Are we really supposed to fear the Lord?

I greatly enjoyed this post from Gentle Reformation and I commend it to you:

Are We Really Supposed to Fear the Lord?

This last paragraph provides a strong summary:

“The word yare’ in its various forms appears 435 times throughout the Old Testament. Of those uses, almost eighty percent refer to the fear of the Lord. Obviously, Scripture wants us to know that God is indeed the most powerful object ever to be faced and he is greatly to be feared.  If we are under his wrath, how great that fear must be in its dread, terror, and anguish. But if we are resting in his mercy by penitent faith in his provision for our forgiveness, we behold his power with awe that warms our hearts and causes us to bow in love. But it is love which takes precedence over every other emotion and desire in our hearts, so that it is indeed a fear-inspired devotion, since it is fear that subjugates all other priorities.”