The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom,
and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.
–Proverbs 9:10
You don’t hear the phrase “The fear of the LORD” much anymore, do you? I think that’s primarily because we’re so casual about God today. And that attitude has led to a half-hearted approach to the Holy One. But the Scriptures are clear that “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom.”
Now, this kind of fear isn’t one that makes us quake and shake like the boogeyman does. But it’s a fear that ought to give us a wholesome, healthy respect for the almighty God. We should stand in awe at a God who is so holy that he must judge and punish sin!
I’m so grateful that God loved the world so much that he gave his only begotten Son. And when Jesus died on the cross, the judgment that we deserved fell upon him and he accepted our wrath and our punishment.
But let me tell you something, there also is a promise day of judgment coming. And on that day when God’s justice is carried out, it will make the flood in Noah’s day look like a drop in the bucket. To have a healthy fear of the LORD means we are just as much in awe of that justice as we are his grace!
So when it comes to God’s justice, have a healthy reverence for his awesome power because that’s the beginning of wisdom!
TO HAVE A HEALTHY FEAR OF THE LORD, WORSHIP HIM JUST AS MUCH FOR HIS JUSTICE AS YOU DO HIS GRACE BECAUSE THAT’S THE BEGINNING OF WISDOM.
