i) I want to add something to the end of the previous post. Some might have the idea that the “fear” of God is an OT concept and not a NT teaching since “perfect love casts out fear.” In response, I would say that certainly OT worship had more of a “separation” aspect. The fence around the base of Mt. Sinai and the veil partitioning the tabernacle/temple indicate this. The death of Christ has removed this and in Christ we are invited and even commanded to enter God’s presence (Heb. 4:16). Having said that, I would add two additional thoughts.
(1)
In the OT, worshipers were called to love God with all
their heart, soul and strength (Dt. 6:4).
Dt. 5:12 brings “love” and “fear” together: And not, Israel, what
does the LORD your God require of you, but to fear the LORD your God, to walk
in all His ways and to love Him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart
and all your soul. OT religion was
no less the worship by the “inner man” than NT worship.
(2)
Jesus taught us to fear Him who is able to destroy
both soul and body in hell (Mt. 10:28).
God’s work in the early Church created fear in the Church and in those
observing from the outside (Ac. 5:11).
Believers walked in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the
Holy Spirit (Ac. 9:31). The Apostles
called on believers to fear God (e.g. 2 Cor. 7:1; Eph. 5:21; Phil. 2:12). The Apostles also called on believers to have
this kind of fear for those in authority (e.g. Eph. 5:33; 6:5). All the references in this paragraph are the Greek
phobos, “to fear.”
(3)
In the end we must make a distinction between fear of
such things as God’s judgment and the reverential fear that leads us to respect
God and others. Hebrews, on at least
three occasions, referred to “godly fear.” It was seen in Christ (5:7), Noah (11:7) and was
to be seen in believers: Since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be
shaken, let us have grace by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence
and godly fear (12:28). The Greek
word is eulabes, and these are the only NT uses. It means “to act cautiously, circumspectly;
to beware, fear; to stand in awe of.” In
12:28 the term “reverence” is yet another Greek term, aidos, referring
to “a sense of shame or honor, modesty (as in 1 Tim. 2:9), reverence, regard
for others, respect.”
I hope you find this helpful. Again, the idea of “fear” as applied to the
Lord or to those around us, is that we recognize God’s presence and hand at
work in every aspect of our lives, including those “authorities” He is using in
our lives to bring us into conformity to the image of Christ.
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