"There are those who would tell us that we are not to fear God. Yet it was said of our Redeemer and our example that He was delivered from the jaws of death just because He did fear! And He not only feared, but He taught us to fear! The wise King Solomon, after he had run the whole gamut of human thought finally arrived at the end of his thought with this observation: “Let us hear the conclusion (end) of the whole matter: Fear God and keep His commandments: for this is the whole duty of man” (Eccl. 12:13). And why? “For God shall bring every work into judgment with every secret thing, whether it be good or whether it be evil” (vs. 14). Now notice, “Fear God and keep His commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.” It is significant to note that the words is and duty in this verse are in italics in the King James Version. When a word is in italics it means that that word does not appear in the original language and is merely supplied by the translators in an effort to make the meaning clearer. Many times, however, the translators go far afield in their choice of words, and I have discovered that in some cases it is best to read the passage omitting the man-inserted words. In this case, omitting the words supplied by the translators, the passage reads, “Fear God and keep His commandments: for this the whole of man.” The meaning is that the fear of God IS THE WHOLE MAN, or, the man who truly fears God IS A WHOLE MAN — THE FULL IDEAL OF MAN, as God originally purposed him to be when He said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” The only such “whole man,” one who completely feared and reverenced God for His wisdom, power, and purpose, and kept all His commandments, His word and His will, was JESUS CHRIST! That is what made Him the unique SON of the Father! And now, He has paid the price, He has opened up the way, He has become our Forerunner and the Captain of our salvation, He has entered in that we may, like Him, BECOME WHOLE MEN — sons of God bearing the image of our Father!"
Much more on godly fear in the link:
All we have to fear is FEAR itself.
Fear is used to control us.
Very true. Fear is the first thing I sought deliverance from, it really is true "the truth makes you free". The use of fear for control is bondage, and the bound seek to be freed.
I fear nothing, not even fear, because I trust (fear) God. You learn to fear God only by experience. "Perfect love casts out fear", so perfect love is perfectly fearing (respecting) only God. This is why Jesus was so hard to understand, he did not fear man, he did not fear death, he feared only God, and we are called to be like Him, fearing only God.
"I fear nothing, not even fear, because I trust (fear) God."
Trust is trust [faith], fear is fear. They are not interchangeable. I understand what you are trying to say but you can not use the term "fear" to describe something that is not fear.
People misunderstand the term fear, it means to respect to the highest. The archetype of respect would embody trust, trusting God, and fearing God go together. I trust the world to act like the world. My trust of God comes from my experience with God, totally expecting God, to do just God things, is fearing God, total respect, and total trust. This is how you prove all things(doctrines) by employing them with reason (logic) and see if they hold true.
"People misunderstand the term fear"
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fear
Maybe it was "lost in translation" when they translated the Bible. Maybe one little tweak like that could hold humanity back and keep them steeped in fear for thousands of years.
I think so, it's the Spirit that leads us to all truth, a misunderstanding of the spiritual intent will keep people in bondage. Doctrine binds.
"Jesus was the perfect embodiment of the wisdom of God, and because that is so, He also had a fear of God. When the firstborn Son of God was faced with the reality of His own upcoming crucifixion, the record tells us that “He offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto Him that was able to save Him from death, and was heard in that He feared” (Heb. 5:7). Hear it! Jesus FEARED! The truth in this one small verse of scripture is most remarkable. It tells us not only that Jesus “offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto Him that was able to save Him from death” but it also tells us that HE WAS HEARD! How can we say that He was heard when, in fact, He died? How was He then saved from death, if He died? Yes, He died. But the wonderful fact is that He did not remain dead! He was heard — He was saved from or out of death — by the power of His resurrection! Why was He raised from the dead? Was it because of His great faith? Was it because the Father purposed it? Ah, beyond all that it was because HE FEARED!"
Hi thanks for the reminder - but more than this the gospels give a heavily a heavily sanitised perspective of Jesus in Gethsemane, Hebrews gives us the raw emotion - but still the obedience.