All the days of the afflicted are bad, But a cheerful heart has a continual feast. Proverbs 15:15 (NASB)
So, how is your attitude lately? Here in today's proverb we have an interesting truth that is being presented to us. The truth has to do with what is governing our hearts, or said another way, our choice to how we look at our circumstances in life. We can choose this, whether you know that or not, and it will truly govern what kind of day we are going to experience. Intrigued? Then let's take a look at the proverb today and learn how choosing our attitude each day in response to the grace of God can govern in many ways what kind of day we are going to have. All the days of the afflicted are bad. This seems to be a "University of Duh" kind of statement, if there was not a second part to this proverb. But this is not speaking of those who are dealing with affliction and hardship and trouble alone. The second half of the proverb points us to what is ruling in a man's heart. The truth of the matter is that often feeling bad in the midst of affliction is far more a matter of the heart than it is just the circumstances in which we find ourselves. Let me explain. There are those who in the midst of very difficult affliction seem to thrive and keep a great attitude - and - there are those who even in abundance, consider themselves afflicted. I've watched people face the most awful circumstances and still have a cheerful attitude. They are the kind of people you go visit in the hospital, and after leaving the room you wonder who came to encourage who? You can supposedly to encourage and lift their spirits - but leave honestly more encouraged by them. They seem to have an almost inconquerable spirit about them. The reason being is that they do not face life thinking they are afflicted. They do not look at the glass as always half empty. They look at things in light of the grace of God. When you realize that you deserve hell and the wrath of God for your sin. When you grasp that you honestly deserve nothing but punishment and affliction for the choice to grieve God and live in rebellion to His will. Then you grasp that God in His mercy did NOT punish you - and then in infinite grace sent His Son to pay the price for your rebellion and sin. That you have been given life and life abundantly instead in Christ Jesus. Well, then nothing in this life can even begin to disturb you at your core. I am not saying that afflictions won't hurt and that problems might not get you down initially. But the fact of your salvation should blow your mind and bring you to where you have continually a cheerful heart. Paul warned the Philippians to rejoice in the Lord. He told them again that they should rejoice. This was to protect them from having the sense of an afflicted heart - that would eventually see a cloud inside of every silver lining. Instead we should see how God in His mercy had blessed us beyond all measure. When we see this, we should be filled with a happy heart - a redeemed heart - a joyful heart - and as we read here a cheerful heart. Grace and grace alone is ground to have this indominatable cheerfulness control and utterly dominate your demeanor. The cheerful heart, we read here, has a continual feast. Christians should have a great attitude - at all times. We should know that light and momentary discomforts (which when you read what Paul called light and momentary seem far from that description) are working for us an eternal weight of glory. We need to know that the varicolored trials and difficulties that we face are reason to rejoice exceedingly - for they are working endurance in our lives. This endurance will result in being mature and complete - lacking nothing in our lives. There is nothing - absolutely nothing that will ever separate us from the love of God that was given to us in Christ Jesus. Therefore even death is not a problem any more. We can walk through life knowing that the final foe is defeated. This, dear saints, is what can fill your heart with joy (i.e. here called cheerfulness) no matter what is going on in your life. I've even seen those facing death have a cheerfulness about their demeanor. So, what will be your choice today? Will you walk about as one of the continually afflicted - manifesting an "Eyeore-ish" ability to see the reason to not rejoice? That will make every day that you live seem as if it has some bad aspect to it. There is another choice, which is to fill your heart with a joy that comes from the gospel of Jesus Christ. Paul said it best in Romans chapter 5 when he said, "Therefore, having been made righteous by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have obtained our introduction into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God."
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Prepare your work outside And make it ready for yourself in the field; afterwards, then, build your house. Proverbs 24:27
This proverb addresses the need to make provision for oneself and one's family - before we begin to seek for personal comfort. This is spoken of from the view of an agricultural society - but the principles will work everywhere. This principle is often lost on our society which is tempted daily by commercials which tell us what we just absolutely have to get . . . immediately. Therefore this particular proverb may be a good one to not only read and consider - but also to apply to the problems that seem to be multiplying in our nation. We are told here to begin life by working hard - by seeking a proper support for ourselves and those for whom we are responsible. Please read and focus on "proper support" here - rather than the worldly standards that are set before us. Proper support means that we can provide food and clothing for ourselves and our family - as we look to the Lord to bless our efforts and our obedience. In the day in which this was written, this meant getting outside and preparing your fields or your flocks. It meant plowing the ground, obtaining seed, and then planting the seed and working the fields. This involved a lot of hard work - but we should realize that work was not part of the curse - weeds were. But regardless of whether there are weeds or not - God wants us to work - and work hard at what we do. The instruction here is to FIRST prepare in the field - then you can build your house. For some this means building a business. For others it may mean working hard at a job and doing what is necessary to develop either their education or other marketable skills. But for all of us it means delaying gratification until we know that we can provide for ourselves and a family (if we have one - or - want one). Here is wisdom - delaying gratification - delaying all the perks you want in life - and even delaying marriage until you can provide for a wife. Our society says, "You deserve it NOW!" But the facts are that we don't "deserve" anything for which we do not work. Never in Scripture is a "living" promised to us if we do not work hard. There is no instruction to governments to provide housing, provide transportation, provide health care, or provide food for those who are not working for it. There is no "poverty index" in Scripture that it is sinful for us to let others fall below. In fact - the facts of the Bible say that we should NOT feed those who can work - but will not do so. There should be little or nothing provided for the able-bodied who do not want to work hard. What has happened in the United States is that we've so "over-promised" a certain level of prosperity to everyone (politically - and unfortunately even religiously at times with the health, wealth, prosperity movement) that they have come to expect it. The think they are entitled to it - whether they work for it or not. The result has been a very poor work ethic - and a total lack of understanding of how business and how life works. The proverb here says, 'AFTERWARD' you can build your house. The idea here is that a house is a luxury. One of the things that speaks volumes to me is watching a movie or show that reminds me how hard it was for the early settlers in the United States. They worked very hard to prepare the land - cutting down trees and pulling stumps. They worked very hard tilling the land and removing stones from it. They plowed, planted, and worked the land with tremendous effort and diligence. Then they would work even harder to build a house - after the land was planted. Until this was done, they lived in tents and in the wagon in which they came to the area. The reminder to me is that hard work is a fact of life. We do ourselves and our children a great disservice to teach them a life of luxury. We are hurting them by not giving them work to do - and at times "hard" work to accomplish. We are undercutting the foundation of our society by not inclucating a work ethic into them. We are not preparing them for reality - and we are making them easy pickings for the political hacks who get their power by promising freebies. What this had led to is a society that is rotting from within because of a lack of work ethic - and an abundance of expectations that are demanded from the rest of society. God's way is to work hard at your outside work. God's way is to learn a work ethic that labors at what is good and what will provide for yourself and your family. Then when you have established such important, foundational things - then build your house - enjoy a little luxury . . . or maybe it would be better stated that you are then able to enjoy the fruits of your labor. All the days of the afflicted are bad, But a cheerful heart has a continual feast. Proverbs 15:15
Your attitude often will make all the difference in how you experience the events of your life. For some, their mindset is that if anything bad can happen, it will. For others, they take everything that comes to them - and somehow make even the worst of things beneficial. Their mindset is to take the proverbial lemons and life and turn them into lemonade. We first read of the pessimist. "All the days of the afflicted are bad." This is the person who not only sees the glass as half empty - but who also figures that there are people who are working to make sure that it eventually empties further. They consider themselves afflicted - CONSTANTLY! They see themselves as "the afflicted" - which here is the word "aniy." This word means to be poor, oppressed, miserable, in constant want and need. It is a sad thing to watch someone like this because like the proverb states - they see every day as a bad day. These are the constant complainers. In church we would be tempted to ask them to lead in a word of complaint or criticism - rather than to ask for them to lead in prayer. They always seem to have a sad story to share - a problem that seems overwhelming - a way that they have been treated horribly - or something they see wrong. Don't misunderstand, there is a place for these things - and we do not need to squelch people's ability to share in difficult times. But the "afflicted" here never ceases to have something like this. To find them content and grateful for their lives - is next to impossible. They are always ready to be the grand marshall in the bummer parade! The second half of this proverb contrasts another person. This is the one who has a "cheerful heart." Hebrews called this a "good" heart. It was someone who was happy, who was glad. They often chose to be happy, glad, delightful, and pleased. Their choice to be this way was a matter of their own heart. This is the person who simply chooses to be happy in their lives. They will look at difficulties and problems as opportunities to grow - or even better ways that God is working to conform them to His image. They see every situation as a potential wonderful thing God is working in their lives. They grasp that not eveything in life is going to be pleasant - but they take the same hard knocks that make the afflicted see every day as bad - and turn them into a reason to be thankful, grateful, and filled with joyeous expectation of what God is going to do to glorify Himself in every situation. They truly do understand that, "all things work together for good to those who love the Lord, and who live according to His purposes." The Bible says that these folks - the cheerful ones - have a continual feast. They tend to be happy no matter what happens to them. They see God's providential hand in everything that happens to them. They are thrilled to watch Him do what only He can do - and are willing to wait for Him to act - even if it means a prolonged period of difficulty and trial. They take whatever God's sovereign hand gives them - and make it into a gourmet feast. To be a cheerful, grateful person is far better than to be one of the continually afflicted. People want to be around the first person - and honestly - struggle with the second. It is not hard to be around someone who genuinely needs encouragement because they are having a tough time, but when someone is always seeming to have a tough time it becomes hard to know what to say. What often needs to be said is that the "afflicted" needs to see God as sovereign in all their affairs. They need to hear that God does work these things out for good - if they will allow Him to conform them to the image of His Son. They need to hear from the book of James that they are to consider it pure joy when they encounter various trials. God wants us to be joyful people - not miserable ones. Paul admonished the Philippians to rejoice in the Lord - and that to say that same thing to them was not a burden to him - but was indeed a protection to them. Joy is part of the inheritance given to every believer. This does not mean that we can never have hard times - but it does mean that if we see ourselves as the continually afflicted whose every day is bad - something is wrong with our perspective. The Lord does not want us living on the scraps of misery - but wants us to enjoy His presence, His perspective, and the continual feast that comes by being in His presence. He who keeps the commandment keeps his soul, But he who is careless of conduct will die. Proverbs 19:16
God's commandments are excellent keepers of our souls. God did not give us His commandments to make our lives miserable - or to keep us from ever having fun - as some would accuse. His commandments are boundaries that protect us from entering into areas where we would be harmed. He does not command us to honor and obey our parents because He desires for us to be miserable as children - not getting our own way and being dominated by an older generation forever. He does this so that children, who do not have good sense and whose sin nature would run rampant, would be protected from themselves. He does so because they must be guided and helped to know the right from the wrong in their lives. The Lord tells us to steer clear from adultery because God knows the damage and the destruction and misery caused by unfaithful partners in marriage. He knows that sexual immorality will lead to disease and to the destruction of our bodies. Thus the one who keeps the commandment indeed keeps his own soul. God's commandments go even deeper than our physical beings. The one who keeps the commandment keeps his soul. The word for soul here is the Hebrew word "nephesh" which means our breath. This speaks of our inner being with its thoughts and emotions. This came to mean our whole person - both body and spirit. It spoke of the whole creature of man - both his outer health and his inner. When we keep the commandment - watching closely to obey and even kep the "spirit of the commandments," we are protected inside as well as out. Our mental health will be blessed by holding fast to God's commands and living by His ways. God blesses our thinking, our reasoning, our understanding, our discernment, our decision-making processes . . . He blesses so much when we learn to walk in obedience to His commands. But again I want to stress we obey the command - and we come to grasp the heart and love that is behind them. The second part of the Proverb today reminds us that the one who is "careless of his conduct" will die. The word careless is "bazah" which means to hold in contempt or to despise. The reason one acts this way is because they have a basic disdain for something. They disrespect the idea of a code of conduct. They despise the idea that God would tell them how to live. Here is the sin nature exposed in all its ugliness. Mankind rebels against any master - and that is especially true of God as our Lord. Fallen man trumpets his own freedom of will to do as he pleases - yet is so blind not to see that his will is in bondage to his own sinful desires and the spirit of this world. He is careless of God's commands - and of his own ways. He walks where he wants - being led about by his own lusts and by the "ruler of this world" who has rebelled against God as well. He does not grasp that this rebellion - this contempt of God - this disrespect for His Word is a hellish thing. The one who lays hold of such a lifestyle will perish. He will die in two ways. First he will die physically - the wages of sin is death. When God told Adam and Eve that in the day that they ate of the fruit they would surely die - He was not lying to them. This was no mere ploy of God to keep them away from something good. It was a loving warning that death lay in that decision to turn against Him and rebel. But there is a death that comes spiritually as well. The first pair knew sweet fellowship with God. They could actually walk with the Lord in the cool of the day in the garden. They could talk with Him, love Him, fellowship with Him in ways that we will only know in eternity. All that was gone after they despised their conduct - or at least the one commandment given to them. They died spiritually and passed down to all future generations a dead spirit at birth. They were dead in their transgressions and sins - and so was every child descended from them. In the first Adam we all died. Oh such a warning is given to us by this proverb. How we should watch our ways - and watch God's commandments as our way. The one who does so watches not just over his physical existance in this world. He watches over the life that God gives him - both physically, but so much more importantly - spiritually. Watch dear saints - watch your life and keep it according to God's Word. See the positive call to life in every one of God's commandments. For though they are given with a thou shalt not - there is within every one of them a call to life and life abundantly. They is within them a freedom to walk in fellowship with God. Enjoy it and walk in it! He who despises his neighbor lacks sense, But a man of understanding keeps silent. Proverbs 11:12
There is a time when we should keep our mouths shut. We can be sure that when we are tempted to say something negative or hateful about a neighbor, it is one of those times. It is far better to be gracious towards your neighbor and say something later when you see things clearly, then to comment and regret it for a long time to come. Also . . . Scripture teaches us that if we are going to say something negative - we should first be willing to say it to our neighbor . . . face to face. The word "despise" here means to hold someone in contempt. It indicates that a man is despising another - disrespecting them and speaking out of that contempt. We are warned several times in Proverbs to hold our tongues when we are feeling contempt for another person. We are reminded that the fool is the one who speaks out of contempt for others. Therefore the wise man knows how to hold his tongue and be gracious - even toward those for whom we feel contempt. We are told that when we despise our neighbor, we lack sense. The word for 'sense' in this passage is literally, "to have heart." We lack God's heart for others when we respond and think of them only in contemptuous ways. That is something we should consider for a few moments today. How does God respond to those for whom He feels contempt. First of all, we need to remember that the good Samaritan teaches us that our neighbor is not just someone we like. The neighbor in that parable was the Jewish man who was helped by the despised Samaritan. The man set aside racial and social tensions and feelings, and chose to love the man who was in need. In the context of our current proverb, the neighbor is pretty much everyone - even those for whom we would naturally have contempt. To despise them lacks having the heart of God for them. God loves even sinful men. He demonstrated His love for us in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. So, despising our neighbor is foolish - even if we are despising someone we feel is deserving of it. Just remember, we deserved God's judgment and wrath - yet He choose to show mercy while working for our redemption in Christ. Let that be a hindrance to us reacting in our own self-righteous anger and attitude - and an encouragement to react in mercy as our loving Father in heaven does toward us. The concluding statement of this proverb is that a man of understanding keeps silent. The understanding here may be that he looks at things from the view of God's mercy. It also may be that he sees that a brother offended is harder to win than a walled city. It may be that he sees an opportunity for redemption and reconciliation of far greater worth than one used for a vitriolic diatribe at someone he despises in his emotions. And to be honest - he may just see that the drama that will ensue is far better avoided. His time, he wisely thinks, would be better spent praying for this person and keeping the lines of communication open. In the end, his silence is far wiser than another's words of contempt and disrespect. He also who is slack in his work is brother to him who destroys. Proverbs 18:9
Today we are going to be encouraged in our work ethic by God. There is a reason they call it the "protestant work ethic." It is because it came from protestants teaching the Scriptures to their people. Actually it should not be called the protestant work ethic, but rather the "Biblical work ethic." Either way, let's take a look at it today. Solomon warns against a man who is "slack" in his work. The word slack here is the Hebrew word, "rapah" and it means to relax, to cease and desist from doing something. It refers to one who is weak in his will to do something and thus it came to refer to those who were lazy in mind and in body. The warning is against becoming this way in reference to one's work. God wants us to work hard. Some think work is part of the curse, but it is not. God commanded Adam to work the garden before the fall. The difference after the fall was that the garden would now have weeds for the first time. Work would now be far harder than it had ever been before. Now it was labor - it was difficult to do things that would have been far easier before. There was also another problem. After the fall of man into sin, we were also rebellious. We no longer want to do what God wants us to do. Thus we have a double problem of work being harder - and us not wanting to work at all. But Solomon lets us know that the one who is slack in his work is a brother to him who destroys. We have more at stake here than just the possibility that someone may think we are lazy. The meaning of destroy here is interesting. It means to spoil or ruin something. The idea is that of corrupting something, perverting it - and thus ruining it. When you have people who do not want to work - they are brother to those who ruin things. Let me illustrate with our current state of things in the business world. We have a climate today where people do not want to work hard at what they do. There are more people who think that they deserve a paycheck, just if they show up to work. They deserve a job, they deserve a paycheck, they deserve health care - they deserve everything - but not necessarily for the reason of having worked hard for it. We are overflowing with rights - but "underflowing" with work ethic. That has led to situation where too many don't work hard - or work with excellence in the workplace. It has led to unions demanding more and more pay for less and less work. They demand more rights, more days off, more benefits - but they are not producing more and more products. The result of this is that our products cost more and more - and we are less and less competitive with other countries whose labor costs much less. The union only cares about getting more from the company - and not about whether the company can compete. The end of all this is plants closing and companies going out of business - because work ethic is pitiful, but demands are high. I know that there are other factors as well such as businesses not making wise decisions and greed - but then again what is this but executives being slack in their work as well. The proverb tells us that the one slack in his work is a brother to one who destroys. There are growing numbers of those who are slack in their work in our workforce - and shock of shocks - our businesses and industries are being destroyed. I've talked with godly men who own businesses and their statement to me is that their greatest problem is finding people who will actually work. What is saddest to hear is that they feel this way even about the Christians that they hire. This is not universal - but it is at what I believe epidemic levels in our society. No small wonder then that we are also at historic levels of unemployment - or at least levels that are rivaling our worst economic situations of the past. God desires for us to work hard. For those of us who know Jesus Christ we have a wonderful opportunity before us. Since the world is losing its work ethic, we will stick out and look much different than the world if we work hard. Thus we have an opportunity to be a strong witness in our actions, which will lead to an opportunity for us to share our commitment to Christ. It will give us opportunity to share why we still have a strong work ethic. It is because we know Jesus Christ. May we be known no longer as ones who are brothers to him who destroys. Instead may we be known as the brothers who build up - and bless. A rebuke goes deeper into one who has understanding Than a hundred blows into a fool. Proverbs 17:10
God gave me a wonderful man who has a heart after Him to be my mentor. His name is John Dale Rector. John Dale spent 3 years of his life teaching and training me in the things of the Lord. He taught by precept and by example. He also had his hands full as I was a proverbial bull in a china shop with my zeal that lacked wisdom. Thus John Dale had to spend more than his fair share of time rebuking me for my excesses. Thus he taught me a very important verse of Scripture and had me memorize it early in my walk with the Lord. The verse says, "Let a righteous man strike me, it is a kindness." That particular verse has a lot to do with what today's proverb has to teach us. I am an advocate for both verbal and corporal punishment. There is a time for rendering blows to fools. One of those times in during childhood where the responsibility of the parent is to train up a child in the way he should go. It is a time where through loving discipline (which includes spanking) a parent seeks to teach a child what he should and should not do. The parent is not trying to dominate the child or to crush his spirit. The parent IS seeking to help a child grasp what is acceptable and unacceptable to God and to society. But the end of that corporal punishment is to train a child to be a young man or woman who knows two things. First he or she knows how to accept rebuke from the Spirit of God. This happens as he or she is walking through life and about to make un ungodly or unwise decision. The Spirit of God then rises up within to remind of Scripture, to offer correction and guidance with the Word. Some times the Spirit just activates our conscience and we are smitten with a bad sense or feeling - or we just know that what we are about to do, or have done, is wrong. What we desire to do with our children (and in training disciples in the church) is to have them be responsive to that rebuke - to that warning from within. The second way that a parent and discipler wants to train up their charge is to have them be responsive to people who come to them with a word of rebuke. It would be wonderful if everyone who offered such rebuke were being constructive with it - but we all know that is a perfect world and not the real one. The truth is that even non-constructive criticism can be beneficial to us. Therefore we want to be open to all rebuke. The wise thing is to receive the rebuke and be thankful for it. Then take it to the Lord and ask Him to confirm what is in agreement with what He is doing through the Word of God. Then take what God affirms and use it to grow into all the fullness of Jesus Christ in our character and actions. This is how to allow rebuke to go deep within us - rather than just bounce off of us as we reject it outright. The Scripture tells us that in order for this to happen, we have to be one who has "understanding." This is the ability to discern and perceive truth from error - right from wrong - God from the flesh and the world - the work of the Holy Spirit from the work of the devil. We discern an pay attention to what God saying to us. Because of this we truly understand the will of God - and grow wiser because we have learned to see things from His perspective. The proverb tells us that this ability to receive rebuke and understanding from goes deeper into us than a hundred blows into a fool. An interesting thing is that God instructed not to give corporal punishment beyond 39 blows at any time. There is the penalty of imprisonment and even the death penalty that is applied by the state to crimes against society. But God knows that a hundred blows as opposed to 39 would not bring wisdom and understanding into a fool. There is a point where no amount of corporal punishment is effective. The fool rejects all of it - verbal rebuke as well as any kind of physical punishment. Thus we know that all that is left to us is intercessory prayer that God will ultimately break the fool and open his heart to begin to understand. When I read this proverb, I am thankful to those whom God uses to offer rebuke into my life. Let me be perfectly honest that often it is hard to receive the rebuke - and yes, it hurts. But those who wound us can be healers. Remember that when a surgeon does his work he has to injure us before he can take out the cancer that will kill us. We consider the incision made by his knife a good thing - because it is ultimately working healing into our lives. Remember that the next time you receive some verbal surgery through a brother or sister in Christ who loves you. Those words will bring blessing into your life if you receive them and allow God to work through them. If it is hard to remember that - just remember this instead. I'd rather have some verbal surgery - than a hundred blows on my back! POSTSCRIPT: Recently, individuals have quoted articles from this section and stated that we teach child abuse at Calvary Chapel Jonesboro. To this I feel the need to respond. First, biblically, we are told that if we have a problem with our brother to go to our brother - not the internet - and confront our brother. To date, these individuals have yet to contact me to discuss these things. That should say volumes in itself. Second, we do not teach child abuse at our fellowship. This blog is an endeavor to teach what is in the Bible for the edification and upbuilding of God's people. Anyone who has been to our fellowship knows that in our classrooms we administer NO physical discipline. We correct with words and with "time outs" and eventually with a report to parents. From our nursery throughout every age group our people are instructed NEVER to administer physical discipline. We believe this right alone belongs to a parent. Even then we teach the following about any application of physical discipline. Discipline is about the heart of a child. Physical or corporal punishment is ONLY to be administered in a spirit of love for the child. Teaching and loving verbal correction is key - as is prayer for the child's eventual salvation in Jesus Christ. Any physical punishment administered due to anger or rage is out of line and wrong. The parent is to discipline the child with appropriate discipline - not abuse. In the end the child should be taught - and in every circumstance hugged, loved, and prayed with after any physical punishment to assure them of our love. The idea of a "beating" is completely out of step with what the Scriptures are teaching. Instead the idea of loving discipline is intended. Do not claim honor in the presence of the king, And do not stand in the place of great men; For it is better that it be said to you, "Come up here," Than for you to be placed lower in the presence of the prince, Whom your eyes have seen. Proverbs 25:6-7
There is a real danger of claiming honor in the presence of leaders and people of importance. The danger lies in whether they agree with your evaluation of yourself or not. That is why it is wise to embrace humility when in the presence of leaders and people of importance. We are told not to claim honor in the presence of the king. This is because a king or a great man already has a standing of honor and respect. When we claim one - we may claim something they don't think we should have. We are also told to be careful about standing in the place of great men. Your mother may think you are awesome and great - but that's because she is your mom. Not everyone in the world carries a picture of you in their wallet. The wise man embraces humility and a low view of himself. He is not boastful and full of himself. Instead he chooses to let his works, his attitudes, and his value be evaluated by others who see what he does. He focuses on being a servant and being a person of excellence. Whatever happens as a result of his actions he lets others decide. This way, if he is lifted up and praised, it is due to the words of others and not due to the arrogant braggadocio of his own words. This is what verse 7 presents to us. We are told that is it better for others to say to us that we should, "Come up here." What is being said is that we should leave the praise to others. When we receive it - others are elevating us. We simply receive their praise graciously and gratefully. There is one of the dangers of having too high a view of ourselves. We begin to believe our own press. We think we are awesome and that others really should be praising us and lifting us up. This places us in a very precarious place. We read the final admonition to us in this verse and it is one we should think about very seriously. It's better for someone to say, "Come up here," than or us to be demoted in the presence of the prince. To be humbled is . . . well . . . a humbling experience. It is bad enough to be humbled in a one on one situation - but here we are talking about being humbled before a prince - and probably before his court as well. Arrogance has a very high cost - and that is seen nowhere more clearly than in this one who decided to assume a high place in the court of a king or a prince. The Biblical example of this is found in the book of Esther. Haman was elevated to a high place in Ahasuerus' kingdom. He was given authority which quickly went to his head. Soon Haman decided that everyone should exalt him - like he was king. When Mordecai would not do this - he decided to abuse his authority not just to hurt Mordecai, but to destroy his people as well. This plot seemed like it would succeed, were it not for the prayers of God's people and God's intervention. This process wasn't hindered at all by Haman's exceedingly great pride and arrogance. His fall came when he was asked by the king what should be done for the man who the king desired to honor. Haman's pride was at its highest and worst point when the only thought that came to him was that he was the one whom the king spoke of when asking this. Little did he know that the one the king decided to honor was his rival. Suddenly all the arrogance and pride in destroying an entire people for a slight he felt to his pride was caving in upon him. He faced devastation as a series of events took place where he was no longer asked to, "Come up here," by the king. His was a careening fall from grace to his death by execution. Arrogance does not pay in the end. It will bring about a devastating end for the one who embraces it. But the humble man who does not seek to advance himself will prosper. He will do so in one way or another. Either he will be advanced by the king - a turn of events he will receive with the same grace and attitude with which he served in the first place - or - he will continue to serve graciously because his goal was not honor and glory anyway. His goal was simply to serve those around him in the name of Jesus Christ. If he accomplishes that - he is happy. Do not speak in the hearing of a fool, For he will despise the wisdom of your words. Proverbs 23:9
There are people in life that you cannot speak to or teach. That is one of the irrefutable facts of life that you need to realize and embrace . . . or go crazy. Proverbs addresses this fact today. The fool is a dull, thickheaded, stubborn person who will not welcome or allow God's wisdom into his life. Proverbs 1:7 reminds us that fools despise wisdom and instruction. Three different words are translated fool in the Old Testament, and none of them are particularly flattering to the one who is a fool. The first is the Hebrew word "kesl" which speaks of someone who is spiritually dull and characterized by a mind closed to God and His Word. He is thickheaded and very stubborn in holding to his own ways, his own thoughts, and his own ideas. This person will usually reject information from others - and is especially beligerent toward information from God. This is the word used most often for fool throughout the book of Proverbs - and is the word used here. The second word for fool is "nabal" which refers to one who lacks any kind of spiritual perception or discernment. The third word for fool is "ewl" and speaks of the one who is arrogant, flippant, and mentally dull. he is also hardened in his ways and unwilling to change in response to information from others - and once again even more so when it comes to information from the Word or the Spirit of God. This is the person to whom you are speaking - who is either hearing you speak directly to him - or indirectly hears what you are saying. We need to see here that we are not even to speak in the "hearing" of a fool. This guy will not listen - his mind is closed to the things of God - and thus his ears are too. He is settled in his ungodly and worldly thinking. He will not just reject your words - he will despise them. The word despise is the Hebrew "buz" and means to hold in contempt and utter disrespect. What we have said here in Proverbs 23:9 is the same as we read in chatper 1 verse 7. They hate the wisdom of God. This probably sounds harsh to some who read this and react with the template of being tolerant of everyone's views. The problem though is not with the person who knows and loves God's wisdom - it is with the fool who is anything but tolerant of God's views. It is so important that we remember that God's wisdom is simply seeing things from God's perspective. We learn to look at things the way that God looks at them. We want to have His mindset and His heart. But when the fool hears these things - he reacts with disgust - even hatred! He wants NOTHING to do with God's Word or His ways. We see this in our society more and more. Those who are unsaved are becoming more and more hardened in their ways. They accuse us of intolerance - and yet as we love them and share the truth with them - it is they who are the intolerant. It is not that they just disagree with us - they want our views labelled as "hate speech" and forbidden from public discourse. They radically and hatefully respond to our views of morality - and see them as an afront to their very existance. Therefore when we speak - they will react strongly to us. Some will even become so angry that they will attempt to shout us down or shut us down. Others will go as far as taking our views to court to see them labelled as illegal. Thus they not only reject them - they reject having them spoken out loud even when they are not present. So how do we deal with this? First, we do what Proverbs says. We realize a fool when we run into one - and we don't speak in their hearing. It is not that we hide from them or take our message underground. We just simply speak to others instead of them. This is a tricky thing to manage, because we don't want to refuse the gospel to people. Paul was very harsh toward Christians before he was saved - yet the Lord wanted him to hear the gospel. Some who persectued the church - came to Christ simply because those persectured shared their faith with them. So, we approach this with wisdom and the leadership of the Spirit - not just our own tendency to react to the more strident in their views among the wicked. This being said, we do exercise wisdom and share with those who receive the message. To do otherwise would be to waste the message with those who will reject it outright. Even Jesus told us not to throw the pearls of the gospel before swine. He said that they would trample them under foot and turn to attack us. Kinda sounds like what Solomon is seeking to tell us here. So be wise - share the gospel and the wisdom of God freely - but be wise with those who reject it violently. Share with those who have a heart to hear - a heart where God is granting them ears to hear and a heart to respond to the Spirit's moving. They won't despise the Word or the wisdom of God. They will embrace it and prove it by the change that they experience in their lives. A fool's lips bring strife, And his mouth calls for blows. A fool's mouth is his ruin, And his lips are the snare of his soul. Proverbs 18:6-7
Our mouth can be a source of blessing or our downfall. For the fool the latter is more the case. His mouth is a means of trouble, strife, and eventually ruin. Let's try to learn from him today and avoid the things that happens when a fool is speaking. First we learn that a fool's lips bring strife. The idea here is that when a fool opens his lips to speak - along with his speaking comes strife. Evidently the fool is itching for a fight because that is what takes place after he speaks. His mouth calls for blows. The fool is the one who always has to have the last word - and that word is usually highly offensive to those who hear it. You watch the fool escalate his statements from offensive to provocative. He provokes those around him to the point where their anger is boiling over. He enrages people with the way he speaks - and the end of it all is blows - a fist fight. Rather than walk away from a growing tension, the fool throws gasoline on the fire and stokes it in every way he can. He does not have the ability to let an insult go - and just walk away. He has to one up the person who insulted him by offering an even greater insult. Actually, the fool usually is the one who starts all this - almost as if he or she is wanting the fight. At the core of all this is pride. The fool is filled with it. As I said earlier he can never let something go. Anything said requires his provocative response. He loves contention and controversy. He loves quarrelling and disputes. He thrives on hostilities and his words invite them constantly. A wise man knows how to calm people with his responses. The fool only inflames them. No wonder that in the end we watch him punching and being punched as the fight erupts. The next verse continues this thought. The fool's mouth is his ruin - and his lips are continually snaring his soul. The word ruin is the Hebrew word "mehittah" which means destruction, ruin, and terror. The root word for "mehittah" is "hatat" which means to be broken or afraid. The fool thinks he is bringing himself honor or at least respect when he won't take anything from anyone else. He thinks he is standing up for himself and that all others will know he is not someone with whom you want to tangle. But the opposite is true. His mouth is not bringing him respect, it is bringing him ruin. His mouth is a continuous source of terror for his life. He is constantly in danger because of his big mouth. He keeps opening it and getting himself in trouble. He says that he wants to stay out of trouble - at least that is what he tells the officer each new time he is arrested - at least that is what he says when he stands before the judge again and again - but his mouth is a snare for him. He speaks out for himself and in doing so sets another trap directly in front of himself to step into. We would consider a man the ultimate fool if he set a bear trap and then stepped into it - but that is what the fool does with his mouth all the time. Let me offer an example from real life. We read of sports figures who are constantly getting in trouble. It seems that they go from one altercation to another - in and out of a courtroom as if they were walking through a revolving door. Why does this happen? A lot of it happens because they have the mouth of a fool - and they use it in the company of other fools. Where do they go regularly? They go to bars and clubs. What happens to them - they run into other fools whose minds are dulled by alcohol. When they do some fool (either one at the bar or they themselves) opens their mouth in typical drunken arrogant fashion. Feeling "dissed" they then "bow-up" in pride and let their foolish mouth run free. Of course when you get two drunken fools like this together the escalation is not only going to happen - it is going to happen quickly. More foolish words are exchanged as they trash talk one another and, you got it, a fight breaks out betwen them. In recent years we've added to the fist fights - fools who carry guns with them into bars and other places - and someone becomes angry enough to shoot someone else. Then we get the court case where any normal person would be send away for their crime - but in the case of the rich, spoiled athlete - some deal is cut to let him continue to entertain us with his physical prowess. We never think about the damage done to our children who unfortunately are taught to idolize these fools - and who follow in their footsteps. Our mouths are incredibly powerful things. James says that our tongue's can set the course of our lives on fire - and that they can be set on fire by hell itself. That is why we need to learn things like humility, patience, and restraint. It is also why we need to be wise and to avoid the company of fools whose mouths continually snare their souls. Let your mouth be filled with the Word of God - with gracious and kind words - and with the gospel of Jesus Christ. Let your mouth become the instrument that brings you blessing - not the tool which the devil, working unhindered through your flesh, uses to bring you to ruin. |
Proverb a DayEach day, we'll take a look at a verse from the chapter of Proverbs for the day. Our hope is to gain wisdom each day - and from that wisdom - to have understanding to make godly decisions in the throes of everyday life. Thank you for visiting our website! Everything on this site is offered for free. If, however, you would like to make a donation to help pay for its continued presence on the internet, you can do that by clicking here. The only thing we ask is that you give first to the local church you attend. Thank you!
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