• Intro tension
  • Building a foundation on a house. SO IMPORTANT! Everything has got to be right for the sake of the longevity of a structure.
    • House in Nigeria with too much sand in the foundation. 
    • Not deep enough.
    • Not level. 
    • If you are going to build a house or a life of wisdom, THE FEAR OF THE LORD IS THE BEGINNING OF WISDOM! 
    • Today we are going to explore the most fundamental and gateway component of wisdom, which is the fear of the Lord 
    • Wisdom hasn’t begun, or is not in place, when there is no fear of the Lord. If you want to be truly wise, you must start right here! 
  • Preface on the biblical meaning of the fear of the Lord
    • What fear really means - Sometimes the word means dread or fright, but when used about God it always has the connotation of reverence, awe, submission, acknowledgement. 

Passages:

• Psalm 111:10 (ESV) — 10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice it have a good understanding. His praise endures forever!
• Proverbs 9:10 (ESV) — 10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.
• Proverbs 15:33 (ESV) — 33 The fear of the LORD is instruction in wisdom, and humility comes before honor.

Body 

1. See Clearly 
   1. Brief explanation - Has to do with acknowledging His true identity, revering it, refusing to make Him small in your eyes
   2. The fear of the Lord begins with how you see Him.
      1. Your perspective of who He is
      2. How you choose to see Him
      3. Your choice! How you see Him is left up to you.
      4. I want to offer this advice - 
   3. Be Careful of Casual - Paint casual as the danger zone
   4. Glimpses of Glory 
      1. Moses at Sinai
      2. The priests at the dedication of Solomon’s Temple
      3. Isaiah’s vision of the Lord
      4. Ezekiel’s vision of God’s glory
      5. John’s encounter with the risen Christ
   5. Reverence, awe, respect
      1. Reverence - Make Him Holy in your eyes
         1. “may your name be kept holy”
      2. Awe - Remain awestruck by Him
      3. Respect - Choose to deeply respect who He is
   6. Example of people making cartoons of God
   7. Ask God to help you see Him in the following way
      1. See Him as the Word Describes Him
         1. Properly see Him - Creator, Savior, Judge - You will give an account to Him
      2. See Him through the veil and with eyes of faith
         1. Importance of revelation - Ask Him to reveal His glory - Like Moses did
         2. A King in a different country, without his royalty, how will you treat him?
2. Worship Regularly  
   1. Brief explanation - Through making the journey to worship Him, bringing a sacrifice, morning and evening sacrifice, etc. God oriented life
   2. God Centering
      1. One of the greatest things you should be grateful for is the SUN
         1. Without the sun, instant death.
         2. Grateful we revolve around it.
         3. Everything is kind of based upon our relationship with it. 
         4. Day and Night, seasons, planting and harvest, warmth
      2. Another thing to be grateful for is is HOME
         1. Each day you leave, but thank God you have a place to eat, sleep, shower, and gather yourself. 
      3. The way to really fear the Lord is to CENTER YOUR ENTIRE LIFE AROUND GOD
   3. The way to God-Center is Worship Regularly:
   4. Learning the rhythm of fearing the Lord - Deuteronomy 4:10 (NLT) — 10 Never forget the day when you stood before the LORD your God at Mount Sinai, where he told me, ‘Summon the people before me, and I will personally instruct them. Then they will learn to fear me as long as they live, and they will teach their children to fear me also.’
   5. The Israelites learned to fear the Lord mostly by living God-centric lives
      1. Sabbath
      2. Daily prayer
      3. Torah
      4. Household discipleship
      5. Feasts and Festivals
      6. Tithes and offerings
   6. How to practically live a God-oriented life
      1. First in time - Starting day with prayer; Starting week with word
      2. First in Finances - Sacrificing to the Lord and giving Him a tenth
      3. First in Passion - Allowing Him to get your premiere passion
3. Obey Completely 
   1. Brief explanation - Not independence, closeness not drifting, trembling at His Word.
   2. The greatest indicator that you walk in the fear of the Lord is if you obey Him
      1. Isaiah 66:2 (NLT) — 2 My hands have made both heaven and earth; they and everything in them are mine. I, the LORD, have spoken! “I will bless those who have humble and contrite hearts, who tremble at my word.
   3. God equates LOVE with OBEDIENCE!
      1. Most human love is horizontal and proven with words of affirmation, gifts, acts of service, quality time... but love for God is vertical and is proven through obedience.
      2. Creator>Creation; King>Servant; Father>Child
      3. John 14:15 (NLT) — 15 “If you love me, obey my commandments.
      4. John 14:21 (NLT) — 21 Those who accept my commandments and obey them are the ones who love me. And because they love me, my Father will love them. And I will love them and reveal myself to each of them.
   4. God equates FEAR of Him with OBEDIENCE
      1. Abraham was told to leave His Father and mother; move camps; separate from Lot; over and over he obeyed, but then came the ultimate test of if he feared the Lord:
      2. Genesis 22:12 (NLT) — 12 “Don’t lay a hand on the boy!” the angel said. “Do not hurt him in any way, for now I know that you truly fear God. You have not withheld from me even your son, your only son.”
   5. So, if you want to Fear the Lord and truly Love Him
      1. Live an obedient life
      2. Don’t see yourself as independent or autonomous, but completely submitted
      3. Confront areas in your life where you view His commands and recommendations. 
4. Reap Abundantly 
   1. Brief explanation - When you see Him clearly, worship Him regularly, obey Him completely, and fear Him deeply—you will reap abundantly.
   2. Let’s explore the beautiful promises that come when we fear the Lord
      1. Protection - Psalm 34:7 (NLT) — 7 For the angel of the LORD is a guard; he surrounds and defends all who fear him.
      2. Provision - Psalm 34:9 (NLT) — 9 Fear the LORD, you his godly people, for those who fear him will have all they need.
      3. Wisdom - Psalm 25:12 (NLT) — 12 Who are those who fear the LORD? He will show them the path they should choose.
      4. Mercy and love  - Psalm 103:11 (NLT) — 11 For his unfailing love toward those who fear him is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth.
      5. Household blessing Psalm 128:1–4 (NLT) — 1 How joyful are those who fear the LORD— all who follow his ways! 2 You will enjoy the fruit of your labor. How joyful and prosperous you will be! 3 Your wife will be like a fruitful grapevine, flourishing within your home. Your children will be like vigorous young olive trees as they sit around your table.
      6. Prosperity and honor - Proverbs 22:4 (NLT) — 4 True humility and fear of the LORD lead to riches, honor, and long life.
   3. The best one - Psalm 25:14 (ESV) — 14 The friendship of the LORD is for those who fear him, and he makes known to them his covenant.
   4. He will show His glory to those that fear Him
   5. John Bevere wrote a book entitled - “The Fear of the Lord” - story of Brazil conference
      1. The casual mentality won’t do it. 
      2. Reverence is the way
      3. God’s centering is the way
      4. Obeying is the way

Prayer - God OPEN MY EYES, help me to CENTER MY LIFE AROUND YOU, help us ALIGN TO YOUR WILL, we want to walk in the Fear of the Lord.