The Fear of the Lord

Proverbs 1:7 (CSB)

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and discipline.

Last week, we looked at Deuteronomy 17:19 and saw how important it is to learn God’s Word so we can stay on His path and reach the destination He has for us—not just our eternal destination, but to become the people God wants us to become today. We saw that each king was instructed to study God’s law, “all the days of his life.” Why? So he may learn to fear the Lord, obey His instruction, and follow His commands.

With that sermon still fresh in my mind, I have been reading The Root of Righteousness, by theologian and pastor A.W. Tozer. In it, he writes, “No one can know the true grace of God who has not first known the fear of God.”

I agree with that, and I’ve written other sermons on why the fear of the Lord is the first step in conversion, but the fear of the Lord isn’t just the beginning of salvation, it’s essential for continuing in it. I feel compelled to revisit this topic because I believe the fear of the Lord is missing from much of modern Christianity. If we don’t understand how important the fear of the Lord is, though, it leaves us open to some dangerous theology.

But before we go further, I want to share how the Lord led me to this conclusion.

There is a verse in Romans I memorized a long time ago as, “It’s His kindness that leads us to repentance.” Like I’m sure most of us Christians have done, I think we all find verses that mean a lot to us, and so we hold on to them, but sometimes we do this without fully understanding what they mean. Over the decades of following the Lord, I’ve found that I have had to refine my understanding of certain verses. As I’ve studied God’s Word more closely, I’ve discovered that I’ve sometimes made assumptions—memorizing or interpreting verses in ways that weren’t entirely accurate.

Has that ever happened to you?

This is exactly what happened to me as I was reading Tozer’s book. In explaining how the fear of God must be present before someone can be converted, Tozer writes, “The love of God affects a carnal heart not at all; or if at all, then adversely, for the knowledge that God loves us may simply confirm us in our self-righteousness.”

That stopped me.

I began to wonder if this really lined up with Scripture. That familiar verse about God’s kindness leading us to repentance immediately came to mind. I thought: Isn’t it God’s kindness that leads us to repentance, not the fear of the Lord?

Well, the next morning, still groggy from sleep, that verse and Tozer’s words came back to me with force. In that moment, it hit me: Tozer was right, and my understanding of that verse was incomplete.

I truly believe the Holy Spirit was prompting me because then I went to Scripture and looked up this verse in context and, sure enough, reading it with fresh eyes, I saw how it all fits together.

The “verse” I had memorized incorrectly is Romans 2:4 (CSB), which actually says, “Or do you despise the riches of his kindness, restraint, and patience, not recognizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance?”

Maybe you’ve never misinterpreted this verse but bear with me as I explain it for anyone who’s ever been confused like I was. As I mentioned, I used to carry around a shortened version in my mind, “It’s His kindness that leads us to repentance,” thinking that it meant that God is always kind and so simply knowing about His kindness would lead people to repent. That sounds like decent theology at first glance, right?

But let me explain why that interpretation is actually incomplete—and even dangerous.

If we think of God’s kindness only in terms of unconditional acceptance, then what’s the incentive or motivation to repent? If you know someone is super kind and patient, do you have any fear of offending them? Does simply knowing that God loves us create any understanding of how He is a Holy God, and we are sinners who need to be redeemed? Tozer put it bluntly. He said, “the knowledge that God loves us may simply confirm us in our self-righteousness.” Do you see the danger he is warning us about?

Let’s read this verse about God’s kindness in context to fully understand it. Paul writes in Romans 2:1-8, “1 Therefore, every one of you who judges is without excuse. For when you judge another, you condemn yourself, since you, the judge, do the same things.

2 Now we know that God’s judgment on those who do such things is based on the truth. 

3 Do you think—anyone of you who judges those who do such things yet do the same—that you will escape God’s judgment? 

4 Or do you despise the riches of his kindness, restraint, and patience, not recognizing that God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance? 

5 Because of your hardened and unrepentant heart you are storing up wrath for yourself in the day of wrath, when God’s righteous judgment is revealed. 

6 He will repay each one according to his works:

7 eternal life to those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor, and immortality; 

8 but wrath and anger to those who are self-seeking and disobey the truth while obeying unrighteousness.”

What is Paul saying? He’s saying that God’s kindness is demonstrated in that He hasn’t lost patience and punished you immediately. God is being very kind when He does not need to be kind. He’s showing mercy by giving us time to repent. But don’t mistake His patience for permission to sin. He’s only being kind because He’s giving you time to change your ways. If you don’t change your ways and repent, then He’s going to judge you according to the judgement you deserve.

God’s kindness is not permission to stay in our sinful, unchanged ways. I’m afraid we’ve largely replaced the fear of the Lord with the permissive kindness of the Lord. That’s not Biblical. We only experience God’s kindness when we repent. Without repentance, without change on our part, we don’t experience the kindness of God—we experience judgment. It is God’s kindness that He offers us forgiveness in the first place.

In Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers, he says, “’Or do you think to take refuge in the goodness, the benevolence and long-suffering of God?’ True it is that He is good, and ‘willeth not the death of a sinner,’ but His goodness is not absolute and unconditional. Its object is not to interfere with the just punishment of sin, but to lead men to repent of their sins, and so to obtain remission.”

He also adds, “We may observe that the fallacy against which the Apostle is protesting in these verses is not yet extinct. The goodness of God—i.e., His disposition to promote the happiness of His creatures—is insisted upon as if it were unconditional, as if it were a disposition to promote their happiness simply and without any reference to what they were in themselves. We do not find that this is the case; but rather the constitution of nature, as well as revelation, tells us that happiness is annexed to certain acts and a certain frame of mind, and that it is withheld from all that is not consonant with this. The bliss of the Christian is reserved for the Christian, and is not showered promiscuously upon all men. Otherwise free-will would have no office, and righteous dealing no reward.”

Ellicott is saying that the blessings or ultimate joy of the Christian life and the joy of eternity with God are not given to everyone automatically. They are reserved for those who, by grace through faith, choose to follow Christ. If everyone got the same reward regardless of belief or action, then free-will would be pointless, righteous behavior or faithfulness would go unrewarded, and obeying God would be meaningless.

But it’s clear that God has given each of us free-will. I like what Meyer’s NT Commentary concludes about this verse: “Therefore no predestination to damnation can be supposed.”

I agree, for “God’s kindness is intended to lead you to repentance” means we have free-will to either take advantage of that kindness and repent, or not. And, as verse 6 states, “He will repay each one according to his works.” That also proves we have free-will to either do good works or not.

I think we can understand how we won’t repent and seek forgiveness if we don’t understand that we are sinners, so do you see how understanding what God’s kindness is or isn’t has everything to do with the fear of God?

Look at the full quote from Tozer. He says: “Until we have been gripped by that nameless terror which results when an unholy creature is suddenly confronted by that One who is the holiest of all, we are not likely to be much affected by the doctrine of love and grace as it is declared by the New Testament evangel. The love of God affects a carnal heart not at all; or if at all, then adversely, for the knowledge that God loves us may simply confirm us in our self-righteousness. The effort of liberal and borderline modernists to woo men to God by presenting the soft side of religion is an unqualified evil because it ignores the very reason for our alienation from God in the first place. Until a man has gotten into trouble with his heart he is not likely to get out of trouble with God. Cain and Abel are two solemn examples of this truth. Cain brought a present to One whom he assumed to be pleased with him. Abel brought a sacrifice to One who he knew could not accept him as he was. His trembling heart told him to find a place to hide. Cain’s heart did not tremble. Cain was well satisfied with himself, so he sought no hiding place. The fear of God would have served Cain well in that critical moment, for it would have changed the whole character of his offering and altered the entire course of his life for the better […] Whence then does the true fear of God arise? From the knowledge of our own sinfulness and a sense of the presence of God.”

This vital aspect of fearing the Lord can’t be overlooked. If we think that because God is unfailingly kind and that simply having knowledge of His kindness is what leads us to repentance, then we will incorrectly think that all we have to do is present that unfailing kindness of God to people and then they will get saved. But no one can get saved apart from repentance. God’s kindness is not an end in itself, it’s intended to bring about repentance.

Even Jesus’ ministry began with a call of repentance, not just acceptance of God’s love. Matthew 4:17 says, “From then on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, because the kingdom of heaven has come near.” And again, in Luke 13:3, Jesus says: “No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish as well.”

We also see, in Proverbs 1:7, that “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and discipline.” Without the fear of the Lord, people won’t understand the seriousness of sin or the need to turn from it. Repentance involves more than just a change of mind: it’s a total change of heart and direction, rooted in a proper understanding of who God is and how we’ve sinned against Him. We have to start at that place, or we risk being severely off track.

God’s kindness is meant to lead us somewhere, not just comfort us. His kindness is intended to lead us to repentance. Just knowing God loves us does not lead us to repentance. We cannot discount the fear of the Lord.

For without the fear of the Lord, we cannot come to faith in Jesus. Look what the blind man whom Jesus healed in John 9:31 says, “We know that God doesn’t listen to sinners, but if anyone is God-fearing and does his will, he listens to him.”

That word for sinners is understood to be someone who is willfully sinning. As humans, we are all sinners, so if it didn’t specifically mean willful sinner then God would not hear the prayers of any of us. If we are God-fearing, though, then that means we have come to a realization of our sin and have humbled ourselves before God—aware that God is holy and perfect, and we are not.

God won’t listen to someone who is not God-fearing, for that person has no understanding of who God is. And proof that someone is God-fearing or not is seen by our actions. If we are willfully sinning, then we are not God-fearing. The blind man understood that. Paul understood that, too, for look again at what he said in Romans 2:3, “Do you think—anyone of you who judges those who do such things yet do the same—that you will escape God’s judgment?” He’s saying: If you keep doing the sinful things you are doing, and even judging others who do the bad things you do, do you really think you’ll escape God’s judgment? Do you not have any fear of God?

The blind man and Paul understood that our actions reveal our true heart, because they knew what Scripture says. They must have known that the instruction God gave the kings is vital to our ability to follow God. We need to daily study God’s Word, “all the days of [our] life, so that [we] may learn to fear the Lord [our] God, to observe all the words of this instruction, and to do these statutes.”

We have to learn to fear the Lord our God, so that we are careful to do all the things He tells us to do. If we incorrectly think that His kindness will cover our willful sinning, we are mistaken. His kindness is intended to lead us to repentance. It is in repentance that we find forgiveness and cleansing from our sin.

In 2 Corinthians 7:1, we see how this works. It says, “So then, dear friends, since we have these promises, let us cleanse ourselves from every impurity of the flesh and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God.”

Paul is explaining that we have to participate in our holiness. We must cleanse ourselves. This doesn’t contradict the fact that it is through Jesus’ blood on the cross that we are cleansed from our sin. Paul is explaining that once we have the promises of salvation, then we need to daily choose to follow God by cleansing ourselves from sin, by choosing not to give in to the desires of our flesh. We need to resist temptations and avoid evil, “bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God.”

MacLaren, in his commentary on this verse, does a great job of explaining how this works. He says, “Christians are cleansed to begin with, but they have still daily to cleanse themselves… [but no Christian] will grow up ‘into the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ’ unless, by patient and persistent effort, he is ever pressing on to ‘the things that are before’ and daily striving to draw nearer to the prize of his high calling. We are cleansed, but we have still to cleanse ourselves.”

If we do not have any fear of God, then why would we bother to strive for holiness? Why would we bother to cleanse ourselves from every impurity of the flesh and spirit? But, if we are God-fearing, then we will make this the goal of our lives.

Let us not be deceived by modern Christianity. We must daily be in God’s Word, so we can resist the lies of this world. Galatians 6:7-8 says, “Don’t be deceived: God is not mocked. For whatever a person sows he will also reap, because the one who sows to his flesh will reap destruction from the flesh, but the one who sows to the Spirit will reap eternal life from the Spirit.”

A healthy fear of the Lord will cause us to take God’s Word seriously.

Only once we understand this, then can we declare to people the whole plan of God, as Paul stated in Acts 20:27 when he said, “I did not avoid declaring to you the whole plan of God.” We must not declare just partial truth. It’s true that God is kind and loving, but we should not declare only that truth. We must also declare that we are sinners who need to repent because the Christian life is a life of constant self-purifying. We should always declare the whole truth so people can come to saving faith.

It’s God's kindness that He offers us forgiveness, but we must repent. We won’t repent if we don’t think we need to change. Do you see why those instructions to kings in Deuteronomy were so important? The kings needed to be studying God’s word each day, so they could learn to fear God, so they would be careful to follow of all His commands.

It is no different for us today. We must read God’s Word each day. As we read the Bible, we will see that God is holy and just. He is not to be mocked or trifled with. He is the God of the Universe, the Creator of the World, and yet out of His great love for us, He has made a way for us to become His children. Out of His great kindness, He has made a way for us to find forgiveness from our sin. If we have received forgiveness and cleansing from sin through faith in His son Jesus, then He will give us the ability through His Holy Spirit to follow Him. We follow Him by striving each day to cleanse ourselves from all sin and walk in purity with Him. When we fail, He is faithful to forgive us and help us start again.

Let us end by reading Romans 2:4-8 again, but this time in the Easy-to-Read Version translation: “God has been kind to you. He has been very patient, waiting for you to change. But you think nothing of his kindness. Maybe you don’t understand that God is kind to you so that you will decide to change your lives. But you are so stubborn! You refuse to change. So you are making your own punishment greater and greater. You will be punished on the day when God will show his anger. On that day everyone will see how right God is to judge people. He will reward or punish everyone for what they have done. Some people live for God’s glory, for honor, and for life that cannot be destroyed. They live for those things by always continuing to do good. God will give eternal life to them. But others are selfish and refuse to follow truth. They follow evil. God will show his anger and punish them.”

Let us not be like those people. Let us cleanse ourselves and purify ourselves from every evil. Let us daily read God’s Word so we can see clearly what God’s standard is for living. Let us not take God’s kindness for granted, but as God-fearing people, let us obey His Word.

Pray: Heavenly Father, we thank You for Your great kindness toward us when we have not deserved it. Thank You for loving us so much that You sent Jesus to die on the cross for our sins, making a way for us to become Your children. Help us to read Your Word each day so we can learn more and more about You and Your plan for us. Help us by the power of Your Holy Spirit to strive each day to become more like You. Help us not to be stubborn, but to grow and change. We ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen.