Do not lie in wait, O wicked man, against the dwelling of the righteous; Do not destroy his resting place; For a righteous man falls seven times, and rises again, But the wicked stumble in time of calamity. Proverbs 24:15-16
There are times when you wonder about the providence of God. These are times when you look at the wicked - how they strut about on the earth - and how they attack the righteous and seek to destroy them. Asaph had one of these times in Psalm 73. He struggled mightily with the prosperity of the wicked and the difficulties and trials of the godly. Yet in the end, when he considered eternity and the end of the ungodly, David returned to his sanity and found himself worshipping God - and pitying the wicked. Here we have a warning given to the wicked - or at least the wicked man who thinks he can destroy the godly. He is warned not to lie in wait against the dwelling of the righteous. Here we have someone who is planning to do something destructive. The word used for "lie in wait" is a single Hebrew word that means to ambush, to lurk, or to lie in ambush as a military tactic. In the military context it always has the meaning of also doing this for the purpose of killing another. I don't want to make you stay awake at night worrying, but there are very sinister forces today that are lying in wait against the righteous. Radical Islam is one of them. For years the 9/11 terrorists were waiting and training for their one day of evil. It was spooky to say the least to learn just how long they were among us - acting like nothing was going on - and all the while they were planning the worst terrorist attack in history against us. It was even scarier to read an article that listed the top 10 ways that Muslim terrorists were planning to attack us. The article was written by someone from the homeland security department. This list blew my mind because the attack that they are planning currently makes the 9/11 attacks look timid in comparison. In addition to the threat from radical Islamic terrorists, there are also threats from the far left. The radical homosexual movement wants to destroy conservative Christianity, making it illegal to hold views that are consistent with Scripture. There are those among the religious and academic elites who think that Christianity should be relegated to the ash heap of ideas - with laws enacted and enforced to make sure this happens. Like I said, this is disturbing to know - that there are those who are plotting and planning our demise. God warns such people that this is not a wise thing to do. Remember saints, that God considers us the apple of His eye - and warns against those who would seek to harm us. He warns that such things are very unwise and will elicit his judgment. God warns specificially against seeking to destroy the "resting place" of the righteous. It is true that some want to destroy our "physical" dwelling places - but there is also the fact that those who oppose us among academia and the marketplace of ideas - want to destroy the Biblical Christian worldview and the philosophy that goes along with it. They fight us on the front of creation and science - saying that only their view is acceptable and that creation science is no science at all. They fight us on the moral front, saying that our views on morality from a biblical standpoint are outdated and should be cast aside for more modern (read immoral here) standards, which wind up being no standards at all. They fight us in the arena of human value - as they push abortion, euthanasia, and population control. They fight us in the arena of God's purpose as they exalt the earth with their environmentalism - even saying that humans are a blight upon the planet and should be culled back from our current 7 billion to no more than 300 to 500 million people. All these things are attacks on our "dwelling place" and "resting place" in the Lord God and in His Word as the ultimate source of truth. One could get the to the point of living in fear if he or she did not read the rest of this proverb. The relentless attacks have not been just in this generation. They have existed all throughout history. Whether it has been the emperors like Nero, Diocletian, and Galerius or the attacks of the currently worldly educated like Darwin, Nietzsche, Hitchens, Harris and Freud, Christianity is amazing just for the fact that it is still around and still considered even a marginally valid worldview. But it is far more that that. The Word of God and the gospel of Jesus Christ continues to transform millions every year - and provide for them a resting place for their faith and their lives. We should take heart though, because this proverb gives us great hope - even though we are beset on all sides by those who seek to destroy us. God tells the wicked that even though a righteous man falls seven times - he will rise again. We have the peace of knowing that He Who began this good work in us, will complete it until the day of Christ Jesus. He will not allow us to be destroyed and decimated. Even in death His martyrs speak - and the blood of the martyrs becomes the seed of His church. We may fall seven times - but He will pick us up and make us to stand because of His grace and work in us. But this proverb comes also with a warning. The wicked are warned that they will stumble in times of calamity. When difficult times come - when evil befalls because of their wickedness or because of God's judgment in their lives - they will stumble in it. The word for "stumble" here means to stagger, to totter, to be brought down or cast down. The word is used in the Old Testament to describe not just the fall of individuals, but the fall of cities and nations who fall because of the evil and wickedness that they've committed. So we come full circle on this proverb to what I began saying in this article. Asaph almost stumbled when he considered the prosperity of the wicked in Psalm 73. But in the end, he remembered the judgment and the sovereignty of God. He considered their end - and how they were consumed all at once in their wickedness and iniquity. This moved him to two things. First it moved him to worship God, who is truly sovereign over all things. He worshipped God because he knew there was more to this life than - well, just this life here on earth. In light of the fear and terror of God in judgment, he worshipped with trembling as he considered the end of the wicked. Second, he was moved to pity and mercy towards the wicked. Seeing their latter end, he pitied them and grieved over their destruction. Finally, he was thankful for God's grace and love for him. Here is wisdom . . . God is sovereign, even when it seems that the wicked are being destructive towards His people. We should not stumble over this reality - but rather realize that God is working, even in the moments when it seems like the world is out of control - or even worse - under the control of the wicked. Know this - God is working for His own glory. If He used a moment as horrific as the cross of Christ to redeem the world - believe me when I say that He can also use anything to eventually bring about His will in this life.
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The heart knows its own bitterness, And a stranger does not share its joy.
Proverbs 14:10 There are times when a person knows both a bitterness and a joy of soul that cannot be shared among humans. It is not that people do not try to empathize and sympathize with us, they do. It is just that certain experiences and certain things go so deep within us that the only One who can comfort and the only One who can understand is God Himself. The heart knows its own bitterness. There is a pain that we can feel both in our physical realm - but much more - in the spiritual realm that is very deep. It is so deep that we need more than human comfort to deal with it. There are times when we face serious issues (often life threatening issues) that although we are possibly surrounded by human comforters, we need a superhuman comforter. It is in those moments when only God can offer us the comfort that we desperately need. The main reason we know this is because of how God used David to write songs about these moments. Too often we forget that the recording studio that God used to record those songs were times of great suffering, sorrow, and trial. In those moments David expresses a depth of bitterness and sorrow that few have ever touched. He says things to God that make us step back and gasp when we read them. Truly he is in a "bitterness" of soul in the midst of such suffering and trial. And Job reminds us that when a man is suffering his words are like the wind. David is bitter of soul at times in the Psalms, but it is also in those times that he cries out to God with a passion that we may not know either. Remember this, it is those who go the deepest in suffering, sorrow, and struggle - who also know the deepest levels of passion for God. David cries out to God with a bitterness of heart that can only be healed by God Himself. Actually, it is a blessing when God takes us to such depths because often it takes that kind of situation to make us wholly dependent upon Him. We see that, indeed as Jesus has told us in John 15, "without Me you can do nothing." In that moment of complete helplessness we cry out to Him as we've never done before, and we find that He is also, indeed, able to deliver to the uttermost! Thus we come to the second half of this proverb. A stranger does not share its joy. David not only speaks of the bitterness of heart that comes with excruciating trials, he also speaks of the joy of God's deliverance from those trials. After coming through some fairly deep trials and sorrows I've begun to touch the hem of the garment of such joy. Just as I cannot grasp the cries of David in his deepest pain, there is also a tinge of realization as I read the Psalms that I'm not sure I am getting the fullness of His joy either. A stranger to God's deliverance will never share the joy of knowing that God is the One who not only walked in the midst of our firey furnace, but He is the One who kept our clothes from being burned - or even smelling like smoke. Oh, the joy of those who know His working. Oh the joy of those who know when He Who took them into the depths is also the One Who will bring them out again. Oh the joys of the ones who know that He will wound us, but He will also heal us. Oh the delight of soul that comes to the one who knows a depth of pain and bitterness of heart that goes beyond human comfort - but who also knows the only One Who can reach beyond human comprehension - beyond human ability - beyond mere human comfort - and can touch our deepest and most bitter wounds and heal them. May God bring wisdom to you this day, dear saint of God, and may He be your Deliverer and Comforter in your every distress! Apply your heart to discipline And your ears to words of knowledge. Proverbs 23:12
This is a simple admonition here in Proverbs - and yet if we will look at it carefully, it will yield to us some very helpful information. The first thing we see is that we are to apply our heart to discipline. The word "apply" here means, "to bring to" - thus what God is saying to us is that we need to bring our hearts to something. Here we read that what we bring our hearts to is discipline. The word discipline is "musar" which means to instruct with discipline. It refers most often to the discipline given by a father - both by word and by the rod. It is very easy when discipline is applied to us for us to not allow it to reach the heart. We may hear the words - and receive the correction - but we do not bring our hearts to it. True correction and discipline is for the heart - not the bottom. It might be applied to the rear end with the rod - but the aim in these things needs to be directly to the heart. Those who protest the use of the rod see the issue being striking a child - and they see it as evil in all circumstances. But the godly parent is not aiming for the rear end alone. They want to instruct with their discipline. They want their words and their use of the rod to affect the heart of the child. If you have their heart - in the end you will truly change their behavior. What Solomon is saying though, is for the one receiving the discipline. Apply your heart to what God is trying to teach you. If you are like me - there are times when you bristle at discipline. It is not pleasant to have God apply the rod to us. It is not a delightful thing for us to be corrected and rebuked. But when God grants us discipline it is only for our best interests. We can be absolutely assured of this. Therefore we need to train ourselves to receive it joyfully - gratefully - and educationally. If we do, maybe we won't need a second dose of discipline to complete the job for us. The second admonition here is that we also apply our ears to words of knowledge. Knowledge here refers to more than just head-learning. Solomon is telling us about a knowing of God and His ways. He refers to a working knowledge - a practical knowledge - intimate knowledge - knowledge that truly changes the way we act. The verb "apply" is assumed here - thus we are told to bring our ears to this knowledge that God is seeking to give us. It is more than just hearing it - it is concentrated listening. It is listening to learn and to apply it to one's life. This is key to us becoming wise. If we will truly bring our hearts and ears to what God is seeking to communicate to us, we will be blessed greatly. God longs for us to be wise and to know and follow Him with all our hearts. These two practices - bringing our hearts to times of discipline - and bringing our ears to hear obediently what God says to us - will assure that we grow and personally experience all the godliness that God desires to give us when He works and speaks in our lives. 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. He who gets wisdom loves his own soul; He who keeps understanding will find good. Proverbs 19:8
How does the Bible teach us to love ourselves? Here is an interesting question because there are some who think that before we can ever love someone else, we have to love ourselves. Personally, I find that kind of teaching to be contrary to sound wisdom. The reason I feel this way is because those who are taught such things spend all their time going deeper inward to determine if they love themselves enough. The problem with this kind of psycho-babble is that happiness comes when we are no longer consumed with ourselves and learn to give our lives for others and for the glory of God. A person who constantly goes inward to determine if they love themselves properly will have precious little time to love others. It is usually a downward spiral that can lead to a person being consumed by a desire for their own happiness. Jesus said that if we love our lives we will lose them - but if we lose our lives for Him and for His kingdom's sake, we will gain them for all eternity. But this passage in Proverbs genuinely speaks of loving our own soul. So what exactly is God teaching us here? The translation here reads, "He who gets wisdom . . . " yet the actual word translated wisdom is the Hebrew word, "leb" which refers to the heart. What Solomon was seeking to say is that the one who gets a heart - the right kind of heart - loves his own soul. Here is where we need to grasp what the Bible says about our hearts. We learn from the whole counsel of Scripture some very interesting things about the human heart. First, we learn that our hearts are messed up due to the fall of man into sin. Jeremiah tells us that the heart is wicked and desperately evil, and is impossible to understand with our own wisdom. (Jeremiah 17:9) To plumb the depths of our hearts - without grasping the wickedness of sinful man - will get you no where. That is why secular psychology will yield very little in dealing with the true human condition. None of the major psychological constructs admits that man is a sinner - and that the real problem with humanity is a sin problem - a rebellion against God. The next thing we learn is that God Almighty can understand the heart - and has done what is necessary to change it and transform it. The change for the heart is available by faith in Jesus Christ. God takes out of us our heart of stone, that does not respond to God's Word or commandments. In its place God miraculously puts a heart of flesh that has the very commandments of God written upon it. Thus we are regenerated in Christ with a new heart and a desire to do what He commands. The other lesson that God teaches us in His Word is that once we are saved, our hearts and minds need to be renewed by the Word and the work of His Spirit. While we are here on earth, we will face temptation and a constant battle with the three enemies of our soul, the world-system, the flesh, and the devil. Because of the way that these three things want to influence our minds toward sin, it is imperative that we renew our minds with the truth - which is God's Word. Actually, this is the way we "get heart." We "get heart" when we begin to understand God's wisdom and God's ways. We no longer try in our own strength to deal with the myriad of temptations and trials that come to our hearts. We know that such an endeavor is doomed to be fruitless. Instead, we embrace what God has done in Jesus Christ. We embrace godly wisdom and understanding. As we do this we are actively loving our own soul! Remember that Jesus said that if we want to save our "fleshly" lives in this world - we will lose them. But the one who chooses to lose his soul - who dies to self - and who embraces a regenerated heart - that man loves himself in the end. He embraces an understanding of life that has conversion and regeneration at its core. As he does this - he finds good! He learns to die to himself - and die to the desires of the flesh. He learns that when his heart is drawn by temptation to a worldly point of view that he needs to reject it. He chooses instead to "not love the world or the things of the world." He goes to the Word of God to renew his mind so that he proves that the will of God is good, acceptable, and perfect. He faces the lies and deceit of the devil and learns to expose them for what they are. He chooses instead a life instructed by the Scriptures. He spends time in the Word so that he is walking with "understanding" at all times. The two words "keeps understanding" are very beneficial to know here. He "keeps" understanding points to the fact that he watches over it - guards it - and is constantly on the lookout for anything that would detract from God's ways and will in his life. He keeps "understanding" points to the fact that he desires a discernment from God on all things. The word "understanding" is the Hebrew "tebunah" which means to discern or understand how things differ. He looks at every choice wanting to discern the difference between his flesh and the Spirit of God. He wants to discern the difference between the kingdoms of this world vs. the kingdom of our Lord and His Christ. He longs to discern the difference between his own desires and those given by the Lord. He yearns to grasp the difference between sin and righteousness - between glorifying self and glorifying God. This is the way to love yourself. You love your own soul by protecting and guarding it from the tyranny of self. You choose instead to embrace God's wisdom in the heart. You decide that you will guard and protect yourself from anything that turns you even slightly from a life lived for the glory of God - from a life lived for the kingdom of God - and a life lived by the Spirit of God as He teaches and leads you by the Word of God. Want to love yourself? That is the way to do it! "She will place on your head a garland of grace; She will present you with a crown of beauty." Proverbs 4:9
Wisdom is showing us with wonderful gifts as we learn to value her highly. The last two gifts are mentioned in this third verse. Wisdom will put a garland of grace on our heads - as well as a crown of beauty. The garland of grace refers to a woven circular branch or vine that was worn on the head. It was used as a symbol of honor and victory. This garland is refered to as a garland of "grace." Grace is the Hebrew word "hen" and it means favor, acceptance and was the primary word used to refer to the unmerited favor of God. When we fully embrace wisdom and the practical way of carrying it out in understanding - God's favor and blessing will be seen upon our lives. Over the years I've had the priviledge of knowing a number of very wise men - and can testify that you see the grace of God upon their lives and their works. You want to be around them because of it - and because of the last thing wisdom promises. She will present you with a crown of beauty. A crown was a sign of royalty and honor. The crown that wisdom places upon our heads is one of beauty. The idea here is not that we will look hot if we gain wisdom - but rather that a spiritual beauty will be given to our lives. Think about the fruit of the Spirit for just a moment in this context. Wisdom will lead us to be filled with God's Spirit - which in turn will mean that love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control will be evident in our lives. If you have ever known someone who sweetly manifested the fruit of God's Spirit in their lives consistently, you know that they have an amazing beauty that radiates from their hearts. I've known young women whose outward beauty was far outshined by the beauty of Christ that shone from their hearts. Even though they were not stikingly beautiful outwardly - those around them saw them that way - because of the beauty of Christ that radiated in their lives. When we embrace wisdom and highly honor her in our lives - we receive a spiritual makeover that brings a level of beauty to our lives that no spa could ever match. Embrace wisdom - hold her in the highest esteem and honor. Consider her worth more than gold and silver, rubies and diamonds, stocks and bonds - consider wisdom worth more than any other thing in your life! This is the way to be blessed and beautified by God's grace. So remember this - get wisdom - and as you are expending great energy and effort to do so - get the understanding to practically live that wisdom out in the world around you. Based on the clear teaching of God's Word I can guarantee you that if you do this - you will never regret it! Prize her, and she will exalt you; She will honor you if you embrace her. Proverbs 4:8
As we are getting wisdom and understanding it would benefit us to know why we should prize it so highly. That is what this wise father does next as he is seeking to teach his childern. He does so by personifying wisdom as a lady who will begin showing those who value her with wonderful things. There are several things he tells his son in this way - pictures that he will not forget. Prize her . . . this is the first thing he is told to do. The idea here is that this young man should lift up and exalt wisdom. He should give wisdom and understanding a marvelous reputation and worth. A smart man highly values and exalts the wisdom of God in his life. He puts a premium upon it - and makes obtaining it a priority. The son is told that if he does this - Wisdom will exalt him. Wisdom will lift you up - will grow you - will promote you and cause you to be raised up in position and in your place in life. Here is a wonderful benefit of wisdom. People might not value a person of wisdom initially - but in time wisdom reveals itself in what it does and how it blesses. When a man has wisdom to see the right thing to do - and understanding so that he can practically carry out what needs to be done in order to secure the blessings - he becomes incredibly valuable to those who are around him. Far too many bad things happen in life because people follow the advice of fools. So when a man truly wise and understanding comes around - he is noticed and he is desired. Embrace her . . . this is the next attitude we need to have toward wisdom and understanding. When you embrace someone you are showing affection and affirmation. To embrace wisdom means not having it at an arm's distance. We pull wisdom and understanding close. We want it and we love it. When we do this wisdom, we are told, will honor us. The word for honor here means to be heavy and the idea behind the word is something that carries weight. This is the same word that elsewhere is used for the glory of God. If we will embrace wisdom, she will honor us. She will give our words and ideas weight to those around us. To use a modern phrase - we won't be lightweights in the world of ideas. Who has ascended into heaven and descended? Who has gathered the wind in His fists? Who has wrapped the waters in His garment? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is His name or His son's name? Surely you know! Proverbs 30:4
Wisdom has as its core quest God Himself. A wise man will look at the glory of the heavens and the earth and realize that such order and such majesty is not just the work of random forces. Thus he will see the order - see the creation and immediately realize that there is a Creator. We will try to look at each of these questions and see the wisdom in asking these things. (Due to the sheer grandeur of the questions themselves - we will only answer one each post on this verse - therefore there will be multiple posts on verse 4 in this blog). Question #1 - "Who has ascended into heaven and descended?" What is fascinating is that God asked questions very similar to this to Job when Job decided that God was unjust - and that Job needed for God to explain Himself in Job's suffering. The Word of God answers this first question - which assumes that there is a God. There is also an assumption that the one who has ascended into heaven itself and descended would be an authority on these matters. Humans are a horrible choice when it comes to the matter of the origin of the earth and all its processes (like wind, clouds and rain, creation, and the identity of God Himself who made all these things). Here we have our first problem with philosophers in our world. They want to know why and how we can just assume that there is a God. They make no such assumption - demanding proof that there is a God or gods before they continue. The argument here is honestly pretty simple. For there to be a creation - for there to be something - there has to be a creator - there has to be someone who made it. When we see a painting we do not doubt there was a painter. When we see a building we do not doubt there was a builder. When we see a book we do not doubt there was an author. Why then when we see creation do we doubt a creator? To argue that there is no God - and that creation was never created - it just happened - is to argue that nothing plus no one equals everything. It is also to argue that if random processes just happened to bring about everything around us - that there is absolutely no reason to exist - and that it is the height of foolishness to even ask if there is meaning in anything around us. The worldview that demands that God prove Himself beyond the fact that there is a creation of His making, is to descend into Nihlism. That is the only "honest" conclusion that can be reached if there was no intelligent being behind the design in our universe. If everything came about by chance - it still exists by chance - and since there is no reason to random chance - there is no reason to our lives and no reason for which we exist. The wise man, as said earlier, knows to ask these questions. His assumption is that God is able to ascend and descend the heavens at will. If God is able to make all that we see - and even beyond that - going up into heaven and coming down from there is not difficult. If there is such care and such glorious design in all that there is - He must be a God of detail and beauty. No one has seen God at any time. The Word itself tells us that if a man were to see God he would not live. Thus, the question also asked here is who has the revelation of God. Who has ascended before Him - and who hase descended to earth again. Here we have the answer - it was Jesus Christ - He is the One who has given us the perfect revelation of God through His life, death, burial, and rsurrection. There is only one who has done this - and it is the Lord Jesus Christ. He has ascended and descended! He has brought us revelation of God - but has also brought us far more! He has brought us salvation and a payment for our sins. Wisdom drives us to know Who God is. And true wisdom is in knowing that God has revealed Himself and shown us Who He is. We find in Scripture that this is answered on our behalf. Jesus Christ is the One who has ascended into heaven - and descended from it. Know Him and we will know wisdom. Know Him and we will know all that we truly need to know in this life and in this world. Acquire wisdom! Acquire understanding! Do not forget nor turn away from the words of my mouth. Proverbs 4:5
How do you become wise? There is a question for the ages, yet the answer as you will see is much easier than you would think. Becoming wise involves first wanting to be wise. We've seen from other Proverbs that the first step in becoming wise is to realize that you are not wise. That may at first sound ridiculously simple - but you would be surprised how many people miss it. Once you realize that you are not wise, the next step is told to us here. You begin to do all that you can to acquire wisdom and understanding. Of course I know the next question will be, "How do you do that?" That is what we will examine today as we look at this Proverb. If you want to acquire wisdom, you hang out with wise people. This is important mainly because it should move you toward God. Since He is the author of all wisdom - you would want to spend a lot of time reading what He has to say and listening to what He desires to communicate to you. This also means you want to cultivate the habit of being very sensitive to what the Holy Spirit is saying to you in the Word each day. One of the quickest ways to move from foolishness to wisdom is to listen to and to follow Him. This means working on the discipline of getting into God's Word every day. It means getting into it with a heart that listens to God. You are not just "doing your Bible reading," but you are seeking God's face - desiring His counsel - and longing to communicate with Him in a way that you have the wisdom you need for life itself. Some other things that would be ways to acquire wisdom would be to read often in the book of Proverbs. This is the book of wisdom itself in the Scriptures, so it is only right to spend time in this particular book. Learn to do a "daily proverb." This is the practice of reading the chapter of Proverbs that coincides with the day of the month. Since there are 31 chatpers in Proverbs you will never lack a chapter for the day of the month - and over time you will watch your mind be filled with God's wisdom. Another thing to do is to learn "the moral of the story" in the history of the Bible. We can learn a great deal from both the wise and foolish behavior of people in the Bible. You can add to this reading books written by wise men, receiving godly counsel from older, wiser men and women, and also listening and going to your own parents for counsel. These are all ways you can acquire wisdom. By the way, the word wisdom itself simply means, "learning to see things from God's perspective." That is what you are seeking as you do all these things. The verse here also says that we are to acquire "understanding." We are not just gathering wise sayings and teachings. We are wanting to be able to comprehend and discern what do to and what to say in life. This word means to have that discernment that knows how to choose the right thing and reject the wrong thing. It has a strong moral and religious sense to it. We want to gain and acquire an ability to see two things that differ (even if they only differ slightly) and know how to choose the right one and embrace it wholly. This involves not just learning and acquiring wise sayings and information - it involves using it to see our situation as God sees it. It is applying the wisdom we've learned to each and every situation that we face. This comes with time and with continued wise counsel. It comes as we do post mortem work on our previous decisions - and on the decisions of others. This is not done for the sake of condemnation - but to learn from what we've done wrong and what we've done right. It involves humility as we pick a personal disaster apart and examine just what made us make such a foolish decision. As we do this - we will better know what do to in the future - and how to recognize similar situations and make much wiser decisions when we face those sitiuations in the future. The last thing we need to do also seems so simple - but actually it is very profound. We need to remember what we've learned. The father tells his son, "Do not forget, nor turn away from the words of my mouth." As we hear the earthly father parrot these words, we should realize that these are the same words that God uses over and over again throughout the Law, the Prophets, the wisdom writings, the Psalms, and the New Testament. I think in some way all of us are afflicted with a little spiritual alzheimers. We forget what God taught us. One of the funniest, yet saddest pictures of this is the disciples freaking out in a boat that is being tossed and turned by the waves. In order to move around in the boat they had to step over the 12 baskets of food Jesus just had them gather the day before. They had to stumble over them to get to Jesus to tell Him to wake up because they were all about to perish! Jesus then got up - rebuked the wind and waves - and pretty much blew their minds at the power God gave Him. But where would they have learned this? Oh, from the feeding of the 25,000 to 30,000 people from just yesterday!! But then again - we have a bad tendency to forget what we've been taught. God calls us to remember! Remember the lessons God taught you. Don't forget the valuable information He shared with you. Don't drop the ball that He just gave you! This is not easy folks. If it was He wouldn't say it so often - and we wouldn't blow it so often. We are prone to pride and to self-sufficiency. That is often at the root of why we forget. We don't exactly embrace the whole idea of not being able to do things ourselves. We don't exactly enjoy going to God for counsel on decisions. We don't exactly warm up to the fact that we need to surrender our wills to God daily - even hourly and if it were a word, "minutely." This deals with the last bit of wisdom the father shares with his son. The last thing that keeps us from acquiring wisdom and understanding is rebellion and disobedience. The father says to his son that he is not to "turn away" from the words that he speaks. Our last problem with acquiring wisdom is that we turn away from it willingly. WE ARE REBELLIOUS! There are times when we choose to be wise in our own eyes - and chart of course for disaster in the process. This requires that we die to self daily. It requires that we recognize that though we are converted - we are not fully sanctified. We need to see the subtle workings of our flesh, the world system, and Satan in our lives. Follow these three and you will not walk in wisdom. You will not acquire it - nor keep it. Acquiring wisdom and understanding is imperative for each of us. It involves humbling ourselves and listening to God - and those through whom He would speak to us. It involves not just listening, but learning and discerning what is said and how it applies to where we are going and what we are doing and saying. It is a life long process that allows us to grow in wisdom only in so much as we continue to view our world through the eyes of God. It will only be then that we will have acquired wisdom - acquired understanding -and have learned how to glorify God in the things we say and do. Surely I am more stupid than any man, And I do not have the understanding of a man. 3 Neither have I learned wisdom, Nor do I have the knowledge of the Holy One. Proverbs 30:2-3
I know that at first reading this sounds like the Proverb of the one lacking self-esteem. But if this is your thinking, it is simply because you are too much a child of this age and the deception of its culture. Although we may not see it like we should, this is actually a man who is about to move from foolishness to wisdom in short order. As a result we have much we can learn from him. He speaks with serious lament in his voice. "Surely I am more stupid than any man, and I do not have the understanding of a man." His lament is for wisdom - for he sees such a strong need of it in his life. The vast majority in this world do not have such a lament. If anything, their mindset is that they have pleanty of knowledge and understanding. They do not feel stupid! They are brimming with the confidence that they are worthwhile and that they usually get stars and high grades on all their papers. They've gotten the token trophies that everyone gets - regardless of their performance or achievements. Stupid! Lacking understanding! How could anyone be so filled with a lack of self-esteem! Who educated this poor soul to where he would think he lacked anything? There is the crux of the problem with our educational system. We are so concerned about the effect of actually correcting the children of this generation (for fear of harming their poor self-esteem) that we will not do what is necessary to help them see their need. They have a socialistic system that promises them government money from cradle to grave - whether they work or not! They have a government that guarantees a world without problems - at least ones that the government promises to fix. They have a promise that no one will be considered more successful or more intelligent than them (at least not without serious punishment for it). Thus seeing themselves stupid, lacking in understanding, even in need - well those ideas are out of style in our socialistic utopia. This man is on the verge of great wisdom because he knows the great truth. That truth is that he needs wisdom. He needs education. He needs understanding that can only come from God Himself. What he needs is God - and the wisdom that comes from intimacy with God in sweet fellowship with Him. He begins with the statement that he is stupid - more stupid than any man. Rather than have him brimming with self-centered, self-induced, and self-glorifying pride, this man has learned the truth. He is a sinner - and as a sinner he is cut off from the all-wise God. Thus he makes foolish and stupid decisions. He does so because He lacks understanding - lacks wisdom - but most of all, lacks knowledge of the Holy One. Our problem is not our environment! Educationally . . . our problem is our sin. We are not wise - because we reject God's wisdom. We are lacking in understanding because we will not listen to our Father in heaven Who longs to give it to us. We lack wisdom because we refuse to see things God's way. We lack all across the board because we do not know the Holy One of Israel! This world was made by God . . . for God. It is beset with all his working - and works best when His wisdom is applied to daily living. Without Him - we are stupid - and will continue unabated in that stupidity until His mercy lays hold of us and we understand His grace. The man who is the closest to receiving God's wisdom, understanding, and knowledge . . . is the man who embraces humility. God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble. The fact is until we come to the place this wise man reached - we are not candidates for God to work mightily in our lives. When we do come to the place where we humble ourselves and trust Him - we will lack. But to the man who embraces humility - to the man who grasps and deals with the fact that he is not a genius - to that man goes the marvelous gift of God's grace, mercy . . . and the joy of knowing Him . . . which is wisdom indeed! A fool rejects his father's discipline, But he who regards reproof is sensible. Proverbs 15:5
Why is it so important for a child to learn to submit himself and learn from his parents - especially a son from his father? First, we need to learn from this relationship because we will be dealing with authority all the days of our lives. I love the story of the son who, rebelling against his father's authority says, "I don't have to live under this kind of dictatorial authority, I'm joining the Marines!" Believe me when I say that when we don't learn under the authority that God has in our lives - the Lord is very willing to up the ante on our next authority figure. The second reason we need to learn to live under authority - especially with our fathers is because that relationship more than any other is suppose to parallel that between a man and his God. Only a fool rejects his father's discipline. He looks at his father's rules and boundaries for his life with contempt. He spurns them and rejects them outright. He comes to despise the role his father is supposed to play in his life. Interesting to note here is the fact that this same word is used for blasphemy elsewhere in the Old Testament. Fancy that now - the same term that is used to describe the rebellion of a son to his father - is the same one used to describe the rebellion of a creation to his Creator. The reason we need so desperately to learn how to deal with discpline and correction is because this is the way of life. Proverbs tells us elsewhere that reproofs for discpiline are the way of life. We are rebels by nature - and by choice when that nature kicks into full gear. The better we learn how to deal with disicpline and reproof - the better suited we are when the Holy Spirit comes to bring conviction of our sin so that we can respond to the gospel of Jesus Christ. The one who "regards" reproof is called sensible. The word for "regard" here is our old friend "shamar" which means to watch out for something - to attend to it, to be careful to keep something and watch over it. This word has the idea of diligence and watchfulness over what is said in reproof to us. We listen and regard rather than reject what is said. Oh the lessons that we could learn - and the pain and suffering that we could avoid in life if we would just listen to those who offer us reproof. It is the sensible thing to do. It is wise and prudent to listen to those who can offer us reproof and instruction on how to do things better. It is wise to listen to those who see our mistakes and who desire for us to take a fork in the road so that we don't go the wrong way. It is prudent to listen to those who've been where we have not - who've experienced shame and disgrace because of choices we are about to make. That is why we need desperately to learn how to handle loving reproof - and even outright rebuke. God knows that this is truly the way of life - and the way to avoid great sin and sorrow. Listen to your fathers - and learn from them. This will be a lesson that will be repeated often as others who will serve as father-figures offer additional advice and counsel that can bless your life. If you learn to listen now - while a child - oh, what blessings are in store for you from that one lesson later in life. |
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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