fear God

Fear God. What does this mean? Growing up in church and reading the Bible, this topic comes up many times. We should fear God. But there’s a problem. When I fear something, I don’t associate it as being a good thing. I fear terrorism-not good. I fear being in a plane crash-also not good. So, in general, it seems like I fear things that are not good. Now, I know that God is good. I know of His character. I know of His plan to save mankind from eternal separation from Him. I know of His greatness, His majesty, His mercy, His grace, His love. So, knowing these wonderful truths about God, how can I fear Him? This does not reconcile in my mind. I believe this “fear of God” has many implications regarding having a relationship with Him. We all sin and no matter “how good” we are or how righteous we like to think we are, we are going to fall into sin. I know I’m a sinner – I disobey God everyday. Maybe I would do a better job of avoiding sin and falling into temptation if I had a better grasp of what it meant to truly fear God. Maybe society in general wouldn't be so cavalier with sin if we better understood this concept.

If you have any thoughts or comments that may help me better understand, you know how to reach us.