Biblical Fear: Reverence, Not Terror, Gives Life
Daily Scripture
Psalm 111:7-10, Proverbs 2:2-6, 2 Corinthians 7:1
Psalm 111
7 God’s handiwork is honesty and justice;
all God’s rules are trustworthy—
8 they are established always and forever:
they are fulfilled with truth and right doing.
9 God sent redemption for his people;
God commanded that his covenant last forever.
Holy and awesome is God’s name!
10 Fear of the LORD is where wisdom begins;
sure knowledge is for all who keep God’s laws.
God’s praise lasts forever!
Proverbs 2
2 Turn your ear toward wisdom,
and stretch your mind toward understanding.
3 Call out for insight,
and cry aloud for understanding.
4 Seek it like silver;
search for it like hidden treasure.
5 Then you will understand the fear of the LORD,
and discover the knowledge of God.
6 The LORD gives wisdom;
from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.
2 Corinthians 7
1 My dear friends, since we have these promises, let’s cleanse ourselves from anything that contaminates our body or spirit so that we make our holiness complete in the fear of God.
Daily Reflection & Prayer
This sermon series has called us to live above and beyond many of our most common fears. We’ve learned human therapeutic tools that work alongside our trust in God to point us toward an unafraid life. Yet the Bible fully endorsed one kind of “fear”: “the fear of the Lord.” Psalms, Proverbs, and the apostle Paul all praised that kind of “fear.” Of course, we must understand what the phrase meant. Pastor Adam Hamilton explained: “In scripture, fear of the Lord is not primarily terror evoked by an angry God. It is reverence, respect, and awe inspired by a God who is all-powerful and who not only created heaven and earth but continues to exercise dominion over them.” *
- Scholar Nancy deClaissé-Walford wrote: “While we tend to associate the word ‘fear’ with a ‘hair standing on end’ or ‘fight or flight’ feeling, ‘the fear of the LORD’ is better understood as reverent awe. Indeed, the Lord is ‘fearsome,’ but not in the sense that some want to run away from or escape from God’s presence. Rather, we are called to approach the Lord with a sense of awe while in the presence of the holy.” ** Think of standing at the edge of the Grand Canyon, holding a newborn baby, or seeing the northern lights… moments of breathtaking awe that make you feel small yet deeply connected to something magnificent. That’s closer to “fear of the Lord” than cowering terror. When have you experienced this kind of reverent awe? How does it draw you closer to God rather than pushing you away? In what ways has “fear of the Lord”—reverent awe—made you wiser about how to live?
Prayer
O God, let me never lose a sense of awe at the privilege you offer me to accept your love and to walk through my life in your presence. You are mighty beyond comprehension, yet you invite me into relationship. I choose you as my Lord and guide. Amen.
GPS Insights
Jane Fowler
Jane Fowler, who wrote today's Insights, served on Resurrection's Discipleship team when she wrote this post in 2017. Though she no longer works at the church, those of us who had the privilege of working with her remain grateful for the warmth and caring she brought to our team.
Pastor Adam said, “The Fear of the Lord is where we find wisdom and life. It is to live in Holy respect, awe, reverence of God, acknowledging Him for who he is and recognizing His power.” I need to do more of this. I often limit God’s power to my imperfect thinking. Through scripture, we remind ourselves of His awesome power as one who is the creator of the universe, one who breaks chains, heals bodies, frees captives and gives us eternal life.
I recently attended a Gathering in Nashville with my daughter, Maddy. She helped organize a local gathering for over 200 women to come together and be renewed as they heard from national speakers. The worship band from her church played and one song in particular breathed new life into me. It is a song that reminds us to Fear the Lord, reminds us to revere God and recognize His power.
The songwriter, Brooke Ligertwood, says “There is something about singing something when someone knows in their soul is the absolute truth, and bringing that from heart knowledge to a mouth confession which then becomes faith. Faith comes through hearing and hearing the word of God. When you hear your own ears say something that is true, it creates faith.”
I invite you to click the link and join me to sing What a Beautiful Name. Turn up the volume, hear the words with your ears and proclaim them with your mouth. Fear the Lord and live unafraid. Amen.
© 2026 Resurrection: A United Methodist Church. All Rights Reserved.
Scripture quotations are taken from The Common English Bible ©2011. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
References
* Hamilton, Adam, Unafraid: Living with Courage and Hope in Uncertain Times (p. 225). Harmony/Rodale/Convergent. Kindle Edition.
** Nancy L. deClaissé-Walford, study note on Proverbs 1:7 in The CEB Study Bible. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2013, p. 1007 OT.
