Wisdom's Instructions About the Fear of the Lord
Book of Proverbs Chapter 14
What is the "Fear of the Lord"?
If we go back to Adam, God's greatest creation, mankind, we know that Adam walked with God in the cool of the day. We can only imagine the conversations they had as they strolled through the Garden of Eden.
Things changed once Adam had sinned!
Gen 3:9 And the LORD God called unto Adam, and said unto him, Where art thou?
Gen 3:10 And he said,
I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I
hid myself.
Those private walks in the Garden were over because Adam now had a great fear of the Lord, and this fear came to him because of sin.
We see that Adam's fear stemmed from his awareness of his sin.
God knew where Adam was hiding, but he wanted Adam to admit that he was now a sinner.
It is the same thing we must all do to improve our relationship with the Lord God our Creator.
It is because we have sin in our lives that we must have a reverent "fear of the Lord".
Then the Lord Jesus came to save us.
Mat 10:28 And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
Today, far too many live in fear of what this world is doing to them, and they have forgotten to fear the only One who can send us to Hell.
The Bible teaches us that we want to avoid Hell, and the only way to do this is to listen to what God has to say and be a doer of the Word of God.
*****Pro 14:1 Every wise woman buildeth her house: but the foolish plucketh it down with her hands.
Remembering that wisdom comes from the "Fear of the Lord", we can see that a wise woman makes her home her priority. Her primary focus is on her family.
She has not built with hammers and saws but with the qualities that make a home a home.
She builds an atmosphere that supports and strengthens her husband and her children.
This should be the priority in a wise woman's home.
Today, with so many single mothers, these things cannot take place as they should.
God has ordained this role of the wife and mother.
1Ti 5:14 I will therefore that the younger women marry, bear children, guide the house, give none occasion to the adversary to speak reproachfully.
Tit 2:4 That they may teach the young women to be sober, to love their husbands, to love their children,
Tit 2:5 To be
discreet, chaste, keepers at home, good, obedient to their own husbands, that
the word of God be not blasphemed.
This does not mean that the husband should not be involved, nor does this mean that the woman cannot work or be involved in things outside the home.
It just means her priority is the "Fear of the Lord," which makes her a wise woman, and then she can build with her husband a house that is a home.
Today, there are far too many who destroy the home through neglect. The first thing they reject is the Word of God, which makes them foolish, and they have no "Fear of the Lord".
This kind of woman will tear down the family because she puts everything else first before her family and her husband.
Pro 31:10 Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies.
Pro 31:11 The heart
of her husband doth safely trust in her, so that he shall have no need of
spoil.
Pro 31:12 She will do
him good and not evil all the days of her life.
It pays for the man looking for a wife to choose very carefully, and choose someone who has a reverent fear of the Lord.
It is the same for a woman looking for a husband.
*****Pro 14:2 He that walketh in his uprightness feareth the LORD: but he that is perverse in his ways despiseth him.
If we have a reverent fear of the Lord, it will show in the way we live our lives.
Remember, God will judge us by the way we look at His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.
People who have truly placed their trust in the salvation and redemption of the Lord Jesus Christ will live their lives according to the written Word of God.
We must declare the Lord with our lips and demonstrate it with our lives!
That word walketh means the way we live our lives, our conduct, and our behavior.
All those who claim to be Christian and walk like the world are not telling the truth!
Many denominations are split over this very simple truth of God!
1Jn 1:6 If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:
1Jn 1:7 But if we
walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another,
and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin.
1Jn 1:8 If we say
that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
Repentance is still the great Doctrine of the Bible that we are to keep.
True repentance is a change of mind and purpose and life, with remission of sin is promised.
Remission refers to the penalty of sin.
Forgiveness refers to the person.
*****Pro 14:3 In the mouth of the foolish is a rod of pride: but the lips of the wise shall preserve them.
We can say that the fear of the Lord is also demonstrated by the way people speak.
The words of a fool will bring his own destruction.
Psa 64:8 So they shall make their own tongue to fall upon themselves: all that see them shall flee away.
Whatever power that an arrogant fool thinks he has in the end will be a tool in the hands of the righteous.
They may cause us pain for a season, but in the end, they will bring their own destruction.
It can be said that a fool is his own worst enemy!
Pro 12:6 The words of the wicked are to lie in wait for blood: but the mouth of the upright shall deliver them.
*****Pro 14:4 Where no oxen are, the crib is clean: but much increase is by the strength of the ox.
Nobody likes to clean up a stall where animals are kept, nor the feeding trough, which is a crib or a manger.
If a farmer did not have an ox, he would have no crib to clean.
The farmer who has to clean the ox's crib does so with a smile because the ox does all the hard work that allows his family to have plenty of food.
The farmer who is taking care of hardworking animals is better off than using his own labor to provide for his family.
A productive ox is far better than a barn that needs no cleaning.
There is a great reward that comes from a well-fed ox!
The same is true of Spiritual food. Walking by faith has its own difficulties, but we will not get to Heaven unless we do.
1Co 9:9 For it is written in the law of Moses, Thou shalt not muzzle the mouth of the ox that treadeth out the corn. Doth God take care for oxen?
1Co 9:10 Or saith he
it altogether for our sakes? For our sakes, no doubt, this is written: that he
that ploweth should plow in hope; and that he that thresheth in hope should be
partaker of his hope.
*****Pro 14:5 A faithful witness will not lie: but a false witness will utter lies.
A faithful witness cannot be convinced to tell a lie!
A false witness is someone God hates!
Pro 6:16 These six things doth the LORD hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him:
Pro 6:17 A proud
look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood,
Pro 6:18 An heart
that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief,
Pro 6:19 A false
witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren.
One of the things that is wrong in our court system today is the fact that so many lies are told, and no one seems to care, and no one is held accountable.
By the world's standard, this may seem to be okay, but God's standards are much higher than the world's standards.
A foolproof test of a person's heart is whether or not he or she will tell the truth.
A witness is someone who gives testimony in court or some official proceeding.
A Christian will tell the truth no matter the circumstance.
We even do wrong when we deal with our children at the time of Christmas and Easter.
Being faithful should mean much more than some lie for any reason, and we know that our Lord hates a liar, and there is no such thing as a white lie.
No amount of money should convince us to lie!
No promotion or promises should convince us to lie!
No threat of harm or danger should convince us to lie!
We are to remain as faithful witnesses no matter the cost!
Exo 23:1 Thou shalt not raise a false report: put not thine hand with the wicked to be an unrighteous witness.
Pro 10:18 He that hideth hatred with lying lips, and he that uttereth a slander, is a fool.
Pro 12:19 The lip of truth shall be established for ever: but a lying tongue is but for a moment.
*****Pro 14:6 A scorner seeketh wisdom, and findeth it not: but knowledge is easy unto him that understandeth.
There are times when those who deny God and God's Word seek God's wisdom, but they will never find it.
The Word of God will remain just another man-made book to them because they do not have the Holy Spirit to discern for them.
Wisdom is given only to those who have a reverent fear of the Lord!
Joh 16:13 Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.
Joh 16:14 He shall
glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.
1Co 2:10 But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.
1Co 2:11 For what man
knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so
the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.
1Co 2:12 Now we have
received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we
might know the things that are freely given to us of God.
*****Pro 14:7 Go from the presence of a foolish man, when thou perceivest not in him the lips of knowledge.
Pro 14:8 The wisdom
of the prudent is to understand his way: but the folly of fools is deceit.
Pro 14:9 Fools make a
mock at sin: but among the righteous there is favour.
God shares His wisdom with His children so we can know how to move away from foolish people.
No wisdom can be gained from a fool!
Time spent with fools is wasted time, and we are taught not to waste the little time we have on fools.
Eph_5:16 Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
Col_4:5 Walk in wisdom toward them that are without, redeeming the time.
Fools are deceiving themselves, and they will deceive anyone who listens to them.
When salvation becomes part of our lives, we can look back and see the flaws we were living with and do our best to fix those flaws.
This is called repentance, and we will need the Holy Spirit to be able to do this.
Spiritual blindness means the fool thinks he is acceptable to God just as he is and requires no change.
This one thing is causing the split of many denominations, and we must not get caught up with fools.
1Jn 2:15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
1Jn 2:16 For all that
is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride
of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.
1Jn 2:17 And the
world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God
abideth for ever.
As we see into the realm of the LGBTQ movement, fools scoff at the concept of feeling guilty for their sins and the need for atonement.
This applies to every person on this earth!
They deny the need to repent of their sins!
They deny that their lifestyle is living in sin and refuse to repent.
1Jn 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1Jn 1:10 If we say
that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
There can be no righteousness unless we fully accept our accountability to God and are grateful for His mercy and His grace.
God made a way for us to escape His wrath, and we must do the things He has commanded us to do to be saved.
*****Pro 14:10 The heart knoweth his own bitterness; and a stranger doth not intermeddle with his joy.
Neither our joys nor our sorrows can be wholly shared with another person.
No one can know how we truly feel, to feel that which we feel.
It is only our Lord Jesus Christ who can know these things about us.
2Co 1:3 Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort;
2Co 1:4 Who
comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which
are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.
2Co 1:5 For as the
sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ.
This is the exact reason He took on that body of flesh, so He could know exactly how we feel in terrible or even joyous situations.
We can be sure that as Christians, we will experience great times of joy, but we will also experience those times of mourning and heart pain.
Those who love us and love the Lord will give us room to go through these times and be ready to come to our aid if we request their help.
If we are in a Bible believing church, we can be sure that if we are going through some situation, there is someone in that church who has been through a similar situation, and this person will know the comfort that came from God when they needed it.
It is only Jesus Christ who knows the truth about us!
Isa 53:3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
Isa 53:4 Surely he
hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken,
smitten of God, and afflicted.
Isa 53:5 But he was
wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the
chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
We should have a routine that starts with the Lord every day to prepare ourselves to go out into this wicked world.
We need that hedge of protection that God provides if we are His children!
We need to spend some time in the Word of God.
We certainly need to spend some time in conversation with God.
We must consistently walk in obedience to the Word of God all day.
We must not only avoid evil but also avoid looking like we are taking part in any evil or wickedness in this world we have become strangers to.
*****Pro 14:11 The house of the wicked shall be overthrown but the tabernacle of the upright shall flourish.
Pro 14:12 There is a
way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.
Pro 14:13 Even in
laughter the heart is sorrowful; and the end of that mirth is heaviness.
Pro 14:14 The
backslider in heart shall be filled with his own ways: and a good man shall be
satisfied from himself.
Pro 14:15 The simple
believeth every word: but the prudent man looketh well to his going.
We must prepare for our own end.
We must prepare for what will occur when our lives on this earth are over.
We must prepare to meet our God!
When our heart beats for the last time and our living spirit leaves our body of dirt, every individual will meet God in judgment.
Heb_9:27 And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:
Ecc 12:7 Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.
Ecc 12:14 For God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil.
Those who do not know the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior, their body is just a house.
Those who have given their heart to the Lord Jesus, their body is a Tabernacle.
A house is a permanent dwelling; a Tabernacle is just a temporary dwelling place.
A house is a place for those who are settled, a tent or
tabernacle is a place for those on a journey.
A house is more stable than a tent.
A house is of earthly value and more expensive than a tent.
To those who are lost, a house is more desirable, but the Word of God does not agree.
An earthly house is the best a lost person can hope for.
When they reach the end of their days without the Lord, that earthly house is destroyed, and they are homeless throughout eternity.
That soul that cannot die will spend eternity in Hell.
Those who love the Lord know their flesh is no more than a tent, and this life is only part of our journey, and we are only passing through this world to get to our permanent home in God's New Heaven.
2Co 5:1 For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.
Those who are lost trust in their own judgment, which will lead to eternal torment and eternal death!
Those who love the Lord Jesus trust in God's way, the way that leads to true life, which is eternal life!
It is a tragic mistake to believe that there is no God who is our Creator, and we have to abide by His Word.
All those who are deceived have been deceived by Mohammed, Buddha, Confucius, and Shintoism, and the Dalai Lama, Joseph Smith, Charles Russel, and L. Ron Hubbard, and any salvation by works.
Even those who are atheists have been deceived.
Rom 1:28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;
Rom 1:29 Being filled
with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness;
full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers,
Rom 1:30 Backbiters,
haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things,
disobedient to parents,
Rom 1:31 Without
understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable,
unmerciful:
Rom 1:32 Who knowing
the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death,
not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.
We may all travel the mountains and the valleys of this world, but to God's children, He will travel with them, and He is always ready to take them home at the end of that last breath here in this world.
These things are not true for all the others who reject the Lord Jesus Christ.
These things are serious and not things that can be laughed at.
The backslider in heart is the one who turns away from God, and he will reap the rewards of his wickedness: Pro 1:31 Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices.
Pro 1:32 For the
turning away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall
destroy them.
We must understand that we will reap what we have sown while we are in these earthly bodies!
The backsliders are those people who seem to follow the Lord Jesus, but in their hearts, they have completely turned away from God.
1Jn 2:18 Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time.
1Jn 2:19 They went
out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no
doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made
manifest that they were not all of us.
With the wisdom of God, we can take thought of our actions before we face them.
Those without God will believe anything and follow anything.
Even as Christians, it may be hard to see the concept of eternity, but it is real.
How we spend eternity depends upon what we have done with the Lord Jesus Christ.
If we are wise, we have prepared for eternity by believing the truth of God and accepting the Lord Jesus Christ as our personal Savior.
It is the Lord Jesus Christ who opened Heaven's doors to accept those who have placed their faith in the Gospel.
The ones we are to reach with the Gospel are not the ones who have rejected the Gospel many times, but the ones we are to reach are those who have never heard the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
*****Pro 14:16 A wise man feareth, and departeth from evil: but the fool rageth, and is confident.
Pro 14:17 He that is
soon angry dealeth foolishly: and a man of wicked devices is hated.
Pro 14:18 The simple
inherit folly: but the prudent are crowned with knowledge.
Pro 14:19 The evil
bow before the good; and the wicked at the gates of the righteous.
Pro 14:20 The poor is
hated even of his own neighbour: but the rich hath many friends.
Pro 14:21 He that
despiseth his neighbour sinneth: but he that hath mercy on the poor, happy is
he.
We all know that things are going on in this world and in the heavens that we just do not understand.
We have seen things discovered that no one can explain.
Those who believe in the evolution theory have us all beginning as apes.
They have simple-minded people who could do nothing more
than hunt game and raise a few crops just to survive.
God says that from the beginning of time, humans were city builders.
Gen 4:17 And Cain knew his wife; and she conceived, and bare Enoch: and he builded a city, and called the name of the city, after the name of his son, Enoch.
Gen 4:21 And his brother's name was Jubal: he was the father of all such as handle the harp and organ.
Gen 4:22 And Zillah,
she also bare Tubalcain, an instructer of every artificer in brass and iron:
and the sister of Tubalcain was Naamah.
We also know that after the great flood of this world, all the pyramids and ziggurats were built.
Gen 10:32 These are the families of the sons of Noah, after their generations, in their nations: and by these were the nations divided in the earth after the flood.
Gen 11:4 And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.
Gen 11:8 So the LORD scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city.
Gen 11:9 Therefore is
the name of it called Babel; because the LORD did there confound the language
of all the earth: and from thence did the LORD scatter them abroad upon the
face of all the earth.
These things can be denied, but it does not make them any less true.
Humans have always been able to build things!
We who know the Lord fear sin because we now know the consequences of sin.
Those who are fools are reckless and self-confident.
Pro 3:7 Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil.
Foolish people are quick-tempered and do not try to control their tempers.
I know because I was one of them.
Even later, with PTSD, I became worse, but the Lord Jesus has shown me the way out.
Ecc 7:9 Be not hasty in thy spirit to be angry: for anger resteth in the bosom of fools.
A fool is someone who has heard that there may be a God who is our Creator, but they will not take the time to find out more about Him.
This is part of our sin nature we inherited from Adam. We are foolish by nature.
We can quit being foolish by choosing the "Fear of the Lord".
The Word of God is our "hedge of protection" if we abide by it!
We must understand that the Devil will certainly bow before God on the day God chooses.
Evil will bow before the Church at God's appointed time.
Evil will only profit in the world we live in now, but there is no evil in our future once God takes us home.
Rom 16:20 And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.
As the Church, we are to see every soul as equal.
The rich may have many friends, but those friends are only there because of their wealth, and they all hate the poor man.
It is not to be this way in the Church of the Living God!
The Church will not be blessed unless the Church has "mercy" on the poor.
The poor are all those who have need of help financially and spiritually.
Psa 41:1 Blessed is he that considereth the poor: the LORD will deliver him in time of trouble.
The ways of the world will make us angry, but we are to do our best not to follow the ways of this world.
*****Pro 14:29 He that is slow to wrath is of great understanding: but he that is hasty of spirit exalteth folly.
Pro 14:30 A sound
heart is the life of the flesh: but envy the rottenness of the bones.
Pro 14:31 He that
oppresseth the poor reproacheth his Maker: but he that honoureth him hath mercy
on the poor.
It is not a sin to become angry; it is a sin to remain angry.
By remaining angry, we become fools: Ecc 7:9 Be not hasty in thy spirit to be angry: for anger resteth in the bosom of fools.
It is called self-control; it could also be called being sober.
Self-restraint means we are never to disregard the feelings of others.
We cannot remain healthy without a healthy heart.
He has a healthy heart, morally and physically, and is not cluttered up with anger issues.
Pro_4:23 Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.
Envy will eat away at our strength like heart disease and cancer eat away at our lives.
Envy is like a deadly plague trying to destroy our nation.
To oppress is to offer violence to the bodies, to the property, or to the conscience of others.
This happens to the poor more than it happens to any other group, though the oppression of Christ is rising in this world.
We can also see that protests have become nothing but a means to oppress those who do not agree with the agenda that is being pushed on them.
We can see that these things bring on the wrath of our Maker, our Creator.
No one has the right to oppress someone else in this world, and this includes wicked governments.
1Jn 3:17 But whoso hath this world's good, and seeth his brother have need, and shutteth up his bowels of compassion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?
1Jn 3:18 My little
children, let us not love in word, neither in tongue; but in deed and in truth.
Those who are wicked do not even realize what is in store for them!
***** Pro 14:32 The wicked is driven away in his wickedness: but the righteous hath hope in his death.
Pro 14:33 Wisdom
resteth in the heart of him that hath understanding: but that which is in the
midst of fools is made known.
Pro 14:34
Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people.
Pro 14:35 The king's
favour is toward a wise servant: but his wrath is against him that causeth
shame.
Once we claim the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior with all our hearts, our future is set in stone. It cannot change!
We can live in peace knowing that no matter when death comes our way, it means life.
As Christians, we can look death right in the his face and say: 1Co 15:55 O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?
Psa 23:4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
Those who reject the Gospel have no such hope. They may not believe in Hell, but they are in for a rude awakening on the day of their death.
Luk 16:23 And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom.
Luk 16:24 And he
cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may
dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in
this flame.
Our nation cannot prosper through the drug trade.
Our nation cannot prosper through lawlessness.
Our nation cannot prosper through corruption.
Our nation cannot prosper through immorality.
Our nation cannot prosper through spending more than it
takes in.
Our nation cannot prosper through the profits of sin.
