Psalm 111
So many of the Psalms are filled with the language of praise and Psalm 111 could fit right into that category with talk of how great the Lord is, how majestic are His works, His graciousness and compassion abound. However, there is also something else in this chapter that may be often overlooked. Look at verse five:
He has provided food for those who fear him;
he remembers his covenant forever. (CSB)
What is David saying here? Is he saying that God only provides food for those that fear Him? We have to remember the context in which things were written. David spent a good amount of time wandering or maybe we should say running in the desert. Angry king Saul was after him. I picture king Saul like I do the old Disney character the Queen of Hearts saying “Off with his head.” All the time that David spent in the wilderness, the Lord never failed in providing for him.
You may find yourself in a type of wilderness of sorts or maybe you can remember a time when you were. I personally have had “wilderness” times in my life, of course not like that of David in a literal wilderness but definitely wilderness enough for me. In those times God has never failed to be faithful to me. Why? God takes care of His own. Those that fear the Lord and follow His ways are His own.
David goes on in verse ten to expound on the thought of fearing the Lord.
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;
all who follow his instructions have good insight.
His praise endures forever. (CSB)
Did you catch that? The fear of the Lord in only the beginning implying that if we truly fear the Lord we will grow in that wisdom that was began in our awe and wonder of His mighty works. Yet to stay at the beginning is to not have a true and continual fear of the Lord. Look at it this way, when I was young, I wanted to play the trumpet. Learning how to make a sound was just the first step, then I had to learn how to make a good sound. As I progressed, I learned how to play Mary had a Little Lamb. As I am sure many of you have experienced the same thing. Just because I learned this small child’s song did not mean that I had a full grasp of how to play that instrument.
To have a “Fear of the Lord” means that we are growing in the knowledge and understanding of Him. If we want to be wise, then we need to constantly sit at the feet of the ones that are wiser than us. If I want to learn the trumpet, I need to listen and learn from ones that are more experienced and knowledgeable. Let’s never be content with only a basic fear of the Lord but a fear of the Lord that grows us into more each day. Don’t be like young Daniel who learned how to play a silly child’s song and was content that meant he knew all he needed to know.
Lord, I want to grow in my fear of You. Help me to follow Your commandments that my reverence for You would increase. I don’t want to be content with only being in awe of You, but I want to really know You.
When we can pray this, then that is when we truly have a fear of the Lord.
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