Jeremiah Chapter 5. Love God – Fear God.
God is very frustrated because he can't even find one person in the city that seeks truth and deals honestly with others. And when punished they don't repent. And they don't fear God.
Let me see if I can articulate my thoughts on loving and fearing God.
To me there is great value in fearing God. We should not follow the Lord out of fear. But for those, who are following the Lord, and who are struggling with a certain sin area, then having a fear of God and his wrath or consequences is a great tool in helping a person stay on the right track.
Let's take an example from this chapter. God is upset because men were going after another man's wife. Or let's add to this a little. Let's say a man or woman is infatuated with another person's spouse and as a result:
1) they pursue a relationship with them, or
2) they flirt with them, or
3) they lust over this person.
Not a spiritually healthy way to live one's life. With it will come dangerous consequences. So if I love the Lord (and I do), yet I'm struggling in one of these three areas, then the fear of God should not be the key ingredient that motivates me to love God. Our motivation to love God should be because he first loved us (I John 4:19). God's love for us should be that which motivates us and draws us into a love relationship with him. The fear of God should only be brought into the picture when we are struggling with sin. The fear of God should only be a tool which helps us stay focused on loving that love relationship.
I love my wife and I want to treat her lovingly. If she says to me I'll leave you if you cheat on me, then that helps me stay focused on the love relationship and not on my selfishness or lust desires. Fear of losing her helps me stay focused on the true love aspect of the relationship so I don't slip into the selfish lust that feeds from my sin nature.
Fear of God and the consequences of my sins helps keep me focused and accountable so I don't lose focus of my love for the Lord and end up focusing on the lust of my flesh or sin nature.
I love you Lord. Thank you that you loved me first. Thanks for consequences so I don't lose focus of Your Love and my need for obedience.
Hopefully I was able to articulate that so that it made sense. Have a Blessed Day!