At the risk of becoming a rip-off artist :-) I am going to post another ‘Myth Buster’ from Don Francisco’s website. I got this in my email this afternoon and couldn’t really think of any better way to say it :-) The only thing I did was add a couple of text references.
For more stuff by my favorite Christian Singer/Songwriter visit www.donfrancisco.com
There is confusion about this concept because there are multiple words for "fear" in both Greek and Hebrew, and many of them are used in both a positive and negative sense. We are told that the fear of God is a good thing (Joshua 24:14), and then we are told that perfect love casts out fear! (1 John 4:18) And in many cases, the original language is using the same word both positively and negatively.
The simple resolution for this is that there is a positive fear, a respect, awe, or "reverence"; and a negative fear, dread, a lack of trust in God.
The reverence of God is a deep aspect of character, a God-given ethic, a way of perceiving and responding to the universe. This "fear of God" causes the humans who possess it to look up at the stars in wonder rather than in despair, to value life, people, and living things. It is a positive world view. The reverence of God lights up our existence, it goads us away from self-destruction. It is the foundation of success for individuals, and it is also the basis for peaceful societies and nations.
The negative aspect of fear is a very different thing. It causes us to freeze up in misunderstanding. Jesus talked about a man who buried his talents because he thought God was a hard master. God loves us and does not want fear to drive us away from Him.
Jesus was a tangible expression of God's love for us and a forgiving response to our sin.
Dead religion is much harder on us than God is. It probably creates most of our fear towards God. We also have a tendency to feel guilty, and guilt brings about fear. The guilt that most Christians feel results from a misunderstanding of the Cross. Jesus died to permanently remove our guilt before God so that we could enjoy a lifelong friendship with Him.
If you are afraid of God because you think you have failed Him, then welcome to the human race. We have all failed Him, and yet He loves us more than we can imagine. Fear melts into awe when we realize the magnificence of what He has done for us.
