Godly fear is an important characteristic to have.  It does not mean that a person is terrified of God, it simply means to be filled with reverence for God.  The person who fears God understands the greatest, power, and strength of God.  Sadly, this world lacks godly fear.  Most people today have the Pharaoh mentality that says, “Who is the Lord that I should obey His voice…?   Many just are not interested in obeying God because they do not fear Him.

Do you fear the Lord?  Most reading a blog like this would immediately answer yes.  However, godly fear bears a specific kind of fruit.  The wise man tells us that to fear the Lord is hatred of evil. This means that if we really fear God we will abstain from evil.  The person who is in awe of God, will not live an ungodly life that he knows will disappoint God and make Him mad.  Those who fear God are in the habit of pleasing Him by abstaining from evil and keeping His commandments.  In fact, fearing God and obeying God are inseparable.  This is why Moses said, “That you may fear the LORD your God, you and your son and your son’s son, by keeping all his statutes and his commandments…” (Deuteronomy 6:2).  Notice that they were to demonstrate their fear of God by keeping all His commandments.  The word all should not be overlooked.  The one who fears God does not pick and choose which commandments he is going to keep.  He strives to keep all of them because of the reverence he has for the One who gave the commandment.  Disobeying God, in any way, is a sign of disrespect; but, when one who claims to know God, lives in sin, disobeying God on an ongoing basis, one has to question whether that person really believes in God at all.  How could a person who truly believes that God is omnipotent, that He sees everything that we do, and even knows what we are thinking at all times, willfully refuse to do what God tells him to do?  Anyone who disobeys God regularly just does not fear him, and the person who does not fear God must not really know Him and what He is capable of doing to the disobedient.   No wonder Solomon said, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge…” (Proverbs 1:7).

While God deserves our reverence, it is in our own best interest to fear Him because godly fear is profitable.  Solomon tells us that “The fear of the Lord prolongs life…” (Proverbs 10:27).  Why?  Because the godly living produced by fearing God is profitable.  Paul said, “For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come” (1 Timothy 4:8).  When you live by the word of God and your life is shaped by a profound reverence for God, you can avoid many dangers that can shorten your life.  Sin is not only dangerous to the soul, it can often be bad for the body.  Think of the problems caused by smoking, drinking, or doing drugs.  The one who fears the Lord does not have to worry about the consequences of those things.  Think about the terrible disease called AIDS.  For the most part, that is a disease produced by sin.  So far as I know, the only way to get AIDS is by committing fornication or by doing drugs with a dirty needle.  Outside of receiving tainted blood by way of a transfusion (e.g. Arthur Ash), those are the only ways to receive the HIV virus that leads to AIDS.  Thus, those who fear the Lord and keep His commandments, virtually have no, or very little, chance of dying of AIDS.  Furthermore, those who fear the Lord, do not find themselves in dangerous environments, late at night, where bad things can happen.  I think you get the point.  Living a morally upright life, produced by godly fear, is beneficial to both body and soul.    

As you wind down for the night, think about these things.