Wise Words: Fearing God

May 4, 2014

Wise Words

Fearing God

Proverbs 9:10

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Introduction

A story made the news in January of this year.

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• A call was received by a 911 dispatcher.
• The voice on the other end was that of a small boy.
• When asked what the problem was the little boy said “I need help with math.”
• The dispatcher is trying to get info out of the boy but all he wants is help with his homework.
• His mom can be heard entering the room.
• She asks who he’s talking to, needless to say she’s not happy when he says the police.

Why did this boy call 911?

• Because they could help...they could be trusted...he didn’t fear them!

Let’s change the facts a little bit.

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• Your driving 55 mph in a 65 zone...hey, everyone else is!
• You crest the top of a hill and see a police car...what do you do?
• Why do you slow down?
• Is it because they are there to help?
• Not likely, it because the car (and officer) represents judgement and you’re in the wrong.

The Bible is full of wisdom...wise words that we can use in our lives.

• Nuggets of wisdom that are beneficial to the Christian.
• The first piece of wisdom is a perfect foundation to build on...fearing God!
• Specifically, we will see how fearing God is a wise thing to do!

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Text

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.”  Proverbs 9:10

The Bible says that some fear is a good thing.

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• “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.” - Proverbs 1:7
• “fear of the Lord” - this phrase appears about 18 times in the book of Proverbs.
• The writer of the book of Proverbs believes that fear is an important trait for wisdom.

If you look at all 18 instances in which this phrase is used you learn something important.

• We find that a healthy fear of God can have some important benefits.
• It’s a couple of these benefits I want us to study this morning.

Lesson

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What are some of the benefits of “fearing God”?

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Helps me to avoid evil

“The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil. Pride and arrogance and the way of evil and perverted speech I hate.” - Proverbs 8:13

• IF I fear God...I will avoid evil.
• In fact, this verse says that to fear the Lord/God is to hate evil!
• One could go so far as to say that if I don’t fear God then I will not hate evil.

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EX. - Good God fearing parents, want nothing but the best for their kids.

• Yet, I heard of such parents that when prom time came around they got hotel rooms for their kids to stay for the night.
• These parents didn’t fear God...in fact, they don’t even care about God.
• They don’t fear or even hate evil!
• Proverbs 8:13 - when you don’t fear God, you embrace evil!

True “God fearing” people will/should void evil like the plague!

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Helps me live a long life

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“The fear of the Lord prolongs life, but the years of the wicked will be short.” - Proverbs 10:27

• If I fear the Lord/God, how can my life be prolonged?

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EX. - A wall socket pumps out electricity.

• It can power things that make our lives happy (TV, microwaves, cell phones, etc.)
• At a hospital it can power machines that will sustain and save lives.
• What if I stuck a knife in the outlet?
• So it’s fair to say that the outlet can bring life and death.

I do not have to experience the pain of electrocution to be in fear of it!

• Likewise, the same can be said about the sin that hurts people’s lives!

Also, a father wouldn’t watch his son sick a knife in a electric outlet!

• God is like that father...he is not a mean old man!

“It is for discipline that you have to endure. God is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? If you are left without discipline, in which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons.” - Heb. 12:7-8

What does Proverbs tell us?

• When you fear God the right way it is healthy!

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• Healthy fear leads to repentance...repentance leads to eternal life (i.e. a long life)
• HEALTHY FEAR - drives people to God.
• UNHEALTHY FEAR - drives people away from God (ex. think Adam and Eve)

“For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death.” 2 Cor. 7:10

Action Step

In this world we will end up fearing something.

• This is unavoidable!

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• We do have a choice of what we will fear.
• Will you fear GOD or MAN?

EX. - Recently, Jayson Collins “came out” as the first openly gay NBA player.

• Everyone from the President on down called him “brave.”
• One ESPN reporter, Chris Broussard, said the opposite, “NO, that’s not right!”
• "If you're openly living in unrepentant sin...I believe that's walking in open rebellion to God."

“So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.” - Matthew 10:32-33

• When we fear God there is no need to fear anything else!

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“The fear of the Lord leads to life, and whoever has it rests satisfied; he will not be visited by harm.” - Proverbs 19:23

PRAYER

Conclusion

If we fear God the way that we should, we’ll know that He’s bigger than anything else in this world!

• He is big enough that, in life’s storms, we will know that we are safe with Him.

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What do you fear?

• Do you fear God, or do you fear the opinions of others?
• There are many that put off becoming a Christian because they fear what their friends would say.
• They refuse to become a Christian and be baptized because of what their family may do.
• If you fear God this morning, realize that He love you.
• If you choose Him, He’ll save you from the storms of life.
• He’ll hold you close to His side...because He’ll make you His child.