HUMANITY AND THE FEAR OF THE LORD

PROF. BEN ONYEUKWU (REV.)

NCE (English); Dip (Computer Studies); ND/HD (Journalism); Dip, BA (Theology) MA, PhD.

Call: +2348037346939  E-mail: professorbenonyeukwu@yahoo.com

HUMANITY AND THE FEAR OF THE LORD

Main Text:

“Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, you perish in the way, when His wrath is kindled, but a little”, (Psalm 2:11-12).

INTRODUCTION:

          The fear of the Lord is to recognize God for who He is; as the Almighty, Righteous, Pure, All-knowing, All-powerful, and All-wise. And, at the same time have a correct understanding of us; as sinful, weak, frail, and needy. Normally, such a balanced knowledge of God as infinite and us, as finite is what inspires a sense of humble respect for him, resulting in keeping with His laws and commandments by those who harbor such recognition in their lives. This is what the fear of the Lord is all about. However, for a better understanding of the subject matter, the following sub-topics will also be treated:

1.            THE FEAR OF THE LORD AND THE RULING CLASS

The Lord’s concern in handling the affairs of the people by others has always been the position of fairness. According to the Bible, “One who rules over men must be just, ruling in the fear of the Lord, (II Samuel 23:3). This emphasizes the fact of the sovereignty of God over every nation, as well as over every person in position of authority. The implication in the above statement is that a leader (religious, political, traditional, and bureaucratic) by way of recognition must see God as the supreme leader, and accordingly discharge the acts of leadership in line with the tenets of His Word and not by wishful thinking. Furthermore, a just leader carries the quality of impartiality and does everything on the basis of equity and fair-play. Therefore, a just and God-fearing;

(i)           Religious leader considers what pleases God in the discharge of his or her duties;

(ii)          Traditional leader puts God above every other thing in running the affairs of the people;

(iii)        Political leader will never implement any policy that negates the will of God;

(iv)        Bureaucratic leader respects the laws of God in the implementation of the civil/public service rules, etc.

Regrettably, most leaders mindlessly violate God’s Word in the discharge of their duties. By this, the writer calls for a change of attitude as a way of avoiding divine judgment.

2.               THE FEAR OF THE LORD AS THE BEGINNING OF WISDOM

The best foundation that one can lay for oneself is to cultivate and live in the fear of the Lord. The fear of the Lord leads to life, (Proverb 19:23), and without life, every ambition crashes. This is why the fear of the Lord is basically referred to as the beginning of wisdom, (Psalm 111:10).

          Those who love to see good days, fear the Lord. They recognize Him as the Almighty, and in turn endorse Him as their source of strength in times of need. In their bid to overcome the uncertainties of the future, they surrender to Him that is All-knowing, and holds the future. In search for protection from the hazards of this age, they come under the canopy of Him that is All-powerful. Thus, the writer asserts that the beginning of wisdom is to accord God the recognition that without Him;

(i)           we can do nothing;

(ii)          our lives are incomplete;

(iii)        our effort are efforts in futility;

(iv)        we have no future, etc.

To anyone with the right frame of mind, this calls for a humble respect for God, and that is, the fear of the Lord in display.

3.            THE FEAR OF THE LORD IS TO HATE EVIL

When we talk of evil, we mean those wicked, sinful, bad and harmful behaviours that people engaged in. the wide-spread of it in both high and low places portrays the fact that the human society is lagging behind in the fear of the Lord.

Backing-up the aforestated view, God’s Word remarks that “the fear of the Lord is to hate evil”… (Proverb 8:13). This implies that one with the fear of the Lord will undoubtedly, have nothing to do with evil. Therefore, it is a contradiction when one who claims to harbor the fear of the Lord engages in the evils of;

(i)           gratification in the law-making process;

(ii)          human and drug trafficking;

(iii)        injustice and perversion of judgment;

(iv)        rape and child labour, etc,

In conclusion, the writer wishes to bring to focus that today, these enumerated evils and more take place in families, churches, mosques, government establishments, etc, and human beings are deeply involved. If you are indicted, please, repent before it is too late. A STITCH IN TIME SAVES NINE.