The words “fear of the Lord” appear over one hundred times in the Bible. But throughout scripture, God also tells his people not to fear. Is God contradicting Himself, or could the fear of the Lord mean something completely different than fear? As we discuss the meaning of the fear of the Lord, we’ll discover it has nothing to do with fear and everything to do with the way we engage with God daily.

Discussion Questions

What are you excited about for the New Year?

What makes you nervous about the New Year?

What comes to mind when you think about the phrase, “The fear of the Lord?”

Read 2 Timothy 1:7. If God has not given us a Spirit of fear how does that change/influence what you think about the fear of the Lord?

Read Isaiah 29:13 and Matthew 6:25-34. Based on these verses, what is the fear of the Lord really about?

Further Reading

Searching for Reconciliation

Confronting others concerning biblical/theological compromise is never easy or pleasant. Such encounters must be handled with sensitivity to the needs of others, directed by spiritual wisdom and the Scriptures, and guided by the Holy Spirit. Paul closed chapter two of...

Searching for Courage

On the surface, hearing God and following His commands seems straightforward. However, when God calls us to do something that generates fear in us and feels daunting, second-guessing His call becomes reasonable. Finding the courage to obey such a call is overwhelming....

Searching for the Abundant Life

Jesus explicitly explained his purpose when He said “…I came so that they would have life, and have it abundantly” (Jn 10:10). He said similar things many times, and these ideas are repeated, over and over again, by those who wrote the New Testament. Yet many people,...

Searching for Real Friendship

Some relationships may imitate friendship, but there’s no substitute for the real thing. Exploring the relationship between David and Jonathan in the Bible, we’ll identify some distinguishing features of friendship that are often overlooked and discover how to infuse...