Bragging On Jesus

Proverbs In 365 Devotions For more go to braggingonjesus.com Proverbs 21:13 Whoever closes his ear to the cry of the poor will himself call out and not be answered. Who Listens To The Poor? R Aylor Would you say that you hear the cry of the poor? I don’t know about you but I hear a lot of stuff... a lot of grumbling about the daily troubles of life... sometimes it’s my own voice... griping about the government and the economy and relational problems and a million different things. The question might be do we let all these other cry’s in our ears from ourselves and the world drown out the cry of the poor? Peter and John counseled Paul and Barnabas about sharing the gospel with the Gentiles: Galatians 2:10 ...they would that we should remember the poor; which very thing I was also zealous to do. You know, helping others physically goes hand in hand with sharing the gospel. Jesus lived like this. He healed so many... he had compassion and fed the 5000 plus women and children... and then the 4000. The

Proverbs in 365 Devotions For more go to braggingonjesus.com Proverbs 21:10 The soul of the wicked desires evil; his neighbor finds no mercy in his eyes. 11 When a scoffer is punished, the simple becomes wise; when a wise man is instructed, he gains knowledge. 12 The Righteous One observes the house of the wicked; he throws the wicked down to ruin. Mercy In His Eyes R Aylor We covered verse 11 in Proverbs 19:25 and will again in Proverbs 24:23-26 We learned how discernment plays an important role in our relationship with scoffers. In reproving them our hope is not to drive them away from Christ ... but for their sake to discern when to wait until they seem more open to the Lord, then speak that they might believe. However there are other times we may rebuke them publicly that those who might learn wisdom will see their lifestyle and learn the truth of sin and how pride does not end well. However verse 10 will be the central focus of todays devotion. 10 The soul of the wicked desires evil; his neighbor

Proverbs 21:9 It is better to live in a corner of the housetop than in a house shared with a quarrelsome wife. Best Is Better Than Better... What is Solomon saying is best? For transcript and more go to braggingonjesus.com Click 365 devotions in Proverbs

Proverbs 21:5 The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance, but everyone who is hasty comes only to poverty. 6 The getting of treasures by a lying tongue is a fleeting vapor and a snare of death. 7 The violence of the wicked will sweep them away, because they refuse to do what is just. 8 The way of the guilty is crooked, but the conduct of the pure is upright. The Plans Of The Diligent We all have plans, objectives and goals That flow from a core down deep in our soul It feeds our dreams and fosters our visions It shapes our schemes and contrives our decisions For whom and for what dose one diligently seek? Some change their plans when the way turns bleak For many there’s a shaky foundation in place For others the bedrock of Gods glorious grace Still, many seem diligent but wrongly I’d say Their lying and cheating will sweep them away Like a fleeting vapor or a fading breath Their perseverance like a snare will lead them to death But the diligent for righteousness, virtue and truth Who stand for t

Proverbs in 365 Devotions For more go to braggingonjesus.com Proverbs 21:3 To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice. 4 Haughty eyes and a proud heart, the lamp of the wicked, are sin. You know we can do a lot of things in this body. Solomon mentions sacrifice as being one thing we might do. In his day Jewish people would bring Sacrifices to the temple that were supposed to show their obedience to God from their heart. It was supposed to show how they trusted God and his word and somehow God was going to make everything right and they would be accepted by God and their sins would all be forgiven. Of course these sacrifices pointed to the ultimate sacrifice of Gods own Son even though they only saw this promise dimly through a veil. Oh the promise was sure enough alright. God spoke about it after mans fall in Genesis 3… The prophets spoke of it time and time again… still it was in the foggy shadows… However they accessed this promise and we’re given confidence and guarante

For text and audio: 1 - Go to braggingonjesus.com 2 - Click on 365 Devotions from Proverbs 3 - Go to Proverbs 21:1-2 This is not an exhaustive look at the doctrine of election and accountability but a work in progress until we see him face to face.

Today we will close out Proverbs 24 with a great passage: verses 30-34. Proverbs 24:30 I passed by the field of a sluggard, by the vineyard of a man lacking sense, 31 and behold, it was all overgrown with thorns; the ground was covered with nettles, and its stone wall was broken down. 32 Then I saw and considered it; I looked and received instruction. 33 A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, 34 and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and want like an armed man. ... Ok, let’s ponder this a bit and find how it relates to us. For example, there is good possibility that we have things unkept in our own life right? We may have been putting off touching up some calking around the house and painting it. We might need to clean out that… or those closets and junk rooms that have served over the years as holding areas when cleaning up the house. We may have intended to take items to the homeless shelter or Salvation Army or thrift store… We might have been planning a garage

Proverbs in 365 Devotions For more go to braggingonjesus.com Proverbs 24:28 Be not a witness against your neighbor without cause, and do not deceive with your lips. 29 Do not say, “I will do to him as he has done to me; I will pay the man back for what he has done.” So there is some good instruction to us here for relationships. First, “Be not a witness against your neighbor without cause”. Are there times we should be a witness against our neighbor? Sure murder, abuse, theft… and other things… We are called to take a stand against wickedness in a million different ways… However not all of them need be us being a witness to the authorities against our neighbor… Most of the time we are called to be a witness to our neighbor about things true and good for their peace one on one in personal conversation. Most importantly how Jesus is the good new of great joy for them… That is being a witness directly to them with cause. But I really think the writer is simply saying don’t make accusations against your neighb

Proverbs 24:27 Prepare your work outside; get everything ready for yourself in the field, and after that build your house. We all have things we want in life… And today's culture is one where people don’t want to wait for anything. We order our hearts desire on line… wild and crazy things… unique things no one would have imagined a few years ago… and much of the time it can be delivered to our door the very next day. And we don’t even have to have money to pay for it right now… on our person or even in the bank… we just put it on a credit card… We still might even have to work for the money at our job to pay for it… and to pay our house payment and our car payment and everything else… much of America lives not from paycheck to paycheck but a few months out in front of their next paycheck. Today's text teaches us not to be obsessed with what we want or let it consume us so that we ignore accountability and responsibility. It talks about a person who has a desire to build a house… Maybe he is getting married

Proverbs 24:23 These also are sayings of the wise. Partiality in judging is not good. 24 Whoever says to the wicked, “You are in the right,” will be cursed by peoples, abhorred by nations, 25 but those who rebuke the wicked will have delight, and a good blessing will come upon them. 26 Whoever gives an honest answer kisses the lips. Honesty is the best policy… Benjamin Franklin… You know, mans heart has not gotten better over the past few thousand years has it. Today many people still publicly agree with and support those who they want to benefit from even when they don’t actually agree with them in their heart. We do it when we are obsessed with getting ahead at work. Politicians do it do it with their constituents and vice versa even when they know they are wrong. Solomon is telling us not crumble before the wicked. Don't tell them they are right when they are wrong… but rather be a man… not a brown nose man… not a yes man… but a man who does not let wickedness get the last say… well be a man if you are

Proverbs 24:21 My son, fear the Lord and the king, and do not join with those who do otherwise, 22 for disaster will arise suddenly from them, and who knows the ruin that will come from them both? So far in chapter 24... Now Solomon is saying not to join with the wicked and more specifically not to join with those who do not fear the Lord and the king but rather to fear them both. Alright, the thing Solomon puts first is that he says to fear the Lord… why should we fear God? Matthew 10:28 And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Now I have heard it said before that the kind of fear we should have toward God is something more like a reverent fear. While that is true… we cannot exclude the most extreme fear one can imagine. We should not belittle or downplay the holiness of God. Our unholiness in that we seek to take the glory that belongs to God for ourselves and we rebel and are disobedient and we have been believing the

Proverbs in 365 Devotions For more go to braggingonjesus.com Proverbs 24:19 Fret not yourself because of evildoers, and be not envious of the wicked, 20 for the evil man has no future; the lamp of the wicked will be put out. Will I Walk In Sight Or Reality? R Aylor We might at times at least, be tempted to look at the wicked man with a sense of longing… or jealousy if you will… not all the wicked of course and not at all times… but on a given day when we are feeling sorry for ourselves... when down and blue or ill or tired or cant buy what we would like… at some time when satan tempts us with the promises of the flesh… we might get an unrealistic glimpse of his life that appeals to us. Solomon knew that at those times… things are not what they seem. It’s then that we may think we see a wicked person who is basking in the light of success. Maybe a deceitful business man who is rich or we may see a selfish man who has found love with a beautiful woman or a wicked woman who has found a handsome self confiden

Proverbs 24:17 Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, and let not your heart be glad when he stumbles, 18 lest the Lord see it and be displeased, and turn away his anger from him. Solomon seems to want us to take note of where our joy has moved to… where it is now focused. Did you catch that in the text? What are we rejoicing in? What makes our heart glad? Has someone hurt or wounded you… Have you been treated wrongly? We all have of course… In fact we’ve been on both sides of the equation… even the one dishing it out. But how does our heart respond when those who have offended us experience pain or hardship themselves? Our initial response may be to be happy about it… right? Maybe you’ve been treated poorly in some way recently or even 30-40 years ago… Dose it ever haunt you? Do you ever replay the tape of wrongs done to you? And do you rejoice at that persons downfall when it comes and think they got what they deserved? As believers who have the righteousness of Jesus we are glad for the justice of God o

Proverbs in 365 Devotions For more go to braggingonjesus.com Proverbs 24:15 Lie not in wait as a wicked man against the dwelling of the righteous; do no violence to his home; 16 for the righteous falls seven times and rises again, but the wicked stumble in times of calamity. Responding To A Fall R Aylor It seems a man with wickedness in his heart is a man prone to lash out against those who walk in righteousness. They might be jealous for any number of reasons… They may manufacture and rationalize reasons to dislike godly people in their own mind saying things like their pleasantries are fake or self-righteous… If the godly person is well off and respected in the community, this wicked person may hope for their downfall and they may even rejoice when they sin and their holier than thou image is brought down. But there is a big difference in how a godly and a wicked person deal with failure. First let’s think about the wicked man Solomon speaks of. If he is reprimanded at work for tardiness or some othe

Proverbs in 365 Devotions Proverbs 24:13 My son, eat honey, for it is good, and the drippings of the honeycomb are sweet to your taste. 14 Know that wisdom is such to your soul; if you find it, there will be a future, and your hope will not be cut off. It's Not About The Honey R Aylor ​In today's passage we find Solomon giving a kind of mini parable about honey. The reason I think of it as parable is because a parables purpose is to get across a truth by association of something in the world… in this case honey. But everything in a parable is not necessarily eligible for analyzing as the lesson… We have to discern what truth the writer is focusing on. For example Solomon is not saying we should make honey our diet 24/7. I expect that would give us diabetes. That would not be good. Solomon actually gives us another mini parable about not eating too much honey. Proverbs 25:27 says “It is not good to eat much honey, nor is it glorious to seek one’s own glory”. So actually neither of these mini parables are

Proverbs 24:10 If you faint in the day of adversity, your strength is small. 11 Rescue those who are being taken away to death; hold back those who are stumbling to the slaughter. 12 If you say, “Behold, we did not know this,” does not he who weighs the heart perceive it? Does not he who keeps watch over your soul know it, and will he not repay man according to his work? *Some removed... out of room. Now, let’s think about the primary action Solomon is promoting in this passage… I think we can see an exhortation here for good in both the physical and spiritual. For example... We see children aborted in the womb by those who impose their rationalizations about life as though they know what is right and true above Gods word. Sure… all these are experiencing adversity… However, Solomon address his words it seems to us who have taken up the charge of God… his mission… and those of us who are able to rescue those from varying oppressions… This is a daunting task for us. Solomon says if we faint our strength

Proverbs 24:8 Whoever plans to do evil will be called a schemer. 9 The devising of folly is sin, and the scoffer is an abomination to mankind. ... The planning of evil… That might be the person who lays on their bed and thinks about those who they think have offended or hurt them and they imagine ways they can put them in their place. Then Solomon mentions the devising of folly which might be that after you have decided on the details of how you can execute revenge, you now begin putting everything in place for this foolish thing you want to accomplish. Then finally, possibly after the trap is set, this person wears the prideful, smug, arrogant aura of the scoffer. Now in a way our text might catch us a little bit off guard. Usually in Proverbs we are hearing what is an abomination to God. In Proverbs alone we are told many things that are abominations to God: Here's some examples out of Proverbs… A false balance... ETC. Proverbs 11:1, 3:32, 28:9, 16:5, 21:27, 15:9, 12:22, 17:17, 6:16, 17, 18, 19, 15:2

Proverbs in 365 Devotions For more go to braggingonjesus.com Proverbs 24:3 By wisdom a house is built, and by understanding it is established; 4 by knowledge the rooms are filled with all precious and pleasant riches. 5 A wise man is full of strength, and a man of knowledge enhances his might, 6 for by wise guidance you can wage your war, and in abundance of counselors there is victory. 7 Wisdom is too high for a fool; in the gate he does not open his mouth. Spiritual Wisdom Brings Spiritual Riches R Aylor Solomon here, talks about Wisdom… and being the wisest man on earth he is most qualified to speak on this. Wisdom is a broad and extensive subject. What is the definition? The one I like from the dictionary on my computer is: “the soundness of an action or decision with regard to the application of experience, knowledge, and good judgment”. So I think gaining knowledge in itself is not necessarily wisdom… but Wisdom is our plans to use and then actually putting that knowledge into action… Solomon talks

Proverbs in 365 Devotions For more go to braggingonjesus.com Proverbs 24:1 Be not envious of evil men, nor desire to be with them, 2 for their hearts devise violence, and their lips talk of trouble. Desire R Aylor I was thinking about why a person might want to be around evil people? There may be a number of reasons. But this verse is clearly not referring to visiting a wicked person in the hopes of showing them the love of God. That would be something totally different… That would not include fellowship… and that would include much caution especially for those who are weak in an area and are trying to minister to a person without Christ. A whole different study. But this is different. Here Solomon mentions envying them and uses the word desire which carries with it a heart that is passionate to some extent to be with an evil person. So why? Acceptance maybe? At least that might be one reason. Wickedness shows acceptance to someone who is agreeable, even tolerant of their views. Someone may also look to an

Proverbs in 365 Devotions For more go to braggingonjesus.com Proverbs 19:26 He who does violence to his father and chases away his mother is a son who brings shame and reproach. These are some pretty serious and negative offenses a person might do with their life. Committing violence, driving away mother… bringing shame and reproach… Solomon had likely seen this in his own family. Disciplined With Scorpions R Aylor One of Solomons stepbrother’s was Amnon. Another stepbrother was Absalom. Amnon raped Absolems sister Tamar and and so Absolem killed Amnon. Absalom was later killed by Joab after he mounted a rebellion against his aging father David. Another stepbrother of Solomons was Adonijah. He attempted to usurp the throne during the life of David. Solomon would later have him executed. So there you have it. Solomon likely learned much of the wisdom from this proverb from pondering his own life. Even his own son Rehoboam strayed from his fathers teachings. After Solomons death he took the advice of