The Fear of the Lord Proverbs 1:7 (ESV)

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

We hear a lot about the fear of the Lord. But what exactly is the fear of the Lord? Proverbs 1:7 tells us that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. Book study about the Lord will produce head knowledge about the Lord. But head knowledge is not sufficient to please God.

We need the knowledge that comes from the fear of the Lord. Simply put, the fear of the Lord is the desire to do his will. The Bible calls this the beginning of knowledge. If you are going to have the desire to do God’s will, you are going to need to know what his will is. When you fear the Lord, you will seek to do his will.

On the other hand, Jesus in Matthew 10:28 said: And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.

This second type of the fear of the Lord had causes people to come to Christ for salvation. When we preach the gospel we begin with the bad news that God considers everyone to be a sinner condemned to hell. But then the good news is that God has provided the way for us to escape his judgment and punishment in hell.

That way is Jesus Christ. Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 5:11- Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade others. So the fear of the Lord persuades man to come to Christ for salvation. Then it encourages us to seek to do God’s will.

Knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade you to seek God’s salvation through Jesus Christ if you have not yet done so. If you are a Christian, in the fear of the Lord, seek to do His will.