Fear of the Lord

The Bible uses the word “fear” in two ways:

• The fear or terror of an unrepentant sinner before the justice of God. This is the fear we express in our ordinary “Act of Contrition” when we pray “…because of the loss of heaven and the pains of hell.”
• A “Holy Fear” which is one of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit. This gift enables us to taste and see the goodness and attributes of the Lord: namely his “Power, Majesty, Justice, and Holiness.” We express this holy fear in our “Act of Contrition” when we pray “…because they have offended you my God who are all good and deserving of all my love.”

This second meaning of “fear of the Lord” could well be expressed as “revere the Lord.” The ingredients of this kind of “fear” are:

• Reverence and awe. “Let all the earth fear the Lord, and let all the inhabitants of the world be in awe of him.” (Psalm 33:8).
• Hatred of Evil. “The fear of the Lord is to hate evil.” (Proverbs 8:13) We are called to hate the sin but love the sinner.
• Obedience to God.“That he may learn to fear the Lord his God by carefully observing all the words of his law and statutes.” Deut.17:19). This is one of our petitions in the prayer that Jesus taught us: “ May thy will be done!”

I once heard or read somewhere that there are two beacons on the shore of heaven—red and blue. The red light warns us of the obstacles of sin and selfishness that hinder our approach. The blue light invites and guides us to a virtuous following of the Lord who is the WAY, THE TRUTH AND THE LIFE.

Fear and love work together. “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word; and my Father will love him and we will come to him and make our abode with him.” (John 14:23)