January 9, 2026

Fearing God

In Psalm 147:10–11, David gives us insight into two things that please God—two things that may seem disconnected from each other.

He does not delight in the strength of the horse; He takes no pleasure in the legs of a man. The LORD takes pleasure in those who fear Him, in those who hope in His mercy.

First, God delights in those who fear Him, those who have a reverential respect and awe for Him. Second, God is pleased with those who hope in His mercy.

In today’s devotional, I want to focus on what it means to truly fear God. And, in tomorrow’s devotional, we will look at what it means to hope in mercy, and how these two are connected.

Scripture constantly admonishes us to fear God. But how do you do that? I believe the Bible gives us at least four ways:

1. Through a hatred of evil. Proverbs 8:13 says, The fear of the Lord is to hate evil.
2. Through radical obedience. To fear the Lord means to radically obey Him, as Abraham did in Genesis 22 when he was willing to sacrifice his son.
3. With an awareness that God is always watching you. Scripture makes it clear there is nowhere you can go that God does not see.
4. With the knowledge that one day you will have to stand before God as your Judge. Jesus even tells us that one day, when we stand before Him, we will have to give an account of every idle word we have spoken.

Pray today that God will help you live your life by these four principles. Because God delights in those who fear Him.

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