Archive for the ‘Proverbs’ Category

Proverbs 20:30 Wisdom for the Soul

Posted: November 29, 2012 in Acceptance, Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, Proverbs, Spiritual Training, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command

Proverbs 20:30 Blows and wounds cleanse away evil, and beatings purge the inmost being. 

Corporal punishment works. Pain is an efficient deterrent and effective instructor. Do you believe both rules in spite of what effeminate fools and social do-gooders say today?

Why are you careful with fire? By studying the laws and theories of fuels, heat, oxidation, combustion, and thermodynamics? By theorizing why fire hurts and destroys? Or because you felt the biting sting of fire when you were young! Ah, yes, fire hurts!

If you want to be wise, and Proverbs was written for that, then submit to God’s word. Let God be true, but every man a liar (Rom 3:4; Ps 119:128). God and Solomon had more wisdom about modifying behavior than any man, group of men, institution, or theory on earth! Freely given without charge, they wrote it down for your great profit and success.

Foolishness and wickedness are terrible human traits, causing much pain and suffering, including ruined lives and estates and death. How can these traits be reduced? Sin is more than a bad habit; it is the inborn reaction of deceived rebels (Jer 17:9). Most men must be beaten, bruised, and wounded before they will change or improve. This is the lesson.

Do you wisely wound those who need it? Do you receive wounding well when you need it? Do not resist the wisdom taught here. Severe and wise punishment is far less painful than unrestrained self-will or obstinate rebellion. A fool not corrected will cost himself and those around him far more than the light sting of a whipping. This is the application.

Parents drive foolishness from children with the rod (Pr 22:15; 23:13-14); God scourges foolishness from His children (Pr 3:11-12; Heb 12:5-11); friends correct one another by verbal blows (Pr 27:6; Ps 141:5); and Jesus was bruised and wounded for our iniquities (Gen 3:15; Is 53:5,10). Corporal punishment greatly reduces crimes. This is the result.

Until recent decades of perverse thinking and loud talking by social engineers, everyone knew corporal punishment worked. They used to say, “Reading, writing, and arithmetic, taught to the tune of a hickory stick.” In a wise society, magistrates beat criminals (Deut 25:2-3), and employers beat offending employees (Pr 29:19; Ex 21:20-21).

Solomon’s inspired wisdom is despised today. Social dreamers and arrogant educators teach that flattery and freedom work better than corporal punishment. Read Benjamin Spock’s, Baby and Child Care. They do all they can to outlaw parental spanking of children, just as they have outlawed flogging for maintaining order and discipline in schools, the military, and society. But look at the results! They have miserably failed!

What a beautiful proverb! Here you see the nature of proverbs as clearly as anywhere.  The words are chosen and arranged to create maximum beauty, force, and rhythm; but the sense is slightly hidden for you to discover and enjoy. Can you find a few metonyms?

This beautiful and wise proverb teaches God’s ordinance of corporal punishment. But today’s enlightened world prefers the darkness of the perverted speculations of educators. They will suction a million screaming babies into pieces in their mothers’ wombs, while protecting teenagers and criminals from ever being touched! These perverse persons are the devilish corrupters of nations, and the results of their policies are visible everywhere.

With only a few proper lessons from a rod, children will grow up into mature and wise adults (Pr 22:6,15). Feed them for 17 years without this tool, and you will have a child that brings you shame, ruins his life as well, and is a burden to those around him (Pr 23:13-14; 29:15). The self-restraint needed to prosper and succeed in life is brought by the rod and reproof. Correct children, and they will give you rest and delight (Pr 29:17).

Let parents remember the rule – the rod works. Let school principals and magistrates consider – the rod works. Let friends recall – sharp reproofs work. The wise use of corporal punishment will correct fools and sinners and reform the heart. This is not fanciful advice of the ignorant: these are inspired rules of the wisest man ever! Are you wise enough to grasp who is right? God and Solomon or Ben Spock and UNICEF?

Let every man gratefully and humbly receive wounds from God and man, for they are designed for his learning (Pr 3:11-12; 9:7-9; 27:5-6; Ps 141:5). Without them, there is no evidence that either God or men love you, and there is no hope for your improvement or perfection. You should look for a church where you are wounded weekly by preaching!

Some natural men limit this proverb to foolish medical advice. They say the blue color around a wound is evidence that infection is being purged from it! And they say that developed abdominal muscles (“a six-pack” of stripes on your belly) promote the health of your lower internal organs! What an ignorant travesty of interpretation! Forget it!

God hates sin but loved His elect, so He severely bruised and wounded the Lord Jesus by the Jews and Romans. During the hours leading to His death, He turned blue from many wounds, and many stripes covered His back. Why? Because He was wounded for our transgressions, bruised for our iniquities, chastised for our peace, and by His stripes we are healed (Is 53:5,10). His blue wounds and many stripes cleansed us from all evil!

Spiritual Training

Posted: November 29, 2012 in Acceptance, Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, Proverbs, Spiritual Training, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command

Part 3

Romans 1:21-23 For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.  Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.

Romans: 1:24-25 Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another.  They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator who is forever praised.  Amen.   

Romans 1:26-27 Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones.  In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another.  Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion. 

God’s plan for natural sexual relationships is his ideal for his  creation.  Unfortunately, sin distorts the natural use of God’s gifts.  Sin often means not only denying God, but also denying the way we are made.  When people say that any sex act is acceptable as long as nobody gets hurt they are fooling themselves.  In the long run (and often in the short run).  sin hurts people-individuals, families, whole societies.  Because sex is such a powerful and essential part of what it means to be human, it must be treated with great respect.  Sexual desires are of such importance that the Bible gives them special attention and counsels more carful restraint and self-control than with any other desire.  One of the clearest indicators of a society or person in rebellion against God is the refection of God’s guidelines for the use of sex.

Lets Bring it Home: Natural sex is not just between men and women.  Natural sex is between Husband and Wife.  If you’re not married and having sex, pray for self control.  I know it’s hard.  So make up your mind to either marry the person, or drop it likes it hot.  Nothing is worth burning in hell for the rest of your life.

Proverbs 19:14 Wisdom for the Soul

Posted: November 29, 2012 in Acceptance, Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, Proverbs, Spiritual Training, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Proverbs 19:14  Houses and wealth are inherited from parents, but a prudent wife is from the LORD. 

 Here are two rules of marital and family wisdom. Only the God of the Bible could put so much wisdom in so few words. Do you understand the two rules for success here? Do you know how to apply the wisdom practically in your life or the lives of those you love?

Good fathers leave an inheritance for children, and only a virtuous wife from God will do. If every father provided financially for his children, each generation would be better off. If every family demanded exceptional women, each generation would improve in godliness. These two rules are fundamental for building a great, long-term, godly family.

Many men do not leave an inheritance for their children. They fail for two major reasons. Either they do not work hard enough and smart enough to generate income beyond their needs, or they waste what they earn through foolish spending or risky investments. Either they are too slothful to earn more than they consume, or they are too foolish and selfish to preserve capital for the next generation. Both faults are sin.

Children should help parents in need (I Tim 5:4-8,16), but this is not God’s order for great families. Parents not providing for themselves, so they take from their children in old age, destroy families. Parents should save for their grandchildren, not for parents (II Cor 12:14). Good men leave an inheritance for children and grandchildren (Pr 13:22). This is God’s rule for great families.

Great families need more than wealth for prosperity. They also need the blessing of virtuous women: for their character helps diligence, reputation, and training families helped to greatness (Pr 14:1; 31:10-31). Great women make great families. Finding an average wife is easy; but finding a great wife is like searching for hidden treasure. The LORD must bless such a search by His criteria and His favor (Pr 31:30; 18:22).

A lazy, odious, worldly, or self-righteous woman will keep a family from greatness. She will undermine the son she married, and the grandchildren will have her example and genes. God forbid! Wise parents avoid average girls; they beg God and search for exceptional girls – those rare girls with great diligence, graciousness, spirituality, and humility. Parents should point out examples from scripture and life of these rare women.

A great woman can do more for a family than most other factors. Settle for nothing less. Seek and win them with zealous guile. Pray fervently and often for this rare treasure. Explore every avenue to find one for each son and grandson. Never compromise a rule of Scripture for wives, or you will pay for it. Let nothing distract or hinder you from demanding the very best. Do not settle for average. Forbid your sons to marry down (Gen 26:34-35; Judges 14:1-3). Find holy girls for them (Gen 24:1-67; 28:1-5; Ezra 2:61).

Parent, catch the vision! Plan now, prepare now, and pray now to build a godly family for generations to come by saving money for your children and grandchildren and searching land and sea for great women. Make estate planning a godly goal. Trust the LORD; make the fear of the LORD the most important criterion; and beg Him for mercy in your search for godly women. Commit this family project to Him for His honor and glory.

Proverbs 16:27 Wisdom for the Soul

Posted: November 16, 2012 in Acceptance, Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, Proverbs, Spiritual Training, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command

Proverbs 16:27 A scoundrel plots evil, and his speech is like a scorching fire. 

Many today love to find others’ failures. They then must share the gossip with yet others. But God and Solomon declare that such people are ungodly. Are you one of them?

If your goal is to be noble and virtuous, hate the thought of digging up evil in someone else’s life, and also hate the common desire to spread these findings. Such perverse persons are far from wisdom and success. God and good men hate these talebearers.

Wicked people love the sins of others. They look for them; they listen for them; they dig for them. They are drawn to them like sharks or hyenas to blood. They rejoice when someone falls. They hunt for sins; they eavesdrop on conversations; they snoop. They recall ancient sins. They spread the failures by backbiting, talebearing, and whispering.

Today’s investigative reporting hunts the sins of as many as possible, especially those in authority. They dig up evil, buy betrayals, and extort witnesses. They pervert facts, twist motives, stalk victims, and reward tattlers. They rape reputations and race to publish lies. Why? To feed the insatiable appetite of a generation of self-righteous leeches! They have picked their niche to make a buck – to publish faults of the famous for lustful readers.

Many publications today spread as much muck about others, pictorial or verbal, as they can find. Think paparazzi. Think England. Think Princess Diana. Any fault, failure, or sin she or any other person has is between God and herself and her family. It is not your business or anyone else’s. But the wicked are always dredging, looking for any filth they can sensationalize and spread for a dollar. These media whores should make you sick.

But what about America? Who cares if Thomas Jefferson had a slave-mistress, If he did, it is between God and Thomas Jefferson. How does that affect his learned opinion against central banks? What if Bill Clinton smoked marijuana at Oxford? What if Nancy Reagan resorted to astrology at times? What if George W. Bush drank too much during and after his Yale years? This list could be multiplied indefinitely.

The political vetting process, if limited to public conduct in public office, may have some value for evaluating a candidate and estimating future performance. But what he or she did privately in high school or college years is quite irrelevant, especially with decades of mature conduct following those youthful years when foolishness is bound in the heart (Pr 22:15). What could be dredged from your youthful past to be published to discredit you?

A fire burns in the lips of these ungodly wretches: they must spread the sins they discover (Ps 39:1-3). The desire to backbite, tattle, whisper, and slander overwhelms them. They love to expose others’ failures. They have no conscience. They enjoy destroying peace and reputations. They are brute beasts with twisted hearts. The blackness of their souls is matched only by the blackness of their eternity (II Pet 2:17; Jude 1:13; Rev 21:8,27).

Envy, self-righteousness, and cruelty control these persons. They live in constant envy, for they resent the superiority of others. They are losers, and they can only justify their existence by destroying the reputations of others. They think themselves righteous, when they can reveal the secret sins of another, though their hearts have more wickedness than any of their victims. They are cruel without regard for the pain and damage they cause.

Solomon warned often about wicked talkers (Pr 6:12-19; 12:18; 16:28; 17:9; 18:8; 26:20-22). So did other Bible writers (Ps 52:2-4; 57:4; Rom 1:29-30; II Cor 12:20; I Tim 6:3-5). God’s repetition and emphasis tells you it is a common and serious sin. Isaiah ripped those that make a man an offender for a word or for a minor fault (Is 29:20-21). James called the tongue a world of iniquity set on fire of hell (Jas 3:6). Are you one of them?

These perverse persons see David’s adultery and ignore his 60 years of astute wisdom, noble character, and great passion for God. Saints have loved David for 3000 years in spite of his sins, because they were exceptions. Jesus was even named after David.

These brute beasts see Peter’s denial of Jesus in His hour of need and ignore the Lord’s forgiveness of Peter and His promotion of Peter among the apostles (Luke 22:32; Jn 21:15-19; Acts 1:15-26). How many of them have their name on two books of the Bible?

Two lessons can be taken from this proverb. First, you should scrupulously avoid ever sharing negative information about another person unless it is absolutely necessary, as in a court case where you are sworn to reveal to proper authorities a person’s actions. Any sharing beyond this should be carefully examined as to motive and consequences, so that you will not be guilty of damaging another’s reputation or hardening your conscience.

Second, if you observe or hear someone spreading faults about another person, you have found an ungodly man. Shut his mouth with righteous anger, as Solomon taught you (Pr 25:23). Reject him from your company, as David would (Ps 101:1-8). God hates these scoundrels, and so should you (Pr 6:12-19; Ps 15:1-5; 139:19-22). Make sure you diligently try to protect the reputations and souls of others at all times. God bless you.

Spiritual Training 15 November 2012

Posted: November 15, 2012 in Acceptance, Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, Proverbs, Romans, Spiritual Training, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Romans 1:21-23 For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.  Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles. 

How could intelligent people turn to idolatry?  Idolatry begins when people reject what they know about God.  Instead of looking to him as the Creator and sustainer of life, they see themselves as the center of the universe.  They soon invent “gods “that are convenient projections of their own selfish plans and decrees, these gods may be wooden figures, but they may also be goals or things we pursue such as money, power, or comfort.  They may even be misrepresentations of God himself-making God in our image, instead of the reverse.  The common denominator is this-idolaters worship the things God made rather than God himself.

Lets Bring it Home: Is there anything you feel you can’t live without? Is there any priority greater than God? Do you have a dream you would sacrifice everything to realize? Does God take first place?  Do you worship God or idols of your own making?

Proverbs 15:09 Wisdom for the Soul

Posted: November 15, 2012 in Acceptance, Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, Proverbs, Spiritual Training, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command

Proverbs 15:9 The LORD detest the way of the wicked but he loves those who pursue righteousness. 

Is your lifestyle an abomination to God? Or does He love you and your righteous living? You can see the two kinds of men, and your daily choices determine which one you are. If God hates your life, you are in trouble. If He loves you, then you are greatly favored. God liked David, and what a difference that made in His life (I Chr 28:4; Ps 18:19-26).

Most cannot imagine that God hates anything, for they have been nursed since birth on the heresy that God loves them unconditionally no matter how they might live. They have never read Solomon’s inspired warnings (Pr 6:16-19; 3:32; 11:20; 12:22; 15:8; 16:5; 17:15; 28:9). They reason, God may hate the devil, but He loves me no matter what.

Here is a priceless warning from a rich and wise king. He wrote for your prosperity and success, both of which are impossible if God is against you. When God loves a person, a boy sold into slavery can take the nation’s throne, or an orphan girl can become queen, or a neutered captive can become the king’s chief advisor. Think Joseph, Esther, and Daniel.

Examine your life. Does it please or offend God? The Bible is the only standard that counts. God does not care what you think, your parents think, your pastor thinks, or what is politically correct. Popular trends and evolving social values make Him sick. He is holy and righteous, and He will never approve of fools or their wicked lifestyles, ever.

It is your duty and privilege to confess your sins to God, for He will forgive and prosper you (Pr 28:13). You must learn to hate every thought that is contrary to His word, as David did (Ps 119:128). The world does not have a clue about right or wrong, especially in this generation (Is 8:20; I Tim 6:3-5). The choice is yours – and God sees everything!

Most say, “God hates the sin, but loves the sinner.” But it is not from the Bible! Men invented this jingle to tickle the ears of fools, who want a God that will accept them no matter what. It is no truer than a tooth fairy. When this proverb is understood, it confirms the truth that God abhors and loathes wicked persons, their prayers, and their lifestyle.

Consider perverse thinking today. Sodomy is no longer an abomination to the LORD; it is gay! Adultery is no longer an abomination to the LORD; it is a love affair! Rebellious children are no longer an abomination to the LORD; they are hyperactive! But wise men accept all of God’s precepts and hate every contrary opinion (Ps 119:97-104,113,128).

The proverb has two contrasted clauses that provide the full meaning. God hates the way of the wicked, and God loves the man pursuing righteousness. By comparing “the way of the wicked” with “him that follow after righteousness,” we learn that God hates both the sinner and his lifestyle and loves both the righteous man and his lifestyle. Note the change from sin to sinner in Solomon’s list of seven things God hates (Pr 6:16-19).

Consider the context. The previous proverb is similar and helps reveal the hatred God has for sinful lifestyles. “The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the LORD: but the prayer of the upright is his delight” (Pr 15:8). God even hates the religious worship of wicked persons. But He loves the prayers of upright people. When a man chooses to sin against Him, God despises and loathes his worship (Pr 21:27; 28:9; Is 1:10-15).

The difference is great! Either God abominates your life, or He loves it. Either you follow the way of wickedness, or you follow the way of righteousness. How can you grasp the difference between God’s hatred and His love? It is very great! You cannot avoid God either despising you or favoring you. Most do not care anymore, because they have been seduced into carnal living by false teaching of God’s unconditional love for them.

Of course, the fairy tale, “God hates the sin, but loves the sinner,” is comforting. But you should prove that saying or any other before you believe it (Pr 14:15; Acts 17:11; I Thess 5:21). Let God be true, but every man a liar (Rom 3:4). The effeminate teachers that suggest such nonsense do not have a clue about the God of the Bible nor His righteous judgment of sinners. They flatter sinners to build their crowds and pad their pockets.

Are those in hell singing, “Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so”? Did Noah wire a neon smiley face outside the ark that read, “Smile! God loves you!”? What will Jesus Christ mean, when He says to the wicked on the Day of Judgment, “I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity” (Matt 7:23). Do you suppose He loves Satan as well, who is much more glorious than any man?

What else does the Bible say about the wicked? David wrote, “For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness: neither shall evil dwell with thee. The foolish shall not stand in thy sight: thou hatest all workers of iniquity. Thou shalt destroy them that speak leasing: the LORD will abhor the bloody and deceitful man.” (Ps 5:4-6). Surprised? If you are a typical Christian today, the only psalm you may know at all is Psalm 23.

David, the sweet psalmist of Israel, also wrote, “The LORD is in his holy temple, the LORD’S throne is in heaven: his eyes behold, his eyelids try, the children of men. The LORD tried the righteous: but the wicked and him that loves violence his soul hated. Upon the wicked he shall rain snares, fire and brimstone, and an horrible tempest: this shall be the portion of their cup. For the righteous LORD loves righteousness; his countenance doth behold the upright” (Ps 11:4-6).

The God of heaven is holy before He is love. He cannot look approvingly on any sin (Hab 1:13). He cannot acquit the wicked (Nah 1:3). He cannot clear the guilty (Ex 34:7). He loves righteousness, and He hates iniquity (Ps 45:7; Heb 1:9). He drowned the world with a flood. He burned up the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. He annihilated the seven nations of Canaan. He is angry at the wicked every day (Ps 7:11). This is the true God.

This part of God’s nature is ignored today, because men want a sugar daddy in the sky that will smile and hand them cotton candy when they sin. But consider David, who was the man after God’s own heart. He hated the enemies of God with a perfect hatred (Ps 139:21-22; 26:5; 31:6; II Sam 5:8). When his son Jehoshaphat tried to befriend a wicked man, God became angry at him for this perversion of righteousness (II Chron 19:2).

How can God love anyone, since all are sinners (Ps 14:1-3; Rom 3:23)? He chose some in Christ Jesus before the world began that they should be holy and blameless before Him in love (Eph 1:3-4)! Because of that choice in Christ, He views them as perfectly holy in His sight! He predestinated them to become His sons by gracious adoption, because He had chosen by His own will to make them acceptable in Christ the Beloved (Eph 1:5-6)!

God’s love is a choice, and He chooses to love some (Rom 9:14-18). It is for this very important reason that the Bible speaks of Jesus Christ loving the church (Eph 5:25), of nothing interrupting the love of God for His people (Rom 8:29-39), Jesus confirming that He would not lose a single one that God had given Him to save (John 6:38-39; 10:26-29; 17:2), and that He only lovingly chastens His children, not the bastards (Heb 12:6-8).

Of course, this doctrine is despised and hated. Men come into this world as fools, and most remain fools. Only those born again by the Spirit of God to tremble before God and His Word can see and believe the truth (John 3:3; 8:47). It is only they who can understand the things of God (I Cor 2:14; II Cor 4:3-4; II Thess 2:9-14). It is only they who will examine their lives, repent of known sins, and choose the path of righteousness.

Reader! The evidence that you are one of God’s elect and beloved in heaven is your pursuit of righteous living (II Pet 1:5-11; I Thess 1:2-4; Matt 7:21-23)! Turn from the wicked ways of this world and follow the strait and narrow way He has defined for you in His Word (Matt 7:13-14). You will be blessed and prospered in this world and the next.

Proverbs 14:30 Wisdom for the Soul

Posted: November 14, 2012 in Acceptance, Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, Proverbs, Spiritual Training, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Proverbs 14:30 A sound heart is the life of the flesh: but envy the rottenness of the bones.

Are you in good health? Thriving with robust energy and strength? You have a physical and a spiritual side to your life. You could have a strong physical heart but rot to death from envious emotions in your spirit. King Solomon wrote to protect you from the horrible consequences of envy in your life. Will you let him examine your heart today?

Envy is deadly. It will destroy your soul, body, and life. And it will take you to hell for eternity. But before it takes you to the lake of fire, it will pervert your thinking, torture your mind, ruin your health, consume your body, wreck your reputation, and destroy your life. Hate envy! Do not play with it! Reject any idea that you can allow envy and survive.

Psychosomatic illnesses, those bodily ailments caused by emotional issues, have been formally identified slowly. But Solomon knew about them by inspiration of God 3000 years ago. They are physical maladies caused by mental, emotional, or psychological factors. Of course, an enlightened Christian can easily improve the definition – sin, a spiritual problem of the heart, can affect the body and destroy it from the inside out.

The proverb contrasts life of the flesh to rottenness of bones. Is it dealing with physical health, overall life success with God and men, or a combination of both? Remembering David’s observation that God’s commandments are exceeding broad (Ps 119:96), the proverb teaches a variety of consequences for sin and spiritual problems. A loving heart will make you stronger physically and spiritually, and envy will do the opposite.

A strong physical heart is the life of the flesh, for it pumps a sufficient supply of blood with oxygen and nutrients to every part of the body and efficiently flushes all waste and poisons out as well. As the Bible states, the life of the flesh is in the blood (Lev 17:11). A strong spiritual heart is physically healthful as well, for by love and mercy toward others it soothes the soul and reduces various stresses and chemical releases that harm the body.

Envy and related emotions stress your body by tensing muscles and calling for chemicals from the brain. Your heart rate accelerates, blood pressure climbs, breathing increases, and additional hormones may be secreted. You may become totally focused on the threat – which is only your wicked imagination! You have compromised your physical health. The constant resentment, stressing your mind and body even at night, hardens your spirit.

Consider sin and various kinds of death. Sin brought instant death to Adam and Eve’s affection for God, and it perverted their perfect marriage as well (Gen 2:17; 3:7-8). It also brought physical death to them a few years later (Gen 5:5). And they will suffer forever in the lake of fire, which is the second death, unless Jesus Christ intervenes (Rev 20:11-15). Sin, with envy being one kind, is horribly destructive at several levels. Grasp it!

Envy is horrible. “Wrath is cruel, and anger is outrageous; but who is able to stand before envy?” (Pr 27:4). It is jealous resentment of others, which is devilish and hellish (Jas 3:14-16). It is pride and selfishness gone to seed. It cannot stand the praise or success of others; it rejoices when others fall; it despises their virtues; it labors day and night to put others in an evil light. You cannot escape this terrible master and monster, even in bed!

But who worries about envy today? It is a forgotten and ignored sin. When did you last hear a sermon against it? Does your employee handbook warn about it? Were you asked about it at your last doctor’s visit? Have you heard of a judge ruling against it? How often do attorneys use it as a convicting motive? Envy is a terrible sin, a horrible evil, and a destructive cancer; but few say anything about it or against it. Wise men despise it.

Parent, you must begin when children are young to cure this deadly disease. You must teach children to celebrate the successes of their siblings, praise their accomplishments, grieve over their failures, and pray for their blessings. You must quickly and severely punish any attitude or action that reveals a proud, selfish, or resentful spirit toward others. The second commandment is to love others as yourself, so emphasize this in your home.

Proverbs use many metaphors and figures of speech, which is why they are dark sayings (Pr 1:6; John 16:25). Solomon used body parts to represent other things, as lip and tongue for speech (Pr 12:19) and belly for soul and life (Pr 20:27,30). He made it clear that he could use rottenness of bones as a simple simile for grief and pain, without any direct or literal application to leukemia or other bone and marrow diseases (Pr 12:4).

Therefore, this broad proverb teaches several levels of trouble that are brought on by sin, particularly envy. First, it will ruin your overall success as a godly and wise man. This is the reason for keeping your heart with all diligence (Pr 4:23). Second, it will eat at your physical health, due to the corrupting effects of envy in the soul (Pr 17:22). And third, there is God’s promise to ruin your health for sinful living (Ex 15:26; Deut 28:27,35).

Sins of the soul and mind affect the body – psychosomatic illnesses. Amnon lusted so greatly after his half-sister Tamar that it made him physically sick (II Sam 13:2). Craving what he could not have so tormented his soul that he became ill. And envy, grinding the soul of a person day and night, drains vitality from him. If Amnon had feared God and rejected evil, it would have been health to his navel and marrow to his bones (Pr 3:7-8).

An excellent book for the details of psychosomatic illnesses caused by sin is None of These Diseases by Drs. S.I. McMillen and David E. Stern. These doctors explain in easy-to-read chapters the ravaging physical effects of a sinful lifestyle. It is confirming to faith that what the Creator inspired in the Bible is often superior to pills or treatment. How many in mental institutions and hospitals are there due to a spiritual problem – sin?

Consider a merry spirit. Recent studies have shown that people who laugh and enjoy life live longer than those who are morose and negative. But Solomon wrote long ago, “A merry heart doeth good like a medicine: but a broken spirit drieth the bones” (Pr 17:22). He wrote, “He that is of a merry heart hath a continual feast” (Pr 15:15). Vitality comes from your spirit, not just your diet! And you cannot be merry while envying others!

You may hide your envy from other men – for a while; but backbiting, grudges, hatred, reviling, slander, or whispering will soon expose it. It may consume your health directly through a stress-filled and angry, bitter heart; or it may ruin your body by direct physical judgment from God. Exchange your envy for love (Pr 15:17)! Consider Joshua’s envy in contrast to Moses’ humility and godliness (Num 11:24-30). Which are you like?

You must examine yourself for envy, the horrible cause of problems in soul and body. Many examine their bodies for lumps, blood pressure, cholesterol readings, or other symptoms of deadly diseases, but why not examine your soul for the root cause of greater consequences? And the cause can be taken away easily by godly repentance and confessing your sins to God (Pr 28:13; Job 33:27-28; I John 1:9). You have been warned!

Proverbs 13:08 Wisdom for the Soul

Posted: November 13, 2012 in Acceptance, Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, Proverbs, Spiritual Training, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command

Proverbs 13:8 A man’s riches may ransom his life, but a poor man hears not threat. 

What will you do for money? How much do you want to be rich? Will you hear a warning about the desire to be wealthy? Test your character and wisdom. Read on.

Here is one of the more difficult proverbs of Solomon. But you can find a wise lesson and warning, if you look carefully and diligently. Do you desire wisdom enough to take the time to read this proverb, consider it soberly, and grasp the following comments? The love of money is the root of all evil, and it destroys men’s lives, but the poor still crave it!

Commentators see two options. Either, a rich man can buy himself out of trouble, but the poor avoid most dangers by having nothing to attract enemies. Or, the wealth of a rich man attracts thefts and threats, while poverty protects the poor from such violence. In the first option, both riches and poverty are good; in the second option, riches are bad, and poverty is good. These interpretations are obscure; there is a clearer and simpler lesson.

A ransom is the price paid for freedom from captivity, to remove a penalty, or restore a previous condition (Pr 6:35; Ex 21:30; 30:12; Job 33:24; 36:18). Many men lose their souls by not giving up the pursuit of riches. Ambition and wealth become the ransom price of their lives. The desire to be rich and successful is the price, or cost, of their lives. When dying on their beds, men who have chased riches all their lives have an empty life!

They will not redeem their souls by choosing contentment over covetousness and greed. They sacrifice their lives for money, and then they go to the grave with nothing (Eccl 5:10-17). A rich man could enjoy life, naturally and spiritually, if he did not love money. He could be peaceful and quiet, but he chooses the obsession of acquiring yet more. This foolish and destructive fascination with riches is a common disease (Eccl 6:1-6).

Paul warned, “But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content. But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have stumbled from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows” (I Tim 6:6-10).

The danger is clear – riches can destroy you. If a man loves money, he will sacrifice his soul and anything else to get it (Pr 15:27; 11:17,29; Hab 2:9-11). Riches are the ransom cost of his life. He could buy his freedom and peace, but he will not pay the price, which is giving up his pursuit of riches and being content with what he has. He remains a slave.

Jesus loved a rich, young ruler, who would not give up his riches to follow the Son of God. He would not ransom, or buy back, his life (Matt 19:16-22). Jesus knew the choice was as hard as a camel going through the eye of a needle (Matt 19:23-26), but He also taught that men should be willing to pay any price to save their own souls (Matt 16:26).

What about the poor? How does the second clause of the proverb relate to the first one? You know that it relates, or it would be a separate proverb. But you also see the disjunctive “but” connecting it. Therefore, there is a related contrast in the second phrase.

The poor live without many of the fears, worries, and burdens the rich endure – they even sleep better (Eccl 5:12). They watch the rich in their vain and troublesome pursuit of wealth (Ps 39:6), and they see the rich man die just like a low-class fool (Ps 49:6-13). But they will not learn from the object lesson, and they will not hear the wise testify that riches are vanity. They complain about their poverty and wish for the wealth of the rich.

How can you trust the interpretation given above, rather than the two popularized by commentators? The two clauses are related; the two clauses are disjunctive; rebuke is not the same as danger or trouble; and the poor refuse rebuke rather than never hearing any. And you can find related or similar instruction in other proverbs (Pr 10:15,22; 11:4,28; 13:7; 14:20; 15:27; 18:11; 19:1,4,7; 22:1,2; 23:4-5; 28:3,6,11,20,22; 30:7-9).

If you are rich, you are in great danger of missing the kingdom of God (Matt 19:23-26). The rich have generally been persecutors, rather than patrons, of Christians (Jas 2:6-7). It is your duty before God to resist trusting your riches, and it is your privilege before God to be willing to give your money away in order to lay hold on eternal life (I Tim 6:17-19).

If you are poor, be content with it (Jas 1:9-11; Jas 2:5; I Cor 1:26-29). Realize that godliness with contentment is truly great gain (I Tim 6:6; Heb 13:5). Remember and believe Solomon’s many rebukes of riches in Proverbs and Ecclesiastes (Pr 10:22; 15:16; 16:8; 28:6; Ps 37:16; Eccl 1:16 – 2:11). If you need more, pray wisely for a moderate increase, and make any godly changes the Bible approves (Pr 30:7-9; I Thess 4:11-12).

Riches are usually a curse. You arrived with nothing; you will leave with nothing; and God does not care how much you gathered during your life. Redeem your soul from this world’s mad worship of materialism and success, and hear the rebuke of wisdom instead. Seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness first, serve only one master, and lay up treasure in heaven (Matt 6:19-21,24,33). You will soon be glad you did.

Proverbs 9:11 Wisdom for the Soul

Posted: November 9, 2012 in Acceptance, Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, Proverbs, Spiritual Training, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command

Proverbs 9:11 For by me thy days shall be multiplied, and the years of thy life shall be increased.

Do you want to live long? Lady Wisdom offers free life extension! What an offer!

Do you believe the Bible? Here is a test – if you do, then you will believe this promise. God and men can tell if you trust God’s word by what you stress to preserve your life.

Here is the general rule from the God of heaven – if you love and practice wisdom, you will live longer. But if you choose to ignore or reject wisdom, you must love death, for it is coming for you (Pr 8:36). It will not matter if you eat well, exercise sufficiently, and have good doctors; God will cut you down for your foolish rebellion (Pr 13:9; 24:20).

Solomon neared the end of his long personification of wisdom (Pr 9:12; 8:1). The first person pronoun, “me,” refers to Lady Wisdom, last referenced by similar pronouns in Proverbs 9:5. The Preacher used this elegant and persuasive style to present the character and benefits of wisdom, which include the sure promise of long life. Are you interested?

Recall Solomon’s dream from the LORD (I Kgs 3:5-15). Readers for 3000 years have wished they could make his choice for wisdom and receive the additional benefits of riches and long life (I Kgs 3:13-14). Yet that is exactly what Solomon offers you here! By the inspiration of the same LORD! Riches and long life (Pr 8:18,21; 9:11)! All you have to do is choose wisdom as he did, and she offers these things as additional benefits.

Solomon observed more about life and analyzed it better than any ten of the world’s great thinkers. He summarized his findings without error in these proverbs, by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit (Eccl 1:12-18; 12:8-11). He observed life and death, and he saw that wisdom resulted in living longer, but folly would cut your days short (Eccl 7:17; 8:13).

Careful Bible readers should know that general rules have exceptions, especially when God’s dealings with any individual man involve many different factors. Therefore, the righteous may die young as a mercy from God (Is 57:1-2), and the wicked may live long and fat lives as a judgment (Pr 1:32; Ps 17:13-15). This proverb is still the general rule.

Christians sometimes forget the cause of death, though they should know better and never forget. The world fears dying, and they have rejected the Creator and His manual about their origin, nature, and future, so they research, promote, and worship diet, exercise, and various forms of medicine as protectors. They comfort themselves they can live longer than those around them, though God is not in all their thoughts (Ps 10:4; 49:10-13).

But the cause of death is sin! It is not eating too much fat or sugar. It is not the sedentary lifestyle of the 21st century; it is not poor health care. It is sin! You cannot postpone death by reading another book on good health or trying alternative medicine. Death is caused by Adam’s sin and your sin (Rom 5:12-14; 6:23). Sin causes life expectancy to be 73 (Ps 90:10), and your rejection of wisdom shortens that (Eccl 7:17; 8:13). Believe it!

Every father wants his children to have long lives, so Solomon stated this rule about life extension to his son several times (Pr 3:2,16; 4:10; 8:35; 10:27; 28:16). He saw that wisdom tended to life in those that had it (Pr 10:16; 11:4,19; 12:28; 14:27; 19:23). Even ordinary men know that hard living – foolish and wicked living – shortens men’s lives.

But there is another factor beyond the natural consequences of folly and wisdom; there is the sovereign government of God. He gives long life supernaturally for wise choices like honoring parents (Eph 6:1-3) and showing mercy to brute creatures (Deut 22:7). Your Creator can easily shorten or lengthen your life, and your obedience is a key factor.

Wisdom can preserve your life naturally and practically by avoiding the hard life of sinners that shortens their days, by avoiding the sword of justice of the government avenging crimes, by avoiding the accidents that often claim the foolish, by avoiding the diseases associated with certain sins, and by avoiding the sovereign judgment of God, Who judges every sinner, sometimes by taking his or her life early.

True wisdom also lays hold of eternal life and makes ones calling and election sure, for endless days and perpetual years are the elect’s future, which is life extension far beyond any days or years added here on earth (I Tim 6:17-19; II Pet 1:10-11; I Thes 4:17). Christians know the real cure for the real cause of death – Jesus removed all their sins!

Spiritual Training 09 November 2012

Posted: November 9, 2012 in Acceptance, Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, Proverbs, Spiritual Training, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command

Malachi 2:13-14 Another thing you do: You flood the LORD’S alter with tears.  You weep and wail because he no longer pays attention to your offerings or accepts them with pleasure from your hands.  You ask, “Why?” It is because the LORD is acting as the witness between you and the wife of your youth, because you have broken faith with her, though she is your partner, the wife of your marriage covenant. 

The people were complaining about their adverse circumstances when they had only themselves to blame.  People often try to avoid guilt feelings by shifting the blame.  But this doesn’t solve the problem.

Lets Bring it Home: When you face problems, look first at yourself.  If you changed your attitude or behavior, would the problem be solved?

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