Today on the verdict with Pastor John Monroe.
So today, I thought not so much to give an exposition of Daniel 1, but rather. For us to try to understand this important subject of the fear of the Lord, that is foundational for wisdom. If you are to live wisely in a hostile world, It is essential. that you live. in the fear.
of God. This is the verdict: the Bible teaching ministry of Pastor John Monroe. Scripture tells us that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. But in our world today, this concept is rather foreign. Today we'll see that this fear, this reverence, is the foundation for living a wise and skillful life as we're learning from the life of Daniel.
So let's better understand and reclaim this idea.
Now, continuing in Daniel, here's Pastor John Monroe. Today we continue in our study of Daniel. Daniel and some other young Israelites have been taken prisoner by the Babylonians who conquered Jerusalem in 605 BC.
Now, the Babylonians had a very clever strategy for these young Israelis. They were being re-educated so that they could make an impact in Babylon. But The Babylonians did not reckon with the strong faith in God demonstrated by Daniel and his friends. And Daniel and his friends excelled beyond all of their peers and were known for their wisdom and understanding. What was it about these young men that made them so wise?
They lived in the fear of the Lord.
So, let's take a broader view of Daniel 1 and ask what it means to fear the Lord and how to live wisely in a hostile world. Proverbs 9, verse 10: The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. And the knowledge of the Holy One is Insights. Let me read that again. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.
And the knowledge of the Holy One is Insights. Do you understand that the most important aspect of your life? Is your relationship With the Lord. The fear of the Lord, the knowledge of the Holy One. That's wisdom.
That is true insight.
Now let's look at this a little closer to understand this Lord. To fear the Lord, we must understand who the Lord is. He is transcendent. When we say that God is transcendent, we're saying that God is above. And beyond the world, we are in awe of the Creator of our universe.
And that all, that fear of the Lord. It's the beginning. of wisdom. And so we speak of the mystery. And the transcendence of the Lord.
You're in Exodus 3. Look back to the beginning of the chapter. Exodus three, verse one.
Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father in law Jethro, The priests of Midian And he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness, and came to Horeb, The mountain of God. And the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked. And behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. And Moses said, I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned.
When the Lord saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here I am. Then he said, Do not come near. Take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground. And he said, I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.
And Moses hid his face. For he was afraid to look. at God. This burning bush phenomenon is an illustration of the Lord's transcendence. the bush burned with fire.
And yet the bush was not consumed. That defies all laws of science, doesn't it? And the point is that the fuel For the fire is not coming from the bush. There is an independent energy source. The transcendent God never runs out of fuel.
His glory never fades. He is apart from and beyond his creation. He's self-existent and self-sufficient. He is. transcendent.
And this is why We're to live in the fear of the Lord. Don't you want to obey God? I hope you do. And this great eternal God, this I am, sees his people's afflictions. Verse 7, Exodus 3, verse 7.
Then the Lord said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt, and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters. I know their sufferings, and I have. What? Come down. To deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land.
To a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites, and so on. What love? What compassion But this great God, who is transcendent, looks down and he sees his people's affliction. He sees that they are slaves, and he's saying to Moses, I've come down And I'm going to Deliver them. What grace?
What love What compassion! the sovereign lord Of the universe is so huge that the universe can't contain him. That's his transcendence, yet he is present with his people. He is imminent. And in great love this great Lord seeks a personal yes, a personal relationship with his people.
Verse six, I am, not was, I am the God of your father. The God of Abraham. But Abraham has been dead for many, many years. But yes, I am. His gods The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.
This great God seeks a personal relationship with his people in his grace as he comes down to us. He is both transcendent and imminent. He's over and beyond the creation. and graciously works in Human history in his Creation. And this is the Lord we are to fear.
And this It's the beginning. of wisdom. So first of all, to fear the Lord is to know the Lord. Question. Do you have this living relationship?
with the Lord. There you go. Not talking about ten years ago. Today, as you sit in church, Can you, in the presence of God who knows your heart, Say, yes, I have this living, vibrant relationship with this great Lord whom I am. to fear.
Secondly, To fear the Lord is also to live away. are wholly obedient to Life. Turn back to Proverbs. many scriptures and proverbs To support this, but let's look at one, Proverbs 16, verse 6. We're saying to fear the Lord is to know the Lord.
We want to fear the Lord. I trust you do, because we all want wisdom. To fear the Lord, you have to know the Lord in a personal sense. You have to have a living relationship with Him. Secondly, to fear the Lord is to live a holy, obedient life.
Proverbs sixteen verse six By steadfast love and faithfulness, iniquity is atoned for. And by the fear of the Lord one turns away from evil. Do you fear the Lord? If you fear the Lord, You will turn away. from evil.
The fear of the Lord, this loving, living, worshiping relationship with the Lord, leads. to Reverend Obedience.
Someone we love, we don't want to offend, we don't want to grieve, do we? If you fear the Lord, the Lord is the lens through which you see all of life. Lord, I'm going to do this. Will it please you? If I pursue this interest, Lord.
Will that Please hear. Does this relationship that mean so much to me? Will this please you, Lord? All of life Brought back. To the Lord.
That's living. In the fear of the Lord. And it produces, doesn't it, a holy, obedient life. Those who fear the Lord turn from evil. Psalm 19, verse 9: The fear of the Lord is clean.
Of course it is. It's clean, it's pure, and it endures forever. The fear of the Lord motivates us not to sin and, in fact, to hate evil. Proverbs eight verse thirteen. The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil.
The more you fear the Lord, the more you will hate. Send The more you love yourself, The more self-centered you are, the more you will love. Same. Those who walk in the fear of the Lord live a holy life. Obedient Life.
This is living.
So it's very practical, isn't it? In the fear of the Lord day by day, A holy obedient. Life. And to fear the Lord, is to obey the Lord with joy. Psalm 112, verse 1: Praise the Lord, hallelujah.
Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who greatly delights in his commandments. That's it. The one who truly fears the Lord delights in the commandments of the Lord. He loves to obey the Lord. He loves to please the Lord.
When I started my legal training, I worked for an attorney, wonderful man who I respected and love dearly. And he would often give me legal assignments. One of the things that motivated me to do well. as well as pleasing the client and so Making some money. Was to please My boss.
I respected him. Indeed, I loved him. And that motivated me. to please him. If you love the Lord, if you fear the Lord, you want to please the Lord, don't you?
You will delight in His Commandments Many of you have read The Line, The Witch and the Wardrobe, CS Lewis's great book. And in that story, one of the children asks Mr and Mrs Beaver about Aslan the Lion. And in C.S. Lewis writing, Aslan, of course, is a picture of Christ. They made a movie of it.
As well. And one of the children asked Mr. Mrs. Beaver. about Aslan the Lion.
Is he quite safe? I shall feel rather nervous about meeting a lion. That you will, dearie, and no mistake, said mister Beaver. If there's anyone who can appear before Aslan without their knees knocking, they're either braver than most or just plain silly. Then he isn't safe?
said Lucy. Safe Said Mr. Peefer. Don't you hear what Mrs Beaver tells you? Who said anything about safe?
Of course he isn't safe. But he's good. He's the king, I tell you. That was masterly, wasn't it, of CS Lewis? You say is God safe?
Okay. Do you want a god That you can domesticate. A God that you can put in your pocket, a God that you can manipulate, a God that you can use? No this Lord. is the Eternal One.
The one to whom we are all accountable, the one who made us in his image, the eternal God, the transcendent God, in that sense, of course he isn't saved. He's a line of the tribe of Judah. That's why we fear him. That's why we obey him, but he is always good. Of course, he is.
Not only is he great. He is Gracious. Not only is he righteous, he is all loving. All righteous and loving. To fear the Lord is to know the Lord.
To fear the Lord is to live a holy, obedient life. Finally, very quickly, To fear the Lord. is the trust. The Lord. What in Proverbs?
Look back to Proverbs three. Verses five through eight again, some of the most famous verses in all of Proverbs. Many of you have memorized them. If not, I ask you to do that. Proverbs 3.
There's Five. We're saying to fear the Lord is to know the Lord, have a living relationship with the Lord. To fear the Lord is to turn from evil, is to live a holy, obedient life. Third, to fear the Lord is to trust. the Lord.
Proverbs three, verse five, trust in the Lord With All your heart. And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him. And he will make your path straight. Be not wise in your own eyes.
Fear the Lord. There it is. and turn away from evil. It will be what? Healing to your flesh.
and refreshment To your bones. Not wonderful. To fear the Lord then is to trust the Lord. When we do our own thing, we don't fear the Lord.
Now, we all know that. We all know that tension of doing something that we know is wrong and yet still doing it. And that moment. We've not lived in the fear of the Lord. Proverbs three verse seven talks about Be not wise in your own eyes.
I'm often wise in my own eyes. acting independently of God. It's to be self-sufficient, it's to be self-reliant, it's to leave God out of my plans, out of my life. And while we may not be theoretical atheists like Richard Dawkins, I fear that all too often many of us are practical atheists, where we plan our life, our career, our retirement, our investments, our time, our education, our family, our friendships, all as if God didn't exist. I want God in my pocket.
I want God there. When I make a mess of life, Some medical emergency. I want God to help me. But There you are, God. I I really control you.
and I'm wise in my own eyes. And that's the very opposite of the fear of the Lord. In fact, Proverbs is telling us that's not wisdom at all, that is foolishness. And we get ourselves in a tremendous mess, don't we? The very opposite of living in the fear of the Lord, being wise in our own eyes.
But the person who fears the Lord. Trust the Lord. Without faith, it is impossible to please God. Verse five trust in the Lord With what? With all your heart.
This trust. Lying helplessly downwards, as it were, is the point. is to be wholehearted I'm to trust God not just with a little bit, but with all of my heart. This trust in the Lord also is to be exclusive. Verse 5: Do not lean on your own understanding.
When I live in the fear of the Lord, I'm to renounce all of my own plans, my schemes, my agendas. This idea that really I think I know better than God. No, I'm to renounce all of that. My trust in the Lord is to be exclusive. I'm not.
You are not to lean on your own understanding. Our need of God is total. And our trust in him is to be total. Verse 6. in all your ways.
Acknowledge him. That's living in the fear of the Lord. this situation, this decision. The big ones and the small ones, in all of my ways, acknowledge him. All of the tomorrows of my life, all of the plans ahead, have to pass through the Lord before they get to me.
And this trust which flows from the fear of the Lord is rewarded by the Lord. End of verse 6, he will make straight your paths. Verse 8, it will be healing to your flesh and a refreshment to your bones. Oh, wonderful. To truly know the Lord then is to fear the Lord, and to fear the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.
Therefore know God, seek Him, love Him, be guided by Him, obey Him, and He will give you all of the wisdom you need to live. In this hostile world.
Now we begin to understand, don't we? What gave Daniel such courage? Such serenity, such wisdom and skill in Babylon. Daniel is the calmest, most confident, wisest person in all of Babylon. And there's going to be in all of Media Persia.
Why? Because he fears The Lord. He is God-centered rather than self-centered. He is more concerned about the fear of the Lord than the fear of man. He is much more concerned about pleasing the Lord than pleasing himself or pleasing Nebuchadnezzar.
Why is it? Although most of us sitting here Are much better educated than our grandparents. I certainly am. Neither of my grandfathers ever went to college. Most of us here are much better educated than our grandparents.
certainly have much more resources But did we do we live life? better than they do? It seems to me, in spite of all of our education, in spite of all the advances in living in this wonderful country of America, more and more of us are making a mess of our lives. What is the problem? Not lack of knowledge, not lack of education, lack of Wisdom.
We are not. Wise. We don't have wise leaders. We're not wise ourselves. We don't have wise fathers.
We don't have wise mothers. We do not have wise Economists Today First. Will you ask God for wisdom? And live in the fear of the Lord. James writes, If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given to him.
But let him ask in faith.
Now there's a wonderful promise today.
Now, before you leave, ask God for wisdom and ask in faith. Trust Him with all of your heart. Say, God, give me that wisdom. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. And when I fear the Lord, I listen to the Lord and I obey His word, and His commandments make me wiser than all of my enemies.
You say, how can we approach such a holy, transcendent God? When we come to the New Testament and the progress of Revelation, we understand this: that the one who is, I am who I am, is none other than our Lord Jesus Christ. He said to his hostile audience in John eight Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day and they said, how could it be? I mean, Abraham's been dead for hundreds of years and you're not yet fifty. How could Abraham rejoice in your day?
What did Jesus respond? Before Abraham was What? I am Eggle in the eye. Um He is the great I am. To the hungry, he says, I'm the bread of life.
To those in darkness, he says, and the light. of the world. To those who want to be fruitful, he says, I am the true vine. To those who are lost, he says, I am the way. To those who seek wisdom, he says, I am the truth.
To those who fear death, to those who are mourning the loss of a loved one, he says, I am the resurrection and the life. All we need is found in Christ. And so I ask you to come. The Christ. Jesus says.
I told you that if you would die in your sins For unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins. John 8, 24. When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He. John 8, 28. Do you know him?
As we close, will you bow your heart? If you have never known Christ as one who died for your sins, to receive him into your heart and life as your Savior and Lord. Open your heart and receive Christ who is the wisdom of God, the Saviour of the world. And those of us who are followers of Christ. May each of us pursue Wisdom.
And live this week. And every week. In the fear of the Lord. which is the beginning. of wisdom.
Help us, Father, to do just that. We confess that we like the man in the Proverbs. that were often wise in our own eyes, but help us to trust you with all of our heart. To turn from evil, to fear the Lord. How we need wisdom in our homes and our relationships here at church as we spread the gospel of Jesus Christ.
We pray. for our leaders, for our President, for our senators and congressmen. for our mayors and governors. that they will be wise men and women. Administering and ruling and legislating in the fear of the Lord, and what we pray for them, we pray for ourselves.
that we will be wise men and women. bringing joy to you. and making a difference. in this world. Help us in Christ's name.
Amen. This is the verdict featuring the Bible teaching of Pastor John Monroe. There's still more to hear when John returns in just a moment, so stay with us. From matters of truth and identity, to the subjects of love and grace, our world seems more confused than ever. but to find truth and certainty about who we are and find peace, we must turn our attention away from the world and look to the Word of God.
To help you do that, John wrote a booklet titled Eternal Security, Finding Certainty in a Chaotic World. Through this special resource John shares his personal testimony, along with a careful examination of Scripture, to offer us clarity on matters of eternity. Get your copy today by visiting our website at the verdict. org. While you're there, consider making an investment in this Bible teaching ministry.
Whether it's $5, $50, or more, your gift today helps cover the cost of sharing these gospel messages to listeners around the world. And if you haven't already, be sure to subscribe to the Verdict Podcast, featuring John's weekly podcast exclusive called Avizandam. It's available wherever you get your podcasts, or simply go to our website. Again, that's theverdict.org. The verdict is a ministry of Calvary Church in South Charlotte.
We're located on the corner of Highway 51 and Ray Road. If you've been looking for a church home or a community to help you grow in your walk with Christ, we invite you to join us for our Sunday services. For more details about Calvary and our service times, visit theverdict.org.
Now, here's Pastor John Monroe.
Well, what's your verdict? Would you say that you're living in the fear of the Lord? Do you know God? We come to God through Jesus Christ, who died for our sins, was buried and rose again. Trust the Lord Jesus with all of your heart.
And as we follow him, we seek to pursue holiness and reject evil in our lives.
So live wisely in this world. Live in the fear of the Lord. Join me next time as we look at Daniel 2, where Daniel faces another crisis. Thanks for joining us today on The Verdict. I'm Michelle Davies.
Today's program with Pastor John Monroe was produced and sponsored by Calvary Church in Charlotte, North Carolina.
