Miserable weather and new shoes 👟 Proverbs

Proverbs 14 :27 

The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, that one may avoid the snares of death.

Everyone desires to be safe.

We lock our doors, we teach our children how to stay safe… ours is a society that expects to be kept safe. We are able to dial 911 and within minutes have help at our doorstep.

But for those who are born again and trust in the Lord, these things, although providing some measure of safety are nothing compared to the fear of the Lord.

And according to today’s proverb the fear of the Lord is the most effective way to stay safe. And is described as “a fountain of life”

While doing this devotion I was surprised to learn that Hebrew words used for the phrase, "fountain of life" literally means, "the vein of lives" and refers to the aorta which is the main artery which carries the blood from the heart to the entire body. A healthy aorta is vital. 

The cause of my little guys death (Timmy) was because his aorta did not grow properly, it failed to grow as he was growing, so it could no longer supply his body with its life-giving blood.

And without the "vein of lives" the “fountain of life”, functioning properly we will not live long.

You see, the fear of the Lord is essential to us having the life that God provides. And today's proverb tells us that the fear of the Lord is what helps us to avoid the snares of death.

The word for "snares" is very interesting… it’s referring to the bait which is placed in the snare not necessarily to the snare itself.

You need bait to get the animal to the snare, or the trap.

The bait tempts the animal to come near even when his own instincts tell him the situation is dangerous. Then as the animal gets close and goes to grab the bait he is trapped or even killed.

This is comparable to our problem with sin.

Our desires can draw us toward things that will eventually hurt us. And this is where the fear of the Lord becomes a life-giving fountain to us.

The fear of the Lord is the respect and honor that we have of Him and of His Word.

It is the willingness to respond to the Holy Spirit when He warns us about something we are about to do.

We listen and obey when we fear the Lord, but we ignore Him when we have no fear or respect toward the God who made us.

However, many in the church, think that the fear of the Lord is a thing of the past since they are a people of grace in the New Testament.

Yet, In Acts we are told that the church benefited greatly from the fear of the Lord.

As we’re told in Acts 9:31, "So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria enjoyed peace, being built up; and going on in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it continued to increase. "

The fear of God is a New Testament truth that will bless God's church, and the fear of the Lord is linked here with the "comfort of the Holy Spirit."

When we fear the Lord. When we have a respect for God and a desire to honor Him and obey Him. This makes us open to His Word. This is that fountain.

You see, as we fear God, the Holy Spirit works in us, to teach us God's Word.

This is what turns us away from the snare, from the bait of Satan which seeks to lure us into His traps and the snares of death.