The Bible tells us over and over again to fear the Lord. But what does it really mean to “fear the Lord”? Our understanding of the word fear is usually associated with a feeling of being scared or frightened. My three year old daughter is starting to understand what it means to be afraid or to be scared, and we are guiding her and teaching her to not be afraid because God is with us! “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9
But the fear of the Lord is a very different kind of fear. It is not the same fear we had as little children who are afraid of the dark or new things, it is a reverent fear of awe and wonder and honor before God. It is a fear that God has commanded us to have. He also tells us to walk in his ways, love him and serve him, but we are only able to do these things if we first fear Him. If we put Him above all else!
Deuteronomy 10:12 ESV says, “And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.”
Recently, the Lord showed me, through a challenging situation, what it means to fear Him above all else. I was in a conversation with someone that was handled poorly by the other person, and I picked up an offense. The days following the conversation, the offense I had picked up really affected my mind, and started to consume it in ways that were unhealthy. I continually tried to lay this down before the Lord, but was struggling to do so, until He finally said, “Jami, you’re placing that person above me and they have become an idol to you.” I was shocked. How could I have placed this person as an idol before the Lord? As I processed what He revealed to me, I heard Him say, “They are consuming your thoughts and you have allowed them to have a higher place in your mind and have given them power over you. You are fearing man above God.”
This was a new revelation to me. That by allowing my mind to be consumed by the offense I had picked up, I was actually placing them above God and I was fearing them. I had literally given them power over me, and the Lord was right, they had become an idol in my mind over the Lord! When we think of idols in our lives, it’s often addictive things like our phone or television, things that take away our time and that we put above our time with him. But this same rule applies to what consumes our mind too, if you’ve allowed someone to have control over your mind more than the Lord, they have become an idol to you.
Proverbs 14:27 says, “The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life, that one may turn away from the snares of death.”
How easily I had turned to the snares of death by allowing my mind to be consumed by this offense! But if I place the Lord in his rightful place and fear Him above man, it’s a fountain of life, from which His love and power flows in my life! If I truly feared the Lord I wouldn’t allow someone else to have that place of authority over me instead of the Lord.
I believe as women, we can get caught up in the practice of easily being offended by other women. It’s one of the enemy’s tactics used to cause conflict, gossip and unhealthy environments, that ultimately will bring death to those who are in it. That’s the thing too, this kind of death spreads and affects the environments around you and the people in it. Not good. The death we are talking about is in every sense the opposite of the abundant life that we are given through Jesus.
If we aren’t fearing the Lord above others it brings the snares of death and will consume our minds with offenses that weigh us down and trap us. We’ve placed something or someone above Him, and it’s become an idol. Fearing the Lord brings a fountain of life, and with that fountain of life comes freedom. We have placed the Lord in his rightful place and can walk in confidence, laying down offenses. We will do as it says in Deuteronomy 10:12, “…walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.”
So how about you, daughter of God? Do you fear the Lord or do you fear man? Ask Him to bring to mind any offenses you have picked up that has allowed someone to have a place of authority over your mind. Has someone become an idol over God in your life because of the amount of time you spend thinking about how they have wronged you?
Pray with me. Father, please reveal to me if there is anyone I have placed above you and if there are any offenses I need to lay down. Help me to fear you above all. Amen.
