Proverbs 9:10

10 “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,
And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.

Proverbs 15:33 

33 The fear of the Lord is the instruction of wisdom,
And before honor is humility.

Proverbs 19:23 

23 The fear of the Lord leads to life,
And he who has it will abide in satisfaction;
He will not be visited with evil.

It is that time of year again–the most “wonderful time of the year,” as the song goes: 

It's the most wonderful time of the year
With the kids jingle belling
And everyone telling you be of good cheer
It's the most wonderful time of the year

As I write this, it is once again the Advent season and Christmas is but a few days away. Somewhere Andy Williams is crooning these words–in a warm home, or piped in muzak in a busy store, or on a radio station that plays Top-40 hits the other eleven months of the year. 

Advent and Christmas are when all of the western world turns its eyes to traditions surrounding the celebration of the birth of Christ. A believer can marvel that a culture that seems to spend much of its energy upending social norms, the natural order of gender, faith, and even the sanctity of life–will give itself over with wild abandon to proclaim Jesus’s birth. 

There are many reasons to become cynical about the commercialization of this holiday season, and the insincerity of the faith of millions who may be simply repeating tradition with no thought to the why, or an understanding of who is actually in that manger, whom shepherds guard, and angels sing…

It may be better to rejoice and be glad that the world pauses to honor the birth of the King of Kings, whether they know it or not. For you as a believer, these times are rich in meaning and sensation. Whether your memories of Christmas are good or bad, you cannot help but be directed to the source. Like Phil Keaggy’s beautiful song of Christmas remembrance:

I loved the times the family gathered round
Brothers and sisters, good cheer to be found
Mother with her smile and daddy so proud
Crosby on the hi-fi, we're a merry crowd
But when I think of the best Christmas morn

When I think of the best Christmas morn
Twas the day that Jesus Christ was born 

There is another song associated with this time of year that is beautifully sung by a young Jewish girl who has just received wonderful, almost unbelievable news:

46 “My soul magnifies the Lord,
47 And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.
48 For He has regarded the lowly state of His maidservant;
For behold, henceforth all generations will call me blessed.–Luke 1:46b-48  

This is the song of Mary, for she has just learned that she will bear a child who will be the messiah. Not only that, she is a virgin and the news comes by angel herald. This song–called the Magnificat from the latin–is one of several songs in Luke’s gospel, and this one hearkens back to the book of Proverbs. Mary sings: 

49 For He who is mighty has done great things for me,
And holy is His name. 
50 And His mercy is on those who fear Him
From generation to generation.–Luke 1:49-50 

Here, at the nativity–at Christmas–is an echo of Solomon’s words concerning the “Fear of the Lord.” All of the singing in Luke–Zachariah’s Benedictus, Simeon’s nunc dimittis, and the song of the angels to the shepherds–are canticles of hearts filled with joy and emotion of seeing God at work, of knowing the Fear of the Lord. 

What really is this fear? We have talked about it a few times in this study. Fear of the Lord is the “beginning of knowledge” (Proverbs 1:7), it is hating evil and overcoming earthly fears (Proverbs 8:15).  

Solomon, though Lady Wisdom completes his prologue to the book with another call to know the Fear of the Lord–and with it he reveals this heart-song of the child of God: 

10 “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,
And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.–Proverbs 9:10

The Fear of the Lord is a unique phrase that speaks deeply of your spiritual condition. As commentator Bruce Waltke says, the key that opens the door to understanding Proverbs. 

The Hebrew here is יִרְאַ֣ת יְהוָ֑ה (Yir’at yhwh), or literally, “fear of I AM.” For you and I to understand it English risks some meaning lost in translation. This is no ordinary fear. This is no ordinary God. Waltke explains:

For example one will not understand “butterfly” by analyzing “butter” and “fly” independently. So also the “fear of I AM” cannot be understood analyzing “fear” and “I AM” separately. The expression is a compound. “Fear of I AM” involves both rational and non-rational aspects simultaneously.–Waltke, “Proverbs” 

The expression is a “collocation,” says Waltke, a combination of words with unique meaning. It can be taught rationally (Psalm 34:11) and understood psychologically:

33 The fear of the Lord is the instruction of wisdom,
And before honor is humility.–Proverbs 15:33 

Here, Fear of I AM and humility are parallel terms. This humility before God is the true understanding of “Fear of the Lord.”

In the magnificat, Mary sings her understanding of the Bible. Her humility shows through it all, and like Alistair Begg suggests, is a testimony to the teaching of her parents. She is a humble girl, instructed in the wisdom of Proverbs (just as a young Jesus will be), and understands her place before the God who is I AM.

The humility of Mary, then, shows that key to understanding the Fear of I AM. It is not a craven or earthly fear, but instead it is something far deeper and related to the understanding of the nature of God and your place before him. As Burk Parsons writes:

As Christians, we don’t have a servile, cowering, slave-like fear of the Lord. Rather, we have a filial, reverential, humble fear of the Lord. The gospel is the difference between being afraid of God and fearing God.–Burk Parsons 

This humble Fear of I AM is at the heart the gospel, as Tim Keller reveals:

The difference between a slavish, self–interested fear and the true fear of the lord is the difference between a mere moralist and a real question. There is no wise living unless we have a relationship with him, one in which we will be him out of love for who he is.–Tim Keller, “God’s Wisdom for Navigating Life”

Mary, as Solomon would have been pleased to see, encounters God’s holiness and immediately knows her place before Him–and this tunes her song…and her life.

Do you fear God? Is His holiness real to you, or is life still centered in so many ways around yourself and your own importance. Even the most sincere Christians struggle with this, for this world and the culture around you is focused on you and your needs. Advertisers cater to your preferences, the algorithms on social media bring you topics that interest you, and always in your mind you are trying to order the chaos of this life in a direction that most suits you and your family.   

In all of this it is easy to lose the Fear of I AM. As you focus on yourself, you lose focus on God, and with it the consequences of sin and selfishness. Burk Parsons reminds believers that this is not a new issue:

One of the most severe indictments the Apostle Paul ever leveled against humanity is that “there is no fear of God before their eyes” (Romans 3:18).–Burk Parsons

When a people loses its Fear of I AM the wrath of God will be kindled against them. And if the church loses its Fear of I AM God’s sheep will be led astray: 

Many pastors not only avoid talking about the fear of God, but they also avoid talking about anything that would give people a reason to fear God. They avoid any mention of sin, hell, and condemnation. What’s more, they avoid all talk of the holiness, wrath, and sovereignty of God.–Burk Parsons 

God will exalt the humble, but He will also bring down the proud.

The season of Advent is a blessed time of beauty, joy, and anticipation. But not just for a happy holiday, or even just to marvel at the baby Jesus in the manger. You must never forget why Jesus came, for He was sent as a propitiation for our sins–to satisfy the law and take the wrath of the Father for our sins. 

God sent His Son to save us from Himself.  

Advent is also a time of repentance and anticipation of Jesus’s second coming, and a call for humble hearts to prepare. This becomes your song of anticipation, your daily joy and refocusing on Him. For as Keller says:

There are, then, only two ways of thinking about life. You could let the Lord be your fear (Isaiah 8:13)–Your Life Center-or something else will be.–Tim Keller  

What is your life-center these days? Is disbelief in God’s grace a root of many of your problems? Or does your life sing daily a song of humility and the Fear of I AM? Tim Keller again explains how you live in light of this holy fear:

A God who accepts only the most moral people will inspire slavish fear of punishment. A God who simply accepts everyone might invoke warm affection. Only a belief that we are lost but really save sinners creates a joyful yet awe-filled assurance of his saving love.–Tim Keller

When Mary receives her wonderful (and perhaps a bit frightening) news she is filled with with this joy and awe. She is perhaps a rare teenager who is not focused on herself, but instead is humble before the Lord. Can you do this? When challenges come your way, or simply when your consider your desires, can you take a back seat to God’s plans and the work of His Spirit?  

God exalts the humble and brings down the proud, and He your consolation. Solomon, like Mary, acknowledges this in the Fear of I AM:  

23 The fear of the Lord leads to life,
And he who has it will abide in satisfaction;
He will not be visited with evil.–Proverbs 19:23

When you are humble before God, He will fill you to satisfaction with His grace and love. What do you hunger for? You hunger for forgiveness, for belonging, for peace, and the good things of this world. Until you are aware of spiritual bankruptcy, then you have no desire to be filled. 

This then is the Fear of I AM. Solomon reveals this as the key to Proverbs and the wisdom itself–and the key to living before an awesome, holy–and in His way–dangerous God. 

There is a wonderful scene in the book “The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe” that illustrates this. The Pevensie children are welcomed into the lodge of Mr. and Mrs. Beaver, who excitedly begin to tell them that Aslan, the lion (and Christ figure of the story) is “on the move:”

“Aslan is a lion- the Lion, the great Lion." "Ooh" said Susan. "I'd thought he was a man. Is he-quite safe? I shall feel rather nervous about meeting a lion"..."Safe?" said Mr Beaver ..."Who said anything about safe? 'Course he isn't safe. But he's good. He's the King, I tell you.”–C.S. Lewis, “The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe”

Living in the Fear of I AM means living before God who is holy, and you are entirely bankrupt before Him. He is far from safe–but He is good–and He has saved you for His glory. Can you sing of His goodness in your life? Can you sing Mary’s song? You will, when through humility, your soul too magnifies the Lord.

The Monday—Friday DEEPs are written by Mike Slay and this Saturday Deep is written by Matt Richardson. To subscribe to all the DEEPs click here:

https://www.ailbe.org/resources/community

The weekly study guides, which include the Monday–Friday devotionals plus related questions for discussion or meditation, are available for download here:

https://www.ailbe.org/resources/itemlist/category/91-deep-studies

Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. ESV stands for the English Standard Version. © Copyright 2001 by Crossway. Used by permission. All rights reserved. NIV stands for The Holy Bible, New International Version®. © Copyright 1973 by International Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. KJV stands for the King James Version.

The Monday—Friday DEEPs are written by Mike Slay and this Saturday Deep is written by Matt Richardson. To subscribe to all the DEEPs click here:

https://www.ailbe.org/resources/community

The weekly study guides, which include the Monday–Friday devotionals plus related questions for discussion or meditation, are available for download here:

https://www.ailbe.org/resources/itemlist/category/91-deep-studies

Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. ESV stands for the English Standard Version. © Copyright 2001 by Crossway. Used by permission. All rights reserved. NIV stands for The Holy Bible, New International Version®. © Copyright 1973 by International Bible Society. Used by permission. All rights reserved. KJV stands for the King James Version.