Sg Outline - Fear Basis

Fearing God "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline." Proverbs 1:7 “These are the commands, decrees and laws the LORD your God directed me to teach you to observe in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess, 2 so that you, your children and their children after them may fear the LORD your God as long as you live by keeping all his decrees and commands that I give you, and so that you may enjoy long life.” Deuteronomy 6:1-2 What are some of the things you fear? Are there any persons you fear? How many of our fears actually make sense (public speaking, flying, spiders)? The Bible teaches us that fearing God is a healthy thing. Fearing God is a first feeling we have toward God. This means that we realize that we’ve sinned against God’s law and that he has the power and authority to make us face the consequences of our sin. Read Isaiah 6:1-7. The great thing is that Jesus took on himself the punishment we were supposed to suffer, and now we can approach God in love and freedom. See 1 John 4:16-18, Rom. 8:15, Eph. 3:12. Though our relationship with God is based love, fearing God shouldn’t completely disappear. It’s still serves as an important foundation for how we live. Read 1 Peter 1:14-17. When our lives aren’t honoring God, it means we not only lost our love for God, but we’ve also lost our fear of him. Having a reverent fear is important because it reminds us about the holiness of the God we worship and what his expectations for us are. Most of the time when we sin, it’s because we’ve traded the fear of God for the fear of something or someone else. Some examples: -When we neglect our devotional time with God because we’re too busy planning our lives, we fear the future and the unknown. -When we watch inappropriate movies, shows etc. because we don’t want our friends to look down on us, we fear our friends and our reputation. -When we cave into the demands of a person who says they love us and want to take a relationship in an ungodly direction, we fear rejection. This is a form of idol-worship (when we put something else in God’s place!). When we were younger, it was called ‘peer pressure.’ As we move into adulthood, it’s often referred to as ‘people-pleasing.’ In the end, God should be the only person we fear. Reflection: Is my lifestyle marked by fear? What/who is this fear directed to? Prayer: God, help me keep not only my love for you, but my fear for you also. I don’t want to put anything or anyone else in the place that rightfully belongs to you. In this way, may my life be honoring to you.