Pursue Wisdom with Heart of Obedience

Proverbs 23:7, 23, 26 
My son, give me your heart, And let your eyes observe my ways.   23 Buy the truth, and do not sell it, Also wisdom and instruction and understanding.  7 For as he thinks in his heart, so is he.

God sees our hearts, so must we seek His wisdom and instruction to be wise.  Then we can be what fills our heart and mind... 

Zealous for God, Envious for None

Proverbs 23:17-18
Do not let your heart envy sinners, But be zealous for the fear of the Lord all the day; 18 For surely there is a hereafter, And your hope will not be cut off.

Many get rich by seeking things dishonestly or with love only for self, not caring how.  These are not ones to want to be like or to desire to have what they possess.  What matters is the love and fear of God - this is what we must jealously desire, knowing we will face Him and live in His presence forever (those who are new creations in Christ, that is). 

Value of Humble Fear

Proverbs 22:4, 11, 29  
By humility and the fear of the Lord Are riches and honor and life.  11 He who loves purity of heart And has grace on his lips, The king will be his friend.   29 Do you see a man who excels in his work? He will stand before kings; He will not stand before unknown men.

How do we live before God and men?  Start with humility, fearing God who is your Lord and Master.  Love what He says is good and talk of those things with grace to others.  Do well in your work as doing it for God Himself.  This brings honor from God and men, with His pleasure as the greatest riches. 

God Alone Delivers

Proverbs 21:30-31
There is no wisdom or understanding Or counsel against the Lord.  31 The horse is prepared for the day of battle, But deliverance is of the Lord.

Nobody can be wiser than God, yet many act as if they think they are... Others try to use all their own power to win wars or other battles, forgetting that only He can deliver from defeat and destruction. 

Certain Judgement and Repentance

2 Peter 2:4, 9; 3:7, 9  
4 For if God did not spare the angels who sinned, but cast them down to hell and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved for judgment; ... 9 then the Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust under punishment for the day of judgment,  ... 3:7 But the heavens and the earth which are now preserved by the same word, are reserved for fire until the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.  9 The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.

God will judge everyone in His time, and will keep those who are His through it all.  He does not want to see anyone punished forever, but is holy, just, and must act accordingly to do what is fair.  We all deserve hell, but everyone turning from disobedient sin to Christ is what He really yearns for! 

God Sovereignly Leads Our Steps

Jeremiah 10:23  

O Lord, I know the way of man is not in himself; It is not in man who walks to direct his own steps.

God leads us; all our plans fall under His greater plans for us according to His will.  This is hard for us to agree to as self-willed fallen people, but it is still true.  Why should we then not make our plans with the understanding that God's will shall drive the circumstances to a greater good?  This should calm our anxieties while giving us purpose in all we do. 

Follow His Righteousness!

Proverbs 21:21

He who follows righteousness and mercy finds life, righteousness and honor.

If we do the right things according to what God spells out as right in the Bible, the we come to find life in Him, become righteous in Christ who changes us to be more like Him, and will be honored by God and man.  Do we follow what He says? 

God Weighs the Heart

Proverbs 21:2-4 
Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, But the Lord weighs the hearts.  3 To do righteousness and justice Is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice.  4 A haughty look, a proud heart, And the plowing of the wicked are sin.

God knows our hearts; we cannot fool Him.  He wants us to do justly, love mercy, And to walk humbly with Him.  Pride and arrogance and loving to do evil or not care about it are sin, and foul the heart. 

We Cannot Save Ourselves

Proverbs 20:6, 9, 22, 24 
6 Most men will proclaim each his own goodness, But who can find a faithful man?   9 Who can say, “I have made my heart clean, I am pure from my sin”?   22 Do not say, “I will recompense evil”; Wait for the Lord, and He will save you.   24 A man's steps are of the Lord; How then can a man understand his own way?

We are not good of ourselves, nor can we make ourselves good, clean, and righteous by our own effort.  God is the only one who can deliver us into goodness, and the only way He gives us is Jesus Christ.  Since He then leads each step we take, we must look to Him and in His word to find understanding, meaning, and purpose in and for all we do. 

Commands and Counsel or Carelessness?

Proverbs 19:16, 21
16 He who keeps the commandment keeps his soul, But he who is careless of his ways will die.   21 There are many plans in a man's heart, Nevertheless the Lord's counsel —that will stand.

When we follow what God has told us, then we have life as we heed what we do, think, and say.  Along with this we must allow God's words to counsel us to make our plans and have purpose and care in our ways - our choices and how we live.  These verses in Proverbs are worth thinking through. 

God’s Sovereign Rule

Ecclesiastes 8:4-7 
4 Where the word of a king is, there is power; And who may say to him, “What are you doing?”  5 He who keeps his command will experience nothing harmful; And a wise man's heart discerns both time and judgment, 6 Because for every matter there is a time and judgment, Though the misery of man increases greatly.  7 For he does not know what will happen; So who can tell him when it will occur?

God is sovereign over all, including us.  His power, will, and command rule in love, so we must lovingly obey while seeing there is a time and place for what He allows and decrees.  No matter how we feel or what we go through, He knows and works all together for our good! 

What Angels Want to See

Do you want to see what angels see?  Read this:

1 Peter 1:10-12 
10 Of this salvation the prophets have inquired and searched carefully, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you, 11 searching what, or what manner of time, the Spirit of Christ who was in them was indicating when He testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glories that would follow. 12 To them it was revealed that, not to themselves, but to us they were ministering the things which now have been reported to you through those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven — things which angels desire to look into.

Angels wanted to see what the gospel message has shown us - that God was in Christ reconciling sinful people to Himself in Jesus Christ.  These things of God were sought out during the times before Christ in the Old Testament by the prophets, and now are explained in the New Testament to show the things angels want to see, but have been shown to us made in God's image! 

Stumbling Block to the Disobedient, Mercy to the Chosen

1 Peter 2:7-10 
7 Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who are disobedient, “The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone,” 8 and “A stone of stumbling And a rock of offense.” They stumble, being disobedient to the word, to which they also were appointed.  9 But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light; 10 who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.

Those who reject Christ, who refuse to believe He is God's Son who died in their place, these stumble at the offense of needing God as their Lord and master.  But those who hear His call and take Him at His word, these become His own precious people.  We then praise God for who He is and all He has done, knowing we have been brought out of sin's dungeon by great mercy into His light of righteousness and peace. 

Discretion and Grace

Proverbs 19:11
The discretion of a man makes him slow to anger, And his glory is to overlook a transgression.

By knowledge, understanding, and wisdom we can forgive, not getting angry when others sin against us.  As the verse below says, we rush into sin (anger or other) when we lack these things.  To know and understand leads to living that, and is wisdom to keep us.

Proverbs 19:2  Also it is not good for a soul to be without knowledge, And he sins who hastens with his feet. 

Honor of Humility or Consumed by Haughtiness

Proverbs 18:12  
Before destruction the heart of a man is haughty, And before honor is humility.

Destruction here means fracture, crushing, breach, crash, ruin, shattering breaking, and describes the heart of one who is consumed with being arrogant and proud.  The contrast is the one who is humble - that one is honored by God and man.

1 Peter 5:6-7.  6 Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, 7 casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you. 

Righteous in Tower of God

Proverbs 18:10 
The name of the Lord is a strong tower; The righteous run to it and are safe.

Righteous people, those who know God through Christ and who aim their lives in His direction, find safety from attack and ill intent of those opposed to God.  His very name is as a castle for defense against evil. 

Choose Your Words Well

Proverbs 17:27-28 
He who has knowledge spares his words, And a man of understanding is of a calm spirit.  28 Even a fool is counted wise when he holds his peace; When he shuts his lips, he is considered perceptive.

Making the most, least, and best of our words is knowledge and wisdom.  How untamable the tongue seems at times, as James says, yet in Christ we put this in control by the Spirit. 

Refining of the Heart

Proverbs 17:3, 5, 9, 13 
3 The refining pot is for silver and the furnace for gold, But the Lord tests the hearts.  4 An evildoer gives heed to false lips; A liar listens eagerly to a spiteful tongue.  5 He who mocks the poor reproaches his Maker; He who is glad at calamity will not go unpunished.  9  He who covers a transgression seeks love, But he who repeats a matter separates friends.  13 Whoever rewards evil for good, Evil will not depart from his house.

God tests our hearts.  This means He allows circumstances and people to come before us in order to see if we respond as He tells us to in the Bible.  Examples here include listening to the lies of gossip or talking bad about others, making fun of or putting down poor people, even rejoicing when they "get what is coming to them," and getting back at those who do you evil.  Jesus gave us the difficult answer: love others and treat them as you want to be treated.  So He tests us as we become more like Him each day.