Read: Romans 8:14-17 Blessed is the one who fears the LORD always. (Prov. 28:14) What exactly does it mean to fear the Lord? Preachers usually explain it as feeling awe for God, adding that it doesn’t mean we should be afraid of him. Really? Aren’t you just a little bit afraid of God? I know I am (see Heb. 12:18-29). Bible scholar Alec Motyer defined the fear of the Lord as “a filial dread of offending God” (The Message of Philippians, p. 100). Our fear is filial, it’s the attitude of a son or daughter. It rests on the confidence that we are God’s beloved children, adopted in Christ and sealed by the Spirit, who teaches us to call God Abba, Father. The fear of the Lord is not the fear of a slave cringing before a