Daily Meditation: Wednesday, December 10, 2025

Fear and love - Moses emphasized fear of the Lord, Jesus, love

12/10/2025

Moses emphasized that the Lord was to be feared. Since God was seen as an uncompromising master, human beings could only fear Him. In the words of the psalmist: ‘Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.’ But fear is a negative emotion. Those who always act under the constraint of fear cannot truly blossom; in the long run, fear has a destructive effect. With love, on the contrary, a human being flourishes, and this is why Jesus came to tell us that God is a father. Of course, children are also a little afraid of their father, and that is not a bad thing, for they need to know that there are rules that must not be broken, and that if they break them, they will be punished. But a father is above all someone who is loved by his children, not only because he has given them life, but also because he helps them to reach fulfilment by sharing all his wealth with them.*