Multi-Dimensional

(Proverbs 30:22 KJV)  For a servant when he reigneth; and a fool when he is filled with meat;

It used to be said, “The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach.”  Of course that would be considered sexist today, even if it is still true.  It may be true but it reflects the opening salvo of a relationship.  Good cooking is not enough to build a life long relationship on.  Neither is looks or sex.  The point being made here is that a “fool” (5036) tends to be one dimensional.

If your measure of success is food then you are a fool.  Proverbs also has the same thing to say about people fixated with wealth and power.  People who only have one interest tend to be driven in that area but ignore the rest.  Followers of Jesus need to be well rounded.  No one will be great in everything and a person who is at the 50 percentile in everything is boring but we cannot rest on one strength.

So?  We may only have one gift but we have all of the fruit.  Both rooms of our character need to be developed. 

Forks and Choices

(Proverbs 29:26 KJV)  Many seek the ruler's favour; but every man's judgment cometh from the LORD.

Remember the words of Joshua,

(Joshua 24:15 KJV)  And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.

The part that sticks with us is “choose you this day whom ye will serve;...”  For Joshua it was a fork-in-the-road day.  It was a matter of picking one and going in a different direction.  That is really too simple.  Oh, that it was that easy.  In reality we make this decision repeatedly.

Walking with Jesus is just that, a walk.  It is a series of steps, each one involving choices on direction, length of stride, speed and which way we lean.  It might be possible to move forward while you lean back and throw your center of gravity behind your feet, but you would be stretching it to call it walking.  In the same way it is not safe to turn left when your eyes are to the right.  Try it in a grocery aisle some day.

So?  Seek the Lord’s favor.  Whether it leads to a longer life is up to Him.  I guarantee it will lead to a happier eternity. 

A Nation of Law

(Proverbs 28:4 KJV)  They that forsake the law praise the wicked: but such as keep the law contend with them.

We are supposed to be a nation of law and be ruled by law.  What does that mean?  It means that our society has agreed on certain types of behavior.  Some actions are acceptable; others no.  Right and wrong are defined and the standards are written down.  They are not to be changed to benefit one powerful individual.  They are not to be ignored when it is convenient.  In a broad sense that is the idea here.  As Christians we are to be law abiding.

We see that concept comes from the Bible.  The law referred to here is not the civil code that tells you not to park in front of a fire hydrant.  It is talking about the law of God which is demonstrated by, but not limited to, the Ten Commandments.  The principle is rooted in the Hebrew tradition.  God does not change.  Right and wrong do not change.  There are situations where it might be hard to make a decision but the unchanging principles are always there to guide us.

So?  Again, how can you know the rules unless you read the book?  How can you know what is wicked and who is wicked?  We are to support the righteous and abandon the evil.  It is the law. 

Attitude Trumps Action

(Proverbs 27:14 KJV)  He that blesseth his friend with a loud voice, rising early in the morning, it shall be counted a curse to him.

I wonder if this is a verse about attitude or motive.  The action is praiseworthy.  We are to bless people, even our enemies.

(Romans 12:14 KJV)  Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not.

This is what turning the other cheek and going the extra mile involves.  The problem inferred here is that we can cancel any good we do if our motive is not right.  A loud voice early in the morning says you are either trying to irritate or trying to impress.

What does this say about other things we do in life?  I think the same principle applies. 

So?  It is good to do the right things.  It is vital to have the right motivation.  Other people may not know but you do and so does God. 

Me-Ism

(Proverbs 26:12 KJV)  Seest thou a man wise in his own conceit? there is more hope of a fool than of him.

At this point the NASB is more literal when it says “eyes” (5869), which the KJV translates “his own conceit”.  The literal is good but this is one of those places where the interpretive aspect of translation is helpful.  I think that conceit is a common problem today.  We have the label of the “me generation”.  That would apply to every man and woman who has lived on the earth because the basis of sin from the Garden of Eden on has been me-ism.  Human beings rebel against God because they want to be Lord of their own lives.  People reject the life Jesus expects us to live because it demands submission.  Submission does not mix smoothly with modern teachings about self-esteem.  Reaching for the tree in the garden is an attitude supported and reinforced today.

So?  Many times there are teachings that are both/and.  This is an either/or.  Jesus said,

(Matthew 6:24 KJV)  No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

Who am I to tell you differently.  Make wise choices today.

Earrings and Pony-tails

(Proverbs 25:12 KJV)  As an earring of gold, and an ornament of fine gold, so is a wise reprover upon an obedient ear.

I tend to get distracted by cultural aberrations.  I have my normal.  There is a penumbra with raised eyebrows.  From their we move to strange and on to evil incarnate.  To me it is almost like every day is Halloween and the problem is really in me, not in the people I am observing. 

Sunday was an example.  I was visiting another church and when it was time for the sermon this guy got up on the platform and my mind just started saying, “No.”  Someone brought out a stool with a bottle on it.  I assume it was water, but one never knows, does one?  Then this guy walks out and I am assuming he will be a comedian opening up for the pastor.  Maybe he has an announcement about a street ministry.  No, he was an elder in the church and has been asked to teach today. 

He was very fashionable if you know modern ideas of fashion.  He was wearing the required jeans that looked like they had come from a dumpster behind a thrift store.  I kept telling myself they were probably very expensive.  You don’t get those perfect tears and irregular fading without a lot of artistic work.  They really were not dirty.  They just looked that way.  I adjusted to that and the required long sleeve plaid shirt worn with the tails out and the sleeves rolled half way up the forearms.  He was very contemporary.

What I had trouble getting past was his head.  Being a bit overweight made it wider than it was high.  This was emphasized by a haircut that had his head shaved up to the 10 and 2 o’clock positions.  At first I thought he had a Mohawk but then, when he turned his head, I saw that he had one of those cute little pony-tails sticking out about two inches from the back.  It was not long enough to hang down.  It stuck out.  It caught my eye every time he turned his head.

Why am I sharing all that?  After a few minutes I was able to get beyond the devotion to current trends and actually listen to what he had to say.  He was preaching about anger and how God expects us to control it.  When I listened he had a lot to share.  Notice our verse in Proverbs.  It talks about ear-rings.  It doesn’t say women.  I think we can assume that in Solomon’s day men wore earrings.  We can assume they did not wear pants.  They would look strange to us.

So?  Don’t let fashion or the lack of it keep you from listening to what God is trying to tell you.  It is too easy to judge people by the way they dress.  They may not know any better.  Or, it may be you that doesn’t know any better.  Look to the heart.  Look with agape. 

Stick Shift

(Proverbs 24:13 KJV)  My son, eat thou honey, because it is good; and the honeycomb, which is sweet to thy taste:

The contemporary mantra is that sugar is bad for you.  I am not on that bandwagon except to observe that just about anything in excess is bad for you.  To me refined sugar is simply taking something that occurs naturally in our world and extracting it because it brings pleasure.  There is nothing wrong with the “sweet” (4966) things of life. 

Sin comes into life when we take the gifts of God and misuse them.  That can be in gluttony and excess.  In this chapter we are told to enjoy honey.  In the next chapter, in verses 16 and 27 we are warned not to overdo it.  Think of your after dinner mint like your medication.  Just because one pill encourages health it does not follow that twenty will make you even better.

Misuse can also be in avoiding what God has declared good.  Sweets?  Meat?  Marriage?  How many other blessings have been proscribed in the quest for a holiness that is not of God?

So?  Moderation, timing and balance are keys to an upright life.  Although they can be developed, for many of us they will never be like an automatic transmission.  The interaction of a clutch, brake and throttle will always be with us.