Proverbs 21

Reading the book of Proverbs this time for me is like reading it for the first time again.  I am constantly marvelling at the incredibly wide range of topics it covers.  Nothing seems to be left out… not a stage in our life, our relationships, the circumstances we are in, or the decisions that we make, or the action that we take…. everything seems to be covered!

But maybe I should not be surprised at all since these are God-breathed Words and gives us life.

The Words of God are so clear that I really find it very difficult to say anything more 🙂

Just consider today’s passage….

Bible Passage:  Proverbs 21

The principles of godly living here can apply through all the years of one’s life.

As a parent of a pre-teen and teenager, I feel shameful that I have not been teaching them properly the valuable principles of godly living from Proverbs 21.

If you have had a teenager before, you may experience this … most teens go through a period when they feel like they know everything and have all the answers.  But it is very important that they need to understand that God and His Word is the real measure of what is right (v. 2).

The problem is today, the young people are bombarded with messages of arrogance from the media and culture surrounding them.  Watching some of the TV programs my daughters watch, you can understand why they think they know it all and parents are dumb… this is because most of the TV shows show just that… smart, capable kids and ignorant, dumbo parents.

So it is ok to be proud.  But pride is still sin in God’s eyes (v. 4).

And the words from Proverbs also goes to those in working life.

I was discussing with a sister about ethics at our work place.  And truly, when I read this chapter, there are so many principles in these verses that can serve as material for a lecture on ethics in the work place and society.  Just think about it… the author here is deeply concerned about ethical behaviour and the instructions are quite specific and clear.  You know which verses you are guilty of….

Some of us are engaged in business.  It was strange… I was just talking to a brother about some of the illicit business practices that I have witnessed and here in this chapter, you literally can gain a lifetime of wisdom by taking to heart the warnings about foolish wicked business practices (vv. 5-6).

When I was young, it was ingrained in me that it was not good to be a lawyer because they may have to ‘lie’ to get their clients out of trouble.  Of course this is a wrong picture of what lawyers are (sorry lawyers).  But if we are in the legal profession, God reminds us that He is very interested in justice (vv. 13-15).  It may seem that verse 14 condones bribery but actually it is just stating a fact of life.

But we all know.. doing what is right is the only way to please the Lord.

Family life and Society life is not spared either.  From vv. 9-12, we gain some good teachings about how we should conduct our lives.  There is the importance of unity and harmony in a marriage and we should not be building up our homes on a foundation of evil.

Some of us may be placed in places of high authority.  We too should watch how we behave.

I guess the main thing is this… if we truly consider and believe that God is the Lord and King… we would do what is right….

The question as always is this… Do we?

How do we know?

Imitation is a very effective way to learn.

We just need to make sure we’re imitating the right model.

We have nothing to worry about if we follow the instruction of God’s Word. ‘Be imitators of God,’ Paul tells us (Eph. 5:1). And as we follow the Lord to the best of our abilities, we give our family and others a model they can imitate (see 1 Cor. 11:1).

Take a look in the mirror of the Word today (James 1:22-25) and make sure everything is in order.

Blessed Sabbath.