SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 1/7/2013
1:30 PM
My Worship Time Focus: Wisdom
Directs Our Path (Pr.3) PT-2
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Proverbs
3:13-35
Message of the
verses: Today we will look at the
second sub-point that covers the remaining part of third chapter of
Proverbs.
Words of Wisdom from Turning Point: “There is
no pit so deep that God is not deeper still”
(Corrie Ten Boom) John 16:33, “"These
things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you
have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.’”
Blessings to enjoy
(vv. 13-35): We will break down
further the remaining verses from this section so that it will be easier for us
to understand the verses. The first
section Dr. Wiersbe entitles True wealth that comes from
wisdom: (vv. 13-18): “13
¶ How blessed is the man who finds
wisdom And the man who gains understanding. 14
For her profit is better than the profit of silver And her gain better
than fine gold. 15 She is more precious
than jewels; And nothing you desire compares with her. 16 Long life is in her right hand; In her left
hand are riches and honor. 17 Her ways
are pleasant ways And all her paths are peace. 18 She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her, And happy
are all who hold her fast.”
We can see in these verses that wisdom is much more
precious than gold or silver, for the things that come to you when you apply
wisdom will last for you throughout eternity, but the things that you buy with
silver or gold will all be burned up when this world is destroyed as seen in
2Peter 3:10. Now I am not saying that a
person cannot do good things with the money that God entrusts him with, for the
good things a person does with his money will be done because he has gained
wisdom from the Lord through His Word. I
have heard that you cannot take it with you, but you can send it ahead so when
you get to heaven you will have rewards.
Dr. Wiersbe in his wisdom points out “It’s good to have
the things money can buy, provided you don’t lose the things money can’t buy. What good is an expensive house if there’s no
happy home within? Happiness,
pleasantness, and peace aren’t the guaranteed by-products of financial success,
but they are guaranteed to the person who lives by God’s wisdom.”
Harmony with God’s
creation (Prov. 3:19-20): “19 The LORD by wisdom founded the earth, By
understanding He established the heavens. 20
By His knowledge the deeps were broken up And the skies drip with dew.”
We have seen this subject of creation come up a number of
times in the book of Proverbs, and when we look at the creation that God
created we have to know that God is the very source of wisdom. One of the attributes of God is wisdom, so
wisdom originates from the Lord.
This is My Father’s World
1. This is my
Father's world,
and to my listening ears
all nature sings, and round me rings
the music of the spheres.
This is my Father's world:
I rest me in the thought
of rocks and trees, of skies and seas;
his hand the wonders wrought.
2. This is my
Father's world,
the birds their carols raise,
the morning light, the lily white,
declare their maker's praise.
This is my Father's world:
he shines in all that's fair;
in the rustling grass I hear him pass;
he speaks to me everywhere.
3. This is my
Father's world.
O let me ne'er forget
that though the wrong seems oft so strong,
God is the ruler yet.
This is my Father's world:
why should my heart be sad?
The Lord is King; let the heavens ring!
God reigns; let the earth be glad!
As we look
at the lyrics to this song we can see that the writer to this hymn knew that
God owns His creation and indeed “This is my Father’s World.
The Father’s providential care (Prov. 3:21-26): “21 ¶
My son, let them not vanish from your sight; Keep sound wisdom and
discretion, 22 So they will be life to
your soul And adornment to your neck. 23
Then you will walk in your way securely And your foot will not stumble.
24 When you lie down, you will not be
afraid; When you lie down, your sleep will be sweet. 25 Do not be afraid of sudden fear Nor of the onslaught of the wicked when
it comes; 26 For the LORD will be your
confidence And will keep your foot from being caught.”
Dr. Wiersbe has some great
insight into these verses that I want to share:
“Because God directs our path,
He is able to protect our path. The Lord isn’t obligated to protect His
children when they willfully go their own way.
They’re only tempting Him, and that a dangerous thing to do.
“When you surrender yourself to
God, every part of your body belongs to Him and will be protected by Him.” As we look at verses 21-26 we see different
parts of our body that are mentioned by Solomon. The eyes are mentioned in verse 21, the neck
in verse twenty-two. The feet are
mentioned in verses 23 and 26 which indicate which path we are to take, and that
is the theme of chapter three of Proverbs.
A positive relationship with others (Prov. 3:27-35): “27 ¶
Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, When it is in your
power to do it. 28 Do not say to your
neighbor, "Go, and come back, And tomorrow I will give it," When you
have it with you. 29 Do not devise harm
against your neighbor, While he lives securely beside you. 30 Do not contend with a man without cause, If he has done you no harm.
31 Do not envy a man of violence And do
not choose any of his ways. 32 For the devious are an abomination
to the LORD; But He
is intimate with the upright. 33
The curse of the LORD is on the house of the wicked, But He blesses the
dwelling of the righteous. 34 Though He
scoffs at the scoffers, Yet He gives grace to the afflicted. 35 The wise will inherit honor, But fools
display dishonor.”
I mentioned that the book of
Proverbs is in the poetry section of the Bible and also mentioned that it is
written in Hebrew poetry. One of the
aspects of Hebrew Poetry is seen in this section, and that is that the first
line is opposite to the second line.
Look closely at verses 32-35 to see this in action.
This section teaches that a wise
Christian will get along with his neighbor, and will even be a blessing to
them. Think about what a believer
possess through the grace of God that can be passed on to our unbelieving
neighbors. We possess the eternal Gospel
of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by giving them the truths of the Gospel you can
completely change their path, their direction that they are going in from an
eternity in hell to one in heaven with the Lord Jesus Christ.
Spiritual meaning for my life today: What I see in this third chapter of Proverbs
is that I need wisdom, and the way that I find wisdom is to stay in the Word of
God. I need to stay on the right path as
Proverbs 3:5-6 say, “5 Trust in the LORD
with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding. 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He will
make your paths straight.” I cannot
deliberately go onto the wrong path and expect the Lord to bless me, so I need
to stay in the Word to have the Lord direct my path.
My Steps of Faith for Today: Stay in the
Word especially in times of great temptation.
Memory
verses for the week: Psalm 121:1-4
1 I will lift up my eyes to the
mountains; From where shall my help come? 2
My help comes from the LORD, Who made heaven and earth. 3 He will not allow your foot to slip; He who
keeps you will not slumber. 4 Behold, He
who keeps Israel Will neither slumber nor sleep.
1/7/2013
2:51 PM
No comments:
Post a Comment