Under Gods Command
Proverbs 25:26 Like a muddied spring or a polluted well is a righteous man who gives way to the wicked.
“Give way to the wicked” means setting aside your standard of right and wrong. No one is helped by someone who compromises with the wicked.
Under Gods Command
Proverbs 24:10 If you falter in times of trouble, how small is your strength.
Times of trouble can be useful. They can show you who you really are, what kind of character you have developed. In addition, they can help you grow stronger. When Jeremiah questioned God because of the trouble he faced, God asked how he ever expected to face big challenges if the little ones tired him out (Jeremiah 12:5). Don’t complain about your problems. The trouble you face today is training you to be strong for the more difficult situations you will face in the future.
Under Gods Command
Proverbs 23:13,14 – Do not withhold discipline from a child; if you punish him with the rod, he will not die. Punish him with the rod and save his soul from death.
The stern tone of discipline here is offset by the affection expressed in verse 15. However, many parents are reluctant to discipline their children at all. Some fear they will forfeit their relationship, that their children will resent them, or that they will stifle their children’s development. But correction won’t kill children, and it may prevent them from foolish moves that will.
Under Gods Command
Jeremiah 22:15-16 “Does it make you a king to have more and more cedar? Did not your father have food and drink? He did what was right and just, so all went well with him. He defended the cause of the poor and needy, and so all went well. Is that not what it means to know me?” declares the LORD.
God passed judgment to King Jehoiakim. His father, Josiah, had been one of Judah’s great Kings, but Jehoiakim was evil. Josiah had been faithful to his responsibility to be a model of right living, but Jehoiakim had been unfaithful to his responsibility to imitate his father. God’s judgment was on unfaithful Jehoiakim. He could not claim his father’s blessings when he had not followed his father’s God. We may inherit our parents’ money, but we cannot inherit their faith. A great heritage, a good education, or a beautiful home doesn’t guarantee strong character. We must have our own relationship with God.
Under Gods Command
Jeremiah 20:7-18 O LORD, you deceived me and I was deceived, you overpowered me and prevailed. I am ridiculed all day long; everyone mocks me. Whenever I speak, I cry out proclaiming violence and destruction. So the word of the LORD has brought me insult and reproach all day long. But if I say I will not mention him or speak any more in his name, his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot. I hear many whispering. Terror on every side! Report him! Let’s report him! All my friends are waiting for me to slip, saying perhaps he will be deceived; then we will prevail over him and take our revenge on him.
11-12 But the Lord is with me like a mighty warrior; so my persecutors will stumble and not prevail. They will fail and be thoroughly disgraced; their dishonor will never be forgotten. O LORD Almighty, you who examine the righteous and probe the heart and mind. Let me see your vengeance upon them for to you I have committed my cause
13 Sing to the LORD! Give praise to the LORD! He rescues the life of the needy from the hands of the wicked.
14-18 Cursed be the day I was born! May the day my mother bore me not be blessed! Cursed be the man who brought my father the news, who made him very glad, saying, “A child I born to you-a son!” May that man be like the towns the LORD overthrew without pity. May he hear wailing in the morning, a battle cry at noon. For he did not kill me in the womb, with my mother as my grave, her womb enlarged forever. Why did I ever come out of the womb to see trouble and sorrow and to end my days in shame.
Jeremiah cried out in despair mixed with praise, unburdening his heart to God. He had faithfully proclaimed God’s word and had received nothing in return but persecution and sorrow. Yet when he withheld God’s word for a while, it became fire in his bones until he could hold it back no longer. When God’s living message of forgiveness becomes fire in your bones, you also will feel compelled to share it with others, regardless of the results.
Under Gods Command
Jeremiah 17:11 Like a partridge that hatches eggs it did not lay is the man who gains riches by unjust means. When his life is half gone, they will desert him and in the end he will prove to be a fool.
There is a right way and a wrong way to do any task. Jeremiah says that the man who becomes rich by unjust means will end up foolish and poor. Whether at work, school, or play, we should strive to be honest in all our dealings. Getting a promotion, passing an exam, or gaining prestige unjustly will never bring God’s blessing or lasting happiness.
Under Gods Command
Proverbs 19:16 – He who obeys instructions guards his life, but he who is contemptuous of his ways will die.
The instructions we are told to obey are those found in God’s Word-both the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20) and other passages of Instruction. To obey what God teaches in the Bible is self-preserving. To disobey is self-destructive.
Under Gods Command
Jeremiah 17:5-8 This is what the LORD says: Cursed is the one who trusts in man, who depends on flesh for his strength and whose heart turns away from the LORD. He will dwell in the parched places of the desert, in a salt land where no one lives.
Two kinds of people are contrasted here: those who trust in human beings and those who trust in the LORD. The people of Judah were trusting in false gods and military alliances instead of God, and thus they were barren and unfruitful. In contrast, those who trust in the Lord flourish like trees planted by water (see Psalm 1). In times of trouble, those who trust in human beings will be impoverished and spiritually weak, so they will have no strength to draw on. But those who trust in the Lord will have abundant strength, not only for their own needs, but even for the needs of others. Are you satisfied with being unfruitful, or do you like a well-watered tree, have strength for the time of crisis and even some to share as you bear fruit for the Lord.
Under Gods Command
Proverbs 18.13,15,17 – 13)He who answers before listening-that is his folly and his shame.15)The heart of the discerning acquires knowledge; the ears of the wise seek it out. 18)Casting the lot settles disputes and keeps strong opponents apart.
In these concise statements, there are three basic principles for making sound decisions: (1) get the facts before answering; (2) be open to new ideas; (3) make sure you hear both sides of the story before judging. All three principles center around seeking additional information. This is difficult work, but the only alternative is prejudice-judging before getting the facts.
Under Gods Command
Proverbs 17:5 –He who mocks the poor shows contempt for their Maker, whoever gloats over disaster will not go unpunished.
Few acts are as cruel as making fun of the less fortunate, but many people do this because it makes them feel good to be better off or more successful then someone else. Mocking the poor is mocking the God who made them. We also ridicule God when we mock the weak, those who are different, or anyone else. When you catch yourself putting down others just for fun, stop and think about who created them.
Under Gods command 