Living in Fear of the Lord

I remember back in the dark ages of fourth grade a time when I got paddled in school. It was the wooden one, with holes drilled in it so that the air current would not deter the force of the swing. Three whacks from our principle, Mr. Wright, at Lincoln Elementary School in Robinson. Ouch.

What did I do wrong? Coming in from recess one snowy afternoon, a couple of classmates and I were stomping our boots down the hallway, making noise when we should have been quiet. Three whacks.

To this day I quietly brush the snow from my boots and walk quietly down every hallway. The fear of being sent to the principle’s office and having to bend over and take such punishment was enough to keep me out of trouble (mostly) throughout school. It was a healthy fear, knowing that Mr. Wright didn’t bear the paddle for nothing.

There used to be a time when most students lived in a healthy fear of their teachers and principles. Children lived in a healthy fear of their parents and elders. Citizens lived in a healthy fear of the law. And Christians lived in a healthy fear of the Lord. What’s happened to that?

I’m not sure that we know what it is to live in the fear of the Lord. For followers of Christ Jesus, living in fear of the Lord is living in reverence and awe of God. It is knowing that God is the all-powerful, almighty, righteous, holy and just Judge to whom we must give account of ourselves as we stand one day before the judgment seat of God (Rom. 14:10-12). To fear the Lord is to hate evil (Pr. 8:13). It is understanding that every action I take, every word I speak and every thought and attitude of my heart and mind is subject to the examination of God’s ruling.

For Christians, this judgment is not the same as that of an employee who’s messed up on the job walking into his boss’ office about to get fired. This judgment seat has nothing to do with salvation. When we received Jesus through faith, believing in His atoning sacrifice for our sins upon the cross, God forgave our sins and declared us righteous in His Son. We are “justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 3:24), and “there is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 8:1). Thank God we are saved from the wages of our sin, which is death and hell!

But we will still give an account of our works to God. And the kind of healthy fear of the Lord we ought to have is that of one who’s been rescued from death and brought to life, having a burning desire to please the Lord in all that we do. Paul writes to the church saying, “We make it our aim to please him. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil” (2 Cor. 5:9-10).

Christian, is it the great aim of your life to please God? Do you have a healthy fear of His loving discipline, which leads to holiness? Are the motives of your heart, the attitudes of your mind, the work of your hands and the words of your mouth pleasing to the One who redeemed your life from darkness by the blood of Christ and brought you into the His kingdom? When we meditate upon the sacrifice of Jesus for us, we should want to obey God and live holy lives for His glory.

Would you be willing to pray with the psalmist, “Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting” (Ps. 139:23-24)?