PROVERBS
4:1-9 – This is ‘a father’s instructions’ to his ‘sons’ (1).
The father has been a ‘son’ (3). He has wrestled with temptation. He
has needed the exhortation – ‘Let your heart hold fast…’ (4) – and the
warning – ‘Do not turn away…’ (5). Now, we turn to the divine Father and
Son. The Father does not keep His distance from us. Through the Son, He
has come near to us. Through the Son, we come to the Father (John
14:9,6). When Scripture says, ‘Get wisdom’ (7), it means this: ‘Come to
the Father through Jesus the Son’. Wisdom brings ‘a beautiful crown’,
‘the crown of righteousness’, ‘the unfading crown of glory’ (9; 2
Timothy 4:8; 1 Peter 5:4). Be wise. Be ready for the Lord’s Return
(Matthew 25:1-13). ‘Purer… higher… greater – Our wonder, our worship,
when Jesus we see!’ (Church Hymnary, 374).
4:10-19 – ‘The path of the righteous is like the light of
dawn, which shines brighter and brighter until full day’ (18). Face the
risen Son. His life in us is like the rising sun. It begins with ‘the
first gleam of dawn’. It ‘shines ever brighter until the full light of
day’’. Christ ‘dawns on us like the morning light’ (2 Samuel 23:4). In a
moment of discovery, we say, ‘It’s just dawned on me’. It is very
wonderful when Christ reveals Himself, when He brings us out of our
darkness and into His light. This is just the beginning. There is so
much more: ‘No eye has seen, nor ear has heard, no mind has conceived
what God has prepared for those who love Him’ (1 Corinthians 2:9).
‘Light has dawned that ever shall blaze… Light a flame within my heart… Let my flame begin to spread’ (Mission Praise, 422; Songs of Fellowship, 339).
4:20-27 – ‘Let your eyes look directly forward, and your
gaze be straight before you’ (25). Living the Christian life is like
‘walking a tightrope’ – We must ‘not swerve to the right or to the left’
(27; Deuteronomy 28:14; Joshua 1:7; 23:6). Looking straight ahead,
‘let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the Author and Perfecter of our
faith…'(Hebrews 12:2). In the face of life’s many difficulties, you may
ask, “Can I ‘run with perseverance the race marked out for me’ (Hebrews
12:1)?”. Keep your eyes on your own capacity for perseverance – and
you will be filled with thoughts of your own weakness. Keep your eyes
on Christ and His preserving power (1 Peter 1:5; John 10:27-29;
Philippians 1:6; Romans 8:37-39). You will grow strong – strengthened
by Christ’s Word: ‘My grace is sufficient for you’ (2 Corinthians 12:9).
5:1-14 – Being married: There are many temptations –
the ‘loose woman’ (3-6). Be positive: Through ‘mutual love and respect’,
let’s build ‘strong and happy’ marriages, in which ‘the marriage bond
is honoured’. Singles: Don’t spoil everything by getting
entangled with those who are ‘loose’ in their commitment to believing in
and living for Jesus Christ! Bringing up children: There are
many problems – the natural reaction of the child (11-12). Our children
are to be brought up ‘in the nurture and admonition of the Lord’
(Ephesians 6:4). We need the tenderness – ‘I don’t condemn you’ – and
firmness – ‘don’t sin’ – of Christ (John 8:11). Children: The
natural reaction – ‘I hate discipline. I will not listen’ – is the
sinful reaction. Pray for God’s help – to ‘obey your parents in the
Lord’ (Ephesians 6:1-3).
5:15-23 – There is teaching here concerning faithfulness in
marriage: ‘may you rejoice in the wife of your youth… may you ever be
captivated by her love (18-19). We may apply this teaching to our
relationship with the Saviour. You loved Him so much in ‘your youth’.
You were ‘rejoicing in Him’. You were ‘captivated by His love’. ‘You
were doing so well’, but something happened – you have gone off course
(Galatians 5:7-8). Is this the story of your life? Return to ‘your first
love’ (Revelation 2:4-5). There is also a warning against
unfaithfulness (20). This can also be applied to our relationship with
Christ. He ‘loved us and gave Himself for us’. He calls us to be ‘holy… a
radiant church’ (Ephesians 5:25-27). We belong to Him. Why settle for
anything less than the Best, anything less than our Lord Jesus Christ.
6:1-15 – ‘Save yourself… like a bird from the hand of the fowler’ (5). ‘He will deliver you
from the snare of the fowler’ (Psalm 91:3). In Scripture, we have both
the promise of grace and the call to faith: ‘By grace you have been
saved’ (Ephesians 2:5), ‘Your faith has saved you’ (Luke 7:50), ‘Keep
yourselves in the love of God’, ‘To Him who is able to keep you from
falling’ (Jude 21,24). Laugh at ‘the sluggard’ (6-11), but do not laugh
too quickly or too long: You may be laughing at yourself! Looking at the
sluggard is like looking into a mirror. We see so much of ourselves in
him! ‘A worthless man, a wicked man’ – ‘He “fancies himself”. He’s “a
chancer”’. He better watch out: God doesn’t share this man’s opinion of
himself – ‘calamity will come… he will be broken beyond healing’ (15).
6:16-35 – God’s Word is our ‘lamp’ and ‘light’ (23; Psalm
119:105). It leads us in the way we are to go (22). It exposes the
darkness of the ways we are to avoid. It shows us the ‘things that the
Lord hates’, the things which are ‘an abomination to Him’ (16). Why does
God list the ‘things’ which are not pleasing to Him? He wants us to
watch how we live. He wants us to keep on choosing His way. We must not
allow things to drift. Keep God’s Word in ‘your heart always’ (21). Let
‘the reproofs of discipline’ keep you from straying (23). The world
tells us, ‘Anything goes. Do what you like. It doesn’t matter how you
live’. God’s Word speaks about sin: There is ‘no sense’ in it. It is the
way of self-destruction. It will not ‘go unpunished’ (32,29). Be
careful to obey God in everything.
7:1-27 – The way of obedience is the way of life: ‘keep My
commandments and live’ (2). This is not a shallow legalism. It is the
result of the working of the Holy Spirit in our lives. It is ‘walking in
the Spirit’. It is living as ‘a new creation’. We do not glory in our
own obedience. We ‘glory in the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ’
(Galatians 5:16; 6:16,14). Obedience is a mark of spiritual maturity.
The ‘mature’ are ‘those who have their faculties trained by practice to
distinguish good from evil’ (Hebrews 5:14). In His Word, God shows us
how we are to live and how we are not to live. We must ‘listen’ to God.
We must ‘be attentive’ to His Word, thinking on and doing ‘these things’
which will glorify Him (24; Philippians 4:8-9). ‘Sin so easily
entangles… let us fix our eyes on Jesus’ (25-27; Hebrews 12:1-2).
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