Which source code is loaded into your guidance system?
One thing that marks a believer, or anyone for that matter, is what guides their decisions and how they view life. People generally get wiser as they get older, but what wisdom spans the ages and is worthy of being trusted?
Believers will, and unbelievers may, look towards the Bible in times of difficulty to find comfort or direction. Just reading the Bible (much like attending church) does not make one a Christian although they may refer to it often. How can one’s point of view affect how they interpret the knowledge found in the Bible?
PROVERBS
Proverbs 3, among many passages, is full of wisdom and gives the reader a good overview of what it is to live a life that conforms to the will of God.
My son, do not forget my law,
But let your heart keep my commands;
2 For length of days and long life
And peace they will add to you.
3 Let not mercy and truth forsake you;
Bind them around your neck,
Write them on the tablet of your heart,
4 And so find favor and high esteem
In the sight of God and man.
5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
And lean not on your own understanding;
6 In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He shall direct your paths.
7 Do not be wise in your own eyes;
Fear the Lord and depart from evil.
8 It will be health to your flesh,
And strength to your bones.
9 Honor the Lord with your possessions,
And with the firstfruits of all your increase;
10 So your barns will be filled with plenty,
And your vats will overflow with new wine.
11 My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord,
Nor detest His correction;
12 For whom the Lord loves He corrects,
Just as a father the son in whom he delights.
13 Happy is the man who finds wisdom,
And the man who gains understanding;
14 For her proceeds are better than the profits of silver,
And her gain than fine gold.
15 She is more precious than rubies,
And all the things you may desire cannot compare with her.
16 Length of days is in her right hand,
In her left hand riches and honor.
17 Her ways are ways of pleasantness,
And all her paths are peace.
18 She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her,
And happy are all who retain her.
19 The Lord by wisdom founded the earth;
By understanding He established the heavens;
20 By His knowledge the depths were broken up,
And clouds drop down the dew.
21 My son, let them not depart from your eyes—
Keep sound wisdom and discretion;
22 So they will be life to your soul
And grace to your neck.
23 Then you will walk safely in your way,
And your foot will not stumble.
24 When you lie down, you will not be afraid;
Yes, you will lie down and your sleep will be sweet.
25 Do not be afraid of sudden terror,
Nor of trouble from the wicked when it comes;
26 For the Lord will be your confidence,
And will keep your foot from being caught.
27 Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due,
When it is in the power of your hand to do so.
28 Do not say to your neighbor,
“Go, and come back,
And tomorrow I will give it,”
When you have it with you.
29 Do not devise evil against your neighbor,
For he dwells by you for safety’s sake.
30 Do not strive with a man without cause,
If he has done you no harm.
31 Do not envy the oppressor,
And choose none of his ways;
32 For the perverse person is an abomination to the Lord,
But His secret counsel is with the upright.
33 The curse of the Lord is on the house of the wicked,
But He blesses the home of the just.
34 Surely He scorns the scornful,
But gives grace to the humble.
35 The wise shall inherit glory,
But shame shall be the legacy of fools. – Proverbs 3 (NKJV)
READING CRITIQUE
When reading through this passage, not everyone will understand it from a God-centric view. I know, because I spent many years in the pews of a church where the Bible was not held up as the inerrant Word of God. There are certain words that from a worldly point of view can be widely interpreted.
Words, for instance, like “TRUST” “TRUTH” ‘WICKED” “MY LAW” “WISDOM” “WISE” all have a meaning, meanings with a worldly connotations as opposed to a Biblical, God-centric meaning. They can be viewed through a secular lens or they can be viewed through the eyes of God.
People, including my former self, would deem useful a Bible passage, most often taken out of context, if it resonates with feelings and secular-world (moral relative) views of life. In other words, if reading the Bible ever confirms a personal point of view, then the Bible confirm our way of thinking. If it doesn’t confirm a random worldly view, then the Bible must simply be irrelevant. In effect, a secularist with create a god (or a system of truth) that fits the way they choose to believe. In other words, we resonate with passages that fit the personal image of a deity. It can be a composite from many different sources.
That’s the effect, in large part, of the way the scripture was presented from the pulpit of the church I grew up in. Pastors, teaching ministers and the community have a strong effect on a congregant that sticks around. If our spiritual community is already off its spiritual course heading, there is little competition to secular world influence with all its vices being messaged your way around the clock.
We are made in the image of God but, as fallen man, we are also full of iniquity. It’s natural to put ourselves on a pedestal, glorifying ourselves when we find something that confirms our predispoitions about what the world is like, or shall I say, our desired perception of how the world is like. Not just the world, but truth itself. We don’t hesitate to justify our own truth, that is, when we make God conform to our “reality”.
When we make a god that we create for ourselves, whether a graven one or one that is developed in our minds based on our personally developed values, that is called idolatry in the Bible and a breaking the 1st and 2nd Commandments.
When we take a Bible or rather God-centric point of view, we begin to see how the real truth, the Truth, is holy, objective and in the nature of the God who created the heavens, the earth, and humans in His image. God embodies Truth. God Is Truth. The only way I know if that people can begin to accept that point of view is to submit oneself to the Lordship of Jesus Christ and to repent of the sins as revealed through God’s word as revealed in Scripture.
Need to Be “Called”
Bible teaches that when believers have been called by God, they are endowed with God’s Holy Spirit. Being called is a way the same being elected by God’s grace, to be chosen, since we cannot work our way to salvation. It is through the guidance of the Holy Spirit that the truth of the Bible is revealed to the saved person. I would further describe called as being given the seal of God, that leads to life of change and being able to declare Jesus Christ as Lord.
15 “If you love Me, keep My commandments. 16 And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever— 17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. 18 I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you. – John 14:15-18
This is one reason why people who are not saved (i.e., born again, called, elected) find it difficult to declare the Bible as truth. If one cannot declare the Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, the Bible remains, in essence, just another book in the library of worldly knowledge. So sad, and so tragic, that many churches treat the Bible in this manner.
The Bible, after all, is not merely a collection of wise teachings, it is centered about God’s plan for human redemption. Through prophecy, fulfilled prophecy, miraculous acts of God, and eye-witness historical evidence, the Bible points to the Savior Jesus Christ.
Once a person is able to declare Jesus Christ is Lord and that Jesus (the Man) died for their sins and was bodily resurrected from the dead – the personal transformation begins. The Bible then becomes, what it has always been, critical in understanding the living, eternal and True God. It was one of Jesus’ main purposes of His earthly ministry to reveal what the, otherwise invisible, Kingdom of Heaven is like, what the character of God is like and how He, Jesus, is a fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy.
Under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, the truth begins to be further revealed and the Bible itself can be used as a means of judging all worldly truths and not the other way around. Jesus taught like no other human ever taught and revealed truth as “one having authority” not like the religious teachers who always referenced other human teachers.
And they were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. – Mark 1:22
The Bible is God’s supernatural work informing us of who He is and what His plans are. In this light, reading Proverbs is far more than words of wisdom by an ancient author.
How do you know where you stand in God’s eyes in building a foundation for the truth? Are you using the lens provided by God or relying on your own understanding?
For a one minute explanation of the Gospel, watch this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LCP9UcC7BzE
For a review of the Ten Commandments: https://www.challenyee.com/the-ten-commandments/
CKY
12.17.23