Just the other day, I was driving by a church billboard that reads, "Fear of God is the beginning of wisdom." Interestingly, this entire sentence could draw the public in, by changing the words just a little bit. "Love of God is the beginning of true wisdom," sounds much better, and is it not the truth?Would you rather pay your respects to someone you love or someone you fear? Now, we realize that God is not just "someone," but this "fear of God" strategy works much more like a cattle prod than the good shepherd summoning his flock.
For Christians, it is also a misinterpretation of scripture because we must look at the word of Jesus to see the Love of God. Let's take a close look at John 3:1.
3:1 "Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not."
For most people, doing God's work is a humble task with little fame, and God Loves You for it. This is not a criticism of those who have gained fame through religion. There are many religious leaders who make good role models and a rare few who do not. Unfortunately, bad news is often "front page news."
