Psalms 112:1
Blessed the man who fears the LORD, who greatly delights in his commands.
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The fear of the Lord, one of the gifts of the Holy Spirit, is a different kind of fear. It is defined as “filial fear”. This gift is described by St. Thomas Aquinas as a fear of separating oneself from God.
It is the fear of offending someone whom we love. So, as we grow in our Christian life, our servile fear is continually being replaced by filial fear.
If before, we fear Him because we do not want to be punished, we are being converted to be a person who do not want to commit sin anymore. We fear that committing sin would separate us from Him. Filial fear sees sin as more “evil” than the punishment that comes from sin.
With the gift of fear of the Lord, we are aware of the glory and majesty of God. A person becomes aware that God is the perfection of all we desire: perfect knowledge, perfect goodness, perfect power, and perfect love.
Fear of the Lord does not equate to being afraid of Him. This gift fills us with a sovereign respect for God that we avoid sin. But it should not prevent us from using our talents to the betterment of our fellowmen. This is not a fear that leads one to despair, rather it must be coupled with trust, and most importantly, love.
If we fear anything other than God, we are deceived. God is the only thing in the universe worthy of fear.
Let us serve God with thankfulness in the ways which please him, but always with reverence and holy fear.
Let us pray +
Almighty Father, let me fear You. Not fear in the human sense of the word – but a fear that recognizes You are my God – and helps me to realize I do not have to run and hide. You are love, Oh God and until the day I die I will stand in awe that You willingly came looking for me. Amen +
The heart of the just one is firm, trusting in the Lord.
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