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About this quote

What does it mean?
Fear of the Lord involves a doubt about His nature, revealing that fearing Him as a tyrant is actually doubting His goodness.
In plain terms
If you fear God out of dread, you are doubting who He really is.
What can you take from it?
True reverence replaces fear with trust in God's character.

Where it applies

  • prayer
  • spiritual crisis
  • religious education

Putting it to work

  • examine fears of god
  • study biblical character of god

Questions to consider

  • What does your fear of God say about your view of Him?
  • How can you distinguish awe from dread?

Another view

Some theological traditions emphasize fear of the Lord as awe rather than doubt.

More from George MacDonald

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  2. The best thing you can do for your fellow, next to rousing his conscience, is - not to give him things to think about, but to wake things up that are in him; o…

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  3. We must do the thing we must Before the thing we may; We are unfit for any trust Till we can and do obey.

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