There’s a kind of “faith” that feels familiar, but it doesn’t feel weighty.

You can know the songs. You can know the routines. You can even know the right words. And still, if we’re honest, we can slowly lose the wonder.

This message kicked off our Holy Fear series with a simple, clarifying truth: the fear of the Lord is not being scared of God. It’s not God with a lightning bolt, waiting for you to slip up. It’s not a distant, angry God who’s unapproachable or uninterested.

Holy fear is something better.

It’s a response to God’s greatness. It’s reverence. It’s awe. It’s a holy awareness that says, “God, You’re not common. You’re not small. You’re not like me.”

And the wild part is this: when we get the first fear right, the lesser fears lose their grip on our lives.

The Beginning of Wisdom Starts Here

Our theme verse for the series comes straight from Proverbs:

“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.”

Wisdom isn’t just about making better choices. It’s about building on the right foundation. Brian said it like this: if we want to live wise, we can’t just know what’s second or third. We have to know what’s first.

And “first” is holy fear.

Not dread. Not anxiety. Not spiritual paranoia.

Holy fear is a right view of God, and that view reshapes everything else.

What Holy Fear Is Not

This part matters, because many people carry a picture of God that keeps them far from Him.

Brian described growing up with the sense that God was mostly “stop, quit, don’t,” and that one wrong move might bring judgment crashing down.

Maybe you’ve felt that too.

Or maybe you’ve seen faith expressed as anger, like someone yelling truth without love, as if God is only trying to get something from people instead of wanting something for them.

That isn’t holy fear.

Holy fear does not push you away from God. It pulls you toward Him with reverence and trust.

What Holy Fear Is

Holy fear is a response to God’s greatness.

It’s a deep respect. A holy awareness. A recognition of His “weight,” His authority, His majesty.

It’s the kind of awe that makes you pause and remember:

• God is infinitely greater than me.

• God is more powerful than anything I’m facing.

• God has been here long before I showed up, and He will be here to the very end.

It’s not that God is less personal. It’s that God is more holy than we sometimes remember.

Brian said we use the word “awesome” for everything, but when we say God is awesome, we’re talking about something bigger than a great dessert. We’re talking about a God who hung the stars, whose glory is displayed in the skies, who does more than we can ask, think, or imagine.

And here’s the warning that landed hard:

If you reduce God, you’ll have a reduced life.

Your View of God Shapes Your Whole Life

This is one of those truths you can’t unsee once you hear it:

Your view of God is the most important thing about you.

Because your view of God determines how you relate to Him.

Brian gave a few examples that were uncomfortably honest:

• With the wrong view of God, we treat Scripture casually.

• With the wrong view of God, we resist conviction and justify sin.

• With the wrong view of God, we can know what the Bible says and still do what we want.

But with a right view of God:

• We obey even when we disagree.

• We obey even when culture pushes a different narrative.

• We value closeness with God more than comfort.

Holy fear doesn’t make your world smaller. It makes God bigger again.

We Can’t Lose the Wonder

I loved the way Brian honored the heart behind modern church, reaching people, bridging gaps, creating welcoming spaces. And then he named the tension we all have to watch:

We mustn’t lose the wonder.

We can become so familiar with grace that we diminish it. We can become so casual that we forget we’re in the presence of a King.

He gave some funny examples of how casual we can get, but the point was serious: Jesus is Father, Friend, closer than a brother, yes. But He is also King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

When a King is in the room, you don’t swagger in with entitlement. You come with honor.

The posture of holy fear is worship that says, “Yes, Lord. Speak, I’m listening. I’ll go anywhere. I’ll lay it down again just to be close to You.”

That’s not religion. That’s reverence.

God Is Awesome. God Is Holy. God Is Right.

This part was clear and grounding.

Brian said God is many things, but He is first holy.
And then he added something our culture doesn’t always celebrate:

God is right.

Not because God is harsh, but because God is good.

There’s been an attack on God’s Word from the beginning. The same old whisper: “Did God really say…?”

And yes, there are mysteries we can’t fully explain. But not understanding God doesn’t disqualify God. It proves He’s God.

Then Brian read Psalm 19, showing how God’s Word revives, makes wise, brings joy, gives light, and how the fear of the Lord is pure and enduring. He highlighted this line:

In keeping God’s Word, there is reward.

So the Bible isn’t just a “no.” It’s God showing us where the blessing is.

How We Posture Ourselves for Holy Fear

This message didn’t just define holy fear. It gave us handles.

Brian pointed us toward two practices that posture the heart: prayer and fasting.

Not as religious badges. As spiritual formation.

1) Holy fear cultivates humility

You stop trying to be big when you realize He’s big.
Prayer humbles our heart. Fasting humbles our body.

It’s humbling to realize, “This isn’t my source. He is.”

2) Holy fear awakens what’s dead

Brian talked about attention, distraction, and how our lives can be “everywhere and nowhere.”
Fasting removes distractions. It lowers the noise. And he said something we all need to hear:

God is speaking, but He will not compete with the volumes you refuse to turn down.

Prayer and fasting help us see again. Hear again. Focus again.

3) Holy fear leads us into submission

He clarified that submission is “under the mission” of God.
And he tied it to Jesus’ words: if you love me, you’ll obey. Obedience doesn’t replace love. It flows from love.

Prayer aligns our will with God’s will.
Fasting weakens our grip on the things we try to control.

That’s where freedom lives.

A Simple Prayer for This Week

If you want a starting point, try praying this (and mean it):

“God, stir in me a holy awareness.
Help me not lose the wonder.
Teach me to fear You rightly, so lesser fears lose their grip.
Make my life quiet enough to hear You, and humble enough to obey You.”

An Invitation

If you’ve felt distant from God, hear this: holy fear is not God pushing you away. It’s God drawing you close with clarity and kindness.

If you want to go deeper, watch the full message and take a step with us as a church family. Come worship with us. Join in prayer. Try fasting with intention. Make room for God again.

You were never meant to live with a small view of God.