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

We live in a Christian culture that has begun to stress grace to such a degree that we are afraid to talk about the fear of the Lord. But I want you to know, beloved, that the grace of God is not opposed to the fear of the Lord. In fact to fear the Lord is actually a gift of God’s grace because the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. This is why the psalmist said, “Let all the earth fear the Lord….Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him” (Ps. 33:8, 18).

In the Book of Romans, which is the most precise theological treatise in the entire New Testament, the apostle Paul shows humankind that we are guilty before God and in danger of eternal death. It is only after Paul points out that we have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God that he presents the solution: Yeshua (Rom. 3:23–24). But today we don’t want to talk about people being guilty in their sin. We don’t want to talk about hell, and we often don’t want to talk about the fear of the Lord. We just want to talk about how much God loves everyone and all the good things He wants to do for us.

It is 100 percent true that God loves us and desires to give good gifts to His children. But we need to be biblical in our approach. Jesus said that unless we repent, we will perish (Luke 13:5). Perhaps this is why Psalm 19:9 says, “The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever.”

So today I want to remind you that the fear of the Lord is a beautiful thing. God does not want us to be afraid of Him. But a healthy fear of the Lord is God’s gift to you because, as Proverbs 19:23 says, it keeps you walking down the straight path that leads to life, and “the secret of the Lord is for those who fear Him” (Ps. 25:14).

Father God, You are worthy of all honor. Awaken in my heart a healthy fear of You. Your Word says, “How blessed is everyone who fears the Lord” (Ps. 128:1). Help me to fully embrace this gift that will keep me on the path that leads to life.

Rabbi Kirt A. Schneider, Rivers of Revelation (Lake Mary, FL: Charisma House, 2020), Used by permission.