Welcome to our final devotional on Psalm 34. Today, we're exploring a concept that's often misunderstood but is crucial to our spiritual growth: the fear of the Lord.
Psalm 34:11-14
"Come, O children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord. What man is there who desires life and loves many days, that he may see good? Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit. Turn away from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it."
"The fear of the Lord" - it's a phrase that might sound strange to our modern ears. After all, isn't God love? Why should we fear Him? But David, in this psalm, presents the fear of the Lord not as something terrifying, but as a precious lesson to be learned.
The Hebrew word for "fear" here is "yirah," which encompasses reverence, awe, and respect. It's not about cowering in terror, but about recognizing God's greatness and our proper place in relation to Him. It's the kind of fear that draws us closer, not drives us away.
Notice how David frames this teaching: "Come, O children, listen to me" (v. 11). There's an invitation here, a fatherly warmth. David isn't threatening his listeners into fearing God; he's inviting them to learn a life-giving truth.
And life-giving it is. David asks, "What man is there who desires life and loves many days, that he may see good?" (v. 12). The implication is clear: learning to fear the Lord is the key to truly living, to experiencing the good life.
But what does this fear look like in practice? David gives us some practical steps: keep your tongue from evil, turn away from evil and do good, seek peace and pursue it (v. 13-14). The fear of the Lord isn't just an internal attitude; it manifests in concrete actions and choices.
Friends, in a world that often encourages us to fear everything but God, this psalm calls us back to a foundational truth: the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (Proverbs 9:10). It's not about being scared of God, but about giving Him His proper place in our lives - as our Creator, our King, our loving Father.
How does your understanding of "the fear of the Lord" align with or differ from David's description in this psalm?
Can you think of a time when fearing (revering) God led you to make a difficult but right choice? What was the outcome?
Looking at verses 13-14, which aspect of fearing the Lord do you find most challenging? How can you grow in this area?
True freedom and fulfillment come not from the absence of fear, but from fearing the right thing – the Lord.
Stay Dialed In,
Jonny Ardavanis