The Fear that Glorifies
Written by Jennifer P.

 

The Lord desires a woman that fears Him. Why? In considering the topic for this month, I decided to do a search on references in the Bible referring to the fear of the Lord and the word “woman.” Technology has made this significantly easier with Bible Word searches, but there was still a lot to sort through! I learned two things: There is one sole purpose for mankind and ultimately all of God’s creation and that is bringing glory to His name by fearing Him and that there are many women in the Bible!

I will start with the fear of the Lord. Fear is generally looked down on as something negative, yet God considers fear a very important part of a Christian’s relationship to Him. We have all heard the verses that teach, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” It is something that we acquire, something that we can lose. It is commanded by God. “Therefore thou shalt keep the commandments of the Lord thy God, to walk in His ways, and to fear Him” (Deuteronomy 8:6). “…what doth the Lord thy God require of thee, but to fear the Lord thy God, to walk in His ways, and to love Him, and to serve the Lord thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul” (Deuteronomy 10:12).

Those who fear the Lord are blessed by Him. “The secret of the Lord is with them that fear Him; and He will show them His covenant” (Psalms 25:14).

It is not something to be ashamed of. . . “The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever” (Psalms 19:9).

But it is something to seek after. “Better is little with the fear of the Lord then great treasure and trouble therewith” (Proverbs 15:16).

The fear of the Lord is not burdensome and those that fear Him are honored. That in turn brings glory to God, who blesses those that feared Him. This is just a small description of the fear of the Lord. He also desires a woman that fears Him.

We have been studying one type of woman in the Bible called the Virtuous Woman. Given the majority of references in Proverbs to the adulterous woman or the contentious woman, the Virtuous Woman is a rare treasure that is worth desiring.

“A virtuous woman is a crown to her husband” (Proverbs 12:4). As women, our relationship to our future husbands is to typify the relationship of Christ and the church. He desires a church that is pure, industrious in service for Him, and dwells together in love. A woman is subject to her husband as the Church is subject to Christ. As a man leaves his family and takes a wife unto himself that they may live as one flesh, so God takes the Church unto Himself and lives in them that each believer may say “I am His and He is Mine.” As the wife learns to know her husband over time, she learns to know his thoughts on certain things, how he would choose or act in a certain situation, and is able to choose and act the same way in his absence so that he need not fear of spoil. Even so, by spending time in God’s Word and learning Him, a Christian may know the mind of God on a matter and act in a way that is pleasing to Him. This glorifies God. Yet a woman who does not fear the Lord will not glorify Him.

I stated earlier that the fear of the Lord may be lost. God warns the Israelites many times about consequences that happen to those who do not fear Him. In our lives, we can drift away from Him and lose sight of His greatness. When we are not fully His, we are not as affective in His work. As young women, God has many things that He desires to use us for. But He cannot use a person that is not following Him. A woman that fears Him will seek only to serve Him and He can work through her. God desires to be able to use us. As an example, God used Mary for the earthly birth of His Son. That was a great responsibility, but if she had not feared the Lord, she would not have been pure and willing to do what God wanted her to do. By her obedience to Him, she was able to partake in one of the greatest events in man’s history and the angels sang Glory to God in the Highest! What does God want to do with us? What great or small things is He waiting to bless those that fear Him? How much more will He be glorified in us by our love and fear in Him?

These are just a few of my thoughts as I looked into the Scriptures. There is so much more to learn. I hope you take the time this month to sit down and consider what God has given you, and renew unto Him what He desires most: Your fear.

 

 

 

 

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