The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and it is also the foundation for all the blessings of God. We see this in Psalm 128 which begins, “Blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who walks in His ways.” 

This blessing is then exemplified by the psalmist in three essential areas of life: work, family, and worship. For work, you will eat the fruit of your labor. You will be blessed by having something to do and be successful in the doing of it. For family, you will have a wife who is like a fruitful vine in all sorts of ways, including children like olive-shoots gathered around your table. And for worship, you will experience the blessing of the Lord out of Zion, living to see the prosperity of the church not only in your day, but in your grandchildren’s day.

These three areas—work, family, and worship—sum up well all of life. And they are the areas in which we so long for the blessing of God, and can so acutely feel the absence of His blessing. 

And so as we rightly seek prosperity in these areas, we must foremost seek to cultivate a godly fear of God. But what does this look like?

To fear God is to know how awesome and holy He is, in both His wrath and His grace, and in all His manifold attributes. But it is not mere head knowledge, as if it’s just another fact to know. It is a continual awareness of His glory and presence. To fear God is to actively live every day before His face. And when we do this, we will then walk in His ways. To fear God is to obey His commands and live according to His will—for pleasing Him is our ultimate desire, not pleasing man. In the fear of the Lord, all other petty fears are swallowed up. There simply is no room for them. And in the fear of the Lord, there is freedom and blessing. 

So do you wish to see God’s goodness in your life—upon your work, in your family, and in this church? Then pursue first a greater fear of the Lord, so that He may indeed visit you and your household with blessing.