Things that God Says Are Awe-some

In the United States, you often hear people, especially younger people, refer to certain people, places, or things as "awesome." Not sure how that got started (maybe the hippies), but the common usage is the same as saying "great" or "wonderful." But the scriptural usage is something different, and that’s what I’d like to discuss in this post. 


The word "awe" appears in scripture only three times, all in Psalms, and that’s no coincidence, as we’ll see later. In this brief devotional, I’d like to (1) show you these references; (2) define awe; and (3) look at each passage to see what we can learn about awe from it, since it’s a grace that should be present in our hearts. First, let’s look at the three references to awe in scripture.

References
• Ps. 4:4, Stand in awe, and sin not: commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah.

• Ps. 33:8, Let all the earth fear the LORD: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him.

• Ps. 119:161, Princes have persecuted me without a cause: but my heart standeth in awe of thy word.

Definition
The second reference above, I believe, provides the scriptural sense of "awe": a holy fear, like we saw in Ps. 66:13. "Let all the earth fear the LORD: let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him." See how a word in one part of the verse helps define a more difficult word in another part? The Bible is full of this, and it’s a principle of Bible study that the English text defines itself. So awe is a holy fear, since the context is either a holy God (Ps. 4:3-4, 33:8) or his holy word (119:161). In Heb. 12:28 we read about “serv[ing] God with acceptably with reverence and godly fear,” but not all fear is godly. Prov. 29:25 says, “The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the LORD shall be safe.” So some types of fear are good and some are not, and we’ll discuss that more later.

Principles
1. Awe is a heart condition that begins with the individual. Ps. 4:4 and 119:161 are directly aimed at individuals, and their heart attitude toward God and his word. For both objects, the attitude or spirit should be one of holy fear. Awe is what we call a grace, like humility, faith, kindness, etc. Heb. 12:28, which I referred to earlier, says that godly fear is a grace that ought to be present in our lives. One can even be in awe when lying down. In Ps. 4:8, the psalmist mentions laying down to sleep, but between the time he lies down and falls asleep, he’s communing with his own heart and feeling God’s awesome presence. Great way to end a day, amen? When you go to bed, think about the day and how good God has been to you, and “stand in awe before him” in your heart.

2. Awe leads to holiness. Ps. 4:4 says, “Stand in awe, and sin not,” so awe discourages sin. Prov. 16:6b affirms this, “by fear of the LORD men depart from evil.” And even under grace, Paul says that our business should be “perfecting holiness in the fear of God” (2 Cor. 7:1).

3. Awe should be universal, but it has limits too. All the earth should fear the LORD and stand in awe of him, not just individuals, and they will in the millennial kingdom, which this psalm is pointing to prophetically. But believers in Christ are not to be in "awe" of princes like we are God and his word (119:161). Paul tells us to "Render...fear to whom fear" is due, namely "rulers" (Rom. 13:1-7), but I think that, Biblically, awe is a higher fear due to God and his word than that due to "the powers...ordained of God" (Rom. 13:1). Princes should be in awe of God and his word themselves; maybe then they wouldn’t persecute believers, and we should pray for them along these lines (1 Tim. 2:1-6). But if we want others to be in awe of God and his word, we need to start with “the man in the mirror.” The reason why there’s so little respect and reverence for God in our government and society is because these things are so lacking in the church. This leads to my fourth point.

4. Awe should characterize our worship as well as our walk. All the references to awe are found in the Psalms, the praises of Israel, which is no coincidence. Praise should include a holy awe of God: both testaments affirm this.

a. Ps. 5:7b, “and in thy fear will I worship toward thy holy temple.” Someone might say, “Well, that’s the Jews in the old testament.” OK, let’s see what Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles, has to say about it.

b. Eph. 5:18-21. This passage deals with the filling of the Spirit, and its results: worship (v. 19), thanksgiving (v.20), and submission (v. 21)…in the fear of God. If you don’t fear God, you’re not filled with the Spirit! Remember 2 Cor. 7:1, “perfecting holiness in the fear of God”? Look at Acts 9:31, “…walking in the fear of the Lord, and in the comfort of the Holy Ghost.” The Holy Ghost produces a holy fear, in our walk and worship, because it’s part of his work—to prompt men and angels to fear and worship God (Is. 11:1-2).

We live in a generation that says this is awesome and that is awesome, but let’s make sure that we’re in awe of the two most important things in the universe: God and his word! Awe is a heart condition that begins with individuals, and it should lead to personal holiness. Awe should be universal, but it has limits too. We should be in awe of certain things, not everything. That’s why I think the common usage of the word detracts from its power, though the world naturally uses it because it’s a powerful word. Finally, awe should characterize our worship as well as our walk. Worship is acknowledging God’s worth, and truly grasping God’s worth will produce holy fear in us and make us rejoice in him “with trembling” (Ps. 2:11).