Reverence Is the Foundation
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow his precepts have good understanding. To him belongs eternal praise. – Psalm 111:10 (NIV)
What some biblical translations call “the fear of the Lord” is better translated “reverence of the Lord.” According to the psalmist, this reverence, this awesome respect for the Lord, is the foundation of all wisdom. All of our wisdom and understanding about life and the world rests upon an awesome reverence for God.
Quests for knowledge, scientific inquiries, and philosophical postulations that are not grounded in a reverence for God may lead us to more information but cannot give us the wisdom and the understanding to properly interpret and apply the information.
In the words of Dr. Joseph Lowery, “We have the knowledge of how to build smart bombs, but we send smart bombs on dumb missions.”
Knowledge derived from information can give us data about life, but only the wisdom derived from God can give us understanding about how to protect and preserve life. We should never forget that every world war and every holocaust has been started and sustained by persons of impressive knowledge who nonetheless needed wisdom derived from divine reverence.
Prayer
Lord we thank you for being our foundation and our future. Grant that all of our educational and scientific endeavors be grounded in our awesome reverence for you. Amen.
About the AuthorKenneth L. Samuel is Pastor of Victory for the World Church, Decatur, Georgia.