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Psalm 111 1 Hallelujah! I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart, 2 Great are the deeds of the Lord! 3 His work is full of majesty and splendor, 4 He makes his marvelous works to be remembered; 5 He gives food to those who fear him; 6 He has shown his people the power of his works 7 The works of his hands are faithfulness and justice; 8 They stand fast for ever and ever, 9 He sent redemption to his people; 10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; This year, Monday Matters will focus on wisdom conveyed in the treasures of the book of Psalms. We’ll look at the psalms read in church before Monday Matters comes to your screen. |
Fear and Love
When I worked in the creative department of an ad agency, one of the principals of the agency instructed us that there were only two motivators in advertising: love or fear. From a secular setting came a message with theological implications.
Fast forward to a few years later when I was leading a bible study, prattling on about love and its opposite hate. One member of our group interrupted. No, actually offered a course correction. She said: “You know, Jay, the opposite of love is not hate. The opposite of love is fear.” I’ve thought about that insight often, recognizing that in the history of religion, fear has been a great motivator. It’s not just true in religion. Our politics in this election year are driven in many ways by fear.
I’m told that in scripture, the phrase “fear not” appears 365 times. So what does it mean when we read in yesterday’s psalm (see above) that the fear of the Lord is a good thing, the beginning of wisdom. A mentor once told me that in the journey of faith, we have to decide what we believe and what we refuse to believe. I’ll refuse to believe that this psalm which references the fear of the Lord indicates a God who delights in our punishment. Do what God says, or else.
Given that, what might the fear of the Lord mean? I suspect in this context it has to do with the recognition that our lives unfold in the presence of a power greater than ourselves, leading us to reclaim the true sense of the word “awesome.” I forget that insight often. We forget that insight at our spiritual peril. We face the temptation to imagine we are the star of the story, with the implication that God is lucky to have us on the team. We too readily give into the temptation to worship things not worthy of our devotion, giving our hearts to that which will not satisfy our hearts. It’s a story as old as the Bible and as contemporary as our current political scene.
It’s why worship is such an important element of our faith journey, as we gather to praise God from whom all blessings flow, to be reminded that God is the creator, the source of light and life. And our worship is not only what we do on Sunday morning. As the Prayer Book notes, we worship not only with our lips but with our lives. As we commit to a life of service, we do so in response to God’s goodness, a sacrifice of thanksgiving. We do so in the spirit of the fear of the Lord.
This interpretation of the fear of the Lord means that love need not be the opposite of fear. In fact, the fear of the Lord understood in the true meaning of awesome reminds us of this important truth: Nothing can separate us from the love of God. That kind of amazing grace can be awe-inspiring, leading us to respond with love of God and love of neighbor.
The psalm tells us that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. It’s the starting point. Wisdom is more than simply knowledge. Knowledge you can get from Google. We are set on a journey marked by wisdom. What can we do this week to take steps in that wisdom journey? Where do we begin? It begins with spending time thinking about the fear of the Lord, recognizing that it has everything to do with love.
–Jay Sidebotham
