The fear of the LORD. 7pm, Friday Dec 23rd at the Moore's.

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I really enjoyed the discussion time we shared at the Grosjean's this last Friday and I would like to include time for that in the study coming up. I am posting this a little early and with a bit more info than usual so that you will have time to do a bit of studying on your own. That way we will have enough time for discussion when we meet together as a group. If you have any questions as you go through the material, please feel free to call or email me at any time. I mean it :-)

1 - The first part of the study will center on the nature of the fear of the LORD. What does the bible teach about the fear of the LORD.

Is this actually a trembling fear? Look at Isaiah 6:1-5, Jeremiah 5:21-25.

 

We will look at two main causes for the fear of the LORD. To understand the first cause, look at Hebrews 2:14-15, Genesis 3:8-10, Isaiah 59:1-2, and 1 John 4:17-19. Why would people be afraid to die? What happens after death that might cause fear? Does this change when one puts their faith in Christ? For the second cause of the fear of the LORD, consider the nature of God next to our nature. No one can look at God and live because he is too awesome for us to see completely. When Job questions God, Elihu answers him by proclaiming God’s Majesty. How does Elihu’s response to Job in Job 36 and 37, help foster a fear of the LORD in you? Why would being confronted with God’s majesty and power create fear? Does this change when one puts their faith in Christ? For some practical examples, think of your response if you were to come across a bear in the wilderness or if you were swimming in the ocean and saw a shark’s fin a few feet away. Or imagine you are in a thunder storm and lightning strikes a tree nearby. What do you think your response might be? Think of an example that you’d like to share, when you were confronted by the power of God in nature, or otherwise, and what your response was.

 

Given that Christ never sinned, do you think he ever feared God? Read Isaiah 11:1-4 for the quick answer. Given what you know, how would you explain this?

 

2 - The second part of the study will center on the changes that the fear of the LORD leads to. For that, let’s try a biblical study exercise.

I have gone through the book of Proverbs and found each example of the fear of the LORD. I believe the verses can be broken into 3 categories. The categories are: one, the fear of the LORD leads to loving the knowledge of God; two, the fear of the LORD leads to turning away from evil; three, the fear of the LORD leads to blessing and protection from the LORD. Look at the following verses and try to put them into one of the three categories: Proverbs 1:29, Proverbs 2:1-5, Proverbs 3:7, Proverbs 8:13, Proverbs 9:10, Proverbs 10:27, Proverbs 14:2 & 27, Proverbs 14:26, Proverbs 15:16, Proverbs 15:33, Proverbs 16:6, Proverbs 19:23, Proverbs 22:4, Proverbs 23:17, Proverbs 24:21, Proverbs 28:14, Proverbs 29:25, Proverbs 31:30.

 

3 - The third part of the study, where I would like to spend the bulk of the time, centers on specific changes that the fear of the LORD leads to. These are the practical everyday changes that you and I can make to reflect the fear of the LORD in our lives.

 

The three things we learned from the last section are that the fear of the LORD leads to loving the knowledge of God, turning from evil, and being blessed and protected by God. All these concepts demand actual changes from our lives. During the study, I would like to break into groups and discuss each of these three areas of change.

 

The first area centers on Proverbs 2:1-5. How is the LORD fearer characterized and how can we do that more?

 

The second area centers on Proverbs 8:13. Do we truly hate sin? How might we change to grow more in that area?

 

The third area centers on Proverbs 29:25. Here we see that the fear of man and the fear of the LORD are in contrast to each other. When we make decisions are we actually trusting that God blesses his obedient children or do we make decisions fearing man’s response?

 

This is a lot of work, but I think we can get through it if you guys do a bit of the leg work before we get to the study. I look forward to seeing you all soon.

Jacob