Read Pr. 26:12
There is a difference in having God's wisdom and having your own. Those who have their own think they know more than God which is foolishness. I Co. 2:13 explains that there is a difference between man's wisdom and God's. Man's wisdom is carnal and speaks of natural things. God's wisdom is taught by the Holy Spirit and compares spiritual things with spiritual things. Job said that the wisdom of God is the fear of God and to depart from evil is understanding. God condemned the king of Assyria because he though that by his own wisdom he had freed his people and won victory. Because he thought this God brought judgment down on his nation. Paul said that his teachings were not enticing words of man's wisdom but a demonstration of the Spirit and power. That is what is coming to the church. Paul prayed and it happened. We are going to enter into a time where what we decree will come to pass. That is a demonstration of power - God's power. We will need God's wisdom to know when and where to use this power but it will be given to us. The time is coming where we will see God's glory on earth.
Lord, prepare us to steward your power and your Word's. Fill us with your wisdom.
Monday, April 11, 2011
Friday, April 8, 2011
Fri.'s Devo - Change
Read Pr. 26:11
I've always heard that a criminal will return to the scene of his crime and here it is in scripture: as a dog will return to his vomit, a fool will return to his folly. Only God can change a man. Man can go through rehabilitation to change his actions and patterns of behavior but if his heart is not changed then all the rehabilitation in the world will not change his mode of operation. I just talked to a woman the other day who told me of her acquaintance that got caught embezzling thousands of dollars from her employer. She spend a year in jail only to get out and do the same thing. Lust is a condition of the heart, not a bad pattern. It will never be fixed in behavior modification programs. Jesus said, "except a man be born again, he cannot enter the kingdom of heaven". To change, a person must be born again. Paul said in Romans that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. We have the power over sin only if we are born again. Then our members are instruments of righteousness.
Lord, may we walk in all the power of our salvation.
I've always heard that a criminal will return to the scene of his crime and here it is in scripture: as a dog will return to his vomit, a fool will return to his folly. Only God can change a man. Man can go through rehabilitation to change his actions and patterns of behavior but if his heart is not changed then all the rehabilitation in the world will not change his mode of operation. I just talked to a woman the other day who told me of her acquaintance that got caught embezzling thousands of dollars from her employer. She spend a year in jail only to get out and do the same thing. Lust is a condition of the heart, not a bad pattern. It will never be fixed in behavior modification programs. Jesus said, "except a man be born again, he cannot enter the kingdom of heaven". To change, a person must be born again. Paul said in Romans that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. We have the power over sin only if we are born again. Then our members are instruments of righteousness.
Lord, may we walk in all the power of our salvation.
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Thurs.'s Devo - Three Parables
Read Pr. 26:7-9
All three of these verses talk about giving wisdom to people that are not mature enough to handle it or use it wisely. First he compares it to the legs of a lame person. Their legs are not even so their walk will not be straight. In the Hebrew "lame" means to hop or skip over. It reminds me of the show Home Improvements when the neighbor, Wilson would give Tim wise advise only to have Tim totally miss the point and end up with something silly. Spiritually it would be like someone who takes a part of the scripture but doesn't line it up with other scripture so the meaning is false. The next simile is a stone bound in a sling. The stone stands for the Word that someone binds. The fool is someone who knows the Word but denies the power of it. He has no faith to activate the Word so it is bound by their unbelief. Jesus encountered that in his own country and could not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief. The third one was the drunkard with the thorn in his hand. A person who is drunk feels no pain so he wouldn't even know he had a thorn in it. It would not be wise to tell this man the secrets of the kingdom. This drunk person with the thorn in his hand is a person who is blind to the things of God. He is under a curse of sin but instead of letting Jesus's thorns attone for him he carries them unknowingly. Verse 10 tells us their end. They will be rewarded for all they have done. If a workman is a bad worker his reward will not be very much and may even be punishment. The same is true of the fool. Luke 23:41 Says: "...for we receive the due reward of our deeds..."
Lord, give your word to the wise and proclaim your glory to the earth.
All three of these verses talk about giving wisdom to people that are not mature enough to handle it or use it wisely. First he compares it to the legs of a lame person. Their legs are not even so their walk will not be straight. In the Hebrew "lame" means to hop or skip over. It reminds me of the show Home Improvements when the neighbor, Wilson would give Tim wise advise only to have Tim totally miss the point and end up with something silly. Spiritually it would be like someone who takes a part of the scripture but doesn't line it up with other scripture so the meaning is false. The next simile is a stone bound in a sling. The stone stands for the Word that someone binds. The fool is someone who knows the Word but denies the power of it. He has no faith to activate the Word so it is bound by their unbelief. Jesus encountered that in his own country and could not do many mighty works there because of their unbelief. The third one was the drunkard with the thorn in his hand. A person who is drunk feels no pain so he wouldn't even know he had a thorn in it. It would not be wise to tell this man the secrets of the kingdom. This drunk person with the thorn in his hand is a person who is blind to the things of God. He is under a curse of sin but instead of letting Jesus's thorns attone for him he carries them unknowingly. Verse 10 tells us their end. They will be rewarded for all they have done. If a workman is a bad worker his reward will not be very much and may even be punishment. The same is true of the fool. Luke 23:41 Says: "...for we receive the due reward of our deeds..."
Lord, give your word to the wise and proclaim your glory to the earth.
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Wed.'s Devo- Wise Messengers
Read Pr. 26:6
These next few verses are great in showing us how not to get burned. God wants us to discern good and evil and wise and foolish. To send an important message by a 1st grader is silly and so is it to send something by a fool. They will not only get your message mixed up but it will be damaging to you. When Saul was killed in battle the one who brought David the news was a fool. He made up this story of how he by chance came upon Saul in his chariot. Saul called out and asked him to kill him because Saul had been stabbed. So he killed him and took his crown and his head, and his bracelet so he could give them to David. He thought he would get a fat reward. If he had been wise and followed the story of David and Saul he would have known that David honored Saul and would never reward anyone for killing him. This foolish man was rebuked by David for destroying God's anointed and killed. Then we have the story of the wise messenger. He had seen Absalom killed by Joab and wanted to run and tell the king that his enemies had been avenged. His father, the priest knew that this would not be good news to David so he forbade him to go. Instead they sent Cushi to tell the king. After Cushi had left Ahimaaz begged to go even if he couldn't give the news. He was allowed to go and he took the short cut and beat Cushi. When he got to David and David specifically asked him about Absalom, he told him that he had seen a skirmish in the woods but didn't know what it was all about. Then Cushi arrived and gave him the news. Ahimaaz wanted to soften the blow for David. He knew he was fixing to be hit with bad news so he wanted to prepare him for it. That is compassion. He was a wise messenger. God is only going to trust the wise to carry his word. We are all to be messengers of the cross.
Lord, teach us to be wise that we might carry your word to those who need it.
These next few verses are great in showing us how not to get burned. God wants us to discern good and evil and wise and foolish. To send an important message by a 1st grader is silly and so is it to send something by a fool. They will not only get your message mixed up but it will be damaging to you. When Saul was killed in battle the one who brought David the news was a fool. He made up this story of how he by chance came upon Saul in his chariot. Saul called out and asked him to kill him because Saul had been stabbed. So he killed him and took his crown and his head, and his bracelet so he could give them to David. He thought he would get a fat reward. If he had been wise and followed the story of David and Saul he would have known that David honored Saul and would never reward anyone for killing him. This foolish man was rebuked by David for destroying God's anointed and killed. Then we have the story of the wise messenger. He had seen Absalom killed by Joab and wanted to run and tell the king that his enemies had been avenged. His father, the priest knew that this would not be good news to David so he forbade him to go. Instead they sent Cushi to tell the king. After Cushi had left Ahimaaz begged to go even if he couldn't give the news. He was allowed to go and he took the short cut and beat Cushi. When he got to David and David specifically asked him about Absalom, he told him that he had seen a skirmish in the woods but didn't know what it was all about. Then Cushi arrived and gave him the news. Ahimaaz wanted to soften the blow for David. He knew he was fixing to be hit with bad news so he wanted to prepare him for it. That is compassion. He was a wise messenger. God is only going to trust the wise to carry his word. We are all to be messengers of the cross.
Lord, teach us to be wise that we might carry your word to those who need it.
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Tues.'s Devo - Answering a Fool
Read Pr. 36:4, 5
These two verses seem to contradict each other but they really don't. Proverbs is the book of wisdom so there is wisdom to be gotten from both verses. If you know a person is not living according to God's word then they are a fool. To argue with them is to play their game which makes you just like them. If you want to disarm a person who is attacking you then you just don't fight back. They don't know what to do with that. If you refuse to fight back then you will take away their ammunition. But, there are times when remaining silent is wrong. If you see a person doing something that will harm another person then you have to speak up. Or, if you hear someone speak untruth about God or man then there are times to stand up and say something or they will think they are right. The bottom line is, you must be led by the Holy Spirit. He will tell you when to speak up and when to be silent. He promised to give us what to say so we don't have to worry about it beforehand. I love how Jesus stood up to the Sadducees when they were trying to trick him. He told them they were wrong and didn't know the Scriptures or the power of God. What a rebuke to men who spent their lives studying the Scripture.
Lord, let your Holy Spirit teach us and guide us into all truth.
These two verses seem to contradict each other but they really don't. Proverbs is the book of wisdom so there is wisdom to be gotten from both verses. If you know a person is not living according to God's word then they are a fool. To argue with them is to play their game which makes you just like them. If you want to disarm a person who is attacking you then you just don't fight back. They don't know what to do with that. If you refuse to fight back then you will take away their ammunition. But, there are times when remaining silent is wrong. If you see a person doing something that will harm another person then you have to speak up. Or, if you hear someone speak untruth about God or man then there are times to stand up and say something or they will think they are right. The bottom line is, you must be led by the Holy Spirit. He will tell you when to speak up and when to be silent. He promised to give us what to say so we don't have to worry about it beforehand. I love how Jesus stood up to the Sadducees when they were trying to trick him. He told them they were wrong and didn't know the Scriptures or the power of God. What a rebuke to men who spent their lives studying the Scripture.
Lord, let your Holy Spirit teach us and guide us into all truth.
Monday, April 4, 2011
Mon.'s Devo God's Discipline
Read Pr. 26:3
We all respond to discipline in a different way so God uses different techniques on us because he knows what will work. Horses respond to whips, donkeys respond to a bridle and a fool responds to a beating. If you have children you know that what works with one will not work with the other. We are so different and unique. This past week-end I drove to New Orleans and back. I drive just a little over the speed limit but not enough to get a ticket. On my way home I had almost arrived when I went through a little town. The speed limit went down to 25 mph and I "thought" I had slowed to that. The trouble is I started accelerating just as I turned a corner and met a police man. He didn't immediately turn around and come after me so I thought I was safe. About 10 minutes later I saw these bright lights behind me and pulled over. He took all my I.D.'s and I waited for what seemed forever. As I was sitting there I starting thinking about why it was so scary to get a ticket. I felt like I was a little girl getting a spanking. I hardly ever speed but I was speeding this time and I was wrong. I know that the more you mature the less you get by with because you know better so I was ready to accept my ticket as a lesson. Much to my surprise the police man came back and said, "Looks like nobody wants you." I told him that was a good thing. Then he told me he wasn't giving me a ticket, just a warning. I thanked him and told him I really didn't usually speed. He said, "I know, that is what your record shows." I drove off in grateful tears. God reminded me that his grace is all about getting what we don't deserve, but that it was also a warning. Next time I'll get the ticket. So what ever your age, you still have to be able to respond correctly to discipline. God only disciplines those he loves.
Thank you Lord for your discipline because it is always good. Help us to be teachable and repentent.
We all respond to discipline in a different way so God uses different techniques on us because he knows what will work. Horses respond to whips, donkeys respond to a bridle and a fool responds to a beating. If you have children you know that what works with one will not work with the other. We are so different and unique. This past week-end I drove to New Orleans and back. I drive just a little over the speed limit but not enough to get a ticket. On my way home I had almost arrived when I went through a little town. The speed limit went down to 25 mph and I "thought" I had slowed to that. The trouble is I started accelerating just as I turned a corner and met a police man. He didn't immediately turn around and come after me so I thought I was safe. About 10 minutes later I saw these bright lights behind me and pulled over. He took all my I.D.'s and I waited for what seemed forever. As I was sitting there I starting thinking about why it was so scary to get a ticket. I felt like I was a little girl getting a spanking. I hardly ever speed but I was speeding this time and I was wrong. I know that the more you mature the less you get by with because you know better so I was ready to accept my ticket as a lesson. Much to my surprise the police man came back and said, "Looks like nobody wants you." I told him that was a good thing. Then he told me he wasn't giving me a ticket, just a warning. I thanked him and told him I really didn't usually speed. He said, "I know, that is what your record shows." I drove off in grateful tears. God reminded me that his grace is all about getting what we don't deserve, but that it was also a warning. Next time I'll get the ticket. So what ever your age, you still have to be able to respond correctly to discipline. God only disciplines those he loves.
Thank you Lord for your discipline because it is always good. Help us to be teachable and repentent.
Friday, April 1, 2011
Fri.'s Devo - The Blessing and the Curse
Read Pr. 26:1,2
There are some things that just aren't suppose to happen: it is not suppose to snow in the summer or rain in the harvest time and a fool is not suppose to be honored. Most importantly a curse is not suppose to come to a person without a cause. In other words, a door has to be opened for there to be a way a curse can be on a person. Believe it or not, the word "curse" is found 92 times in the Bible. The end of Duet. 11 is full of the curses that will fall on Israel if they turn away from the Lord. That is how a curse comes: you disobey God. The world is full of curses. Cancer, disease, premature death, sin, etc. It can be passed down from generation to generation unless someone applies the blood of Jesus to the curse to stop it. Gal. 3:13 says, "Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us; for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangs on a tree." Jesus died on the cross and became the curse for us so that we could enter into the blessings in the first part of Duet 11. After God gave the blessings and the curses he gave them the choice of which one they would take. "Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse; A blessing, if you obey the commandments of the Lord your God. which I command you this day; And a curse, if you will not obey the commandments of the Lord your God, but turn aside out of the way which I command you this day, to go after other gods, which you have not known."
Lord, we choose to walk in your blessings and obey you. Show us the curses in our lives and in our families that we need to apply the blood to.
There are some things that just aren't suppose to happen: it is not suppose to snow in the summer or rain in the harvest time and a fool is not suppose to be honored. Most importantly a curse is not suppose to come to a person without a cause. In other words, a door has to be opened for there to be a way a curse can be on a person. Believe it or not, the word "curse" is found 92 times in the Bible. The end of Duet. 11 is full of the curses that will fall on Israel if they turn away from the Lord. That is how a curse comes: you disobey God. The world is full of curses. Cancer, disease, premature death, sin, etc. It can be passed down from generation to generation unless someone applies the blood of Jesus to the curse to stop it. Gal. 3:13 says, "Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us; for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangs on a tree." Jesus died on the cross and became the curse for us so that we could enter into the blessings in the first part of Duet 11. After God gave the blessings and the curses he gave them the choice of which one they would take. "Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse; A blessing, if you obey the commandments of the Lord your God. which I command you this day; And a curse, if you will not obey the commandments of the Lord your God, but turn aside out of the way which I command you this day, to go after other gods, which you have not known."
Lord, we choose to walk in your blessings and obey you. Show us the curses in our lives and in our families that we need to apply the blood to.
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