Having a proper balance is key to many things in life and even when it comes to many areas of one’s spiritual walk with God. An example could be in the Bible that we’re told to worship the Lord in “spirit and truth.” To worship the Lord in spirit only or to do so in truth only would not suffice if we are looking to follow what the Bible says.

And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’
(Mark 12:30 - ESV)

Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this [is] the whole [duty] of man.
(Ecclesiastes 12:13 - KJV)

We are told to love the Lord. Yet the Bible also tells us to fear the Lord. In our world, finding the balance between the two seems to be harder and harder. In many (not all) cases, especially in America, God is taught to be about love and so many people will emphasize loving God and yet still do things and teach things that are contrary to what God says. In those cases, it isn’t about having a true love for God. Jesus’ words in Mark 12 call for us to have our heart, soul, mind and strength submitted onto God as an act of our love for Him. This means that if we truly love God, our whole being will reflect that.

Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father's which sent me.
(John 14:23-24 -  KJV)

For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.
(1 John 5:3 - KJV)

If you are truly loving God today, your life will be the proof of that. Just as a wife who truly loves her husband will be faithful and good to him, professing Christians who love Jesus will be faithful and good to Him. None of us can honestly say that we love God if we dismiss how He wants us to live and conduct ourselves.

“Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
(Matthew 10:28 - NASB)

We all could use a healthy dose of fear of the Lord. Sometimes realizing the consequences of turning our backs on Him can play a part in keeping us anchored in our faith. Think about the children who grow up undisciplined and who are not held accountable by their parents versus those who receive a healthy dose of discipline. The ones who were disciplined have greater caution, respect and wisdom going forward in life. With our faith, because we still battle against our flesh, sometimes it will be the fear of God that will stop us from sinning.

But in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him.
(Acts 10:35 - KJV)

Within a healthy fear of God is a respect and reverence for Him. It’s not just about how Mighty and Powerful He is or that He is the Judge of all the living, but a good fear of God causes us to give Him respect and make ourselves accountable to Him. This fear is missing from what I’ve seen in America but in other parts of the world, the reverse could be true where there is so much fear of God that people could not fathom what it would even be like to love Him. So there has to be a balance.

And they came to the place which God had told him of; and Abraham built an altar there, and laid the wood in order, and bound Isaac his son, and laid him on the altar upon the wood. And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son. And the angel of the LORD called unto him out of heaven, and said, Abraham, Abraham: and he said, Here am I. And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me.
(Genesis 22:9-12 - KJV)

Fear of the Lord also means that He is first in whatever we do. If we read the account of Abraham’s life, we would see that I waited a long, long time to have a child and his first son, Ishmael, was not the son of promise. It was Isaac, who would come later. Now, we must realize that when Isaac was born and Abraham saw that God’s delight rested on his son, that he loved his son greater than probably any father could ever love his son.

But for whatever reason that only God knows, Abraham was put to the test with the one person that he possibly could have loved more than God. I’m not saying that Abraham loved Isaac more than God but that he was tested. And the test proved that Abraham regarded God more than his own son that he had waited so long for. And as a result, the angel didn’t say, “I know that you love God,” but instead said, “I know that thou fearest God.” A true fear of God will always put Him first.

And now, Israel, what doth the LORD thy God require of thee, but to fear the LORD thy God, to walk in all his ways, and to love him, and to serve the LORD thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul,
(Deuteronomy 10:12 - KJV)

It is better to fear the Lord now than to fear Him on the day of judgment. It is better to love the Lord now so we can continue in His love for all eternity. Where do you stand today? Could you love Jesus more? Or do you need to fear Him more? Reflect on your life and see.

Remember, just like we worship God in spirit and truth and they are inseparable, the love and fear of God are also inseparable. They should be united together in our faith. Let’s both love and fear the Lord.