Fear is something we experience regularly throughout our lives, whether it is in respect of someone, in dread of another, or just fear of anything at all. It may surprise you to know that God expects these kinds of fear in us. He does not want us to completely remove all aspects of fear from our lives, but rather the instances that do not honor Him. Such as seen in the examples below. What is expected of us is to fear God himself.

When Mr. Rooksten entered the boardroom, a pronounced hush fell upon its occupants. “Gentlemen,” he said, his voice reverberating across the room, “my purpose for this assembly today is not to empower you with announcements of our company’s position in the marketplace, nor is it to deliver a motivational oration of the greatest degree.” A sense of bewildered curiosity moved across the attendees.

“My purpose today,” he said, and then paused momentarily before continuing, “is to announce a decision to appoint an assistant to the position of Chief Executive Officer.”

Near audible gasps of surprise filled the room. Karl Rooksten has always been the prime example of a stark, solitary leader. This one announcement alone could send shockwaves across the business establishment as a whole.

“Mr. Rooksten, how will this affect the overall decision-making process of your position?” inquired Mr. Toomkinley, assistant vice-president of the equine neurology division.

“My decision-making process will always remain the same. My appointment of an assistant is merely for clerical and administrative collaboration. Under no circumstances will any assistant that I appoint to this office have the power to execute decisions or discharge any individual in this company, unless I personally give him the authority to do so. As always, I will insist on complete respect for myself, as well as for this office—a respect established since the founding of this company. Am I well understood on this matter, gentlemen?” Rooksten commanded firmly.

“Yes, sir!” the room echoed in totality, with hardly a note of irreverence.

***

“Hey, Stu! Shall we give ‘em a little shake up?” Rodney sneered as he rhythmically tapped his fingers on the shotgun’s barrel. The teens, now shuddering with fright, huddled closer together in the corner of the alley. Stu let a small jeer cross his lips as Rodney took aim at the crumbling wall beside the teens. Blinding smoke and debris suddenly filled the air when the windows of the adjacent building shattered from a small explosion inside. The teens barely managed to slip out of the alley after the wall crumbled from the explosion.

Stu and Rodney hurriedly moved down the road out in front of the alley. Then the air filled with the reverberations of Rodney shouting, “YOU MAY RUN NOW, BUT YOU’LL NEVER ESCAPE FROM US!” The teens made it back to the recreation center, where they sat together, filled with worry and trepidation.

“What are we going to do? Rod and Stu are determined to wipe us out, and we just can’t seem to get away!” one teen exclaimed anxiously.

“I don’t know and I can’t take it anymore!” cried out another. “It’s like we’re now in a constant state of dread and terror.”

***

“Ha!” Cameron sneered with glee. “I did it, and nobody saw me; nobody knows what I’ve done. I bet I could do even more and nobody could stop me!” Cameron grabbed a bowl of chips as he sat down in the recliner and turned on the TV.

“Authorities announced today a complete investigation into the break-in of Outer World Technologies’ computer servers last night,” the TV’s speakers resounded across the small living room in Cameron’s place. “so far, no suspects have been found, nor have any groups come forward claiming responsibility for the attacks. The amount of damage continues to rise as technicians uncover what some experts believe could be one of the biggest cyber break-ins in history.”

“Yes! Yes! Yes!” Cameron bolted upward and shouted, as potato chips went flying all around. “I’ve got no fear of anyone now!”

***

To Fear God is Our Main Priority

First and foremost, we are expected to fear God, not anyone, or anything, else. To fear God in this manner is to respect Him with wonder and awe, to the point where we are continually looking up to Him in honor. Over and over the Bible speaks of the need to fear God:

• “Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God, and serve him, and shalt swear by his name” Deuteronomy 6:13).
• “The secret of the Lord is with them that fear him; and he will shew them his covenant” (Psalms 25:14).
• “Only fear the Lord, and serve him in truth with all your heart: for consider how great things he hath done for you” (1 Samuel 12:24).
• “O fear the Lord, ye his saints: for there is no want to them that fear him” (Psalms 34:9).
• “So shall they fear the name of the Lord from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun. When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord shall lift up a standard against him” (Isaiah 59:9).
• “Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the Lord, and depart from evil” (Proverbs 3:7).
• “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding” (Proverbs 9:10).

When we choose to fear God, we are submitting ourselves to Him and giving Him the honor and glory. We are actually saying to Him that He knows more than we do, and, as a result, we bow out of the way, His way.

We Are to Fear God’s Punishment

Secondly, we are to live our lives in a manner in which we fear His punishment for our disobedience to His commands. This is not the kind of fear where we are constantly in fright and terror, nor a fear where we feel that the slightest act of disobedience will result in God striking us dead.

The proper way to fear God is one out of love for Him as our Heavenly Father. Most children can testify to this type of fatherly fear on a regular basis. They know that when they are disobedient to their parents, a rather painful punishment will follow. God will forgive us of our sins, but we still are held responsible for the results.

No Fear is to be Given to the Devil

Finally, there is the point of no fear at all. While this may sound contradictory to what was previously mentioned, the lack of fear that’s referred to here is fear of Satan (or the devil). When we yield ourselves over to God, when we accept Jesus as Lord of our life, when we accept that the sacrifice of Jesus at the cross is final and complete, then we no longer give Satan the legal right to operate in our lives.

“Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the Lord thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee” (Deuteronomy 31:6). When we take our eyes off of Jesus and put them on our problems, on the attacks Satan is making against us, then our interest and focus has slipped away from Jesus to this present world and all of its issues. “There is no fear in love; but perfect [complete] love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect [complete] in love” (1 John 4:18).

We Have to Fear God and No One or Nothing Else

Our fear is never to be toward human beings, or Satan. We are to fear God. We should never give men or women, regardless of their authority and position, more respect than we give God. When we stop fearing God and no longer yield to His Son in our hearts, or disobey His commands found in His Word (the Bible), then we open, or reopen, ourselves to physical fears.

We give Satan the legal right to work in our lives again. We allow fear to control us. A void of peace in our heart reappears, leaving us to try to reestablish that peace on our own. Don’t continue on allowing ungodly fear to reign in your life; give it all over to Jesus and commit to fear God. “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you” (1 Peter 5:7).

[Additional image credits: Featured image (when applicable) by Joel Muniz on Unsplash; Opening image gallery (in clockwise order) photo by Erika Wittlieb on Pixabay; photo by zimurg on Freeimages.com; image by Gerd Altmann on Pixabay]