{"id":1616,"date":"2023-09-23T22:31:08","date_gmt":"2023-09-23T22:31:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/fbcmstq.org\/?p=1616"},"modified":"2023-09-23T22:31:12","modified_gmt":"2023-09-23T22:31:12","slug":"love-of-god-fear-of-god","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/fbcmstq.org\/?p=1616","title":{"rendered":"\u00ad\u00adLove of God; Fear of God"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Throughout the Bible we come across the expression fear of the Lord. It no doubt refers to a complex aspect of life and is far from simple. For a few thoughts on it, see \u201cWho Do You Fear?<\/a>\u201d. Clearly, it is meant to play a significant role in life. If not, why does it appear so often? Alongside this \u201cfear of the Lord,\u201d another prominent idea emerges throughout Scripture: love for God. How do fear and love of God relate?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A bar magnet<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Maybe the fear of the Lord and love of the Lord work kind of like this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Envision a bar magnet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"bar<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

As you know, a magnet has two distinct magnetic poles: the north pole and the south pole. As any kid can tell you, opposite poles attract and like poles repel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"opposite<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

So far, so good. Magnets attract and repel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As you certainly know, this is why traditional compasses work. The magnetized needle interacts with the magnetic field of the earth, attracted by one pole and repulsed by the other, making it move.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Love and Fear Magnet<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Now let’s take this magnet and put love of God on the north end and fear of the Lord on the southern end.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"bar<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

To complete the image, we need to add one more piece to our metaphor: a compass. Look at this video and pay attention to how the magnet interacts with the compass.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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