Young Adults' Group

The Fear Of The Lord Is The Beginning Of Wisdom

by Pastor Mark
June 19, 2025

The fear of the Lord

The concept of the fear of the Lord has been addressed by the author of Proverbs several times. It is to emphasise the importance of the fear of the Lord. But not everyone desires to cultivate a fear of the Lord. Some hate knowledge and have no regard for the Lord’s Word…they choose not to fear the Lord (Proverbs 1:29). When they seek God for wisdom in their time of need, His wisdom is not forthcoming. They do not have a proper understanding of the fear of God. Let us be challenged to have a deeper understanding of the fear of the Lord.

1. The place of the fear of the Lord

“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge” (Proverbs 1:7)

a. There are many kinds of knowledge that we search for.

b. The fear of the Lord is to be placed at the beginning…the top of the list of knowledge.

c. It should be given first place…priority over all other knowledge.

d. It is with reverence and regard for God and His Word that we would be given further knowledge and understanding.

2. The prerogative of God in giving the fear of the Lord (Proverbs 2:1–9)

a. The fear of the Lord is something that God gives to us.

b. But it is presumptuous to think that God will give it automatically.

c. There are pre-requisites such as receiving the Lord’s wisdom and treasuring His commandments in order to receive the fear of the Lord.

d. It is ultimately God’s prerogative to give this fear of the Lord to us.

e. He would discern whether to give this sense of fear or not.

f. The challenge is for us to do our part in crying out and seeking wisdom as our treasure.

3. A proven statement

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” (Proverbs 9:10)

a. Solomon sought to use the same statement that he used in (Proverbs 1:7)

i. This time, it is stated as a proven statement.

ii. It is a confirmation of the truth.

iii. As we give the fear of the Lord first place in our lives and fulfil the pre-requisites, He will give us this sense of fear.

iv. The fear of the Lord will be real and confirmed in our lives…rather than just theoretical.

b. Knowledge of the Holy One

When we have this deeper level of the fear of the Lord, there will come a deeper knowledge of the Lord as the Holy One. He is no longer just the Lord but is also the Holy One of Israel. This title reflects God as One who is sacred, sanctified and pure. When we have a fear of the Lord, we would be able to see God for who He is and all that He does. We would understand God as the Holy One who is pure in all His ways and works.

At the same time, we will also understand ourselves to be totally sinful and unrighteous before His holiness. The prophet Isaiah saw a vision of God’s holiness, realised his uncleanness, and humbly sought cleansing and repentance (Isaiah 6). Let us be challenged to go deeper in our understanding of the fear of the Lord, especially in seeing and understanding God as the Holy One of Israel.

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