Proverbs 15:8
"The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the LORD: but the prayer of the upright is his delight."
Dad, can I have a candy bar? Can we go to Silver Dollar City this week? Will you read out loud to us? Can I have.....? Can we do....? Will you....? Fill in the blanks. As children we have all asked questions like these. As parents, we have heard these questions asked. As children grow older the questions change but the idea remains the same. The child has a need, want or desire and turns to someone who has the ability to fulfill or grant that need, want or desire. Those questions can get frustrating, especially around Christmas or birthdays. But in the end, we are pleased when our children come to us with their hands out. We want to help them. We want to show ourselves generous. We delight that they see us as "The Able Supplier" of their needs, wants and desires.
Our verse for the week, Proverbs 15:8, speaks to that idea as it relates to the Lord. The first part of the verse says that He detests the sacrifice of the wicked or ungodly person. It’s not that He dislikes the sacrifice. It’s just that He would rather have obedience. In 1 Samuel 15, King Saul disobeys the command of the Lord as given to him by the prophet Samuel. The prophet has this to say to the king upon hearing of the king’s disobedience. 1 Samuel 15:22 (ESV) "... Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, ..." The verse goes on to say that the Lord finds the prayer of the upright acceptable or delightful. Think about that for a moment. He is the Almighty God and the Creator of Heaven and earth. He is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. He owns the cattle on a thousand hills. And He is delighted when His people come to Him in prayer.
I want to make a couple of brief observations here. The difference between the wicked and the upright is basically the issue of obedience. The wicked resist God’s will and refuse to obey His commands. The upright walk straight. They obey. They are certainly not perfect but they strive to learn and obey the will of God. Here is another observation. Prayer is sacrifice. When we come to God in prayer with our needs, wants and desires there is, or should be, an element of humility. Prayer, by it’s very nature, presupposes the authority of God to grant or deny our request. In other words, our will, our desires and hopes are given over to His will and plan for us. We accept that He knows what is best and will answer accordingly. He delights in this kind of humble prayer.
He wants to meet our needs. He wants to show himself as "The Able Supplier". He waits, as a loving Father, for His children to come to Him with their needs, wants and desires. Allow Him to delight in you today. Humbly bow before Him in prayer. Give Him the sacrifice of an obedient and humble heart.
Monday, January 26, 2009
Monday, January 19, 2009
Proverbs Chapter 14
Proverbs 14:4
"Where no oxen are, the crib is clean: but much increase is by the strength of the ox."
In the 1984 movie, "The Karate Kid", Daniel Larusso begs Mr. Miyagi to teach him karate. Mr. Miyagi finally agrees and starts Daniel on a series of work projects that needed to be accomplished. Wax on, wax off. Sand the floor. Paint the fence. Paint the house. Daniel becomes frustrated with doing these menial tasks. He wants to learn karate not be a slave for Mr. Miyagi! One day he’s had enough. He’s quitting. His shoulder is stuck and his muscles are sore. Mr. Miyagi fixes his shoulder and proceeds to show him how these dull, boring and difficult tasks have helped him develop muscle memory for use in karate blocking techniques. Daniel blocks several punches and kicks thrown at him by Miyagi and learns a valuable lesson. Unknowingly Daniel learned the truth of Proverbs 14:4. The "crib needed a lot of cleaning". It was hard. Day in and day out the tasks had to be done. But in the end he realized the "increase given by the strength of the ox". He reaped a harvest of foundational karate skills.
Having an ox is a lot of hard work. We must feed it. We must clean up after it. We care for it’s health, mend the harness and fix the plow. But we do all of this so that we can plant and reap much more than we feed the ox. We do it so we can use the ox manure to fertilize our soil which again increases the harvest. We care for it’s health and keep our equipment in good shape so it’s all ready to work when it’s time for planting and harvesting.
The life lesson here is easy to understand but not so easy to do. God often calls upon us to do "hard things". The tasks are tedious, boring and difficult. But He is a wise farmer. He knows the harvest that lies ahead. He knows the blessings that are in store for us tomorrow if we will but "clean the crib" today. We train up our children in the ways of the Lord today and tomorrow we see children who are strong in the faith. We study hard in school today, even when the subject is boring and seems useless, but tomorrow we reap the benefit of that work ethic in our chosen career. We do the boring, routine maintenance on that old car today and reap the benefit of more dependable miles before it has to be replaced or have major repairs.
The list could go on and on but the point is this... You must do the hard things today in order to reap the benefits tomorrow. There will always be a harvest. It may not be what you expected it to be but God is faithful. He has a plan for your life. He has great blessings in store for you. Whatever the increased harvest is you can be sure it will include this one fruit. It will always develop in you a more Christ-like character. And that in itself is worth all the crib cleaning, car waxing, floor sanding and fence painting you are called upon to do. May God bless you as you "clean your ox’s crib" today.
"Where no oxen are, the crib is clean: but much increase is by the strength of the ox."
In the 1984 movie, "The Karate Kid", Daniel Larusso begs Mr. Miyagi to teach him karate. Mr. Miyagi finally agrees and starts Daniel on a series of work projects that needed to be accomplished. Wax on, wax off. Sand the floor. Paint the fence. Paint the house. Daniel becomes frustrated with doing these menial tasks. He wants to learn karate not be a slave for Mr. Miyagi! One day he’s had enough. He’s quitting. His shoulder is stuck and his muscles are sore. Mr. Miyagi fixes his shoulder and proceeds to show him how these dull, boring and difficult tasks have helped him develop muscle memory for use in karate blocking techniques. Daniel blocks several punches and kicks thrown at him by Miyagi and learns a valuable lesson. Unknowingly Daniel learned the truth of Proverbs 14:4. The "crib needed a lot of cleaning". It was hard. Day in and day out the tasks had to be done. But in the end he realized the "increase given by the strength of the ox". He reaped a harvest of foundational karate skills.
Having an ox is a lot of hard work. We must feed it. We must clean up after it. We care for it’s health, mend the harness and fix the plow. But we do all of this so that we can plant and reap much more than we feed the ox. We do it so we can use the ox manure to fertilize our soil which again increases the harvest. We care for it’s health and keep our equipment in good shape so it’s all ready to work when it’s time for planting and harvesting.
The life lesson here is easy to understand but not so easy to do. God often calls upon us to do "hard things". The tasks are tedious, boring and difficult. But He is a wise farmer. He knows the harvest that lies ahead. He knows the blessings that are in store for us tomorrow if we will but "clean the crib" today. We train up our children in the ways of the Lord today and tomorrow we see children who are strong in the faith. We study hard in school today, even when the subject is boring and seems useless, but tomorrow we reap the benefit of that work ethic in our chosen career. We do the boring, routine maintenance on that old car today and reap the benefit of more dependable miles before it has to be replaced or have major repairs.
The list could go on and on but the point is this... You must do the hard things today in order to reap the benefits tomorrow. There will always be a harvest. It may not be what you expected it to be but God is faithful. He has a plan for your life. He has great blessings in store for you. Whatever the increased harvest is you can be sure it will include this one fruit. It will always develop in you a more Christ-like character. And that in itself is worth all the crib cleaning, car waxing, floor sanding and fence painting you are called upon to do. May God bless you as you "clean your ox’s crib" today.
Monday, January 12, 2009
Proverbs Chapter 13
Proverbs 13:21
"Evil pursues sinners: but to the righteous good shall be repaid."
I remember and incident that took place when I was about 6 years old going to kindergarten in Tulsa, Oklahoma. A little girl in class was building a tower out of wooden blocks and it was getting rather tall. In my boyish way I thought it would be great fun to sneak up to her tower and knock it down. It came crashing down and I ran away laughing. As you can imagine the little girl didn’t think it was fun at all. I turned around to look at the results of my mischief and caught one of the blocks just above my right eye. The blocks were large and it knocked me to the ground. I ended up needing 5 stitches. My eye was swollen shut and turned a very dark purple just in time for Christmas.
This little story vividly illustrates the principle Solomon writes about in Proverbs 13:21. It is the law of "sowing and reaping". We also know it by this modern day phrase "What goes around, comes around". Solomon writes that sinners are pursued by evil or disaster. It pursues them, chases them and stalks them. And it does so with violent intentions. We may think our evil is fun or that we can get by with it. But eventually the block comes flying through the air and catches us right between the eyes. All Christians would be well-served to keep this thought in mind. There is no sin we can commit, however secretly, and get by with it. It will always catch up to us. And when it does the result is "less than fun".
On the other hand, Solomon, says the righteous shall be repaid with good. The word used here for "repaid" is closely related to the word "shalom". It means "to be safe, secure, complete, uninjured in mind or body". When the righteous are "repaid" by God they rewarded with peace. What a great place to be! At peace with God, receiving His blessing of safety and security, and uninjured by the guilt that plagues the evil-doer.
God desires to bless or repay His children with this kind of peace, safety and security. Let Him! Don’t try to run and hide like Adam and Eve did. Or like I did as a little boy. It won’t work. We can’t run far enough and fast enough to escape the consequences of our evil actions. But Praise God! We don’t have to run. If we do evil. If it pursues us with it’s evil intent. We can stop. Turn to God. Confess the sin. He has promised to forgive the repentant sinner. Where sin abounds His grace will much more abound!
"Evil pursues sinners: but to the righteous good shall be repaid."
I remember and incident that took place when I was about 6 years old going to kindergarten in Tulsa, Oklahoma. A little girl in class was building a tower out of wooden blocks and it was getting rather tall. In my boyish way I thought it would be great fun to sneak up to her tower and knock it down. It came crashing down and I ran away laughing. As you can imagine the little girl didn’t think it was fun at all. I turned around to look at the results of my mischief and caught one of the blocks just above my right eye. The blocks were large and it knocked me to the ground. I ended up needing 5 stitches. My eye was swollen shut and turned a very dark purple just in time for Christmas.
This little story vividly illustrates the principle Solomon writes about in Proverbs 13:21. It is the law of "sowing and reaping". We also know it by this modern day phrase "What goes around, comes around". Solomon writes that sinners are pursued by evil or disaster. It pursues them, chases them and stalks them. And it does so with violent intentions. We may think our evil is fun or that we can get by with it. But eventually the block comes flying through the air and catches us right between the eyes. All Christians would be well-served to keep this thought in mind. There is no sin we can commit, however secretly, and get by with it. It will always catch up to us. And when it does the result is "less than fun".
On the other hand, Solomon, says the righteous shall be repaid with good. The word used here for "repaid" is closely related to the word "shalom". It means "to be safe, secure, complete, uninjured in mind or body". When the righteous are "repaid" by God they rewarded with peace. What a great place to be! At peace with God, receiving His blessing of safety and security, and uninjured by the guilt that plagues the evil-doer.
God desires to bless or repay His children with this kind of peace, safety and security. Let Him! Don’t try to run and hide like Adam and Eve did. Or like I did as a little boy. It won’t work. We can’t run far enough and fast enough to escape the consequences of our evil actions. But Praise God! We don’t have to run. If we do evil. If it pursues us with it’s evil intent. We can stop. Turn to God. Confess the sin. He has promised to forgive the repentant sinner. Where sin abounds His grace will much more abound!
Monday, January 5, 2009
Proverbs Chapter 12
Proverbs 12:25
"Heaviness in the heart of man maketh it stoop: but a good word maketh it glad."
I love to hike and climb in the Rocky Mountains. I remember a few years back I was hiking with a group of teenage boys from our church. I was in decent shape for a man 40+ but definitely not prime. One particular day we had been hiking for most of the day and I was getting very tired. We still had to hike over a rather high pass to get to our campsite on the other side. I looked up at the pass. I saw the top and felt almost overwhelmed. Suddenly I was even more tired. I was out of breath. The pack seemed to instantly grow in weight. The pass grew even taller. I called for a short break. Once we continued on I began talking to some of the guys and before I knew it we were over the pass and camping on the other side. I learned a valuable lesson that day. When I focused on the coming task it grew more difficult. When I took my focus off the height of the pass, the weight of my pack, the lack of oxygen and my tired body it turned out to be less difficult than I had thought it would be.
The primary meaning of the word for "heaviness" is apprehension or fear because of approaching trouble. My focus on the pass we were climbing and the resulting apprehension made my mind and body "stoop" with heaviness. It is very interesting that Solomon uses the word "stoop" as the result of heaviness or fear in the heart of a man. This is the word used for "worship" in the OT. It means to bow down or prostrate oneself. Just as we "bow down" to Almighty God in worship we can "bow down" in fear and anxiety to the trials and tribulations coming our way. The principle here is that we tend to "bow down" or dare I say "worship" that which we focus on.
The verse goes on to say that a good word makes it (the heart of man) glad. To be glad is to rejoice. It is not used here as a lasting state of well being or rejoicing but as a spontaneous, unsustained feeling of gladness, usually expressed in some visible manner, that is brought on by some external and unsustained stimulus. This reaction could range from jumping up and down, to pumping your fist and shouting "yeah!", to a simple smile. That is the idea here. A good word will not remove the source of the trial nor will it completely cancel the anxiety and fear. But a good word given in the right way at the right time can help a person take his eyes off his troublesome circumstances and give him at least a moment to be glad. And even that momentary respite means a lot to a person "bowed down" by the weight of his heavy load.
Please notice that Solomon does not condemn the "stooping" that occurs from the "heaviness" in the heart. It is a natural reaction to the trials and tribulations we face. God is good and has good reasons for the trials He brings to our lives. He wants us to learn how to focus on Him and not the trial. He wants us to "bow down" to Him and not the circumstances. He wants us to use the lessons learned in our struggles as sources of "good words" for others going through similar struggles. Paul put it this way in 2 Cor 1:4, "Who (God) comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God."
"Heaviness in the heart of man maketh it stoop: but a good word maketh it glad."
I love to hike and climb in the Rocky Mountains. I remember a few years back I was hiking with a group of teenage boys from our church. I was in decent shape for a man 40+ but definitely not prime. One particular day we had been hiking for most of the day and I was getting very tired. We still had to hike over a rather high pass to get to our campsite on the other side. I looked up at the pass. I saw the top and felt almost overwhelmed. Suddenly I was even more tired. I was out of breath. The pack seemed to instantly grow in weight. The pass grew even taller. I called for a short break. Once we continued on I began talking to some of the guys and before I knew it we were over the pass and camping on the other side. I learned a valuable lesson that day. When I focused on the coming task it grew more difficult. When I took my focus off the height of the pass, the weight of my pack, the lack of oxygen and my tired body it turned out to be less difficult than I had thought it would be.
The primary meaning of the word for "heaviness" is apprehension or fear because of approaching trouble. My focus on the pass we were climbing and the resulting apprehension made my mind and body "stoop" with heaviness. It is very interesting that Solomon uses the word "stoop" as the result of heaviness or fear in the heart of a man. This is the word used for "worship" in the OT. It means to bow down or prostrate oneself. Just as we "bow down" to Almighty God in worship we can "bow down" in fear and anxiety to the trials and tribulations coming our way. The principle here is that we tend to "bow down" or dare I say "worship" that which we focus on.
The verse goes on to say that a good word makes it (the heart of man) glad. To be glad is to rejoice. It is not used here as a lasting state of well being or rejoicing but as a spontaneous, unsustained feeling of gladness, usually expressed in some visible manner, that is brought on by some external and unsustained stimulus. This reaction could range from jumping up and down, to pumping your fist and shouting "yeah!", to a simple smile. That is the idea here. A good word will not remove the source of the trial nor will it completely cancel the anxiety and fear. But a good word given in the right way at the right time can help a person take his eyes off his troublesome circumstances and give him at least a moment to be glad. And even that momentary respite means a lot to a person "bowed down" by the weight of his heavy load.
Please notice that Solomon does not condemn the "stooping" that occurs from the "heaviness" in the heart. It is a natural reaction to the trials and tribulations we face. God is good and has good reasons for the trials He brings to our lives. He wants us to learn how to focus on Him and not the trial. He wants us to "bow down" to Him and not the circumstances. He wants us to use the lessons learned in our struggles as sources of "good words" for others going through similar struggles. Paul put it this way in 2 Cor 1:4, "Who (God) comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God."
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