Fear of the Lord

The Bible speaks much about the fear of the Lord. Who can forget that world famous Bible verse, "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge...," (Proverbs 1:7) I remember in my Old Testament class, our teacher asked us to explain what the fear of the Lord is. So, I, a budding, brand, spanking new Christian decided to enlighten the class with my vast knowledge on the fear of the Lord.

I told him that the fear of the Lord had to do with standing in awe of God like so many preachers have said. It didn't really have to do with being scared of God. Dr. Abegg warmly invited my observation and politely said, "Yeah, I've heard many preachers say that... but I don't agree with them." He talked about have a real fear of God to the point of being afraid of him because He is just so holy, and powerful and huge etc.

I wasn't sure what to think of his comment until I read Exodus 20:18-21:

"18 When the people saw the thunder and lightning and heard the trumpet and saw the mountain in smoke, they trembled with fear. They stayed at a distance 19 and said to Moses, "Speak to us yourself and we will listen. But do not have God speak to us or we will die."
20 Moses said to the people, "Do not be afraid. God has come to test you, so that the fear of God will be with you to keep you from sinning."
21 The people remained at a distance, while Moses approached the thick darkness where God was."

Now that is what I call the fear of the Lord! This verse really supports what he was saying!