How the Fear of God Delivers us from Other Fears
The other day, I was meditating on the abundance of verses on our need to live and walk in the fear of God. “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;” “Store up my commands within you…then you will understand the fear of the Lord.” “Trust in the LORD with all your heart…fear the LORD and shun evil. This will bring health to your body.” (Prov. 1:7a, 2:1,4;3:5,7,8) And many more.
We’ve been discussing the fear of the Lord in one of our Bible studies. Any cursory study on what God is like leaves us astonished at his glory, the glory of the infinite, eternal, omnipotent, omnipresent God. King of the universe who rules over all. The Most High. The thrice holy. Aligning our lives with Him so we walk in loving and humble obedience to his will is the only way for a Christian to walk. Paul reminds us in Philippians 2:12; “Work out your salvation with fear and trembling.” Submit to Christ as Lord.
But that day, I had occasion to apply this sense of the overwhelming sovereignty and power of God in a practical way. Phyliss and I were in the US on our way back to Canada. She has applied for a Canadian visa, but the process was incomplete. The car was stuffed full. Everyone tells horror stories of border agents. What should we expect?
You know the tightness you get in your stomach when a police car with sirens blaring approaches you at high speed. “What did I do? Did I go through a red light? Was I speeding?” And then it races by after some felon in the next town. Well normally, I get that feeling when we approach a border crossing. Did the agent at the booth get up on the right side of the bed today? Or?
But I had been thinking how foolish our fears were in the light of awe for and trust in God. Doesn’t he watch over us? Isn’t he sovereign of the universe—certainly officials of all kinds. Can’t I trust him? Am I more affected by dread of officials? A whole panoply of fears skate over the surface of our minds; fear of sickness, hospitals, accidents, speaking. How puny these fears are in the light of our Father’s care. And any fear we have of him is laced with awe and love and compassion. As a Christian I should not be so impressed by things around me but live with a powerful sense of God over all.
My normal dread eased considerably. And even though the agent sent us into the customs and immigration building, we found the officers considerate and friendly. Too often our fears are misplaced.
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