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Post by Deleted on Dec 14, 2020 5:17:20 GMT -6
“In the fear of the LORD is strong confidence: and his children shall have a place of refuge. The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, to depart from the snares of death” (Proverbs 14:26-27).
“In the fear of the LORD is strong confidence,” yes, it is. “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Proverbs 9:10). He lays his head down on his pillow at night with full confidence of his heavenly home. When death comes, God will stand by him, the angels will carry him off to his reward. Folks filled with pride have a false confidence, but those that are saved have a true conviction of their eternal destiny.
If we don’t have any confidence, then we don’t have any stability. The issue is whether our confidence is in ourselves which is a foundation of sand, or in His promises, which are solid. We have stability because we are confident. People without confidence vacillate because they have no true identity. They don’t know who they are or what they are.
Who are we? At one time we were Adam. Those that are born into this world are born into Adam and all he knew was death. When we are born again we are the new Adam—we are in Jesus Christ. We were once of the old nature, now we are of the new: “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (II Corinthians 5:17). Now, “being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6). “In the fear of the LORD is strong confidence.” Amen!
Just go back and study Adam and you will know who you are if you are without Christ. You are a fallen creation of God. And like Adam, God is seeking you to redeem you. You are being sought after by God Himself. You are a sinful, wicked individual and God is trying to save you from hell. He would have you to be a new creature in Christ—but you have to want it and receive it. God can die for you, but He can’t get saved for you.
“. . . and his children shall have a place of refuge,” the Lord’s children have a place of refuge. “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble” (Psalms 46:1). Heaven will one day be our place of refuge.
“The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life, to depart from the snares of death.”
“The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life,” it brings provision. The fear of the Lord provides for us—it is a fountain of life. It not only gives us confidence, but it provides for a the way to depart from the snares of death. Death traps people—ensnares them. “His own iniquities shall take the wicked himself, and he shall be holden with the cords of his sins” (Proverbs 5:22). “And if one prevail against him, two shall withstand him; and a threefold cord is not quickly broken” (Ecclesiastes 4:12).
“The fear of the LORD is a fountain of life,” it shows you where to find life. Jesus said, “He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water” (John 7:38). Why does a man believe on Christ? Because he doesn’t want to go to hell and pay for his sins—let Jesus Christ pay for them.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 15, 2020 7:42:26 GMT -6
“The way of life is above to the wise, that he may depart from hell beneath” (Proverbs 15:24).
This is another good verse for a Christian to memorize. A man is never going to escape hell until he looks for something that is above this earth. The way of life is above. Paul wrote, “Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth” (Colossians 3:2). He also wrote: “For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself” (Philippians 3:20-21).
The way of true life is above. What you are looking for, and longing for, is not of this earth. We realize that everything down here is temporary and it is going to be over with some day, and where you are going to spend eternity is something we settle here, so we are planning and preparing for eternity. Some people will reap joy everlasting, others will reap an eternity without God, without hope, and without peace. “The way of life is above to the wise, that he may depart from hell beneath.”
There are all kinds of things that a person needs from above.
- He needs a birth from above. The new birth is a heavenly birth, John chapter 3. - Jesus is above. Hebrews 8 tells us that He is seated on the right hand of God. - The Bible is from above. - Wisdom comes from above. James 3:17
So, the way of life is from above. The things that I need are really all up there. Anything that we have down here that is of any real worth came from up there. My Bible, my church, my family are all the institutions of God. That is why every Christian home ought to be a little bit of heaven, that is as close as you are going to get to it on this earth. Outside of the local church your family is the closest that you will ever get to heaven this side of glory.
When a man is concentrating on things down here, he is earthly and that is earthly wisdom. A Christian is not to love the world, nor the things of the world. Lot loved the world, and it vexed his righteous soul. The only way a Christian will be truly happy is when he puts his heart and desires on things above. Then he is walking in the Spirit, and a Christian can not walk in the flesh and the things of this world and be happy. You can’t walk against the Holy Spirit and grieve the Holy Spirit without being miserable as a Christian. If only believers would grasp this truth. We have been crucified to the world, and the world is crucified unto us, so we might as well get in step. “But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world” (Galatians 6:14).
Hell is beneath: Deuteronomy 32:22; Psalm 55:15; Isaiah 14:15; Ezekiel 31:16; Amos 9:2; Matthew 11:23, 12:40; Acts 2:27
You ask the average American where hell is and they will say it is this life, they are suffering their hell right here on earth. They are crazy, hell is beneath. The Bible tells you plainly where hell is, it is under your feet.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 16, 2020 2:45:55 GMT -6
“The lot is cast into the lap; but the whole disposing thereof is of the LORD” (Proverbs 16:33).
“The lot is cast into the lap,” that is if you pray to the Lord. The lot is very similar to drawing straws or rolling dice—very much like gambling. If it is for personal profit it is gambling, but there have been times when God used it to instruct the Old Testament saint. We even have an instance of it being used in the New Testament: “And they gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles” (Acts 1:26). Here they cast lots to see who was to replace Judas.
A lot of well-meaning people believe that the Apostles are doing wrong here, that they shouldn’t have picked Matthias but should have waited for God to call Paul. Well, Paul was not a saved man at this time, but even beyond that he was never to have anything to do with any kind of a Jewish ministry. His calling and apostleship was to the Gentiles. They needed twelve Jewish Apostles to preach to the nation of Israel about the kingdom, before Israel could accept that kingdom. In fact, God had said to the twelve Jewish Apostles that they would sit upon twelve thrones to judge the house of Israel.
When the preaching of the Apostles was committed to the nation of Israel in the Book of Acts, how did the nation of Israel react to the preaching? They rejected it, and they were judged unworthy of it, so God put it off and called another man and made him the Apostle to the Gentiles.
At any rate, the Holy Spirit wrote that they cast lots and chose Matthias to take the place of Judas, “and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.” He therefore was the twelfth Apostle and over in Acts 2 it says that Peter stood up with the eleven (2:14).
The lot is thrown into the lap, like you put an item into one of your hands behind your back and then you ask someone to pick which hand it is in. They would throw some colored things into their lap, and depending how it came up, would be the answer they were looking for—yes or no.
“. . . but the whole disposing thereof is of the LORD,” in other words, the Lord would control how the things came up to show them what He wanted them to do . . . IF . . . they had prayed and asked God to use this method to show them: “And they prayed, and said, Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men, shew whether of these two thou hast chosen, That he may take part of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place” (Acts 1:24-25).
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Post by Deleted on Dec 17, 2020 4:36:08 GMT -6
“He that begetteth a fool doeth it to his sorrow: and the father of a fool hath no joy” (Proverbs 17:21).
“He that begetteth a fool doeth it to his sorrow,” every baby born into this world has the potential of being a fool. They are born in sin and “Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child, but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him” (Proverbs 22:15). Just don’t let that child grow up to be what he is born to be. In other words, sorrowful is the father that doesn’t correct his child while it is still young enough to matter.
A child is born to be a fool; but teach him, instruct him, love him, guide him, direct him, mold him, and take time with him. One preacher said, “The best way to spell LOVE is T.I.M.E.” You don’t let him run amok and do his own thing, you put reins on him and put walls up that he is not to go beyond. Give him security, discipline and love.
How does a father raise a son to his own sorrow? He just needs to leave the kid alone and let him grow up to be whatever he is going to be, like the psychologists and the modern philosophers say, and he’ll be sorry.
“. . . and the father of a fool hath no joy,” David was the father of Absalom and Amnon, and they both brought him sorrow. David didn’t do right by those boys. He didn’t raise them the way he should have. You can see that by the way that David treats Absalom when he comes back into Jerusalem—David wouldn’t talk to him, would not see him. He should have forgiven him and welcomed him home like the Prodigal Son’s father, but he failed. In many ways it can be argued that David forced his boy into rebellion. David reaped his own sin with Absalom. Eli had some bad kids too, and Samuel failed with his sons as well.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 18, 2020 5:14:20 GMT -6
I am told that folks that really like to fish have their own secret spot where they love to go because it seems they always have good fortune. Well, by the same standard, when we want good advice, we tend to go to those we trust—those that have given us good counsel in the past.
TODAY’S VERSE:
“The words of a man's mouth are as deep waters, and the wellspring of wisdom as a flowing brook” (Proverbs 18:4).
Only a foolish person will go to another fool for advice, unless it is bad advice that they seek. When a person is bent toward foolishness, it is always good for them to have someone else they can blame— “Well, he told me to do it!” Before us today are two places where a wise man will go to find sound instruction, two similes, if you will.
The first is deep water: “Counsel in the heart of man is like deep water; but a man of understanding will draw it out” (Proverbs 20:5).
“The words of a man's mouth are as deep waters,” they are not casual or half-hearted. This man is contrasted with the wicked, foolish man of vss. 2-3—so we are free to view that the words of a wise man have a great depth to them. These kinds of words only come from a sea of experience, not a mere puddle of casual acquaintance with the truth. These are the words of a man that has been tried, as silver is tried, and been proven. Often, knowledge comes from learning from one’s mistakes while others have learned even more by learning from others’ mistakes. The Word of God is a repository of other men’s mistakes and how to avoid them in our own walk. The more that a man knows of his Bible and its depths of truth, is he worthy to direct others.
The second is a flowing brook: “The mouth of a righteous man is a well of life: but violence covereth the mouth of the wicked” (Proverbs 10:11).
“. . . and the wellspring of wisdom as a flowing brook,” it waters the whole countryside within its path. Wise words are a great blessing to all within their hearing—if, indeed, they have ears to hear. “The law of the wise is a fountain of life, to depart from the snares of death” (Proverbs 13:14).
“Bow down thine ear, and hear the words of the wise, and apply thine heart unto my knowledge. For it is a pleasant thing if thou keep them within thee; they shall withal be fitted in thy lips. That thy trust may be in the LORD, I have made known to thee this day, even to thee. Have not I written to thee excellent things in counsels and knowledge, That I might make thee know the certainty of the words of truth; that thou mightest answer the words of truth to them that send unto thee?” (Proverbs 22:17-21).
From whence do these deep waters and flowing brooks of wisdom come? In my experience there are two places.
The first is the fountain of heavenly treasures—the Word of God. Despite the opinions of some men, ours is a precious Book divinely preserved by the living God unto all generations. “The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times” (Psalms 12:6).
The second is from godly men that have dedicated themselves to that Word of God. It could be a faithful, godly layman who, like Enoch, has walked with God for many years and through many miles, or it could be the man who is called of God to be the pastor of a local New Testament, Bible-believing church. Their lifetime of fruitful, spiritual reaping and sowing will set them apart for this purpose.
Truly, there are plenty of opinions that one can listen to, but “to the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them” (Isaiah 8:20).
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Post by Deleted on Dec 19, 2020 0:26:37 GMT -6
“The fear of the LORD tendeth to life: and he that hath it shall abide satisfied; he shall not be visited with evil” (Proverbs 19:23).
There are three truths in his verse.
“The fear of the LORD tendeth to life,” the “fear of the LORD is clean, enduring for ever: the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether” (Psalms 19:9). Noah feared and saved his whole family. “The fear of the Lord tendeth to life” (Proverbs 10:16), and it is “the beginning of wisdom” (Psalm 111:10), and of knowledge (Proverbs 1:7).
There is just no substitute for fearing God, and the provisions it brings. Children have a natural fear of God if you explain God and hell to them. Don’t steal that fear away from them—cultivate that fear. Use it to their advantage. Give them a good healthy fear (not unhealthy) of God—don’t make God out to be a mean Person or a bully—God is going to reward them. What God wants is right, and its the best for them, and then He rewards them for doing right. That’s a healthy fear of God, because if they don’t do right—God will punish them for it. Some wacky organization in America said that no child should be exposed to Christianity without the presence of an adult. Some people look at Christianity as a perversion—as a mind bender. It’ll make people crazy they warn. They are the ones that are crazy.
“. . . and he that hath it shall abide satisfied,” there is simply nothing better than knowing that the question of heaven and hell is finally settled once and for all. The war between the sinner and a holy God has been finished, and the fear of hell is abolished. This is the satisfaction of having a biblical “fear of the Lord.” Not only does it “tend to life,” mean fear God and are afraid of judgment, and somebody gives him the Gospel—he gets saved. Saved is past tense, done, accomplished, once and for all. If he has it, he “shall abide.” A Christian that will not be faithful, will not go to church, they just really don’t have any “fear of the Lord.”
The problem is that a man has a “fear of the Lord” which brings him to get saved. But then, once he is saved and he gets to thinking that since he is not safe he doesn’t need to fear the Lord anymore. Nothing can be more false. There needs to be a fear of loss, not of salvation, but of rewards in heaven. A Christian that is walking in the fear of the Lord knows immediately when he is in the wrong, and he begins to ponder, “What if the Lord were to return right now? What if He comes and I have unconfessed sin?”
“. . . he shall not be visited with evil,” you can bet that if you live right for God, the Devil will dog your heels. You will suffer in that respect, but God will not haunt you with an eternal hell any longer. It is not unusual for a lost person to feel the presence of hell as a constant reminder until he either gets saved or completely rejects salvation and God leaves him be. So, a saved man, though he may be visited with evil from the Devil—it will not come from God. The Bible says we have “peace with God.”
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Post by Deleted on Dec 20, 2020 1:29:18 GMT -6
“An inheritance may be gotten hastily at the beginning; but the end thereof shall not be blessed” (Proverbs 20:21).
This is but another example in the Bible of “easy come, easy go.” If you don’t get it right, it’ll come out wrong. One fellow that got his inheritance quick in the New Testament and it turned out to be really bad was the Prodigal son.
“And the younger of them said to his father, Father, give me the portion of goods that falleth to me. And he divided unto them his living. And not many days after the younger son gathered all together, and took his journey into a far country, and there wasted his substance with riotous living. And when he had spent all, there arose a mighty famine in that land; and he began to be in want. And he went and joined himself to a citizen of that country; and he sent him into his fields to feed swine. And he would fain have filled his belly with the husks that the swine did eat: and no man gave unto him” (Luke 15:12-16).
Fortunately for him, however, the very next verse begins, “And when he came to himself.” Unfortunately, a lot of people do not.
Now, over and over again we are seeing a reiteration of the truth of God’s patience. There is really no reason to cut corners in life. Consider the fellow that makes a hasty loan in Proverbs 16 and has somebody go surety for them. People wanting to get something when they really can’t afford it, so they find somebody to cosign for it. One of the real tragedies in marriages today is the number of young people that believe they need to have right now what it took their parents thirty years to acquire. As a result, they get into a financial hole and many of those marriages just can’t survive it. Impatience can be a real killer.
It is true that we can’t always avoid it. We need a car to get to work in and a house to live in, and very few people have the wherewithal to pay cash for either. But one can use moderation in both and live under their means to afford them. Sometimes we will find ourselves walking in the lusts and the desires of the flesh, and there is just no way we are willing to wait on God or a better situation—we want it now. Those easy payments are never easy. Thank God when He provides, but He doesn’t always do so.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 20, 2020 15:06:00 GMT -6
Dr. Allen Jones once asked, "How do you put on the whole armour of God?" He answered his own question, "By putting on the Lord Jesus Christ, Dummy!"
"But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof” (Romans 13:14).
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Post by Keith on Dec 21, 2020 6:14:10 GMT -6
Dr. Allen Jones once asked, "How do you put on the whole armour of God?" He answered his own question, "By putting on the Lord Jesus Christ, Dummy!" "But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof” (Romans 13:14). Amen, love it, brother!
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Post by Deleted on Dec 21, 2020 8:25:18 GMT -6
“Whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue keepeth his soul from troubles. Proud and haughty scorner is his name, who dealeth in proud wrath” (Proverbs 21:23-24).
He is like a doorkeeper. A doorkeeper is a fellow that keeps the door shut and only opens it when authorized folks need to pass through. In the same sense, a wise man keeps his mouth shut and only allows approved words and thoughts to pass through to the hearing of others. Solomon does deal with this in 13:3, “He that keepeth his mouth keepeth his life: but he that openeth wide his lips shall have destruction” (Proverbs 13:3).
The best thing to do is just to be quiet. Paul says, “And that ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you” (I Thessalonians 4:11).
“Proud and haughty scorner is his name, who dealeth in proud wrath.”
Well is this dealt with in Proverbs 16:18, “Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall.” The proud wrath here is the wrath God brings upon the proud. Jesus said, “And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted” (Matthew 23:12). A guy that is proud and haughty is fooling with God, and God will deal with him in wrath, and destroy him.
“Whoso keepeth his mouth and his tongue . . .” Guards the one and bridles the other; is careful of what he says, that it is truth, and without dissimulation and guile; and is not injurious to the characters of men, and is not offensive and provoking; who abstains from ill and wrathful language, and which tends to stir up wrath and contention. Aben Ezra distinguishes between the mouth and tongue, and interprets it, that keeps his mouth from eating, that is, immoderately and intemperately; and his tongue from speaking evil: but it is best to understand both of the same thing, of speech or language, which when a man is careful of, he “keepeth his soul from troubles;” his conscience clear of guilt and distress, and his person from being concerned in quarrels, contentions, and lawsuits, which such who give their tongues too much liberty are involved in.
“Proud and haughty scorner is his name,”. . . He shall be called a proud fool, a haughty fellow, a scornful blockhead; he shall get himself an ill name, and be treated with contempt; “who dealeth in proud wrath;” whose pride shows itself in wrathful expressions and actions; who is proud and passionate in all his dealings with men, and who as it were makes a trade of pride and passion: to none is this character more applicable than to Antichrist, the man of sin, that sits in the seat of the scornful; exalts himself above all that is called God, has a mouth speaking blasphemies, and a look more stout than his fellows, and deals in proud wrath against the saints of the most High.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 22, 2020 2:49:52 GMT -6
To “train” is much more than just talk. It means that you force a child to do right.
TODAY’S VERSE:
“Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it” (Proverbs 22:6).
When an athlete is in training, he forces himself to be disciplined. He follows a strict regimen whereby he spends time in the gym with the weights, he diligently watches what he eats, and he follows a sensible routine. He intends to excel in his chosen sport. As parents, we want our children to excel in their lives.
When a recruit is training in the army, the drill instructor just doesn’t ask them to show up in the morning and run five or ten miles. They whip them into shape doing whatever is necessary. They are creating a fighting machine that will obey any and all orders given to them in the heat of combat, and the boy is turned into a man.
“Train up a child,” train them up! Tell them what’s right, and then make them do what’s right. Establish character in them. There are a number of ways to create or form character in a child. These things need to be constantly done, and redone, in the life of a child. A child takes more than just a few admonitions to get him straightened out.
There is something called “Bible Action Truths,” or “B.A.T.S.” They are character-principles in the Bible. Like “telling the truth,” they are character-principles. These principles need to be taught to the child. There are various ways to teach them, one way is through mottos. You constantly reinforce Bible truth through the use of mottos: “It doesn’t pay to lie,” “Crime never pays,” you just constantly repeat these truths in the child’s hearing.
You also teach children through stories. Good stories, like you would find in McGuffey’s Readers. They taught lessons on trusting God, doing right, and telling the truth.
When children read these stories, they identify with them. Good stories that teach good Bible truths.
You can also have signs throughout the house with Bible verses on them, such as, “Trust in the Lord,” “It is better to trust in the Lord than to have confidence in man.”
Then there are “adult examples,” this is the positive side of character-building. There is a negative side. You want to promote these things. You want to get rid of television programming that enforce negative behavior and inculcate positive role models in your children’s lives. There is wisdom in ridding the home of humanistic values. Those things are character-destroying instruments. Much on television destroys character, initiative, desire, imagination, principles, and morals. If we haven’t got that figured out yet, we need to think it through. Bad music also destroys character.
Humanistic values are “Do it now!” “Have your own way!” Those things need to be done away with. Once you rid your child of these influences today, then you begin to promote the positive aspects of character. Be aware that a public-school education is going to teach them just the opposite of what it is you are trying to do. They are going to instill the world’s values, and not God’s. We form character in a child by reminding the child often of principles that are associated with reward, success, and doing right and pleasing God. It isn’t easy to do. It takes up to twenty years to do it right. “And when he is old, he will not depart them it.” If you embed these principles into the mind of a child, and when he is away, he cannot forget those truths, for they will be a part of his personality.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 23, 2020 2:01:22 GMT -6
The Democrats are constantly warning that the Republicans are going to take our country back 50 years. Great! I wish they would take it back 100 years, back to the day when they had some real revivals in this country.
TODAY’S VERSE:
“Remove not the old landmark; and enter not into the fields of the fatherless: For their redeemer is mighty; he shall plead their cause with thee” (Proverbs 23:10-11).
There are some landmarks that absolutely have to stay where they are: Calvary, the Bible, the Local church. We live in an age where it seems that everyone wants to bring everything “up-to-date” with the times. We have to make the Bible and the church relevant. Rats! What we need to do is to make folks repent. We need to go back, not forward.
“Remove not the old landmark; and enter not into the fields of the fatherless,” technically, the Jews were given an inheritance, and moving a landmark was stealing land from them: “Some remove the landmarks; they violently take away flocks, and feed thereof” (Job 24:2).
“Thou shalt not remove thy neighbour's landmark, which they of old time have set in thine inheritance, which thou shalt inherit in the land that the LORD thy God giveth thee to possess it . . . Cursed be he that removeth his neighbour's landmark. And all the people shall say, Amen” (Deuteronomy 19:14, 27:17).
Ownership of the land was to be retained in the family, but if for some reason they did sell their land to meet debts—that land was to be returned to them at the year of Jubilee.
“. . . and enter not into the fields of the fatherless,” when the patriarch died, the people would take advantage of the widow. They are still doing that today.
“For their redeemer is mighty; he shall plead their cause with thee,” God established those landmarks. “Enter not in the fields of the fatherless,” Why? Because “their redeemer is mighty.” It is like a courtroom situation and God will “plead their cause,” and anyone that messes with those ancient landmarks is going to come up on the short end of the stick. It is a direct confrontation with God.
This rule is a serious matter. Solomon also wrote, “Rob not the poor, because he is poor: neither oppress the afflicted in the gate: For the LORD will plead their cause, and spoil the soul of those that spoiled them” (Proverbs 22:22-23). Moses had written, “Ye shall not afflict any widow, or fatherless child. If thou afflict them in any wise, and they cry at all unto me, I will surely hear their cry; And my wrath shall wax hot, and I will kill you with the sword; and your wives shall be widows, and your children fatherless” (Exodus 22:22-24).
Love orphans and widows: go out of your way to help them whenever possible. This is the pure religion of Jesus Christ (James 1:27). The consequences of neglecting them or taking advantage of them are dire. And if you see them being oppressed, the Highest is watching (Ecclesiastes 5:8). He is the Father of the fatherless, and the Judge of widows (Psalm 68:5). Let all abortionists, their legislators, and protectors, take heed. Judgment is coming, soon.
No man can get away with doing wrong, because it is going to be made right.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 24, 2020 9:35:31 GMT -6
Socrates defined envy as “the daughter of pride, the author of murder and revenge, the begetter of secret sedition, the perpetual tormenter of virtue. Envy is the filthy slime of the soul; venom, a poison, a quicksilver, which consumeth the flesh and drieth up the bones.”
TODAY’S VERSE:
“Be not thou envious against evil men, neither desire to be with them” (Proverbs 24:1).
In its most basic sense, envy is the desire to be like others. It could be their riches, their talent, their successes; but the bottom line is that they want to have their life. Do we desire their end as well? Evil men prosper at the cost of their souls. They have exchanged their eternal heaven for temporary joy on earth. There can be no comparison. Most of the advice that Solomon gives, is given to his son. When we are young, we make decisions that will affect not only our lives in this world, but also the one which is to come.
As one studies Proverbs, he comes to the conclusion that pride is the foundation sin for all others. It is what caused Lucifer to shed his holiness for the slimy scales of the serpent, Satan. Close behind pride in its severity, is envy.
Envy causes physical illness: “A sound heart is the life of the flesh: but envy the rottenness of the bones” (Proverbs 14:30). When one is consumed with the lust for other men’s success, his very foundation is eaten up by bitterness over his own situation in life. The bile attacks many areas of one’s body to the point where they become sick. One may look at how Ahab was affected by his lust for Naboth’s vineyard: “And he laid him down upon his bed, and turned away his face, and would eat no bread” (1 Kings 21:4). He became physically ill.
Envy harms its subjects: “Wrath is cruel, and anger is outrageous; but who is able to stand before envy?” (Proverbs 27:4).
Envy is the product of a carnal mind: “For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men?” (I Corinthians 3:3).
Envy is a work of the flesh: “Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God” (Galatians 5:19-21).
Envy is a doctrine of demons: “But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth. This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish. For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work” (James 3:14-16).
Solomon tells us to neither lust for their position, nor desire to be with them. “Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners” (I Corinthians 15:33). Be content with such as God has given you and understand that there is nothing on this earth that we can give up that God will not make up one day through our faithful service to Him. There is a sense where we can have it now, and lose it later—or lose it now, and have in abundance in God’s due time.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 25, 2020 2:22:44 GMT -6
“Go not forth hastily to strive, lest thou know not what to do in the end thereof, when thy neighbour hath put thee to shame. Debate thy cause with thy neighbour himself; and discover not a secret to another” (Proverbs 25:8-9).
“Go not forth hastily,” don't be in a big hurry “to strive.” This verse deals with handling people problems. I mean, you’ve got problems with people. And we will, as long as we're around people, and long as we are the way the we are, we are going to have problems with people. That's the way you handle it.
“Go not forth hastily to strive, lest thou know not what to do in the end thereof, when thy neighbour hath put thee to shame.” In other words, get the story from the horse’s mouth before you go accusing somebody, or you go out for revenge against somebody that you think has done something that somebody else has told you about. Now, the way you are to take care of this is found in verse 9.
“Debate thy cause with thy neighbor himself; and discovere not a secret to another.” If there is a problem between you and your neighbor, it is between you and him. Go to him: “Moreover if thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother” (Matthew 18:15). Especially your friend and your brother in Christ. You are to go to him not anybody else. Now, if he will not receive you, or if he will not listen to you then take it before the church; but your first obligation is to go to him.
You are not to go out and just say, “Hey man what did you do? And start trouble. You go to him and ask, “Did you do this? I've heard, or somebody said, or I have been told such and such, and I'm trying to get the truth.” Go to the person and find out, “in the end thereof, thy neighbour put thee to shame.”
In other words, when he tells you the truth that he didn't have anything to do with it, or it isn't like you were told; and you are all out of sorts about it—then you will be the one that is brought to shame.
That's just how to handle the problems of life. Before we go accusing somebody or judging somebody or condemning somebody, get the story straight from the horse’s mouth. Go to it, “debate thy cause.”
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Post by Deleted on Dec 26, 2020 3:39:14 GMT -6
The dictionary says that dissembling means to hide the true motives, or real feelings, and he's deceitful. Something else that dissembler does, he breaks up the assembly. Yeah, he'll take apart the assembly, he will disassemble people.
TODAY’S VERSE:
“He that hateth dissembleth with his lips, and layeth up deceit within him; When he speaketh fair, believe him not: for there are seven abominations in his heart. Whose hatred is covered by deceit, his wickedness shall be shewed before the whole congregation” (Proverbs 26:24-26).
“He that hateth,” he’s got hatred, it is just bottled up in his heart. “He that hateth dissembleth with his lips and layeth up deceit within him.” He is a hypocrite. “He layeth up deceit within him,” he deceives people. He acts religious, he acts pious, acts righteous, acts like he is spiritual when he really isn't. Deep down inside he’s got a hatred for people, has a hatred for preaching, he has a hatred for what's right. He dissembleth. He hides his motives with his lips. That’s a word for a hypocrite, the way a hypocrite talks. He dissembleth.
“For before that certain came from James, he did eat with the Gentiles: but when they were come, he withdrew and separated himself, fearing them which were of the circumcision. And the other Jews dissembled likewise with him; insomuch that Barnabas also was carried away with their dissimulation” (Galatians 2:12-13).
In this passage, the things that Peter was doing brought about a division amongst the brethren.
Peter was running around and saying, “Well, Paul and Silas and those fellas there are going to go to the Gentiles, and the Gentiles going to get in on it, and then when he got around a bunch of other Jews he kind of held off from the Gentiles; in other words, he wouldn't eat with them. He would assemble with the Jews, and as a result some of the other Jews started doing that too, and they wouldn't accept the Gentiles as well as other Jews. And by that dissembling it says that Paul rebuke Peter for that. Galatians 2:14 goes on to say: “But when I saw that they walked not uprightly according to the truth of the gospel, I said unto Peter before them all, If thou, being a Jew, livest after the manner of Gentiles, and not as do the Jews, why compellest thou the Gentiles to live as do the Jews?”
Paul said, “I withstood him [Peter] to the face because he was to be blamed” (verse 11).
In other words, before the Jews came, old Peter was sitting down and eating with the Gentiles, you know, like they were part of the family of God; but when his fellow Jews came, he would run off and separate himself, because he was afraid of what the Jews might think. Then the other Jews did the same thing as Peter was doing, insomuch that even Barnabas did the same thing.
A respecter people, you know, will produce that. That's a hypocritical thing. “He that hateth dissembleth with his lips, and layeth up deceit within him.”
“When he speaketh fair, believe him not: for there are seven abominations in his heart” (Proverbs 26:25).
Verse 25 goes along with verse 24. “When he speaketh fair,” or like Romans 16:18 says, “fair speeches and fair words,” “believe him not: for there are seven abominations in his heart.” and you'll find every one of them in Matthew 15:19, “for out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies.”
“Whose hatred,” hatred is mentioned back in verse 24. “Whose hatred is covered by deceit,” he doesn’t let anyone know it, he’s real pious. He’s kind of like the scribes and Pharisees. They were so pious around Jesus; “Good master, what good thing . . .,” or “Would you answer this question?” But deep down inside they held a hatred for Him. They would kill Him if they got the opportunity. If not for the people, they would have killed Him.
“Whose hatred is covered by deceit, his wickedness shall be shewed before the whole congregation,” verse 10, God will reward him either in this life, or in death in hell.
“Them that sin rebuke before all, that others also may fear” (I Timothy 5:20).
God tells the preacher, “them that sin rebuke before all,” in other words, a man that is wrong or is wicked, he is to be rebuked in the assembly and then later on God will rebuke him.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 27, 2020 1:08:38 GMT -6
Our King James Bible does not leave us wondering what a word means, and we don’t need any Greek scholars and Bible professors to tell us. The Bible is its own best dictionary, and the Holy Spirit is our teacher.
TODAY’S VERSE:
“A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself; but the simple pass on, and are punished” (Proverbs 27:12).
Right there is the definition of prudence. You can have confidence in your Bible. You don’t have to worry about the “originals” which no one in the last few thousand years have ever seen. We . . . have . . . God’s . . . preserved . . . and . . . Holy . . . Word . . . in . . . our . . . hands!
The definition of prudence is “seeing things in advance.” It is being concerned with, and dealing with, future results, sowing and reaping and so forth and so on. That's all a prudent man is. Before he does things, or says things, he is concerned about what effect it will have on his future, and somebody else’s future. A prudent teenager would not post something silly on Facebook that will keep him from ever getting hired by a decent company. He looks at how it's going to come out. He's got the long view, and not the short view.
Some people are only concerned in what they can get today. Bob Jones Sr. said, “Never sacrifice the permanent on the altar of the immediate.” In other words, don't throw away the future just for a thrill today. That's not a prudent man. That's a simple person. Solomon says, “The simple pass on, and are punished.” They don't see the result of what they're doing, they don't want to see it. They're just so wrapped up in what they're doing they don't want to see the punishment, the result, the judgment that will come upon them.
The prudent man hides himself from all that. That's a great passage! See, all it’s saying there is that a prudent man understands the law of sowing and reaping. And a simple do not understand that what you do today can affect you for bad tomorrow.
Be careful! Be cautious! Do not get surprised! What could happen that might hurt you? Optimism is risky; pessimism is safe. Learn wisdom. Prudent men look ahead and adjust their lives to avoid loss, pain, or trouble. Wise men are vigilant to spot changes coming that could cost them, and so they avoid them. Foolish men live day by day without regard to the future and get caught by life’s frequent changes, and so they are hurt by them.
Do you believe most of what you hear or read? Are you decisive and opinionated? Be careful! Wise men are cautious, critical, pessimistic, and skeptical about unproven assertions or situations. They do not believe all they hear or read, and they do not make decisions without carefully analyzing possible danger (Proverbs 14:15). Only foolish simpletons naively view the future and rush forward optimistically. And they get punished for it.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 28, 2020 8:10:27 GMT -6
“He that turneth away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer shall be abomination” (Proverbs 28:9).
“He that turneth away his ear from hearing the law,” like the guy back up in verse 4 that forsakes the law: “They that forsake the law praise the wicked: but such as keep the law contend with them.”
“. . . even his prayer shall be abomination.” So many people pray their memorized, vain repetitions, which Jesus says, “the heathen do.” So many prayers are directed to the wrong mediator, for there is one mediator between God and man, and that MAN is Jesus Christ. Not his mothers, and not some saved who may or may not be a sinner saved by grace. It is true, some prayers can not penetrate the ceiling of your home, let alone the throne of grace. Today, we are going to look at some hindrances to prayer.
There about seven things that hinder prayer, and this is one of them. Sin, personal sin hinders prayer.
“If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me” (Psalms 66:18).
Not only does sin hinder prayer, but also insincerity hinders prayer.
“From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members? Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts” (James 4:1-3).
It says, you ask, and you don’t receive, because you ask amiss.
Giving God second best hinders your prayers:
“Ye offer polluted bread upon mine altar; and ye say, Wherein have we polluted thee? In that ye say, The table of the LORD is contemptible. And if ye offer the blind for sacrifice, is it not evil? and if ye offer the lame and sick, is it not evil? offer it now unto thy governor; will he be pleased with thee, or accept thy person? saith the LORD of hosts. And now, I pray you, beseech God that he will be gracious unto us: this hath been by your means: will he regard your persons? saith the LORD of hosts” (Malachi 1:7-9).
God said, “You give me second best, I won’t give you anything.”
The fourth thing that hinders prayer is faithlessness.
God said, “Let a man ask in faith” in James 1:6. You better ask believing, or you'll get nothing.
Then, five, is selfishness and that's right here in proverbs.
“Whoso stoppeth his ears at the cry of the poor, he also shall cry himself, but shall not be heard” (Proverbs 21:13).
A sixth reason for no answered prayer is marriage problems. When the wife and the husband are not getting along together, and not doing right by one another, then their prayers are hindered.
“Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the word, they also may without the word be won by the conversation of the wives; While they behold your chaste conversation coupled with fear. Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel; But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price. For after this manner in the old time the holy women also, who trusted in God, adorned themselves, being in subjection unto their own husbands: Even as Sara obeyed Abraham, calling him lord: whose daughters ye are, as long as ye do well, and are not afraid with any amazement. Likewise, ye husbands, dwell with them according to knowledge, giving honour unto the wife, as unto the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life; that your prayers be not hindered” (I Peter 3:1-7).
Seven, an unforgiving spirit. If you don't forgive others, God will not forgive you:
“For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses” (Matthew 6:14-15).
These are seven reasons that people's prayer life gets shattered. That’s how to kill your prayer life.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 29, 2020 1:32:58 GMT -6
“He, that being often reproved hardeneth his neck, shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy” (Proverbs 29:1).
“He, that being often reproved . . .” if a man will ‘turn” at that reproof, God won’t harden His heart, He will soften it. Take Cornelius, he was soft to God’s dealing. Or Paul. Paul was adamantly against the Christians in Acts chapter 9, in verse 5-6, when the Lord appears to him there—and the light from heaven knocks him down— “And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. And he trembling and astonished said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do.”
“it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks,” that is, the pricks of the conscience on the heart, the pricks of the Holy Spirit against the heart. They are thrust upon a man’s heart to see if it will respond, if that heart will take truth. If it won’t take truth, if it won’t receive truth—then God hardens it. It if will take truth, then God deals more and more with it and reveals more and more to it. Until eventually the Gospel is sent to that individual who has turned or repented of his sin and gets saved.
“He, that being often reproved . . .” is a great message to the lost. Do we even realize how many times Americans hear the gospel over a lifetime? How many times they have had opportunities to get right with God? How many times they have been reproved of their sin? And haven’t done anything about it? It is like less than 10% of people that get saved after the age of 50. It’s about 90% at the age of 10-12. By the time a man gets to be 50-60 (some younger) their hearts are so hardened over the years that he won’t respond well to the pricking of the heart.
“He, that being often reproved . . .” over time he “hardeneth his neck,” and so as the heart has hardened, they become a stiff-necked people, and here is the problem-- “shall suddenly be destroyed” --he says, well, “Maybe tomorrow, or next week, or sometime I’ll do this or that with ‘religion’” Well, the rich man in Luke 12 had made all his plans without God, and God cut him off suddenly, “and that without remedy.” There is no remedy to hell, once a man is in, he is in and there is no way out. The rich man in Luke 16 was looking at an eternity without even a drop of water to cool his tongue.
The surgeon general likes to warn people that smoking cigarettes is a leading cause of death, but here Solomon is saying that unrepentant sin is the leading cause of death—suddenly—and without remedy.
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Post by Deleted on Dec 30, 2020 2:19:38 GMT -6
“There be three things which go well, yea, four are comely in going: A lion which is strongest among beasts, and turneth not away for any; A greyhound; an he goat also; and a king, against whom there is no rising up” (Proverbs 30:29-31).
“There be three things which go well,” now, this is in a sense of motion or movement, “yea, four are comely in going,” how they run, how they move, comely, beautiful, graceful. The lion in verse 30. Now, these are references in these things here to Satan, or the Antichrist, in his goings.
The Bible says about Christ, that His going forth are as the sun in Psalm 19; so, the Devil is going to go forth one of these days and take over; and he is going to be calm and beautiful to people in this world. And it says a lion, which is the “strongest among beasts, and turneth not away for any,” so Satan is very strong. He is said to be a roaring lion in First Peter 5:8, and it says that the Antichrist who is a leopard has the mouth of a lion (Revelation 13:1-3). So, the connection there is with the Antichrist. He will be very beautiful and acceptable to the world.
Next, a Greyhound. The greyhound is very fast. We'd say as fast as lightning. Christ said, “. . . and I beheld Satan fall as lightning” (Luke 10:18). So, the Greyhound has some connection with Satan. And you might note the fact that he is a dog. In Second Peter 2:22 a dog is associated with false prophets Satan has the false prophets he goes.
Then the he goat. Oh boy, there is no doubt about the he goat. That's a reference to the Antichrist in Daniel 8:21, and all Satanists have the he goat as their emblem.
Then he says, “And a King, against whom there is no rising up.” A King with a great army, like the Caesars, like Alexander the Great, or Nebuchadnezzar. Great Kings with great armies, against whom there is no rising up. Satan is a King (Daniel 7:23 and Daniel 11:37).
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Post by Deleted on Dec 31, 2020 2:04:40 GMT -6
“She will do him good and not evil all the days of her life” (Proverbs 31:12).
In verse 10, we saw her principles. In verse 11, her prudence.
Now, we notice her persistence in verse 12. “She will do him good and not evil,” when she feels like it. It doesn’t say that, does it? “She will do him good and not evil all the days of her life.”
Back in Genesis, it says that her “desire shall be to her husband,” it’s not a job, it’s not a career. A woman's desire in the Bible; a godly woman, a virtuous woman, is to her husband. In any neighborhood, in every city, there are divorces, wrecked homes, where there are small children that will never get over those divorces. In almost every one of those cases, the woman was working outside of the home and found another man out on the job. You know where she should have been? She should have been in that home taking care of the children.
“She will do him good and not evil all the days of her life.” Her persistence. She's a good companion, she's a good friend, she’s a good partner, she’s a good parent, she’s a good lover, she’s a good motivator, and she’s a good home coordinator. Something else that she is, she's a good fan of her man.
You try to get a Proverbs 31 woman to say something bad about her husband. She’s the best fan that man has. Now, when they are alone and talking, it might be a different story, but when she's in the public eye, she is loyal to her husband. You will never hear her say anything derogatory about him. That's a good woman that will do him good all the days of her life. Ladies, that's something you need, that is virtuosity.
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