In The Beginning

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF JOHN

IN THE BEGINNING

John 1:1-2

1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning.

NIV

There can be no doubt about the Word; He was there all along from the very beginning of time as we know it. We have no idea how long time actually was before the beginning was, but we know that the Word, which we know is Jesus was there. This is the very core of our faith. Many people believe Jesus lived on earth many due to some historical records other than the scriptures. For reasons we cannot actually understand they trust in writings of men of knowledge rather on writings of men with first-hand accounts and the inspiration God. But these people do not believe Jesus is God, that he was God in the flesh, that he was the Son of God, born of the virgin Mary by the power of the Holy Spirit. But we know this all to be true as it is core to our faith, our belief that not only was he there from the very beginning, but he is there now, and that as he came once to die for our sins, to redeem us, he will come again to retrieve us. We must simply be patience and wait for his return and as we start this year’s advent season we should do so preparing ourselves for him to return in addition to the traditional sense of celebrating his first visit in the form of a man. Jesus has always been, he will always be, and so will we who are in Christ. It is a tale beyond what some can believe in, but we believe, Jesus was there in the beginning. 

Who is the fool

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

WHO IS THE FOOL

Prov 17:28

28 Even a fool is thought wise if he keeps silent, and discerning if he holds his tongue.

NIV

What can we add to this? Could we see this as a fool in the human perspective alone? There are those who when they open their mouths speak such absolute foolishness, speaking as though they had knowledge about something they know nothing about. Surely, if they read the scriptures, they might keep silent instead. But fools in the human sense will always be fools, they cannot help themselves. If they only knew their own words deceive them, revealing their identity. We should learn a lesson from this and not speak about things we know little or nothing about. Trying to seem knowledgeable is only that, and reveals the truth of our ignorance thus showing us to be a fool to others. What reason is a debate in the first place, but to endeavor to impress the other with superior knowledge? It is far better to remain silent and listen then to speak and not be heard. Yet there is still the thought about how God sees fools, those who refuse Jesus as Lord and Savior. It might be better for them to simply keep silent for they speak about evolution, climate change and other so-called human scientific based subjects. If they only knew how foolish their speech is in light of God and his facts, they would keep silent, but that is not going to happen. So for us we need to consider this truth in our own lives. 

Temper Tantrum

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

TEMPER TANTRUM

Prov 17:27

27 A man of knowledge uses words with restraint, and a man of understanding is even-tempered.

NIV

There is nothing like those words spoken in the heat of an argument that we wish afterwards we could suck them right back in, as if they had never been spoken at all. But that is simply not possible, as once they have left the lips the damage is irreversible. It may be true the recipient of such words may express forgiveness, if asked, but deep within they will never forgot such harmful words and the relationship may never be the same. The truth here speaks volumes to our uncontrolled tongue. Some people have what we call a quick tongue, fast to respond, to be able to have a quick wit, a sharp answer, putting someone in their place, so to speak, but that is not a person with knowledge for they have not restrained their words. When our temper is not even, but has flashes of heat, we have lost all understanding, if we had any in the first place. It would appear of we are prone to outbursts we simply are not a person of understanding. It would also imply, if we have no understanding then we are fairly self-centered and that just might be the reason for the uneven temper as well as those words without restraint. This restraint and understanding takes awareness, prayer and practice for it does not come naturally, but supernaturally. It should be part of our becoming more like Christ. It may have seemed as though Jesus lost it over the temple being turned into a market place, but he was very much in control and spoke chosen words and actions regarding the temple of God. Words spoken with restraint and understanding can bring righteousness to the forefront, but words spoken without those cannot. Lord help us to restrain our words and give us more understanding, thus controlling our temper. 

The Ruler

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

THE RULER

Prov 17:26

26 It is not good to punish an innocent man, or to flog officials for their integrity.

NIV

In the human realm there needs to be a balance between those who govern and those who are governed. The courts need pay close attention to being fair and just, which we hope in our land it is that way, yet at times the guilty do go free because the fix is in, but we hope the innocent do not receive punishment due to like corruption. In the same sense it is not good for people to revolt against a just administration, but when the administration is unjust that is a different story. Yet is there not a point here about God and us? Surely we can see he will never punish those who he has declared innocent. Certainly he is the greatest administration ever to exist and he is telling us that he will not, because he is pure good, that he will not punish those who are innocent due to being in Christ. Jesus paid the price for us therefore we are innocent and will not receive any punishment from the just ruler, God. But he also tells the people that it is not a good thing to flog him because of his integrity, yet so many people do just that, refusing to acknowledge him as Lord, refusing to accept his provision for salvation. They use his name in vain, as a swear word, yet think nothing of him at the same time. They flog him by following after their own evil pursuits, mocking him in doing so. Their actions are not good, but evil and they will receive their just reward in the end. Yes, we should still see this in the human sense, but seeing it in relationship to God is far more rewarding and important to a life being filled with the Spirit, not to mention being declared innocent.

God's Heart

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

GOD’S HEART

Prov 17:25

25 A foolish son brings grief to his father and bitterness to the one who bore him.

NIV

Once again we could see this in the view of human parental suffering over a child who has left the household of faith to walk with the world, but we could also see this from God’s view. Even though the truth does exist in the human realm, that both a father and a mother experience grief and bitterness over a child who has become foolish, it is with the realm of God this truth finds the target. God is both our Father and the one who bore us in the sense he created us. When a person is foolish which is defined as ungodly, he is grieved. God has no pleasure in passing judgment on those who refuse his provision for salvation, but rather he is bitter over having to cast them into the lake of burning sulfur. Such a loving God does not want anyone to experience his wrath, he keeps it hidden, and hoping all will come to know his grace. But the day is coming when those foolish sons and daughter will see the grieving and embittered Father, where we shall see our loving and gracious redeemer. The human father certainly grieves over a wayward son and a mother has to feel a certain amount of bitterness about her child who has refused God, but the heart of God is far more touched by these feelings over his creation, his people, and the desire of his heart as we are that desire of God’s heart. 

Viewing Wisdom

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

VIEWING WISDOM

Prov 17:24

24 A discerning man keeps wisdom in view, but a fool's eyes wander to the ends of the earth.

NIV

Some people have accused believers of being weak minded, in fact a one-time governor said that religion is a crutch for weak minded people. But the fact is that true Christianity is a thinking man’s faith. It is those like that one-time Governor Jesse Ventura who are fools and cannot think in terms of true wisdom. Those who think their knowledge, their intellect, their so-called search for the truth is the key to wisdom are but fools in the end. Anyone who searches the world for answers finds only that they have no true answers and have not seen the truth of God in their search. Even though he has said that what may be known about him can be found in all creation, they have been blinded by their own foolish hearts, seeking only human glorification. Those of us who are discerning, who seek the real truth, the true answers to life, divine wisdom, know it is found in God and his Word. We must remain focused on this wisdom, keeping it in view, not being distracted by wandering eyes for the things of the world. Sure it is nice to have certain things, but all blessings flow from God above, not from human hands. We know that he provides all our needs according to his riches which are in Glory. We know we should not seek after human wisdom, or human achievements, or human accumulations, but only seek after the wisdom of God, and as with Solomon, God will give more then we can imagine. But if we seek after the ends of the earth, that is all we will have. With our eyes we can view many things, but we must never lose sight of wisdom. 

Perverted Justice

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

JUSTICE

Prov 17:23

23 A wicked man accepts a bribe in secret to pervert the course of justice.

NIV

It would seem natural for us to see this as describing the politicians of today, maybe even those of throughout the ages, but it may well be speaking entirely of something else. Of course we have to see in the first place that anyone who does accept a bribe, whether it be in secret or not is wicked, but the one who does so in order to pervert justice from being done is truly wicked in every sense. Although there is human justice that has been prevented through the use of brides, it is the justice of God which we should be seeing here. What kind of bribe would we dare accept in secret that we would think would pervert his justice? Of course there are people, maybe even people who say they are Christians who have actually accepted a bribe from Satan himself in the secret of their hearts. Satan bribes people all the time, but he tries his very best to bribe those who believe in God. He bribes them with gold, with power and fame. He bribes them in the secret place of their heart, while they present the façade of being a follower of Christ, thinking by their confessing Jesus they have escaped the justice of God, but it is Satan who is trying to prevent God’s justice from being displayed through the power of the cross. We need to be aware of the schemes of the evil one, who is roaming around seeing who he might devour. We need to see those temptations for what they really are; an attempt to prevent the Justice of God from being applied to our lives, Jesus is the Justice of God being completely satisfied. We need to tell Satan to get thee behind me. Let us see the justice of God in our lives. 

A Cheerful Heart

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

A CHEERFUL HEART

Prov 17:22

22 A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.

NIV

One of the more famous proverbs is here for us to deal with. It seems we always hear the first part but not too much of the second part. Having a cheerful heart requires some work for us with a checkup from the neck up. Our attitudes have a great deal to do with the condition of our heart. If we moan and groan about a host of things, it is sure we will not have a cheerful heart; in fact we just might be drying up our bones. Although it is true there may be many areas we might complain about, it does more harm to us than it does to what we are complaining about. If we are always talking about our own aches and pains, it might well simply increase them. It seems the more attention we pay to them; the more they dominate our lives. If we have a cheerful heart, trusting in God, doing his will for our lives, it does seem as though those aches and pains are less. Science, which God invented, or rather created, has found the truth in this cheerful heart business. If we complain about things or people outside of our own self, the truth remains the same. Complaining about another person’s personality, or the way they do something or how the church is run, or the color of the carpet, walls, or whatever can only bring dry bones to our body. Finding faults with others or with things outside our control can destroy the opportunity of having a cheerful heart, and works to dry up our bones. So let us keep a cheerful heart, let us decide to have a cheerful heart which brings health to our bones. 

Grief and Joy

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

GRIEF AND JOY

Prov 17:21

21 To have a fool for a son brings grief; there is no joy for the father of a fool.

NIV

Perhaps there is a little hint of the heart of Solomon regarding how he felt about one of his sons, but the point here is for all mankind for all ages. We also must remember how the Lord God defines who is a fool and we know there is pleasure in seeing one of our sons or daughters walk away from the household of faith. There is much grief within the heart of parents when one of their children takes those steps in the wrong direction. We can do all we can do in raising our children in the ways of God, we cannot control their lives. The scripture does promise, in fact through Solomon, that if we raise them up in the ways of God, when they are old they will not turn from it, but in their younger years after they have developed their own attitudes we cannot keep them from walking their own way, nor do we have the right to. That is why some parents experience this grief and lack of joy regarding a child who has decided to walk to the beat of a different drummer. As much as we try to give them faith, we cannot make them have it. As much as we might pray for them to return, if they refuse to listen to the Holy Spirit, the will remain the fool. Our love for them never ceases, never gives up, never diminishes, never stops hoping for the day of their return, as the prodigal son did, and when that day comes, there will rejoicing both here on earth and in heaven. The grief will be gone and the joy will be there. Now we should also see God as the Father and us as the sons and daughters. God grieves when one of his children, one of his creations, walks a life void of any relationship with him.  All mankind are the children of God, and many are walking as fools. God has no joy over those who walk without him, has much grief, for he desires that all should be saved. 

Hidden Hypocrisy

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

HIDDEN HYPOCRISY

Prov 17:20

20 A man of perverse heart does not prosper; he whose tongue is deceitful falls into trouble.

NIV

Surely this is not speaking to those of the household of faith, but rather giving us insight into the ways of those outside the house. How could someone who professes Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior have a preserve heart or a deceitful tongue? It must be for us to see what those outside the house are like, for it cannot be written for them, as they are not reading it. But is it possible for us in the household of faith to have a heart bent in some sort of perverse way? Is it possible for us to tell a lie, thus having some form of a deceitful tongue? In the Hebrew that word for preserve implies a false heart, one that is not completely true and thus we have to examine if in fact our heart is completely true. Do we come to church and put on a false front for others, telling them all is well, God is good, and looking like we are “Good Christians” while we are struggling on the inside, even with our faith. Do we try to impress others with our spirituality at church then go home and live as the world does, doing all the same things everyone else does? Do we tell other believers we trust in God then go home and check all our investments in the world? Do we build that façade living without sin while still knowing in our heart we are living with some sort of sin, still addicted to some form disobedience. The real tragedy is if we attempt  to keep all this from God, not admitting to him, not confessing our sin to him, not being open and true to him. He already knows, but if we do not come to him in repentance, even angry with our own failures, confessing, asking for help to overcome, to be empowered to change our condition, we will not prosper spiritually, and we will face trouble. Do we live with hidden hypocrisy?

Open the Gate

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

OPEN THE GATE

Prov 17:19

19 He who loves a quarrel loves sin; he who builds a high gate invites destruction.

NIV

So there is no doubt at all about the fact that a quarrel is sin. That is as plain as our nose on our face. What we should note is what causes a quarrel in the first place. It can only stem from self-centeredness, thinking more of ourselves then we should, thinking we are always right about everything, that we cannot be told what to do and that we think we are justified because of what the other person said or did. If we say we hate sin, then we must also hate quarrels. Now as to this high gate which invites destruction we might think it is like building a façade, not allowing others to see the real us. A high gate keeps people from entering in, getting to know us, being personal and real with them. This either stems from being so puffed up with self-importance or so insecure that we have to guard against any and all who what to enter into our lives. Being so closed in with self can only lead to a self-destructive life. We cannot live in our own ivory tower, being an island onto ourselves for it will eventually destroy us. We must live with others, truly live with them, invite them in, and have fellowship, communion without any quarrelsome thoughts. We must open the gate. 

Use Judgment

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

USE JUDGMENT

Prov 17:18

18 A man lacking in judgment strikes hands in pledge and puts up security for his neighbor.

NIV

A hard truth in light of the contrast to what Solomon just wrote about friendship and brothers. It is one thing to give someone out of our ability and without causing damage to our own family, but here we are warned about putting up all we have for the sake of one who, what looks like, has not manage their own affairs and find themselves in a position of losing all they have. Generosity is noble and right, but we should note it should be with good judgment. To lack judgment in life is to be without thoughtful consideration of the consequences of our actions. All actions cause some kind of reactions. Let us carefully consider what course of action we take, especially in the matter of standing in for another, putting our name, our life in the place of another. This is not that we should abandon them, but use judgment.  

Brothers

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

BROTHERS

Prov 17:17

17 A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.

NIV

At first glance we might get the impression that brothers are born for the purpose of creating adversity for their siblings, but that is not the intent here. Friends certainly are individuals whom we develop over the course of time and if we are fortunate we might have more than one, but the chance of finding a true friend who will love us both in prosperity and adversity is far and few between. Those of us who have found that devoted marriage partner have indeed found that true friend as well as a brother or sister. Brothers or sibling are born attached through blood, through DNA, and are always there, specifically in those times of adversity. There is nothing closer than family or at least that is what is meant here. Whether that is the actually case, that is up to us who have siblings. Of course this could imply those who are brothers or sisters in the Lord. That we who are the family of God should be at each other’s side through the toughest times of life, that is our purpose, which is what we were born for. But again that may not be the actually case. The friend simply loves, or has affection for us which could imply only having affection and nothing else. A friend can say or feel nice thoughts about us no matter what we are going through, but the brother has been born to be at our side when we travel those difficult roads. Let us hope we are and have brothers. 

What's in your Hand?

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

WHAT’S IN YOUR HAND

Prov 17:16

16 Of what use is money in the hand of a fool, since he has no desire to get wisdom?

NIV

                                                                       

Money or wealth has the power to serve the one who has it, but if it is used for self-gratification, self-aggrandizement or any other self-hyphened word, it just might be by one that God considers the fool. Wealth also has the power to the one who has it in their hand to obtain instruments of learning, learning that brings wisdom and not the wisdom of this world, but divine wisdom. We know the wisdom of this world is but foolish to God, to the only wisdom which is worthy of having a heart for is the wisdom of God. Of what good is all wealth of this world when a person dies? Both the Pharaohs of Egypt and the Emperors of China tried to take their wealth with them to the other side, but left it all behind for men to plunder years later, thus both were fools in the eyes of God. We need to use our resources for the benefit of gaining the wisdom of God. Wealth in and of itself is neither good nor bad, it is simple wealth, but the use of it defines the difference between the fool and the person with a heart for God. So we should ask, what’s in our hand or in our heart?

The Verdict

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

THE VERDICT

Prov 17:15

15 Acquitting the guilty and condemning the innocent — the LORD detests them both.

NIV

Certainly God is not going to acquit the guilty, but he surely will not condemn the would appear we all, no matter how good we think we are, are among the guilty and therefore should not expect an acquittal at our trial. But of course we have one who told our guilt, took our sin upon himself and paid that price for us. So then we are in fact considered by God as innocent as long as we are in Christ and therefore will not see any condemnation from him. We will be not every have to be concerned about being acquitted as we are no longer among the guilty if we are in Christ. This also speaks to the justice which does or does not exist here among men. Our system is devised so that if one who is guilty has enough money and power can escape justice, whereas is does seem the poor although innocent are punished. All throughout the age’s man has tipped the scale of justice to favor the rich and powerful, but God will not. His justice favors no man; he shows not favoritism to any man, he is just to all giving his verdict based solely and wholly on one fact. Has a person accepted the work of Jesus Christ on the cross for himself, has that person accepted Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior, and have they been born again, for no man will ever see the kingdom of God unless he has done that. Those who refuse are in fact guilty and by the justice of God will not be acquitted, but will be condemned. Let us accept and live as the innocent, as determined by his verdict. 

Put A finger In It

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

PUT A FINGER IN IT

Prov 17:14

14 Starting a quarrel is like breaching a dam; so drop the matter before a dispute breaks out.

NIV

This is good advice for every married person on this planet earth, but also for anyone who has a friend or relative. We can remember the childhood story about the little Dutch boy who saved his village by putting his finger in the dike. Perhaps we could take that example and put a finger in our mouth to save a relationship. So often we simply open the floodgates of venomous words before we even think what the result of such an explosion will be. The cause for be the start of a quarrel is most likely an attitude of self-righteousness. We think we are better than the other or we think we know more than the other, or maybe it is just the opposite, having an inferiority complex. Either way it does nothing but harm any relationship. Disputes are usually wasteful anyway as neither of the disputers will ever change their minds, if fact, a dispute usually cements the opinions even more. So let’s just put a finger in it.  

More Good

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

MORE GOOD

Prov 17:13

13 If a man pays back evil for good, evil will never leave his house.

NIV

Who invited evil into the house in the first place? We also might ask, why would anyone ever pay back evil for good? Yet apparently there must be someone somewhere who does such a thing otherwise it would not have been written for us to ponder upon. This does serve as sort of a warning against such behavior. If someone does us good, then we should certainly do good in return. That seems to be obvious yet this was written because it may not be as obvious as we think. It just might be if we do not pay back good with good we are in fact paying it back with evil. That is to say we cannot simply accept good freely, without consider repayment in some manner. True we think of doing a good deed for another never expecting anything in return, but in doing so are we forcing the recipient of our good deed to repay us with evil? That would not be a good situation at all. So we should do good and we should repay good with more good, and the more good continues to even more good, then evil will never get comfortable in our house.  

Caution

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

CAUTION

Prov 17:12

12 Better to meet a bear robbed of her cubs than a fool in his folly.

NIV

We cannot be sure just exactly why meeting this fool would be worse than the bear robbed of her cubs, but we can know it is not a very good thing. We also know that this fool is not the fool described by human standards but by Gods. So we would have to say that this fool in his folly is one that is acting out in a rebellious behavior against the things of God. It would seem this is not a person we believers should be in contact with. It would also appear this fool in his folly is not the one who accepts our witness about Christ and therefore qualifies for being in that category of shaking the dust off our sandals. This bear, if we were to meet her, would be a furious beast that would tear us limb from limb. We can only imagine this fool would do none the less and that is why we should avoid him or her best we can. There are just some people that we cannot bring the truth of God into their lives without meeting some peril to our own. Caution is the word here. 

Bent

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

BENT

Prov 17:11

11 An evil man is bent only on rebellion; a merciless official will be sent against him.

NIV

We could simply see this in the human context and not worry as we are not want we would consider evil. Yet there is something to be learned for all believers. We know that in some sense all who rebel against God would be consider evil, so then which came first, evil or rebellion? Whichever, the point here is that those who rebel against God, those who are evil will not meet a loving, forgiving, merciful God at the end of time. They will meet a merciless official, a judge that has already pass sentence upon them, the sentence of death. That is harsh, but it is the truth. Accepting Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior is not accomplished by one who is bent on rebellion. It would seem impossible to be a follower of Christ and be bent on rebellion as it would be to be bent on rebellion and be a follower of Christ. That is like oil and water, they do not go together. Although we know God desires all to be saved, and thus we should share the gospel with all, we have to know some will simply be bent on rebellion and will face him as Judged. We must make sure that we do not say we follow Christ then act in rebellious ways. It might be possible we could do rebellious acts, falling to temptations in our lives. But the key is the condition of our heart. Is it bent on rebellion or bent on following Christ? Failure is not necessarily bent. But we must be careful not to excuse the failure, which could lead to our hearts getting a bent condition in the wrong direction. We need to keep our hearts bent toward God. 

Be Impressed

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

BE IMPRESSED

Prov 17:10

10 A rebuke impresses a man of discernment more than a hundred lashes a fool.

NIV

We certainly can learn the need to accept some correction in life from this lesson. We can see that it is only a foolish person who does not accept some rebuke, some correction, some telling by a friend that we might be doing something wrong. If we are discerning or wise as the original language implies, we will not only readily accept rebuke but see the importance and wisdom in it. It is this simple, be wise or be foolish. Be impressed. 

To tell or Not

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

TO TELL OR NOT

Prov 17:9

9 He who covers over an offense promotes love, but whoever repeats the matter separates close friends.

NIV

There is much to be said about keeping the confidence of a close friend, a fellow believer. Is there any of us who has never committed an offense? How would we feel if our closest and dearest friend posted our offense on Facebook? There was an old saying which might be more truthful than we want it to be. “If you want to spread the news, use a telegraph, telephone or tell a Christian”. This saying certainly seems to speak directly to gossip. The problem with sharing an offense is it usually gets back to the one who committed the offense and then the friendship is in ruins. Once trust is broken, although it is not impossible, it is difficult to mend. We must be careful not to break that trust in the first place. If we could be only realize we are not offense free and thus who are we to be sharing what someone did. Gossip only makes, for a short time, the spreader of it feel better about themselves than they should. There is no reason other than self-promotion to repeat a matter. We need to promote love not separation. We need to hold close those who are friends. If someone is neither part of the problem nor part of the solution, do they really need to know about it? We should be very careful not to share a friend’s offense as a prayer request either. That is just trying to sugarcoat gossip. An open mind and a closed mouth make great friends, but a closed mind and open mouth destroy friends. 

The Charm

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

THE CHARM

Prov 17:8

8 A bribe is a charm to the one who gives it; wherever he turns, he succeeds.

NIV

This saying shows us the power wealth has over an individual. Those who have this charm, this precious stone, as the original language implies, place a great deal of value on their wealth. They see it as not only providing the creature comforts of life, but it offers them power, to do whatever they desire. They believe they can do anything with it. They think because of their money others should be at their beck and call, even justice should give way to them.  Whatever way the turn, they have this precious stone, this sparkling diamond and they expect it should dazzle the eyes of all, and make them do just what they would have them do, in hopes of having it for themselves. This saying also shows us the influence money has over people. Those who have money in their eye, those who desire wealth, have their hearts set upon having it, lust after it, will do anything for it. This unhealthy desire for money will cause people to go and do things that may be against the very principles of a holy and Godly life. We need to be very aware of what we place value on, for what we value; whatever is our charm, our precious stone, our treasure, there also is our heart. If our charm is Jesus then surely wherever we turn in the truth of God, we will succeed. If our charm is money, the things of this earth, then we face trouble ahead. Perhaps not in this life, but surely afterwards, although allowing our hearts to desire this charm can cause a great deal of trouble here as well. Let us set our hearts on things above. 

Eloquence or lies

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

ELOQUENCE OR LIES

Prov 17:7

7 Arrogant lips are unsuited to a fool — how much worse lying lips to a ruler!

NIV’

Perhaps arrogant isn’t the best choice as other translations along with the original carry more of a sense of excellent words spoken, or eloquent words are simply not suitable for a fool to speak. It is unlikely that a fool would say anything that was considered worthy of eloquence, but what is eloquence? We should not dare to judge someone to be a fool based on his inability to speak in an eloquent manner, yet those who God considers as fools are the ones who refuse to accept Jesus Christ. So perhaps if one is not speaking about the things of God, no matter what they are speaking about it is not eloquent. The rest of this saying is certainly a condemnation on those who would be considered rulers. Those who, in our country, we elect to lead us, to be in positions of leadership in the government, are surely guilty of having lying lips. Every day we are exposed to another lie by most of those in office. Certainly they will receive their just reward in the end. But we should also consider that many of us rule in some sense. We who are the head of our family are responsible to God for them and therefore are given authority over them. Since we have authority we could be consider a ruler and therefore should be careful not to fall into the traps of lies. It is far better the keep our lips from lies and speak eloquent words.

Crown and Pride

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

CROWN AND PRIDE

Prov 17:6

6 Children's children are a crown to the aged, and parents are the pride of their children.

NIV

It is a great joy to see the children of children, to be great-grandparents certainly does well as a crown in our oldest years. But this truth runs much deeper than simply being grandparents. There is a family relationship shown here that should exist within all the families of God. Whoever is the family patriarch and matriarch bear a great burden of leading their families in the ways of the Lord. They should be respected by those descendants, both living and the ones born after they are gone. There should be such a heritage left by them, one like Abraham left for his descendants, one of following God, trusting God, obeying God, no matter the cost. We aged should hope that our children and their children can say of us, “There was a person after God’s own heart”, as God said about David. Our descendants should be pride to claim they are ours, speaking well of us after we have left this earth for paradise. There is a receptacle relationship that must exist in the families who follow the ways of God. A sense of pride in each other, a respect for each other, a love for each other that goes beyond self. What a joy to watch children and their children grow into a child of God. But there can be pain along the way if the children tend to stray. It can be painful to watch them endeavor to travel their own path, and not respect the views of their parents or grand-parents. Yet love must always prevail. It is our hope and our prayers they will return to the fold of God, if they have strayed. Still they are our crown, and we are their pride. 

The Poor

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

THE POOR

Prov 17:5

5 He who mocks the poor shows contempt for their Maker; whoever gloats over disaster will not go unpunished.

NIV

Certainly we believers would never mock a poor person, we would speak in such a manner as to deride them or for that matter gloat when disaster strikes upon a group or a single person. So why are we admonished not to do this? Is it possible we could be guilty and unaware of our offense? It does seem that in our country those who are in power, those who we call politicians might be guilty of this type of offence. By their self-servicing help of the poor it is a form of mocking, a form of gloating over the disaster which befalls people. But what of believers, those of us who read and contemplate the scriptures? How would we mock, as imitating a foreigner, to speak unintelligibly? Could we, by putting on the poor mouth, be mocking those who are truly poor? Could we, when seeing someone who has far more than us, having a bit of envy, thinking how little we have in comparison, be in some way mocking those who are really poor? What about the spiritual aspect of wealth and poor?  There is no greater wealth then to be co-heirs with Jesus. But do we speak against in any way about those who choose to not believe? Do we mock or show contempt toward those poor souls who are bound for disaster? Jesus said that we would always have the poor among us, that we can help them anything we want. Now in context he was speaking to his disciples and that they would not always have him in the flesh to be with them, but of course Jesus is always with us, even to the end. But the fact is we will always have to poor, the truly poor, but the poor in material goods and the poor in spiritual blessings. We should know we are not poor, and we such not in any way speak ill of those who have nothing materially, but especially of those who do not have Jesus, the truly poor.

He Who Has an Ear

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

HE WHO HAS AN EAR

Prov 17:4

4 A wicked man listens to evil lips; a liar pays attention to a malicious tongue.

NIV

There certainly are a lot of voices out there that are doing their best to entice us to do things which are not pleasing to God. Surely in our society today we are bombarded with various voice of s sensual nature, the movies, the television, magazines, billboards, even catalogs mailed to us, everywhere we turn it is there. But we also are bombarded in a far more subtle way in other areas which are just as evil for us to listen to. The world would speak with evil lips that we need to trust in our own abilities, rather than God. There are those who would speak those evil words about storing up wealth for our own pleasures of life, rather than doing what God desires of us. There are lips which speak gossip which we should tell to be quite rather than listen with tingling ears. The temptations are only temptations if we are interested in all in them. At the core of all temptations is lust, not just in the sensual sense but in every aspect of our lives, lust for thing, lust for money, and lust for fame, to be somebody special, to be lifted up, to be thought of as a scholar, or a learned person in the scriptures, to have a fancy title. The list of things we can lust for is extensive and they all come from evil lips, and are of a malicious tongue, the tongue of Satan. We should be listening only to the lips of the Holy Spirit, and pay absolutely no attention to the voice of the evil one. Yet he continues to whisper in our ears those things which would lead us in the wrong direction away from God. God has given us the gift of discernment so that we will know what voice is speaking to us, what lips are moving, whether they are liars or are the truth of God. He who has an ear, let him hear what the spirit says to us. 

Finding Pureness

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

FINDING PURENESS

Prov 17:3

3 The crucible for silver and the furnace for gold, but the LORD tests the heart.

NIV

The fact that both silver and gold must undergo a treatment of extreme heat to separate the purest form from anything that would have been mixed in with it is a simply fact known by all. It does not take the Wisdom of Solomon to understand the dross is separated from the pure metal by heat. But with the heart that is a different story. It would seem that God purifies our heart through fire, or adversity. This is not to find the dross or the faults of our heart or character, but to find the purest form of our heart. God desires to separate anything from our character that would distract from us being the purest form of his image. That is why he send Jesus to become the sacrifice for our dross, our sin, that which keeps us from being pure. Through this process we have been made pure if we accept Jesus into our heart. God then sees us through the blood of Jesus, he sees a heart filled with Jesus, pure and blameless. Yes it is true that in the human sense our heart may never be absolutely pure as the finest gold or silver, but the human heart will never inherit the kingdom of God, for we are told that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, but that we will all be changed. What is corruptible will be made incorruptible and what is mortal will be made immortal. So it is with our human hearts. It is and will be always deceitfully wicked, but through the power of Jesus, God sees us as a pure image of him. If we communion with Jesus, if we are in Christ and he is us then our hearts have been tested and found pure. Surely we cannot simply go about our sinful ways and expect a pure heart just because of Jesus. Certainly we must make every effort to free ourselves from wicked ways. We must do all that we are humanly possible to live a life pleasing to God and the purest form of that is accepting Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. That pleases God more than anything we could do that we label “good works”. The purest form of testing our hearts is to find Jesus there.