Fear and Hope

Fear is usually thought of as a negative thing (unless you are one of those strange people who enjoy horror movies).  We try to avoid or overcome fear.  We want to feel safe, certain, and secure rather than fearful.  We often cry out to God because we are afraid of situations in our life so we ask for God's help.  Yet when we dig into God's Word we learn that there is an important emphasis on fearing God!  How does this make any sense?  How can God be both loving and gracious and yet someone whom we should fear?  Our understanding of the idea of the fear of the Lord has a profound impact on our relationship with God and our perspective on the world around us.  We continue our "Fear and Hope" sermon series with a sermon called "The Fear of the Lord" in which we examine what God's Word has to say about this important concept and how this should impact our daily lives.