The fear of the Lord-fear God (Revelation 14:6), God-fearing (various verses in Acts), save your fear for God (Matthew 10:28), fearless confidence (Acts 4:31, Philippians 1:12), reverential fear (Luke 1:65), have you no fear of God (Luke 23:40)?
"God is love...There is no room in love for fear. Well-formed love banishes fear. Since fear is crippling, a fearful life—fear of death, fear of judgment—is one not yet fully formed in love."
"God is love...There is no room in love for fear. Well-formed love banishes fear. Since fear is crippling, a fearful life—fear of death, fear of judgment—is one not yet fully formed in love."
Does the Bible contradict itself? Or is it a language/translation barrier that prevents me from fully understanding what it means to "fear God."
The fear of God can be a motive of obedience, whether that result in reward or punishment. The fear of God can be a guilty fear (remember Adam and Eve were "afraid" after sinning?) upon the conviction of sin. The instance in which it gets most confusing more commonly would be this reverential fear. Reverence is honor and respect that is felt and/or shown. It's extravagant. It's not the type of fear that we associate with apprehension or alarm, it's an entirely different, albeit intense, emotion.
I suppose I have to remember the context, I have to remember to read Scripture with the Gospel in mind - what does God want me to see in these verses in light of what Jesus did for me? Simply put tonight, the love God has for me and the sacrifice Christ made for me is worth my respect, my awe, and my obedience.
0 comments:
Post a Comment