THE FEAR OF THE LORD (1)

INTRODUCTIONThere is a difference between knowledge and wisdom. Knowledge is the accumulation of facts. Understanding is knowing how to apply the facts. Wisdom is knowing how to apply the facts at the right time, in the right place, and for the right people. You can have knowledge without wisdom.Where does wisdom come from? Solomon's answer is shocking in its simplicity and depth."The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction” Proverbs 1:7.And Proverbs 9:10 reads:"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding."The fear of the Lord is where wisdom begins.THE DEFINITION OF THE FEAR OF THE LORDWhat is the fear of the Lord? It is not terror. It is not cowering before an angry deity, waiting for the lightning bolt to strike. If you are in Christ, you are not under wrath. Romans 8:1 says, "There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus." The cross has removed the terror of punishment.The fear of the Lord is “reverent submission” to the living Heavenly Father. It is the posture of a child before a Father who is infinitely wise, infinitely good, and infinitely powerful.Moses puts it this way in Deuteronomy 10:12–13:"And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways and to love Him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the commandments of the Lord and His statutes which I command you today for your good?"Moses defines the fear of the Lord not as an emotion but as a way of life: walking in His ways, loving Him, serving Him, keeping His commandments. The fear of the Lord is a lifestyle.It is the opposite of complete independence from God, saying, "I am the captain of my soul. I will decide what is right and wrong. I will determine my own path." The fear of the Lord says, "God is God, and I am not. His ways are higher than my ways. His thoughts are higher than my thoughts. I will seek His truth."As children of the Heavenly Father, we should be like filial children. Filial fear of the Father is the reverent awe of a child before a Father whom he loves, respects, and obeys. Under the New Covenant, made possible by the blood of Jesus, we relate to God primarily through filial fear.The fear of the Lord is the trembling awareness that you are in the presence of an infinite Almighty God – and that He loves you. It is the combination of awe and affection. It is the recognition that God is terrifying in His greatness and tender in His grace. And that combination produces humility.THE FUNCTION OF THE FEAR OF THE LORDSolomon says the fear of the Lord is the “beginning” of knowledge and wisdom. The Hebrew word for "beginning" is “reshith”. It can mean "starting point," but it can also mean "chief part" or "foundation." The fear of the Lord is both the starting line and the structural foundation of wisdom.Think of it like this: wisdom is a house. The fear of the Lord is the foundation. You can build a house without a foundation, but it will not stand when the storm comes. You can pursue knowledge without the fear of the Lord, but it will not produce wisdom. It will produce cleverness, perhaps. It will produce expertise, maybe. But it will not acquire God’s wisdom for living.That is why medieval universities were built on theology. They understood that all knowledge must be rooted in the knowledge of God, or it becomes dangerous. When science is divorced from the fear of God, it produces atomic bombs and biological weapons. When economics is divorced from the fear of God, it produces exploitation and greed. When psychology is divorced from the fear of God, it produces self-obsession and identity confusion.The fear of the Lord is the moral compass that orients all other knowledge. Without it, knowledge is directionless. Without it, intelligence is a weapon without a conscience.And notice the second half of Proverbs 1:7: "But fools despise wisdom and instruction." The contrast is intentional. The wise person fears the Lord. The fool despises instruction. The two are opposites. You cannot fear God and despise His Word. You cannot revere His name and reject His commands.The fear of the Lord functions as a filter. It filters out the foolishness that masquerades as wisdom in our culture. It filters out voices that tell you to follow your heart, live your truth, and do what feels right.Rev. Cheong Yew KwongFaith Church SingaporePlease visit our website at faithchurch.sg#goodtoread ... See MoreSee Less

敬畏神 (一)

引言知识有别于智慧：前者是事实的积累，悟性是知道如何运用这些事实，而后者则是知道在正确的时间、正确的地方，对正确的人运用这些事实。你可以有知识，却没有智慧。智慧从哪儿来？所罗门的回答简单得令人惊讶，又深刻得令人震撼。“敬畏耶和华是知识的开端，愚妄人藐视智慧和训诲。”箴言 1:7箴言9章10节说：“敬畏耶和华是智慧的开端，认识至圣者便是聪明。”智慧始于对神的敬畏。“敬畏神”的定义什么是敬畏耶和华？它不是恐惧。不是在一位发怒的神面前畏畏缩缩，等着闪电劈下来。如果你在基督督里，你就不在神的震怒之下。罗马书8章1节说：“如今那些在基督耶稣里的就不定罪了。”刑罚的恐惧已经被十字架除去了。敬畏耶和华，是对这位又真又活的天父“存敬畏的心顺服”。它是一个孩子在一位无限智慧、无限良善、无限大能的天父面前的姿态。摩西在申命记10章12到13节这样说：“以色列啊，现在耶和华你神向你所要的是什么呢？只要你敬畏耶和华你的神，遵行祂的道，爱祂，尽心尽性事奉祂，遵守祂的诫命律例，就是我今日所吩咐你的，为要叫你得福。”摩西把敬畏耶和华定义为一种生活方式，而不是一种情绪：遵行祂的道，爱祂，事奉祂，遵守祂的诫命。敬畏耶和华是一种生活方式。它与那种完全脱离神的生活恰恰相反 —— 那种生活说：“我是我灵魂的船长。我自己决定什么是对、什么是错。我自己定义我的路。”而敬畏耶和华的人则说：“神是神，我不是神。祂的道路高过我的道路，祂的意念高过我的意念。我要寻求祂的真理。”作为天父的儿女，我们应当做孝顺的孩子。那么，对天父的孝顺和敬畏，就是一个孩子站在他所爱、所尊敬、所顺服的父亲面前，那种肃然起敬的庄重。在耶稣宝血所成就的新约下，我们与神相交的首要态度就是这种孝顺与敬畏。敬畏耶和华，是存着战兢的心，晓得自己正站在无限全能的神面前，并且知道祂爱你。这是敬畏与爱慕交织的心境。我们认识到：神的伟大令人肃然生畏，祂的恩典却满有温柔。这份又敬又爱的态度，会使我们生出谦卑。敬畏神的功用所罗门说，敬畏耶和华是知识与智慧的“开端”。希伯来文中表示“开端”的词是reshith，它既可指起点，也可指“主要的部分”或“根基”。敬畏耶和华，既是智慧的起跑线，也是支撑智慧的根基。你可以这样来理解：智慧如同房屋，敬畏耶和华就是地基。没有地基，房子虽能搭建，风暴一来却无法屹立。人可以不存敬畏耶和华的心去追求知识，但这生不出智慧。或许能换来小聪明，或许能习得专业技能，却无法得到神为你的生活所赐的智慧。这就是为什么中世纪的大学都以神学为根基。当时的人明白，一切知识都必须扎根于对神的认识，否则就会带来危害。科学脱离了对神的敬畏，就会催生原子弹与生化武器；经济学脱离了对神的敬畏，就会滋生剥削与贪婪；心理学脱离了对神的敬畏，就会造成自我沉溺与身份混乱。敬畏耶和华是道德的指南针，为一切其他知识指引方向。没了它，知识便失去方向；没了它，才智就沦为没有良知的武器。注意箴言1章7节的后半句：“愚妄人藐视智慧和训诲。”这一处对比是有意为之。智慧人敬畏耶和华，愚妄人藐视训诲，二者截然相反。人不可能既敬畏神，又藐视祂的话语；不可能既敬重祂的名，又拒绝祂的诫命。对耶和华的敬畏如同一张滤网，滤去我们文化中那些伪装成智慧的愚妄，也滤去那些叫你跟随内心、做真实的自己、跟着感觉走的声音。张耀光牧师 新加坡信心教会请访问我们的中文播客,faithchurch.sg/牧师手札/#牧师手札 ... See MoreSee Less