Jesus and the Fear of God (Isaiah 11:3)

Isaiah 11 contains a wonderful description of the Messiah and the amazing roles that he would perform under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. One of the details mentioned about him is that he would ‘delight in the fear of the Lord’ (v. 3). That description, as well as the other details in the prophecy, was given so that people would recognise the Messiah when he came. Since we know that the Messiah is Jesus, it means that the description given in the prophecy becomes guidance for how we should understand him. So we can consider examples that point to the particular feature of the fear of the Lord that was revealed in his life on earth, and how it may be seen in the world to come.

 

Jesus when he was twelve (Luke 2)

Luke is the only Gospel writer that mentions the visit paid by Jesus and his family to an annual feast in Jerusalem.  We are familiar with the content of the story, how Joseph and Mary did not realise at first that Jesus was not in the group making their way back home to Nazareth. When they discovered his absence, they had to go back to Jerusalem and found him in the temple speaking with the teachers there. When they asked him what he was doing, he replied, ‘Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?’ His reply indicated that his priority was to serve his Father.

 

The story of that incident is bracketed by two statements by Luke. In 2:40, he writes, ‘And the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom. And the favour of God was upon him.’ That describes Jesus from his infancy to his adolescence, from childhood until he became a teenager. Then in 2:52, Luke writes: ‘And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favour with God and man.’ That describes Jesus through his length of his adolescence and adulthood. Why does Luke highlight the feature of wisdom and what does that say about Jesus? No doubt, Luke records that detail because it is how people, who gave information to him for him to use in writing his gospel, remembered Jesus. We can ask a simple question: how does a person become wise? Proverbs and Psalms give us the answer: ‘The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.’ Jesus’ development in his character took place because as a child and teenager and adult he feared the Lord.

 

As we think of the wisdom of Jesus that came from his fear of the Lord, we should have two definite reactions. One is to remind ourselves that none of us lived like that when we were in those areas of life. It is common to say sometimes about a child or young person that they have wisdom beyond their years. But when people use that description, they don’t usually connect that wisdom to the fear of the Lord. The fact is that none of us had that perfect wisdom. The second reaction is to remind ourselves that Jesus lived wisely, fearing the Lord, because he was living a perfect life that would be given to his people as their standing in the presence of God.

 

Imagine that you have lived in Nazareth for three decades and heard from someone that Nathaniel had said that nothing good came out of Nazareth, then you met Nathaniel. What would you have said to him? Hopefully, you would have been able to say, ‘Nathaniel, what you have said about the village is true in general. But there was one individual whom I have seen day after day for thirty years and he is very different from everyone else, even from his own family members. He kept on getting wiser and wiser when he was young, and he had such a respect for God.’

 

Jesus when he prayed (Hebrews 5:7)

The writer to the Hebrews points his readers back to a time in the earthly life of Jesus when he prayed. Prayer is a time for showing reverence, and most would agree that respect for God will be seen when we are engaged in prayer. But what about when we are very burdened? The writer here brings his readers to consider the prayer life of the Saviour.

 

Let us consider the details in this verse. When did Jesus pray? The answer is ‘in the days of his flesh’, which refers to his life on earth. The word ‘flesh’ points to the time when he was under humiliation in contrast to the days he now has as glorified. We can call this detail the consistency of his prayers. How many prayers did Jesus offer? Who can tell, but they were many?

 

What kind of prayers did he make? The author mentions a general word for prayer and a more specific kind of praying called supplications. Supplications has the idea of praying humbly. Moreover, he prayed with energy because his prayers were offered along with loud cries and tears. One can almost hear the testimony of witnesses here, perhaps the disciples who had observed the way that he prayed. We often link this verse to Gethsemane, and that may be what the author has in mind, although the accounts of Gethsemane in the Gospels do not mention tears. Perhaps it is better to say that his prayers about the matter intensified as he came to Gethsemane, but that they always were intense. Even in our experience, the strength of a burden increases the closer we get to its occasion, but we don’t pray casually about an important matter.

 

What did he pray for? The writer says that he prayed that the Father would ‘save him from death’. He prayed in faith because he recognised that the Father was able to do so. It has been pointed out that in the verse he does not ask to be saved from the act of dying but from the state of death. Some note that while he was not saved from dying, he was saved from death, so his prayer was answered. After all, he did die. We should not be surprised that Jesus prayed for this. He was a sinless man and his prayers would be according to his faith in God’s promises. He would not have doubted that God would save him, but he also knew that it was part of his duty to pray. What else would a perfect Saviour do as he looked ahead throughout his life to where he was going, the awful experience of death?

 

Why was he heard? The author tells us that Jesus ‘was heard because of his reverence’. Reverence is the proper translation of the word here; it is not the usual word that is translated as fear or dread. Jesus is the only One whose prayers deserved to be heard. Our prayers, even if they are correct in form, don’t deserve to be heard. But his always did because they came from a holy heart and mind. Although he was praying about an awful experience, and although he prayed about it often, the opinion of heaven was always that he deserved to be heard.

 

Jesus said on one occasion when speaking about his future sufferings that ‘I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how great is my distress until it is accomplished!’ This verse from Hebrews gives us insight into the astonishing degree of distress of the Man of Sorrows. Yet never once did he flinch from his experience of constant reverence.

 

How do we respond to what this verse says about the One who delighted in the fear of the Lord? Obviously, it gives insight into the degree of intensity that was revealed in the feelings his holy humanity had when he thought about the cross and what it would bring his way. The verse tells us how the cross filled his horizon throughout life. Although he prayed often about it, he continued towards it after every time he prayed.

 

We are glad to know that he has fellow feeling with us in our times of distress. But is there not a call here for us to show some fellow feeling for him as we remind ourselves that he did all this for us, and did so perfectly? Surely we should feel gratitude for such a Saviour! This verse gives us deeper appreciation for the nights of prayer that he spent on the hillsides of Galilee, when he prayed there about what lay ahead of him.

 

Jesus on the resurrection day (John 20)

Mary Magdalene had many happy days with Jesus during his earthly journey. There was the day of freedom when he liberated her from the seven demons that indwelt her. There were the days of fellowship when she along with others accompanied him and ministered to him as he travelled round the country. There was the day of fear when she watched him die. And there was the day of festivity when she saw him risen from the dead.

 

As we read the account of the meeting of Mary and Jesus, we get a sense that she assumed that life would return to its previous pattern of being with Jesus day after day. But she discovered that Jesus had other priorities when he said to her, ‘Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brothers and say to them, I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God’ (John 20:17).

 

Obviously, those words of Jesus tell us about the purpose that he had in mind and the awareness that he possessed of his future location. But what does that statement tell us about the longing of Jesus? Surely, one aspect of his longing that is revealed is his desire to be with the Father. In addition, the statement reveals his reverence for the Father because he calls him ‘my God’.

 

There may not be any connection, but the previous time Jesus had used those two words was when he found himself forsaken by the Father on the cross. Of course, he knew that he would never be forsaken again by the Father. Yet after the cross, and having been saved from death, the Saviour continues on the path of reverence, and on the occasion of his great triumph, as he stands on earth as the Defeater of death, he says very clearly that he delights in the fear of the Lord.

 

The outcome of such a life (Proverbs 22:4)

The Book of Proverbs is about wisdom for living in the right way. One assumes that the more wisdom a person has, the more he will know God’s blessing. Since Jesus is the wisest person who ever lived, then he will receive the greatest blessing from the God. In Proverbs 22:4, there is a beautiful description of what God will give to those who are marked by humility and the fear of the Lord: ‘The reward for humility and fear of the Lord is riches and honour and life.’ Surely those features describe the reward that Jesus has received from his Father.

 

How rich is Jesus? We could think of the riches of his grace and of the spiritual blessings connected to them, and it would be wonderful to contemplate the range of privileges found there. But we can also think of the riches of his possessions. How rich is Jesus? He is the heir of all things, says the author of Hebrews. ‘All things’ means everything and describing him as the heir points to the future. When we call Jesus the heir of all things, we are saying that the future belongs to him. Another way of putting it is to say that the eternity to come belongs to him. So how rich is Jesus? He has everything. But what will he do with his riches? He will share them with all whom his death has enabled to become humble and to fear God. So how rich are they? In themselves, they have nothing; in Christ, all things are theirs.

 

How honoured is Jesus? How can we estimate his position or illustrate what he has received or been given? A few weeks ago some people who did not receive an honour moaned about some people who were honoured by receiving seats in the House of Lord. Their complaint was connected to the opinion that the recipients did not deserve the high honour that they were given. Yet if we think about it accurately, there is only one Man who has ever fully deserved the honour he has received, and that person is Jesus. What honour did he get? Is it as grand as a seat in the House of Lords? Much higher, because he has been exalted as the God/Man to the throne of heaven. He is Lord, and unlike the House of Lords, there is only one Lord in heaven. There are no complaints there about him receiving his high honour, and even unlike those who receive earthly honours and always try do their best, he will dignify his position for ever and ever.

 

How much life does Jesus have? He said that he could give abundant life to sinners, so abundant that it cannot be weighed. We are told that he has resurrection life for his people. Resurrection life is not merely better than anything in this world, it is also beyond them. It is elevated far above the best that can be known outside of him. He has eternal life to give to his people, eternal in its length and in its quality. Life composed of peace and joy for ever and ever.

 

The Jesus we are going to see

Sometimes we see drawings and paintings of Jesus, and whatever the skills of the artists the subject is beyond their abilities to portray. Yet we should give some thoughts on what we are going to see when we see Jesus. We will see him on the Day of Judgment. How will Jesus appear on that awesome day? He will be marked by his fear of the Lord. When he judges the nations, he will do so as the Servant of the Father, as the One who has been given all authority in heaven and earth. On that day, we will see One devoted to do the will of the Father, to do what is right.

 

What will we see as the experience of the new creation proceeds along its endless path? Obviously, we will see Jesus in all his glory. Usually, when the Bible depicts the redeemed as looking, they are looking at Jesus, a reminder that heaven is about what Jesus does. What will we see as we observe him leading the heavenly praise, what will we see as we observe him leading his people to the fountains of the waters of life, what shall we see as we observe the throne of God and of the Lamb? We will see a Saviour full of reverence for the Father, a Saviour who delights in the fear of the Lord forever. What greater desire can a redeemed sinner have than to have the privilege of observing such an expression of endless devotion!