SCRIPTURE READING
Luke 12:4-5 4”I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have
nothing more that they can do. 5But I will warn you whom to fear: fear him who, after he has
killed, has authority to cast into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him!
Some say that Jesus doesn’t want us to fear, but this is contrary to what the Scriptures
teach. Jesus preached fear, Hell and stop sinning messages more than anyone else in the
New Testament – fear of Hell was one of the main components of His teaching ministry! The
popular myth of our day is that if you’re a believer you shouldn’t fear the consequences of
sin or hell, that you just need to be more confident in God’s love and grace. False! That’s the
opposite of what Jesus here teaches. Yes, we should be confident in God’s love and grace
(and we’ll get to that yet), but ONLY IF we are living in repentance and righteousness before
Him, and pursuing a wholehearted relationship with Him. Even then we should still maintain
a HEALTHY FEAR of the consequences of sin and what will happen to us should we wander
from the path of righteousness, because Jesus here tells His FRIENDS that they should
fear God because He has the power to cast them into Hell should they leave the right path!
Proverbs tells us that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (Prov 9:10). This kind of
fear is not being scared of God but rather is having reverence and awe for who He really is as
the one who has the authority to cast people into hell. One of the signs that you are growing
in your walk with God is that you are growing in loving Him more AND fearing Him more. The
two go hand in hand, they are both essential elements of a vibrant walk with God.
PRAYER and MEDITATION
1. What could possibly happen if you don’t have proper fear of the Lord?
2. Do you fear God? How is this evident in your walk with Him?
3. Ask the Holy Spirit to show you steps that you need to take in order to have more fear of
the Lord. What are some practical things that you can do in order to grow in fear of the
Lord?
4. Pray that as a church, we would grow in fear of the Lord. Pray that individual people
would answer the Holy Spirit’s call to live lives of repentance and wholeheartedness.
