This past weekend I gave a message about fear, namely that we need to stop denying/pretending (or being paralyzed by it), and work through it.

In the course of the message I talked about the fact that the #1 command in the Bible is “Do not be afraid.”  It starts in Genesis (15:1) and goes all the way to Revelation.  Dozens and dozens of times God says, “Do not be afraid” or “Fear not.”  Same thing…

But then we read other statements that talk about fearing God.  Proverbs 9:10 says that the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom! 

Hence, “to fear or not to fear?  That is the question!”  Forgive me for taking a bit of Shakespearian liberty.  Below is an email I received from a retired pastor who attends our church.  He is an wonderful man—loving, wise and a great teacher.  I decided (with his permission) to include his email and my response.  I hope it helps a bit.

Nick

hi nick,    an interesting series—and really valuable (to me , anyway). you hit on a few of the potholes that upset my own growth, and create difficulty with others. looking forward to the rest( i think).  yesterday, you anticipated one of the truths that our Mt. study will come to on 10/20 - “do not be afraid” (Mt.10:26,28,31). thanks for the advance help. you mentioned that that command to not be afraid runs all thru the Bible , and the command to be afraid is also present, “fear the Lord”. i wish you had explained the difference, even tho the verb, and its cognates are the same. (phobeomai, phobos) my take on it is that the word has multiple meanings, depending on the object of the “fear”. fear/dread of things/people/task, but worship/respect of the Lord/spouse (Eph.5:33)      in any event, i truly respect you and honor you as God’s rep. here.      grace and joy,  ned amstutz
 Reply Reply to all Forwardntwomey is not available to chatYour message has been sent.Reply Nick Twomey to ntwomeyshow details 2:45 PM (0 minutes ago) Thanks Ned.
Yes, I wish I had more time to talk about the difference between fearing God and not being afraid.  I probably should not even mention a point that doesn’t have time to be explained!  
The issue of “fear God” is an interesting one theologically.  Many believe it simply means “holy reverence/deep respect.”  And it includes that for sure.  But if you stop and think about it, we “fear” (i.e. are a bit phobic) about most things we don’t know or understand.  It’s why we’re phobic about the dark (among other things).
So to come into the presence of a Being that is both holy and “wholly other” is a terrifying thing.  We have no frame of reference.  We are—to put it plainly—freaked out!  Isaiah 6 is a good example.  When God pulls back the curtain and Isaiah sees God enthroned in heaven, he drops to his knees and declares that he is “undone.”  The language in Hebrew conveys the sense of moving from integration to disintegration.  
All that to say that “fearing God” conveys not just a deep respect but a jaw-dropping, knee-knocking, heart-pounding “dis-integration.”  It clearly is not fear as in being afraid that God will pounce on us, take advantage of us, do us harm, etc.  It’s more of a sensory overload where we are in the presence of a power so far beyond us that we short-circuit (for a lack of a better phrase).  What we learn in the person of Jesus is that this holy God is also full of love, grace, mercy, compassion and forgiveness.  Talk about Good News!
I’m sure I don’t have this all figured out so I’ll let you take over from here :)
With love and great respect,
Nick