“The Fear of the Lord” - Proverbs 1:1-7
Sermon series: Navigating Life with Proverbs
Sermon Title: The Fear of the Lord
Scripture: Proverbs 1:1-7
Introduction:
We’ll be journeying into a new book: Proverbs. This book can easily be seen as a great choice for a monthly devotional (31 chapters), or with some of the letters containing wisdom from Solomon to his son, David. King Solomon was one with whom the Lord was pleased with, when Solomon’s one and only request was to have wisdom to rule over the Lord’s people well. This book serves as a reminder to us that by the grace of the Lord, we also have instruction on how to live and mature wisely in our lives.
Much of the book’s literary style in instilling wisdom is through synonymous parallelism – second line repeating the idea of the first line (Prov 5:3) and antithetical parallelism – second line starting with ‘but’ in contrasting the idea of the first line (Prov 10:1).
Overview:
The benefits of Proverbs:
Living out the proverbs does much greater good than memorizing and reciting them
Through the life of Solomon, he also struggled with application, after having the head knowledge of wisdom
Does ignorance triumph in the face of wisdom?
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; but fools despise wisdom and instruction (Prov 1:7).
Until we hinge our lives on the truth and need of fearing the Lord, we will always revert back to searching for solutions without actually ripping out the root cause
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (Prov 1:9).
What is not the fear of the Lord:
Guilt-driven anxiety when trouble stirs, believing it is because you have strayed and now God is angered
Fearfulness of God’s punishment and wrath
What is the fear of the Lord:
A responsive posture upon discovering God’s love for you
The fear for the Lord can be translated as:
Compassion
Reverence
Awe
Respect
Knowing that you cannot save yourself, but God has accomplished this
Being humbled by His ultimate authority and sovereignty over your life, and thus – your future and eternity
Implications:
Now that you are aware of the need to fear the Lord, how will you respond?
What will you choose to do, think, act, or desire – so that it is pleasing in God’s eyes? So that the outcome may honour God?
It’s hard to live on the love of God without the fear of God. He is holy and righteous, just as much as He is loving and our Saviour.
Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in Him.
Fear the Lord, you His holy people, for those who fear Him lack nothing. Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord (Psalm 34:8-9, 11).
Why is it necessary to fear the Lord?
When you choose God to be the beginning of everything, when you take Him as your priority and your foundation, all else of meaning falls into place
It is essential if you are to grow in maturity in living a meaningful life
As we fear the Lord, that is when we will fully come to know Jesus and the gravity of His work on the cross
Sermon reflection questions:
How would you define the term ‘fear of the Lord’ in your own life right now?
Does the fear of the Lord motivate your actions, thoughts, words, or desires?
Have you ever asked for wisdom from God? If it is not this trait you seek from God regularly, what traits do you focus more on in your walk with Him? Some examples include: love, joy, courage, humility, hospitality, discernment, peace, mercy, etc.
