Joy to his heart

DEVOTION

PROVERBS

JOY TO HIS HEART

Prov 27:11

11 Be wise, my son, and bring joy to my heart; then I can answer anyone who treats me with contempt.

NIV

At first this would appear to be about how a father rears his son. Having been harsh and strict in his parenting skills, holding his son to a very high standard, to be wise. This admonishment to be wise might well be aimed at obtaining worldly wisdom, or Godly wisdom. We are told not which, but it would seem along with the idea of being the strictest of parents, who are being attacked by people for his harshness toward his son, we might well think it is about being wise in Godly matters. What believer would bring judgement against their fellow believer for wanting his son to gain Godly wisdom? What believer would have contempt for a father asking his son to seek wisdom from God, to study his word, to search the truths out for his life and follow Christ? However, the people of the world see wisdom in an altogether differnetly. Yet we know the wisdom of their world is foolishness to God. Yet people might well have contempt for the father because he refutes their wisdom for his son, and seeks God’s wisdom for him. How foolish of you friend to want your son to pursue biblical studies, he cannot make a good living from that. It might well be better for him to go to our schools so to gain knowledge how to make a lot of money. That is contempt for God, and the things of God in the truest form. We are told we cannot serve two masters, we cannot serve God and money, we will love the one, be devoted to it, and hate the other.

Matt 6:24

24 "No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.

NIV

So the father who desires his son to gain God’s wisdom and thus serve him, is despised by the world who has contempt for his refusal to accept their ways. Is this not the same as the Father, God, who desires us to seek his wisdom? We know the world holds him in contempt. We might even, being his children, experience a certain amount of this contempt because we do not agree with the world’s wisdom of serving money. True we work and obtain a paycheck to pay for the basic needs of life and even some of the nicer things. But we know God is the source of our employment, as we should be exactly where he has led us to work. But when we espouse the standard God has established about not being yoked unequally and apply that to the idea of investments in ungodly markets, some have contempt toward us. This investment in the worldly companies, world markets is, in effect, giving Satan our money so he can increase it for us. That is in some sense trying to serve both God and money. This kind of Godly wisdom brings contempt from many. But let us unswervingly uphold to the wisdom of God no matter what men may say, for by serving him, seeking his wisdom we bring joy to the heart of God.