In Awe of God

The Lion and the Shepherd, The Winchester Psalter Miniature Cycle, British Library

THE 15TH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST (SEPT. 5TH)

By Bp. Joseph Boyd (Ancient Church of the West)

Greeting

This past week has been a time of vary important commemorations in the life of our Patrimony. St. Augustine of Hippo, St. Gregory the Great, and St. Moses the Prophet and Patriarch. They all play irreducible roles in our Patrimony, the flow through which the Gospel came down to us in the English language. We are grateful for these great, shining lamps along the pathway of our Faith, who lead us continually by the grace of God, which shines from their faces, and allows us to continue with confidence through this vale of tears, searching for that true homeland to which we are called. May God hear their cries for us before His throne!

Introduction

Today we are going to talk about the “Fear of the Lord” and what it means to see God in his proper place in our lives. In the Chronicles of Narnia, Susan and Lucy are getting ready to meet Aslan, who is Christ manifest as a lion in another universe. Mr. and Mrs. Beaver prepare the children for the encounter by talking about this great “King of the Forest” in hushed and reverent tones. "Ooh," said Susan, "I thought he was a man. Is he quite safe? I shall feel rather nervous about meeting a lion." "That you will, dearie." said Mrs. Beaver. "And make no mistake, if there's anyone who can appear before Aslan without their knee's knocking, they're either braver than most or else just silly.” "Then isn't he safe?" said Lucy. "Safe?" said Mr. Beaver. "Don't you hear what Mrs. Beaver tells you? Who said anything about safe? Of course he isn't safe. But he's good. He's the king, I tell you!” This is what awe is. God could, at any time, snuff us from existence, and yet He sustains us and gives us life, unworthy though we are. This is gratefulness, to realize how great He is and how concerned with us, with the sparrows, and with the grass of the field He truly is. This is fear, to know that He has given us a path to walk in, and if we leave that path, we will forge eternal consequences, despite His love and care for us, always trying to protect us from our own lesser impulses. 

Scripture Readings 

The First Reading: Job 28:12-28

In those days... Job said "But where shall wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding? Men do not know the way to it, and it is not found in the land of the living. The deep says, 'It is not in me,' and the sea says, 'It is not with me.' It cannot be gotten for gold, and silver cannot be weighed out as its price. It cannot be valued in the gold of Ophir, in precious onyx or sapphire. Gold and glass cannot equal it, nor can it be exchanged for jewels of fine gold. No mention shall be made of coral or of crystal; the price of wisdom is above pearls. The chrysolite of Ethiopia cannot compare with it, nor can it be valued in pure gold. "Where then does wisdom come from? And where is the place of understanding? It is hidden from the eyes of all living, and concealed from the birds of the air. Abaddon and Death say, 'We have heard a rumor of it with our ears.' "God understands the way to it, and he knows its place. For he looks to the ends of the earth, and sees everything under the heavens. When he gave to the wind its weight, and apportioned out the waters by measure; when he made a decree for the rain, and a way for the thunderbolt; then he saw it and declared it; he established it, and searched it out. And he said to humankind, 'Truly, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.'"

Epistle: Galatians 5:25-26, 6:1-10

Brethren: If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, competing against one another, envying one another. My friends, if anyone is detected in a transgression, you who have received the Spirit should restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness. Take care that you yourselves are not tempted. Bear one another's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. For if those who are nothing think they are something, they deceive themselves. All must test their own work; then that work, rather than their neighbor's work, will become a cause for pride. For all must carry their own loads. Those who are taught the word must share in all good things with their teacher. Do not be deceived; God is not mocked, for you reap whatever you sow. If you sow to your own flesh, you will reap corruption from the flesh; but if you sow to the Spirit, you will reap eternal life from the Spirit. So let us not grow weary in doing what is right, for we will reap at harvest time, if we do not give up. So then, whenever we have an opportunity, let us work for the good of all, and especially for those of the family of faith.

The Gospel: Luke 7:11-16

At that time...Jesus went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went with him. As he approached the gate of the town, a man who had died was being carried out. He was his mother's only son, and she was a widow; and with her was a large crowd from the town. When the Lord saw her, he had compassion for her and said to her, "Do not weep." Then he came forward and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. And he said, "Young man, I say to you, rise!" The dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother.

Sermon

In all three readings this morning, we see a common thread. The Fear of the Lord is the way that we relate to God, approaching Him through the Wisdom that He gives us, as a result of our respect and circumspection. St. Paul exhorts us, “Do not be deceived; God is not mocked, for you reap whatever you sow.” In this we see, although God is full of mercy and compassion, because He preserves our free wills and allows us to make decisions, His will is not mocked and those things we do outside of His loving care will create consequences that God does not magically alleviate or take away. God allows judgment in our lives both as a result of our wrong choices, but also as a way of instructing us and bringing us back to the truth. In the last reading, we see the way that Christ overcomes all the consequences of sin, death and the grave, by reaching out and touching us, and doing the unexpected, raising the young man from the dead to help and serve his aging, widowed mother. In this, Jesus shows that we cannot control or anticipate God’s work, which is always free, vital and powerful. The full weight of the fear of God comes through this story, because we see how quickly and totally God can take away, and how instantly and unexpectedly God came bring a person, a vision, a church, a love relationship, back from the dead! Christ is Risen, but in the process, so are we!

When Fear is Not Being Afraid 

In the three great Abrahamic Faiths, “God-Fearer” and “the Fear of God” are used to mean that someone follows God’s commandments and submits to God’s presence and plan. In the New Testament, this fear is described using the Greek word φόβος (phobos, "fear/horror"), except in 1 Timothy 2:10, where Paul describes γυναιξὶν ἐπαγγελλομέναις θεοσέβειαν (gynaixin epangellomenais theosebeian), "women professing the fear of God,” using the word θεοσέβεια (theosebeia). While our modern context associates the word “fear” with a negative connotation, “fear” also means “awe” or a sense of being overwhelmed or at the mercy of something or someone, and so, the Scripture uses it, not to mean that we should run away from or avoid God, but that we should realize our absolute dependence upon Him, and living in awe and respect of Him. 

The term can mean fear of God's judgment, as we often see in the Old Testament, where God used famine, war, plagues, captivities, earthquakes, floods, and other calamities to teach His people to follow His Laws. However, from a theological perspective "fear of the Lord" encompasses more than simple fear. Robert B. Strimple says, "There is the convergence of awe, reverence, adoration, honor, worship, confidence, thankfulness, love, and, yes, fear.” In the Magnificat (Luke 1:50) Mary declaims, "His mercy is from age to age to those who fear him." The Parable of the Unjust Judge (Luke 18:1-8) finds Jesus describing the judge as one who "...neither feared God nor cared for man." Some modern language translations of the Bible sometimes replace the word "fear" with “reverence.”

The Western Church traditionally counts this fear as one of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit. In Proverbs 15:33, the fear of the Lord is described as the "discipline" or "instruction" of wisdom. Writing in the Catholic Encyclopedia, Jacques Forget explains that this gift "fills us with a sovereign respect for God, and makes us dread, above all things, to offend Him.” The connection between wisdom and the fear of the Lord is clearly seen in our reading this morning, where we see Job telling us that the “Fear of the Lord” leads to Wisdom, who is a personification of God’s own character. In this way, we see that God can only be understood by those who obey and respect Him, and that those who do not “obey first and ask questions later” are unable to come into the presence of God’s Holy Wisdom. 

Christ Enthroned in Glory, The Beatus Manuscript, Latin,  9th Century

Summary

The great theologian of our Patrimony, C. S. Lewis, references the Fear of the Lord in many of his writings, but specifically describes it in his book The Problem of Pain, where he says - 

“Those who have not met this term may be introduced to it by the following device. Suppose you were told there was a tiger in the next room: you would know that you were in danger and would probably feel fear. But if you were told 'There is a ghost in the next room', and believed it, you would feel, indeed, what is often called fear, but of a different kind. It would not be based on the knowledge of danger, for no one is primarily afraid of what a ghost may do to him, but of the mere fact that it is a ghost. It is 'uncanny' rather than dangerous, and the special kind of fear it excites may be called Dread. With the Uncanny one has reached the fringes of the Numinous. Now suppose that you were told simply 'There is a mighty spirit in the room', and believed it. Your feelings would then be even less like the mere fear of danger: but the disturbance would be profound. You would feel wonder and a certain shrinking--a sense of inadequacy to cope with such a visitant and of prostration before it--an emotion which might be expressed in Shakespeare's words 'Under it my genius is rebuked'*. This feeling may be described as awe, and the object which excites it as the Numinous.

“A modern example may be found (if we are not too proud to seek it there) in The Wind in the Willows where Rat and Mole approach Pan on the island:

'"Rat," he found breath to whisper, shaking, "Are you afraid?" "Afraid?" murmured the Rat, his eyes shining with unutterable love. "Afraid? of Him? O, never, never. And yet--and yet--O Mole, I am afraid.”' (C.S. Lewis, Introductory to The Problem of Pain, 1940)

The fear of the “numinous,” as C. S. Lewis describes it, is when one is filled with awe, in which you "feel wonder and a certain shrinking" or "a sense of inadequacy to cope with such a visitant and our prostration before it". It is a fear that comes forth out of love for the Lord, not a revulsion of Him or a desire to flee and hide, such as Adam and Eve had when they sinned, or that we experience every time we fall from grace. Instead, this fear fills us with a sense of our own smallness, unworthiness, and counter-intuitive importance to God, Who loves us, cradles us, and gives us an eternal life by the sustaining power of that eternal love. Such a realization brings tears, warmth of heart, steadiness of purpose, and courage to face the uncertainties and difficulties of the coming days, as we continue to praise, serve and worship our living and loving God!

A Monk Embraced by a Smiling Lion, Latin Manuscript, Approx. 11th Century

We quake along with Lucy as we realize that Aslan "isn't safe.” But with the Beaver’s we can rest assured - “Safe? Who said anything about safe? Of course he isn't safe. But he's good. He's the king, I tell you!”

The Collect

O Lord, may your abiding mercy cleanse and strengthen your Church, and, since she cannot exist in safety without you, let her be ever guided by your grace; through Jesus Christ your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, God, for all ages of ages. Amen

(Text of Lucy's conversation with the Beaver's is taken from C.S. Lewis' "Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe", Harper Collins, 1994. Portions of the sermon text edited from the Wikipedia's article, "The Fear of the Lord", and the quotations from C.S. Lewis' "The Problem of Pain" taken from https://yourdailycslewis.blogspot.com/2004/10/concept-of-numinous.html)