as he wondered at God’s promise to use him to bring His people out of slavery (Exodus 3:14). It is related to the Hebrew verb “be.” He is the great “I AM.” Wherever we are and whatever we face, God is “I AM.” Not “I was.” Not just “I will be.” “I AM” in this moment with you everything I have ever been or will be. It signals that God is eternal, yes. He is without beginning or end. But it further sets God before us as self-existing, without dependence upon anything beyond Himself. Before anything else was, God was, undiminished and utterly complete. If all else were suddenly vaporized, God would still exist without compromise or need, for His being and existence arise from within Himself and are dependent upon nothing. He comes to us and out of nothing in us but everything within Him, He makes and keeps a covenant of grace with us through His Son. One expression of that grace is the promise upon which you have placed your finger today.

But He is also here designed “God.” The Hebrew here is Elohim. It emphasizes His sovereignty and power. Nothing can oppose what He wills. Nothing can block Him in fulfilling His promises. What God in His grace wills cannot but come to pass!

So with Bible open, your heart bowed before this magnificent God and LORD, your finger on one of His gracious promises in the Bible, you pray: “you have promised this good thing to your servant.” This kind of faith is not presumptuous. It merely follows God’s lead. It is not brash. It honors the God who spoke the promise with every intention of fulfilling it in His children’s lives.

But note the way you designated yourself: “your servant.” Take a moment and reestablish that fact before the Lord in prayer. Take that place at the foot of His throne. Humble yourself. Wait until you can do so authentically, then tell Him: “I am bowed at your feet, poised to do your will. Whatever, wherever, with whomever, for however long is required. I am ready to do your will, O Lord, but as I am, I have my finger on this, your promise, to me. I hold it up before you. As I rise and go to do your will only to return to bow again at your feet, I do so with the bold expectation that you will uphold your promise, make it my experience, and thus prove your faithfulness.”

These are not magic words. But this is the path to laying hold of and living in the fulfillment of God’s promises to us in the Bible.

Lord, make this promise-led, promise-fed, promise-tread path be our perpetual experience with you in this world. Amen.

Light to Live By