The beginning of strife is like letting out water, So abandon the quarrel before it breaks out. Proverbs 17:14
Ever watch one of the movies where a small break in a dam takes place. You watch as the water is let out only in a trickle. The problem is that the pressure behind that trickle of water is tremendous. Soon the little place where the water is leaking cracks further under that pressure and becomes larger. More water is let out resulting in more pressure on that place. At some point there is a breaking point where the entire dam begins falling apart and the water begins careening out of the dam. Up until the point where the dam begins falling apart - there is an opportunity to stop the disaster. What is amazing is that when the earliest "letting out" of the water starts, the only real way of dealing with the problem is to release the water at the base of the dam and lessen the pressure on the breach in the dam. If this is not done - and the original crack is not repaired - the dam will eventually break and cause tremendous devastation. Now back to our Proverb today. The beginning of strife is like the crack in the dam. This is not good because if left undealt with, it will make for a very serious 'breakout' of quarrelling. A fight is coming the longer that we do not deal with the very onset of strife in our hearts and minds. To leave it there is to embrace the coming quarrel and the problems it will engender. The counsel God gives is to abandon the quarrel before it breaks out. That means that we should die to ourselves and to our desire to make our point. We should resist throwing a little guilt in someone's direction - or a little barb to get back a little for a slight we feel. We should abandon the wrong pursuit of this difficulty and instead, should allow the comment, the slight, the supposed or real insult, or just the grouchiness we feel to die as God takes it from us. Just one last thought though. If you have an entire dam of feelings and pent-up anger that is pressuring you to argue or quarrel, it would be wise to get with God to see what is at the root of your problem with this person. The reason I say this is that there are times when we truly do have issues that will require us to examine our hearts - examine our relationships with others - and draw down the water (i.e. the anger and resentment) that fills the dam so that the pressure to react and "let out" a dispute is lowered significantly. But in the meantime - just die to yourself and what you want to say. It is better to do that than to have the quarrel break out and with it have damage that is far worse to the relationship result.
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A prudent man sees evil and hides himself, The naive proceed and pay the penalty. Proverbs 27:12
What do you do when you see evil or sin coming toward you? Your answer might be that you don't often have evil coming in your direction. But the fact is that temptations come in two basic types. There are temptations that we will most likely not be able to avoid in life. They are going to happen so quickly that we do not have time to flee from them in advance. But there is a second type of temptation that is mentioned in this proverb. It is the temptation that we see coming - or the one that we just do not avoid or hide from in life. We just walk right into it. Those kind of temptations are the ones that we will most likely fall into - and pay the penalty in the process. The prudent men sees evil - and hides himself from it. He sees that there is a situation where temptation and testing is coming - and he makes choices to avoid it altogether. The alcoholic knows when he is being invited to a party or to a restaurant where liquor is being offered to him. He knows this and avoids the situation. The man struggling with sexual temptation is smart enough to hide himself from the R or PG13 rated movies - and avoids situations when he will be exposed to sights that will only cause him greater temptation. There are numerous temptations that we can avoid by simply being wise enough to hide from them. Rather than proceed into situations that pose us with choices that we would rather not make, we stay away from them. The proverb warns us what will happen when we do not make these kind of "choices-in-advance-for-righteousness." We read that the naive proceed and pay the penalty. I love the word for naive here. It is the Hebrew word "pethi" and it means to be simple or open-minded. The idea here is one who is so open-minded that they are naive about the evil that is in the world around them. They are simple in that they do not see the consequences of actions they are about to take. Contrary to this is the one who is spiritually mature. Hebrews 5;14 tells us about this person when it says, "But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil." Here is the wise man. His senses are trained due to exposure to the Word of God. The passage tells us that this man is feeding on the meat of God's Word, not just the milk. As a result, he has his senses trained from reading the "word of righteousness." Thus he knows what is right and wrong. That is why he can discern good and evil. He does so through God's Word, the Bible. And as he does - he makes sure that he avoids situations where evil is present. Jesus taught us to pray, "Do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil." That phrase has within it this same passage. There are times when we will have to face evil - when we will have to face temptation. But our heart is not to be led into it. When we have to face temptation we long for God to deliver us from evil. But in some cases, God desires for us to learn enough wisdom to avoid tempting situations altogether. That is where we learn to see the evil and hide ourselves - rather the walk into it thinking we can handle it - and find out we cannnot. The way of a guilty man is crooked, But as for the pure, his conduct is upright. Proverbs 21:8
How do you know whther you are dealing with someone who is criminal and crooked in his ways - or whether you are dealing with a man who is pure in his motives and ways? Here is an excellent question. I am sure that many a man who has been conned would love to know the answer to this question. That is what we will learn today as we open the book of Proverbs to verse 8 of chapter 21. First we see the "guilty man." What Solomon is describing to us though is the way of this man - the roads he takes and the lifestyle that is developed as a result. This man is described to us as the guilty man. The word used here for this designation is the Hebrew word, "vazar." This word means a man who lacks innocence. He is guilty because his behavior and choices reject God's law and ways. In this regard he is a criminal - because his consistent choice is to break the law. Solomon tells us that such a man is "crooked." Crooked here is "haphak" which refers to someone who is very perverse and devious. This guy is constantly perverting this - being devious - and lacking in honesty. He is filled with a dishonesty that makes you wonder about his integrity. Note this when trying to determine whether someone is godly or ungodly in their dealings. If you catch them making statements that are being twisted and fundamentally dishonest - most likely you are dealing with someone who is crooked and should be avoided at all costs. You are going to pay dearly if you continue to do business and allow this man into your life. The best thing you could do is cut and run. The other man - the godly one - is pure. The word here means someone who is clean - like pure water or pure oil. This man is a godly man - and his godliness is verified by the honestly and integrity with which he speaks and acts. This man's conduct is described as "upright." This is the word "yashar" which means something that is straight, just, and right. This word usually refers to things in an ethical and emotional sense. These are men who are very concerned with being right in the eyes of the Lord. They want a godly integrity in their dealings with others. They do not want to deceive or to mislead. Wisdom tells us to be mindful of the character of those with whom we deal in life. It is not enough that a good offer is on the table - or that someone is offering the best price. We need to know that a man is also placing good character on the table as well. Then we know whether we are dealing with a thief or not. See behind the offers and see into their lives or the "way" that they live. Do this and you will be much less likely to be caught in the schemes and the deception of the ungodly. A man will be praised according to his insight, But one of perverse mind will be despised. Proverbs 12:8
Good godly Biblical-sense beats out common-sense every day. But what is interesting is that often common-sense, which we too often take for granted, comes from Biblical-sense. We read here that a man will be praised according to his insight. This word "insight" is a great Bible word. The word means to be intelligent and have good sense. But this is an intelligence that means more than just a mere book knowledge on a certain subject. It means an insight and understanding that is the gift of God. We obtain it as we seek God and seek to know God through the way He has revealed Himself through His Word - the Bible. This is why I stated at the beginning of today's post that common-sense actually arises out of Biblical-sense. Since studying Proverbs in depth I've noticed that the counsel that I offer to others has been radically affected. Rather than offer my own fallible insights and thoughts - I quote from Proverbs and Scripture as a source of counsel. By the way, this means it is no longer my counsel - but God's Word. A second "by the way" is in order too. A good counsellor is not always one with a degree or a certificate - but one with a good working knowledge of God's Word and how it speaks to every issue of life. Sorry for the digression, I'll get back to the point. People want that kind of counsel - and they say to me that I have great insight into their problems and situations. When this is said, I laugh and let them know that without the Scriptures I'm as dumb as a stump. Any profit they receive is because of God's grace and the way that "Biblical-sense" has affected my "common-sense." When a man is praised becuase of his insight - it is often due to the fact that He is studying and seeking to apply Scripture to life. My favorite people are my brothers and sisters who are in their 70's and 80's who have studied and sought to live out God's Word their entire adult lives. They are a treasure chest of wisdom and instruction, rebuke and correction, counsel and encouragement, knowledge and discernment. But there is another person out their offering their opinion and counsel. It is the one of "perverse mind." The word "perverse" here means to bend or to twist. It speaks of those who distort things and make them perverse and crooked. This one will be despised according to Proverbs. When we see where their counsel leads us we will hate their advice. The problem is that too often those of "perverse mind" are exalted in our culture. They are the ones who make movies and television shows that exalt sexual impurity. They tell us that a sexually immoral lifestyle is the bomb! We need to try it out and embrace the sexual revolution. What they don't tell us in their movie portrayals is the truth about sexually transmitted diseases, the truth about broken relationships and broken marriages. They speak of the pleasure without the payment - the joy without the judgment. When we finally learn where their perverse counsel has led us - we despise them for it and feel like we've been burned (because we have!). Don't seek out the counsel of the "perverse of mind." Be careful of the way you allow the culture and the world to color your thinking. We don't say it often enough in the church today, but the culture in which we live is a perverse and godless one. When we allow the print media and what is sent out over the airwaves to instruct us (and realize that they usually instruct us through what they call "entertainment") we are being taught by the perverse in mind and heart. Find those who have insight! Search out and locate those who have "Biblical-sense." Their counsel may hurt a little at first (especially if you've spent too much time among the perverse of mind) but in the end you will praise them for their insight and counsel. Don't be surprised though if they blush and defer all praise to the One Who gave us the revelation of Himself in the Bible. In the end, He is actually the One Who has all the wisdom and great insight. But that is because He is God! "I, wisdom, dwell with prudence, And I find knowledge and discretion.
Proverbs 8:12 How gullible are you? Here is a verse in Proverbs that tells us that being wise and godly are actually the opposite of being gullible. If that has whet your appetite for more - read on. In chapter 8 of Proverbs we have a picture painted for us where wisdom is personified. She speaks to us and tells us about herself. The more we learn of her - the more we are to desire her. In the midst of this description we have wisdom saying to us that there is a companion that she dwells with. Her companion's name is "prudence." If we will stay with these two, wisdom and prudence. we will be influenced in such a way that we will also find knowledge and discretion. Let's take a closer look at this friend of wisdom. Prudence is the Hebrew word, "ormah." This word means to be crafty or prudent. We're pretty much OK with the second of these two words, but crafty presents an interesting picture. We don't usually view someone who is crafty as a positive thing, but here it is used in a positive way. The idea here is that of someone who is crafty with wisdom and with seeing things from God's perspective. Whereas the wicked would use craftiness to trick someone and gain an unfair advantage of them, God is using it to speak of the inability to be caught by someone's trickery. It is a wisdom and cautiousness that keeps us from being gullible. We are not speaking of someone who is always thinking the worst of people - but we are speaking of someone who knows men. It was said of Jesus that he did not entrust himself to men - because He knew what was in a man. Let me use a biblical illustration to make this clearer. Joshua was tricked into making a treaty in the book of Joshua chapter 9. The Gibeonites used trickery to make it look like they were from a far away country. They put on worn-out clothes and sandals, took worn-out sacks, and dry and crumbled provisions to make Israel think they were not Canaanites. Israel was snookered by all this - only because her leaders did not walk according to wisdom. The Scriptures tell us that their failure was in not seeking and asking God about their situation. They took everything at face value - and believed their eyes. They did not seek the Lord and submit themselves to Him. In the end - their lack of prudence led to their being too gullible. Wisdom dwells with prudence. Wisdom is found with those who do not make "snap" judgments and decisions. They stand back from things long enough to ask questions - and more importantly - to ask God about what their eyes see and what their minds seem to be comprehending. Thus, when we walk with this wise cautiousness - we are led to find knowledge. We are led to find out things that a "once-over" mindset and choice will never find. You don't judge a book by its cover - you open it and read a little. You don't make wise decisions by reacting to the outside only - you take time to investigate things, people, and situations. When we walk in this wisdom - prudence will also help us to find discretion. We remember discretion from earlier verses in Proverbs. Discretion is being able to differentiate things. It is seeing two things that may look alike at first, but are not. Closer examination reveals the difference. And the difference often makes all the difference. Being gullible is not something we have to hold onto in life. It is something that reveals a tendency to not turn to God and to Scripture to obtain wisdom - i.e. God's perspective on things. You do not have to suffer from terminal gullibility though. You can learn to step back and examine things closer in the light of God's presence and Word. This will help you to build purdence, knowledge, and the ability to discriminate between that which is good and that which is evil or even not so good. You will find out that gullible is not written on the ceiling. What you will find is that God's Word and Spirit will help you see the difference between your will, the will and way of the world, and God's will. Like one who binds a stone in a sling, So is he who gives honor to a fool. Proverbs 26:8
Imagine this scene if you will. David is facing the giant Goliath. He goes to the stream and picks out five smooth stones. He then takes of the and a piece of leather and ties the stone into the sling that he is about to use to engage the giant in battle. He ties it securely in the sling so that it won't come out. Then he rushes to the scene of the battle to . . . to . . . to completely fail as he has the sling wrap around his arm when he looses it from one hand - only to have the stone bruise his forearm - just before the giant pierces him like a pin cushion with his spear. Little different than the Biblical account isn't it? What you read above would be what would have happened had David bound the stone he chose to throw at Goliath inside his sling. Anyone who even knows the rudimentary skills with a sling knows that only the dumbest of warriors would bind the stone inside the sling when going out to battle. It would be the move that a man who wants to die takes. It would be possibly the very worst thing you could do. It would completely destroy any effectiveness you could imagine as a fighter for the army you serve. If a Hebrew - or anyone from this region were to read the opening part of this proverb, they would laugh. It is more like something you would see on a show called, "The World's Dumbest Warriors." But at times the Bible uses sarcasm and ridiculousness to get a point across to us. Such is the case in Proverbs 26:8. The proverb compares the stupidity of a man binding a stone in a sling to a man giving honor to a fool. This is something that should never be done! A fool is one who mocks God - and who mocks godliness. He is careless and does not do the right thing. He does not think before he acts unless you count thinking of what he himself wants - or what would bring him the greatest pleasure at the moment. This man does not deserve honor - he deserves to be pointed out as what he is, a fool! When we give honor to a fool we are shooting ourselves in the foot. We are lifting up someone as an example - who when followed will only produce more fools. We are disarming ourselves of something that is so necessary - good examples. We are giving the enemy an unfair advantage as we are lifting up someone who is a spokesman for godlessness. We are guaranteeing failure because we are pointing our children to those who will ultimately fail as one they should honor and respect. Our society is replete with the act of honoring of fools. We see it all the time in sports. We join with those who offer praise to someone whose skill set includes little more than shooting a ball - throwing a ball - catching a ball - or dunking a ball (methinks we have the over-fascination with balls and those who can impress us with their dexterity with them). It matters little to us what character or lack thereof these men have. We join with the throngs who grant them far more accolades that they deserve. They even boast to us that they are not role models - and continue living in ways that would get the normal person arrested. They flaunt our laws - and then use their fame to get slapped on the wrist for offenses that would land the rest of us in prison. Their sports continue to degenerate as more and more thugs rise to prominence. There are good men there as well, it just seems that for every really good guy - there are several thugs whose antics dominate our papers and airwaves. I want to ask a simple question for those of you who have children. Who are your children's heros? Have you taken the time to exalt godly men whose godly lives should be the kind you honor? What about men like Hudson Taylor who took the gospel into the heartland of China and John Knox who stood toe to toe with Kings and Queens? How about Eric Liddell who was willing to give up the Olympics for godly principles - then won the 200 yard dash - and then did something even more important by giving his life for the gospel in China? What about David Livingstone who took the gospel across Africa or Vanya who stood for Christ in the midst of the Russian army at the cost of his own life? Finally, how about Jim Elliot who bravely gave his life to reach a South American Indian tribe? Here are the heros we should honor - but too often our children don't even know their names. They never shot a game winning three at the buzzer or scored a winning touchdown. They never hit a home run or pitched a no-hitter. All these men did was live lives that were worthy of emmulation - lives of character and godliness - lives of sacrifice and bravery - and saw the real victory won. The reason we have so many fools in our society is because we are constantly honoring them. Like a fool binding a sling in a stone - we keep lifting them up - swinging them around - and letting them go - only to have them come back and bruise our arm. Our children watch and dream of a day when they too can be a fool whose accomplishments are dust and ashes. Let us go forth today and find true heros - men and women whose lives are weighed down with character and godliness. Let us lift them up for our children to see - and to honor. The sooner we do this - the sooner we will see the Goliaths in our culture come crashing down because we've chosen to use our slings properly. Let us honor those whose lives will challenge our sons and daughters to be those who change our culture with both the character and the gospel of Jesus Christ. Do not go out hastily to argue your case; Otherwise, what will you do in the end, When your neighbor humiliates you? Proverbs 25:8
Proverbs provides an amazing array of good practical advice for living. It also has passages that would help in any profession a person chooses. But there are certain proverbs that fit hand in glove with a specific profession. Here is one that definitely fits with the legal profession well. Since the word "argue" here has as one of its primary meanings, "to argue in court" or "to file a lawsuit" we can see that this has great wisdom to offer to someone who is a lawyer - or someone who is about to hire one. Proverbs 25:8-9 is a great reminder to anyone who wants to argue a case with another - which of course fits perfectly with the legal profession. We are warned to not do this "hastily." When someone chooses to argue a case for themselves or against another - they need to make sure that they proceed with wisdom and caution. To go out and hastily argue a case is to do so without due diligence. There a dangers in doing this that are inherent in reacting quickly to things. First, we have far too much emotion in our immediate reactions to argue without undue prejudice in our thinking. We are blinded to seeing wisely - which is the ability to look at multiple angles of the issue. When you are blind to something - you are very succeptible to being "blind-sided" when arguing your case. A wise man takes the time to look at every angle and consider every argument before beginning to argue a case. Our legal system allows for argument and cross-examination. This is inherently wise because it allows for two sides of an argument to be explored. It is designed to expose hasty decisions and ill thought out arguments so that wisdom and prudence prevail in the end. We would be wise to "cross-examine" ourselves when we have a knee jerk reaction that drives us to argue something too quickly. If we did this - we would avoid embarassment when someone who is thinking more rationally dismantles our open and shut arguments - and reveal them to be way more "shut" than open. This is what Proverbs warns us when it tells us to be careful about hasty arguments. We are warned about being humiliated by our neighbor in the end when we do this. Here we find our Hebrew friend "acharith" again. This word speaks of the end - but does so from the standpoint of being able to think about what the end of our actions will be. Here we see that that the end of hastily argued points is humliation by our opponents. If we saw this before we started arguing in haste, we would have stopped ourselves long enough to properly think though what we were going to say. I am for anything that will stave off moments of high embarassment. That has meant seeing my natural tendency to jump to conclusions as more of a jump into a pit of poisoned spikes. To put it another way - it is very unwise to jump to conclusions. It is wiser to look before you leap upon someone with your supposedly lock-tight arguments. The wise man takes the time to consider first whether pre-prejudice has affected his thinking. The wise man takes the time to decide whether silence would be more effective than blurting out what he thinks. The wise man takes the time to consider the end of the matter - before starting it. This, dear saints, can rescue us from a plethora of painfully embarassing moments. Oh, and by the way, in court - it can mean the difference between a case that is won - and one that is humiliatingly lost. 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 plan in the heart of a man is like deep water, But a man of understanding draws it out. Proverbs 20:5
Like deep, still waters, so the hearts of men can deeply conceal their plans. The word "plan" here is key to understanding this particular proverb. What this word means will govern what we need to learn. The word is "esah" and it means advice or a plan. What helps us most in understanding this word is the comments of Zhodiates who says the following about this word. "It sometimes suggests the idea of a plot." The plots and plans of wicked men are hidden deep in still waters deep within their hearts. Isaiah speaks of these kinds of hidden plans and plots when he says, "Woe to those who deeply hide their plans from the LORD, And whose deeds are done in a dark place, And they say, 'Who sees us?' or 'Who knows us?'" (Isaiah 29:15). Thus we come to understand that this proverb is warning us of the ungodly plots of the wicked. We are told that these plans exist hidden deep within the hearts of the wicked - but a man of understanding will draw them out. This ability belongs only to the "man of understanding." He is the one who possesses the ability to distinguish between the good and bad, true and false, and the forthright and the one whose motives are deeply hidden. This man of understanding has the capacity to look through outward actions and words, and see the hidden places of the human heart. This one does not accept everything at face value alone. He not only estimates their words, but the deep underlying motives and aims that are behind them. It is such wisdom that allows the man of understanding to discern hidden motives or hidden agendas. This is the way that he draws out the hidden plans and plots of the wicked. In the New Testament this Spirit-given ability is called the gift of discernment - or discernment of spirits. It is a wonderful gift God has given to some to see below the surface. They are able to see into the heart by God's grace. What they see allows them to read below those deep waters - and see the real reason something is being said or done. Normally, without the Spirit of God, someone could easily pull the wool over our eyes and deceive us. A plan might be laid that we think is gracious, but actually has harm in store for us. That is when the ability to draw out the plans and plots of men is such a blessing. Keep your way far from her And do not go near the door of her house, Proverbs 5:8
For many, the reason that they fail and fail again in conquering sexual sin is because they are trying to walk as close as they can to the line rather than walking miles from seeing it. Let me explain as we look at today's "little bit of wisdom." Solomon is giving his son great advice here concerning the immoral woman. He is told to keep his way FAR from her! He tells his son not to go near to the door of her house! What great wisdom he offers here - and yet it is as simple as a child learning their first letters. The problem is that too many ignore this advice - and do so to their own demise. FAR - there is the definitive word that we need to remember when it comes to avoiding sexual sin. What usually happens is that a young man wants to go as close as he can to sin - without actually stepping into it. He walks the line between sin and righteousness like someone walks a tight rope. The result of this choice on his part is that he sins - and does so fairly regularly. Here is a truth and wisdom you need to remember when it comes to sexual sin - and hanging around the wrong kind of women or men. If you want to walk as close as you can to sin - you will sin. You are destined to fall if your goal is to stay close to the edge of sin. David knew this when he instructed Solomon in this very same information. David understood this all too well. David should have never been in Jerusalem when he committed adultery with Bathsheba. The Scriptures tell us that when kings went to war . . . David chose to stay home. This presents a very dangerous situation for David. First of all, David is not where he should be - fighting for Israel and engaging the Lord's enemies. So our first lesson is this - if sin is our enemy, why would we want to get as close to it as we can? If David would have been where God wanted him to be - he would have never faced temptation in the first place. David's actions had consequences. Now he was a man in a city filled with women whose husbands were away at war. Where there would have been a natural protection afforded to David by the presence of Bathsheba's husband - that was not the case. When David was walking on the roof of his house and saw Bathsheba bathing - he could have walked away and gone back into his palace. Instead he chose to look - and to note that she was a beautiful woman. Each time David decided to walk on the edge of where God wanted him to be - and what God wanted him to do - David was ensuring that he was going to eventually fall off that edge headlong into sin. Eventually, David succumbed to the desires that were raging in his heard. Even though he had a palace filled with wives - and probably by this time concubines - he had to have this woman. The rest is a sad and sordid history. But enough about David - how about us? Where are we walking in these matters? Are we steering clear of sin - especially sexual sin. I know of men who have stumbled again and again into pornography and other sexual sin - who grieve over their failures. But they are unwilling to get a filter - unwilling to submit to accountability - and many think they can continue to get as close to sin as possible rather than run from it. If you want to know the answer to all this - it is to follow Solomon's counsel here - and keep away from the immoral woman - or wherever you are seeing her image or pictures. If anything our heart's desire needs to be a desire to get as close to JESUS as we can! That is what needs to drive us in our hearts. We need to have a heart that says - not only do I want to keep away from her and steer clear of the door of her house. I want to do just the opposite - to keep as close as I can to Christ - and to often go near Him. If you want to avoid sexual sin - then AVOID IT! But in avoiding it, don't think inches or millimeters. Think miles and miles! By staying away from the source of temptation - we will find our hearts wonderfully protected as we instead draw near to our Lord Jesus Christ! |
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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