FEAR GOD, NOT MAN

A Bible Study

“The LORD is on my side; I will not fear. What can man to do me?” (Psalm 118:6)

“And do not fear those who kill the body, but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” (Matthew 10:28)

These verses show us that developing a reverent fear of the Lord can actually drive out our natural fear of man. What we fear we come under the control thereof, hence, abiding in proper and healthy fear of the LORD is not only wise for our well-being, it also helps us stay humbly under His Kingship.

There are a plethora of Scriptures that teach believers to fear God, and not man. This includes all areas of our earthly existence: illness, relationship problems, financial troubles, emotional issues and every kind of pain and, perhaps most of all, death.

Fears of illness, due to increased pestilence, leads to the fear of death. And, moreover, fears of extreme weather events and that of victimization due to an exponential increases of crime, due to the times in which we are living, aka, the last of the last days (See Matthew 24 & Mark 13) have never been so pronounced and highlighted in the public square. Therefore, a lacking understanding of prophecy, combined with an already abiding fear of man is making so many weaker, and more vulnerable to Satan’s plans to accentuate personal anxieties and insecurities:

"The fear of man brings a snare, But whoever trusts in the Lord shall be safe." (Proverbs 29:25)

The fear of man brings a snare. But fears based in Truth and practicality, like the fear of walking across train tracks when a train is coming or the fear of fire making contact with our clothing, while standing too close to a bon fire are useful and even beneficial to our overall well-being. Hence, these things are based in common sense, which comes from godly fear. These everyday dangers are integral to living in safety and help us balance notions of danger and safety.

And, moreover, when abiding in the fear of the Lord, we are wise, safe and blessed and see His Goodness in our lives:

"Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.” (Deuteronomy 31:6)

"The secret of the Lord is with those who fear Him, And He will show them His covenant." (Psalm 25:14)

Showing His covenant’ illustrates the fact that God has our backs, as we might put it in our modern-day language. That’s because our God is a God of intimacy and individuality. He will do things to cover us depending on our unique personhood and the situations in which we find ourselves. (Also see 2Corinthians 12:8-11 for Paul’s account on what God did for him. ‘The power of Christ’ resting upon him can be taken two ways and perhaps even encompasses both —either Paul was able to grin and bear his pains and discomforts, or God made him to be in good health when he really needed to function, like when he was in front of people to preach, but suffered in his alone time, which clearly shows God’s GLORY! I say that because the latter is what He does for me every time I leave my home and have to be in public, with my extreme digestive issues suddenly on pause! (See my article on this subject “My Witness To……..if you would like more details. Facing a potentially difficult and uncomfortable situation caused me to fear. But then God showed me that those ‘what ifs’ were keeping me in bondage, and torment, actually making me fear going outside. But, then I decided to simply trust Him. And now I do, and everything miraculously works out great every time I need His Cover! It’s just there. He has my back, because He made me that personal promise!)

The more we give ourselves over to learning His Principles, the more spiritually intelligent we may become, (provided we receive that divine aid that God is providing, because we can surely get in our own way sometimes and override His Grace with our impractical fears and worries….)—

“But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord.” (2Corinthians 3:18)

"Oh, how great is Your goodness, Which You have laid up for those who fear You, Which You have prepared for those who trust in You In the presence of the sons of men!" (Psalm 31:19)

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; A good understanding have all those who do His commandments. His praise endures forever." (Psalm 111:10)

When we fear man, we are inhibited, misled, confused, on a potentially dangerous path, and may end up feeling discarded and abandoned, which then perpetuates the fear problem….

But when we trust in the Lord for our protection and provision and ALL ELSE, we can avoid those pitfalls spurred on by the fear of man:

"Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me." (Psalm 23:4)

Moreover, not only does the Bible teach us that we do not have to fear death, it even tells us that for those in Christ, to die is gain:

"according to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain." (Philippians 1:20-21)

Further to this end, this verse in Proverbs reveals that the fear of the Lord keeps us from death, that is permanent death:

"The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life,
To turn one away from the snares of death." (Proverbs 14:27)

"The fear of the Lord leads to life,
And he who has it will abide in satisfaction;
He will not be visited with evil." (Proverbs 19:23)

Other Scriptures on this subject:

Psalm 112:1, Psalm 115:13, Deuteronomy 6:24, Proverbs 1:7, 9:10, 3:7 & 15:16, 2Samuel 23:3, Luke 1:50, 12:4, Job 28:28, Hebrews 2:15 & Acts 18:10

And, moreover, we ought to teach our children the proper fear of the LORD—

“Come, you children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the LORD. Who is the man who desires life, And loves many days, that he may see good? Keep your tongues from evil, And your lips from speaking deceit. Depart from evil and do good; Seek peace and pursue it.” (Psalm 34:11-14)

One more reason to not fear man/the devil—

"For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 8:38-39)

NKJV