Under Gods Command
Proverbs 23:12 Apply your heart to instruction and your ears to words of knowledge.
The people most likely to gain knowledge are those who are willing to listen. It is a sign of strength, not weakness, to pay attention to what others have to say. People who are eager to listen continue to learn and grow throughout their lives. If we refuse to become set in our ways, we can always expand the limits of our knowledge.
Under Gods Command
Proverbs 20:06 Many a man claims to have unfailing love, but a faithful man who can find?
Talk is cheap. Your boasting is worthless. Your history is irrelevant. True character is measured by present actions and results, not by self-praise, past events, explanations, or excuses (20:11). Yet fools talk more than wise men (14:33;29:11), and sluggards talk more than hard workers (26:16). Most men love themselves and will quickly tell you how gifted and faithful they are, but real performers as measured by the Bible are very rare.
Talk is cheap. What you think about yourself is deceiving and destructive (12:15; 14:12; 16:2,25; 21:2; Jer 17:9). But what you say about yourself is worse. Neither God nor men care about your opinion in general, and especially when it is about yourself. If you must tell others you are good at something, then there must be lack of evidence to prove it, or why would you say it? Testimonials are stupid enough for promoting new products, but they are ridiculous about yourself!
Yet today there are few faithful men that will do what they should (Ps 12:1; II Tim 3:13). Athletes brag about abilities and accomplishments, and politicians claim to be near divine in what they promise to do. Great men do not need to promote themselves, because others will do it for them. Great men never stoop to self-praise; their praise comes from others (27:2). If other men do not praise you for greatness, there is an obvious reason!
Where is the humility of Solomon? As king of Israel and the well-favored son of David, he admitted he was a little child in understanding (I Kgs 3:5-9). God loved this confession, and so do wise men reading it. Where is the humility of Paul? Though the greatest of the apostles, he admitted he was less than the least of all saints (Eph 3:8). Where is the humility of Agur? As the author of Proverbs chapter 30, he admitted his ignorance (30:1-4). These three great men did not praise themselves, but wepraise them.
Don’t tell about your job performance. Let a promotion tell it! Don’t brag about your great marriage. Let your spouse spread it! Don’t tell about your personal holiness. Let your fruits and persecution prove it! Don’t tell about your charity and kindness to others. Let your number of devoted friends be the measure! Don’t tell how much you can be trusted. Let your credit score tell the truth. Don’t tell how much you fear and love God. Let your changed life and the testimony of others prove it (I Thess 1:6-10; I John 2:4)!
Reader, stop talking about yourself! Show your great character to God and men by your actions! James ridiculed Christianity based on mere faith, which is more than the carnal decisions most evangelists solicit today (Jas 2:14-26)! He exalted works as being superior to faith as the evidence of knowing God and obtaining His approval. Jesus, Paul, and Peter taught the same conduct-based doctrine (Matt 7:21; II Cor 5:9-11; II Pet 1:5-12).
Self-righteousness is one of the most damning sins of all. Once infected, how will you be healed? You do not know you are diseased. Whose rebuke would you accept? You have assured yourself thatyour standing before God is excellent (Luke 18:9-14). Listen to Jesus Christ! He said to the most conservative and respected religious leaders of His day, “Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God” (Luke 16:15).
You will soon give an account of your life to God, and then the truth will be known. Your words of self-praise and self-justification will be just more marks against you. Prepare to meet thyGod! Jesus Christ, the Blessed and Only Potentate will judge you for your words and actions (Matt 12:34-37). He gave you warning that it would be better tohave bad words and good performance than good words and bad performance (Matt 21:28-33).
Many ministers promote themselves more than they promote Jesus Christ. They call their ministries after their own names, and they cultivate sycophants to keep their respective personality cults thriving. Just read the dust jackets of the books they write! But the Lord Jesus Christ will humble them in an instant of time, just before they are cast into hell. He will say to these self-praising success stories, “I never knew you,” (Matt 7:21-23).
Reader, are you well known for faithful actions and results that match God’s word? Or do you have to help people out by giving them verbal hints or explanations as to how faithful you are? Forget the talk! Measure yourself only by action, performance, consistency, and results; focus on the actions God’s word makes important; and do them only for the glory of God. May the Lord bless you to be one of the rare faithful ones in this generation.
Under Gods Command
Luke 12:47-48 The servant who knows his master’s will and does not get ready or does not do what his master wants will be beaten with many blows. But the one who does not know and does things deserving punishment will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded, and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.
Jesus has told us how to live until he comes: we must watch for him, work diligently, and obey his commands. Such attitudes are especially necessary for leaders. Watchful and faithful leaders will be given increased opportunities and responsibilities. The more resources, talents, and understanding we have, the more we are responsible to use them effectively. God will not hold us responsibly for gifts he has not given us, but all of us have enough gifts and duties to keep us busy until Jesus returns.
Under Gods Command
John the Baptist had prepared the way for Jesus by preaching repentance. The apostle’s message of salvation also included the call to repentance-acknowledging personal sin and turning away from it. Many people want the benefits of being identified with Christ without admitting their own disobedience and turning from sin. The key to forgiveness is confessing your sin and turning from it.
When we repent, God promises not only to wipe out our sins, but also to bring spiritual refreshment. Repentance may at first seem painful because it is hard to give up certain sins. But God will give you a better way. As Hosea promised, “Let us acknowledge the Lord; let us press on to acknowledge him. As surely as the sun rises, he will appear; he will come to us like the winter rains, like the spring rains that water the earth” (Hosea 6:3) Do you feel a need to be refreshed?
The time when God will “restore everything” refers to the second coming, the Last Judgment, and the removal of sin from the world.
Acts: 3:19-21 Repent, then and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord, and that he may send the Christ, who has been appointed for you-even Jesus. He must remain in heaven until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets.
Under Gods Command
Proverbs 16:2 –All a man’s ways seem innocent to him, but motives are weighed by the LORD.
All a man’s ways seem innocent to him. People can rationalize anything if they have no standards for judging right and wrong. We can always prove that we are right. Before putting any plan into action, ask yourself these three questions:
(1) Is this plan in harmony with God’s truth?
(2) Will it work under real-life conditions?
(3) Is my attitude pleasing to God?
Under Gods Command
Proverbs 12:13 – An evil man is trapped by his sinful talk, but a righteous man escapes trouble.
Sinful talk is twisting the facts to support your claims. Those who do this are likely to be trapped by their own lies. But for someone who always tells the truth, the facts-plain and unvarnished give an unshakable defense. If you find that you always have to defend yourself to others, maybe your honesty is less than it should be.
Under Gods Command
Proverbs 4:13-17
Hold on to instruction; do not let it go; guard it well, for it is your life. Do not set foot on the path of the wicked, or walk in the way of evil men. Avoid it, do not travel on it, turn from it and go on your way. For they cannot sleep till they do evil; they are robbed of slumber till they make someone fall. They eat the bread of wickedness and drink the wine of violence.
Even friends can make you fall. It is difficult for people to accept the fact that friends and acquaintances might be luring them to do wrong. Young people who want to be accepted would never want to confront or criticize a friend for wrong plans or actions. Many other people can’t even see how their friend’s actions could lead to trouble. While we should be accepting of others, we need a healthy skepticism about human behavior. When you feel yourself being heavily influenced, proceed with caution. Don’t let your friends cause you to fall into sin.
Under Gods Command
Proverbs 21:20 – In the house of the wise are stores of choice food and oil, but a foolish man devours all he has.
This proverb is about saving for the future. Easy credit has many people living on the edge of bankruptcy. The desire to keep up and to accumulate more pushes them to spend every penny they earn, and they stretch their credit to the limit. But anyone who spends all he has is spending more than he can afford. A wise person puts money aside for when he or she may have less. God approves of foresight and restraint. God’s people need to examine their lifestyles to see whether their spending is God-pleasing or merely self-pleasing.
Under Gods Command
Jesus Appears to His Disciples
John 20:19-22 On the evening of the first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were over joyed when they saw the Lord. As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.”
And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.
This may have been a special filling of the Holy Spirit for the disciples, a foretaste of what all believers would experience from the time of Pentecost and forever after. To do God’s work, we need the guidance and power of the Holy Spirit. We must avoid trying to do his work in our own strength.
There is life in the breath of God. Man was created but did not come alive until God breathed into him the breath of life. God’s first breath made man different from all other forms of creation. Now, through the breath of Jesus, God imparted eternal, spiritual life. With this inbreathing came the power to do God’s will on earth.
Under Gods Command
Jesus Appears to His Disciples
John 20:19-21 On the evening of the first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were over joyed when they saw the Lord. As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.”
Jesus again identified himself with his Father. He told the disciples by whose authority he did his work. Then he passed the job to his disciples of spreading the gospel of salvation around the world. Whatever God has asked you to do, remember:
(1) Your authority comes from God, and
(2) Jesus has demonstrated by words and actions how to accomplish the job he has given you.
As the Father sent Jesus, Jesus sends his followers….and you.
Under Gods command 