Fear not, I am with you

SPIRIT OF FEAR VERSUS SPIRIT OF PEACE

THE FEAR OF THE LORD

At the top of the stairs, in our family home, was a small area intended to be a peaceful entrance to the storage room but became a place of terror for my sister and me. Anyone could squat down in that small area without being seen by the person coming up the stairs until he or she was on the top stair and looked to the left. This was the perfect place to lie in wait for my sister so that I could jump up, at just the right time, and scare the living daylights out of her. Unfortunately, my sister thought of it first.

Although she had a great time seeing the terror on my face and hearing my scream, I detested being scared and therefore responded to her in anger, once my mind registered what had actually transpired. I was so furious at being put through that split-second nightmare. That one random act of mischief destroyed my whole sense of safety and peace of mind going up the stairs when I knew my sister was already up there. I took to commanding, Don’t scare me! as I slowly ascended to the dreaded top stair with great caution and attempted to be prepared so that she could not succeed in scaring me. But just thinking that she might be up there ready to jump out unexpectedly made me just as fearful. Oh, how dreadful the whole task was. Most of the time, she was nowhere around the stairs, which made all my anxiety and dread completely useless.

Eventually, a light bulb appeared above my head with a wonderful plan of justice. I decided that she was going to reap what she had sowed, and I was eager for the harvest. Soon after my revelation for justice, I put my plan into action. The next time I thought she might be sitting up there like a tiger ready to pounce upon its prey, I slowly crept up the stairs as quietly as possible, crouched down, with a sinister smile breaking out across my small, no-longer-innocent face. With great stealth, I arrived at the top of the stairs. I jumped out and yelled, Aaaaah! I was right, she was there, and I had the profound pleasure of seeing terror on her face and hearing her scream. The harvest was in. It was then that I realized, she was right. It was great fun, but this time she didn’t think so. She was so angry. The tables were turned, as the saying goes. This newfound power was exhilarating. So I did not stop there. Next time I was upstairs and she went downstairs for something, I got into position. I then commenced to scare the living daylights out of her when she returned to the top of the stairs. However, I must report that I had been so nervous waiting for her that I found myself worrying that I might not time it just right and therefore she might end up scaring me instead. I was almost as nervous as if it was happening to me. I did succeed in my attack of fear, but that day I decided never to do it again. It was all too nerve-racking. Although I had inwardly given up the pursuit of scaring my sister (to get her back for scaring me), days later I knew I had accomplished my mission of justice when I heard her yell, Don’t scare me! when she was coming up the stairs. Where was I? you might wonder. I was not lurking behind the wall extension as she expected. I was comfortably and peacefully sitting on the bed watching television and drinking my chocolate milk with a tablespoon. It was then that I knew I had her right where I had wanted her—the same place she had me, living in fear of going upstairs.

After that day, there was no more terrorizing each other on the stairwell. We both had had enough and seemed to have realized that neither one of us truly gained any benefit but that we instilled in each other an unwanted fear of being in our own house that we did not want to endure.

As I grew up and matured, I realized three more things. One, life gets much scarier than an unexpected Aaaah at the top of a stairwell. For instance, when two scruffy-looking men try to follow you home from the grocery store and you must call upon God to help you evade them. Two, I cannot always fight fire with fire without getting burned. For instance, choosing to leave a job because of my supervisor’s ongoing verbal abuse and false accusations and then being paid only minimum wage on my last paycheck as a result of yet another false accusation by my supervisor. Three, the idea of scaring the living daylights out of me on the stairwell did not originate with my sister. The whole concept of crippling you and me with fear came from the highest source of evil, Satan himself. God has revealed through scripture that our battles are not battles with flesh and blood (that which we see and experience in our physical senses) but are actually battles with spiritual beings in an unseen realm. In this unseen spiritual realm, fallen angels (demons) led by Satan, are fighting against us and the holy angels led by God. Both desire to have the authority over our life and our death. The fallen angels, that are at war against the things of God, are the worldly forces of darkness and spiritual forces of wickedness (Eph. 6:12). As a result, we are in the midst of a battle between the spirit of fear (Satan and the fallen angels) and the spirit of peace (God and His holy angels).

God gives an example of this spiritual dimension in 2 Kings 6:8–23. The king of Syria was against the prophet Elisha because he was able to tell Israel of the Syrian king’s plots against them, thus preventing him from succeeding in his war against Israel. Once the Syrian king found out where Elisha was, he sent a large army to destroy him. When Elisha’s servant awoke and saw the vast army surrounding them, he was full of fear. Elisha asked God to open his servant’s eyes; and when He did, the servant saw another vast army, the army of God, surrounding him and Elisha. Elisha called upon God to smite Syria’s army with blindness so that they could not recognize Elisha or where they were. God did as Elisha requested, and Elisha was able to lead them away from his territory and into the hands of their enemy, Israel. God then opened their eyes so they could know they were at the mercy of their enemy. However, they were not destroyed but were fed and sent back to their land. After that, Syria did not again seek to attack Israel. God’s power through His army of holy angels is greater than Satan’s power through his army of fallen angels (demons). When God is fighting for you, nothing can prevail against you, not even a vast army that is surrounding you, outnumbering you hundreds or thousands to one.

In this example, Elisha’s servant was ruled by the spirit of fear, at least initially, until he saw the army of God stationed to fight on their behalf. Elisha, on the other hand, was ruled by the spirit of peace because he was spiritually aware that God was with him and able to defeat the enemy. Elisha’s response is therefore one example of being unafraid despite how impossible and potentially devastating a situation appears because of Satan’s attempts to destroy God’s people and God’s plan. Just as God commanded Joshua, He also commands you, "Be strong and courageous. Do not tremble or be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go" (Josh. 1:9).

Who has not experienced fear characterized by apprehension, dread, fright, trepidation, or panic? This type of fear can be experienced when the unexpected happens, when something you cannot control arises, when the unknown remains hidden, when what you need is not in your sight or in your grasp at the moment, or when you are dealing with an uncertain situation that reminds you of negative past experiences. However, God does not desire for this type of fear to rule you in any circumstance.

Although this type of fear leads to worry, anxiety, and destructive choices and consequences, it is credited as an important factor in self-preservation, indicating that unless you maintain some level of fear you will not be safe. However, this type of fear is not God’s intended guide for your safety. Here is an example: fearing a hot stove is not necessary in order to keep you from burning yourself. Simply responding appropriately to the knowledge that contact with heat burns and causes pain helps prevent you from burning yourself. This wisdom results from experience, your own or someone else’s. Therefore, living by fear does not assure you of safety and peace; it only leads to neurotic behavior that throws your life out of balance and disrupts your safety and peace. Only responding appropriately to the wisdom gained from knowledge of the truth provides safety and peace.

This type of fear, therefore, does not secure your safety; but it does reveal your need for God’s knowledge, wisdom, direction, and power. The spirit of fear is not from God. For God has not given us a spirit of timidity (fear)… (2 Tim. 1:7). So, from where does this spirit of fear come? The spirit of fear comes from the prince/ruler of this world.

Who is the prince/ruler of this world? (Luke 4:6, Eph. 2:2)

Satan. The domain of this world has been given to him.

How did this prince/ruler of the world become established? (Gen. 3:1–12)

On the sixth day of creation, God created man. Sometime after that (we don’t know exactly how long after His creation), Adam and Eve disobeyed God and ate of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. Without the knowledge of evil, man had nothing to fear. Before eating of the tree, man only knew what was good and felt only the peace of God’s presence. But with the knowledge of evil came fear as first seen by man hiding from God when he heard God approaching. Thus, the struggle to maintain peace of mind instead of fear began—soon after the beginning. Because of man’s sin (his decision to follow Satan’s direction instead of God’s command), Satan’s authority was established in this world. Satan had deceived them into believing God was not really for them but was against them, hindering them instead of helping them and lying to them instead of really loving them. Oh, how much rejoicing Satan did on that day—the day God’s precious creation chose Satan’s authority over His.

I can imagine, after deceiving Eve in the Garden of Eden, Satan, in the form of a serpent, scampering away, twitching left and right, wishing his stumpy legs wouldn’t slow him down, while Eve anxiously calls out to him, You’d better not tattle on me. I’ll tell God what you said. I’ll tell Him that you called Him a liar. I will. Get back here! Then Adam, with sweat popping off his brow, frantically looking for and grabbing the largest leaves he could find, saying to Eve, I won’t tell on you if you don’t tell on me. Let’s get out of here before the serpent tattles on us. Maybe God won’t believe him. Who would believe a serpent anyway? Besides you, that is. Then Satan arriving at the throne of God and, with a lilting voice, saying, God, oh God…Eve just ate the fruit that You said she couldn’t eat, and she gave some to Adam and he is eating it too. After all, Satan is referred to as the accuser of our brethren who tattles on you day and night (Rev. 12:10).

We know God needs no tattlers or snitches. We know that He sees and hears everything and therefore knows who, what, where, when, and how at all times. God saw Eve and Adam near the fruit before the first bite, during their indulgence, and after the final swallow when the fruit was silently sliding down their throat as if escaping through its darkened, hidden route toward digestion where all evidence would be disseminated and eliminated forever, at least in an unrecognizable form. Satan had convinced Eve, and Eve had convinced Adam that God was not worthy of their respect and reverence after all. Therefore, they had lost their life-sustaining fear of the Lord.

Satan doesn’t tattle because God is not aware of what has happened. He tattles because he hopes to gain permission, from God, to play a role in the chastisement of the guilty party. Satan seeks to make you fall through doubts and fears, and then when you do, he seeks permission to be a part of your consequence, and in doing so, he uses the opportunity to establish anxiety and more fear from the guilt and shame that results from doing what is wrong. However, just like on the day when Adam and Eve each received a consequence for their rebellion, so did the serpent. He lost those stumpy legs and now has to slide and slither from place to place. Satan has not gotten away with his part in the disobedience either.

What did Jesus say He would do to this prince (Satan)? (John 12:31)

Jesus said He would render judgment upon the prince of the world, Satan, and he would be cast out. Satan only has temporary authority in the domain of this world.

What relationship does Jesus have with this prince? (Matt. 4:1–11)

They are enemies.

Does the prince of the world have any authority or power over Jesus? (John 14:30)

No. Satan has no control or power over Jesus. Jesus is independent of Satan’s wiles and manipulation. Jesus is without sin, so sin does not master Him. He is the master over sin. Jesus revealed that He was well aware of His enemy and his plan to try and destroy God’s plan when Jesus stated in John 14:30, the ruler of the world is coming, but that Satan had no authority within Him when He stated, but he has nothing in me. Jesus was alert and prepared for the enemy’s attack, but Jesus was not fearful, for He knew that His power was more than sufficient to overcome Satan’s opposition and evil plot against Him. Regardless of what the circumstances would soon become, Jesus knew the final outcome would be His victory.

What did the prince of this world face? What will be the final result? (John 12:31, John 16:11, Rev. 1:18, Rev. 20:7–10)

Satan faced his judgment at Christ’s death, and his fate was sealed. Though Jesus was crucified, He was sinless and therefore received no true judgment, only false judgment. Through Jesus’s death and resurrection, Jesus obtained the keys to death and Hades, which means that Jesus obtained the authority over death and the dwelling place of the doomed. Jesus overcame the world (Satan) by overcoming death. Death was the last enemy, and Jesus conquered the last enemy (1 Cor. 15:2, 50–58, 2 Tim. 1:10). Therefore, Jesus confidently proclaims that in this world (Satan’s temporary domain) you will face tribulation but you need to take courage (choose what is right in spite of any fear) for He has overcome the world (John 16:33).

The culmination of this victory, for all believers, will be the resurrection of the dead in Christ (1 Thess. 4:6). The culmination of Satan’s judgment will be when the one-thousand-year reign of Christ is complete and Satan is released from prison. At that time, Satan will try once again to overcome Christ and His kingdom, but he will again be defeated—for the last time. Jesus will cast Satan, along with the Beast and the False Prophet, into the lake of fire and brimstone where they will be tormented day and night, forever, without end.

Until Satan’s final day arrives, he will continue to promote fear so that he may bring insecurity, instability, confusion, and limitations into your life that will destroy your peace and render you helpless and useless to God’s work. This fear is born out of Satan’s lies and is developed and strengthened when you focus on man’s limited power instead of God’s limitless power.

Consider, for instance, the fear of the unknown. This fear is based on the lie that you must be like God, knowing everything, in order to feel secure. This was the same lie that Satan fed Eve in the garden. Satan filled Eve’s mind with doubt toward God and led her to believe that God was actually harming her instead of protecting her by not allowing her to eat the fruit of the Tree of Good and Evil. Satan convinced her that if she ate from the forbidden tree, she would not die (as God said) but that she would be like Him, knowing both good and evil. Satan gave her the impression that she would be equal to God, knowing everything. She was already like Him (made in His imagine), but Satan overlooked that tidbit. Believing this lie—that you must know everything to be secure, instead of trusting in God—will lead to your living in deceptive fear, since there are and will be many unknowns in your life. Adam and Eve did not gain complete knowledge; instead, they gained awareness of evil. Therefore, now, Satan could destroy the peace of mind they had experienced within their relationship to God. Previously, Satan didn’t have an inlet; but now, through deceptive fear, he does.

No one likes to be caught off guard or sense the possibility of unpredictable doom. However, God does not desire that you live a life fearing the unknown. He confirms in His Word that when He is your God, you need not fear anything but Him. Instead of living by deceptive fear, entrust God with all that you do know and trust Him for all that you do not know. Security is not found in knowing everything, but in knowing the God who knows everything and who causes all things to work together for good to those who love Him and are called according to His purpose (Rom. 8:28). The truth is that He is able and will take care of you when you trust and obey Him. Believing that and living by it maintains peace.

Since deceptive fear is Satan’s means for defeating you, what is God’s means for victory over this deceptive spirit of fear?

For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline. (2 Tim. 1:7)

God gives His children a spirit (the Holy Spirit) of power, love, and discipline (sound mind). Jesus told His disciples that although He would soon be physically leaving them, the Father would give them a spiritual Helper (John 14:16). This Helper is the Holy Spirit. Jesus told them that the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of God, would abide with them and in them forever. The Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit, is God’s means for your emotional peace. The Holy Spirit will do the following:

Give you the words to say in difficult situations(Luke 12:11–12).

Teach you what you need to know and help you to remember(John 14:26).

Guide you with His truth(John 16:13).

Comfort you when needed(2 Cor. 1:4).

Grant you power over sin to live the Christian life(Rom. 8:1–14).

Help you understand the mind of God(1 Cor. 2:15–16).

You need not fear what to say, what you need to know, where you need to go, how you will go, what you need to do, etc. because God promises that through the help of the Holy Spirit, you will have all that you need to walk confidently in peace.

The Holy Spirit dwells within each believer.

What does God say is the evidence of the Spirit of God within you? (Gal. 5:22–23)

The fruit (evidence) of the Spirit includes peace. God’s spirit produces peace, not fear.

Although Satan seeks to destroy your peace with fear, he is not greater than the Spirit of God within you (John 16:33, 1 John 4:4). Jesus is the Prince of Peace, and there shall be no end to the increase of His peace (Isa. 9:6–7). With the Holy Spirit dwelling within you, you have the same power of Christ to overcome all temptations and fears.

In John 14:27, Jesus tells His disciples, Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give it to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.

Jesus makes a distinction between the world’s peace and His peace. What is the difference?

The world’s peace is unstable, limited, and short-lived because it is based on man’s ability and his false sense of control. The Holy Spirit’s peace is stable, unlimited, and enduring because there is nothing beyond God’s ability, power, and control.

The above picture depicts John 14:20. The Holy Spirit is in you, you are in Christ, and Christ is in God. You are completely secured in God. Everything must pass through God and through Christ to get to you; therefore, God is aware and in control of all that you encounter. The Holy Spirit is within you, so you have the power of God to endure and overcome whatever you encounter. Why should you fear?

Unlike the disciples who followed Christ in His days on the earth, believers today will not experience the security of Jesus’s physical presence until His return. However, believers have the promise that the Holy Spirit will be with them at all times (John 14:18). Therefore, remain in His peace and do not allow yourself to live in fear; for the Holy Spirit will teach you, guide you, comfort you, and protect you just as if Jesus Himself was physically dwelling in your midst.

Allow the Holy Spirit to help you in all that you encounter, and fear will be obsolete. Be as Christ when facing the enemy, Satan. Be alert to his plans, but do not fear for Christ is greater than anything Satan can bring into your life. Though circumstances might look bad for a time, know that, in time, victory is certain through the power of the almighty and undefeated God.

YOU CHOOSE WHICH SPIRIT RULES YOU

Peace from God and deceptive fear from Satan are two separate masters, and one or the other will rule you at any given time. You cannot serve two masters (Matt. 6:24). You must choose who rules you. Even when deceptive fear creeps into your thoughts, you do not have to allow it to remain and rule you. God promises that He will guard your thoughts and emotions with His peace when you entrust Him with your concerns (Phil. 4:6–7).

As a child, my confidence to speak up had been stripped away; therefore, I was too shy to disclose incidents at school that needed reporting. In third grade, I needed to tell the teachers, So and so threatened to beat me up at recess tomorrow. Even though she (the third-grade bully) threatened me three days in a row, she never beat me up or down and I never reported her threats. Since she never followed through with the first and second threat, on the third threat, when once again she said, I am going to beat you up at recess tomorrow, I looked straight into her lying eyes and, with worn-out-with-it frustration, I said, I thought you were supposed to do that yesterday. For a few seconds she stood in stunned silence with her wide eyes searching the unseen realm for what she was supposed to do next, but without finding an answer, she walked away, never to bother me again. Thankfully, I lived to tell about it.

On this occasion, I was not consciously aware that I could call upon God for His assistance. However, I do see that the principles of God worked in my life. I resisted Satan’s attempts to instill fear in me by standing confidently in the truth that she was not going to beat me up, and in so doing, he fled (James 4:7). I stood in peace from that day forward, at least in relation to the bully.

Placing your trust in other people requires them to be worthy of your trust. Those who are trustworthy are people whose words consistently match their actions—they say what they mean and they follow through with what they say. Though mankind frequently falls short of this characteristic, God does not. He is consistent; there is no variation in Him (James 1:17). God says what He means (Ps. 33:4). He follows through with what He says every time (Isa. 46:11). God is worthy of all your trust and confidence, not anyone else.

If we are faithless, He remains faithful; for He cannot deny Himself. (2 Tim. 2:13)

The Glory of Israel will not lie or change His mind; for He is not a man that He should change His mind. ( 1Sam. 15:29)

Titus 1:2 and Hebrews 6:18 also affirm that God cannot lie; it is against His very nature. In contrast, Jesus confirms that Satan does not stand in the truth. Lying is his very nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies (John 8:44).

Even though God does not tell you all the details in every matter of life—for you could not handle them even if He did—you can trust His Word, His Truth, to direct you through anything you encounter without fear. God does not desire for you to remain ignorant of His Word, for not knowing and understanding God’s Word will make you vulnerable to deception (Eph. 4:13–14). What you do not know about God’s Word will hurt you. Ignorance of God’s Word can even bring your life to an early end because of destructive choices made out of your own ignorance.

Being ruled by God means His Word guides your decisions and choices. Being ruled by Satan means you remain ignorant of God’s Word, you know God’s Word but are complacent toward it, or you willingly ignore and/or disobey it out of a selfish desire to be in charge, thinking you can be your own god and somehow survive. However, to have victory over fear, your mind must be ruled by peace, which is founded on God’s truth. Therefore, you must know God’s truth and then choose to live according to it.

Ruled by Satan—Deceptive Spirit of Fear—Leads to Death

My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. (Hosea 4:6)

You can bring about your own destruction through ignorance of common knowledge (the natural consequences of sin) and/or through ignorance of spiritual knowledge (God’s truth). Ignorance of the natural consequences of sin (common knowledge) can lead to physical damage and even death. Ignorance of God’s Word (spiritual knowledge) will not only result in you encountering the natural consequences of sin, but also in leading you to the spiritual consequences of God’s chastisement for your disobedience to His commands and principles.

For instance, some common knowledge is that, if you engage in sexual activity outside of marriage and with multiple partners, you will most likely acquire sexual diseases, some of which lead to death. This is the natural consequence of an indulgent and uncontrolled lifestyle that focuses on pleasure instead of responsible and moral behavior. The related spiritual knowledge is that even if you do not contract a physical deadly disease but you continue in this lifestyle of sin without repentance, you will face a spiritual eternal death because of your rebellion against God’s principles. God says, among other things listed, that fornicators and adulterers will not enter the kingdom of heaven. They are doomed to an eternity of hell (1 Cor. 6:9).

However, following God’s principles regarding sexual activity will preserve your life and grant you freedom from the fear of negative consequences. Even if you do not know the natural physical consequences of sexual promiscuity, you will be protected against sexual diseases by keeping God’s law of sexual purity. So following God’s principles does not put you at risk for health problems whereas disobeying God’s principles does. You will also spare yourself the mental and emotional damage that results from sexual promiscuity. Obeying God’s principles/commands will grant you the protection you need and freedom from fear—the fear of disease, rejection, shame, and punishment.

When God’s people do not obey God’s truth, either from lack of knowledge or from rebellion against their knowledge, God sends His chastisement upon them. When Israel stopped paying attention to God’s Word and continued in their sins, God chastised them to reveal His power so that they would once again respect Him and return to Him. Hosea 4:2, 11–13 states some of their sins.

Ruled by God—True Spirit of Peace—Leads to Life

Through knowledge the righteous will be delivered. (Prov. 11:9)

This refers to the knowledge of God’s truth. This also includes acting upon that knowledge as it is intended.

The sum of Your word is truth, and every one of Your righteous ordinances is everlasting. (Ps. 119:160)

All of God’s Word is truth and His laws have no end and cannot be changed. Heaven and earth will pass away, but God’s Word will remain (Luke 21:33). And not one thing in God’s Word will be left undone. All will be accomplished, just as He has said (Matt. 5:18). So, through knowledge of and obedience to God’s truth, you will be delivered from anything that seeks to enslave you or destroy you.

Equipping yourself with knowledge of the Truth is the first step in standing against all fears and in restoring and maintaining a life of everyday peace. Whatever is the source of your fear, God promises that His Truth will set you free from being its slave. You must not only know the truth but also live by that truth for it to have the intended impact. If you have not sought the Truth or you know the Truth and have cast it aside, the Truth has not failed you, but you have failed Truth.

Step into God’s presence through His Word and allow Him to reveal His Truth to you in all areas of living and thereby give you the knowledge needed for deliverance from fear. Keep His words in you and before you. They are the source of life and peace.

My son, give attention to my words; incline your ear to my sayings. Do not let them depart from your sight; keep them in the midst of your heart, for they are life to those who find them and health to all their body. (Prov. 4:20–22)

What does Philippians 4:6–7 say about fear and peace?

Fear nothing; instead, with gratitude toward God, tell Him your concerns. Be obedient to His principles and commands, and then leave them in His hands. When you do this, His peace will saturate your thoughts and emotions. As a result, you will have peace of mind beyond even your own understanding.

I sought the Lord, and He answered me, and delivered me from all my fears. (Ps. 34:4)

Satan’s deceptive fears offer no benefits of protection, security, or peace. But there is a type of fear that does bring reward. This is the only fear that God affirms and even commands; this fear is the fear of the Lord.

THE FEAR OF THE LORD

Fear the Lord and serve Him with sincerity and truth. (Josh. 24:14, 1 Sam. 12:24)

Fearing the Lord is having an attitude of utmost reverence and respect for God and therefore His principles and commands. To live a life of peace and reward, you must respect the Giver of peace and thereby live according to His commands. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge (Prov. 1:7) and the beginning of wisdom (Ps. 111:10). God is the Designer and Creator of all life and therefore possesses all the knowledge and wisdom you need to live your life to the fullest. God affirms that if you lack wisdom, you need only to ask Him and He will grant you the wisdom that you need (James 1:5). Only a fool despises wisdom and instruction (Prov. 1:7). Only a fool turns from God’s instruction and goes his own way. So you cannot even begin to know what you need to know in order to have a life of peace and reward until you first respect the Lord, the Creator of all life and possessor of all wisdom.

God is to be revered and respected above all. You are to put your emotional energy toward respecting God and obeying His commands, out of love for Him. You are not to waste your emotional energy feeling threatened or overwhelmed by circumstances or events involving man because God can overcome anything this world or man seeks to bring against you. Fearing the Lord results from being fully aware of God’s power and greatness and the possible consequences you will incur if you do not respect Him and obey Him.

The following verses disclose God’s command to fear Him: Deuteronomy 8:6, Deuteronomy 10:12–13, 20, Deuteronomy 13:4, Leviticus 25:17

What commands in these verses are equivalent to fearing God?

The commandments equivalent to fearing God are: keeping His commandments, walking in His ways, loving Him, serving Him fully, clinging to Him, listening to Him, and doing wrong to no one.

The fear of the Lord requires that out of great respect and reverence to Him, you submit to the authority of God and,