Proverbial Wisdom: What We All Have in Common

 Read Proverbs 22

Verse 1:  Some things money cannot buy like a good reputation, a noble name, and a God-honoring testimony.  These things come by faith and a life lived in the fear of God.  Despite what others may think or say, the only thing that really matters is the state of a person’s heart which God knows and sees.  What God thinks and His approval is what has ultimate value, and no amount of gold or silver can buy God’s favor or redemption.  Man’s only hope is redemption through Christ.  His favor and being adopted into His family is the greatest wealth of all.   

Verse 2:  Sometimes those who have been given much in this world act as though those who are not as fortunate are less human or important.  The Christian loves all indiscriminately because Christ died for all.  God made all people, and He desires that all would come to faith in Jesus.  The evil heart hates others, mocks them for things that they can’t control, and judges them for things for which they are not at fault.  They do this because they glory in their possessions and in their status, and they neglect others because of their arrogance and pride.  This is not to be the perspective of the Christian. 

Verse 4:  God will reward those who fear Him and obey Him in this life.  They will find eternal riches and honor in heaven.  Even in this life, given that eternal life is knowing Christ which they do even now, they can enjoy the blessings of relationship with Him.  His wisdom will help them enjoy this life and live a life that is abundantly fruitful. 

Verse 6: This verse should be a great encouragement to parents who have invested themselves wholeheartedly in the lives of their children by teaching them the Scripture and the truths concerning Jesus Christ.  This verse is widely known in the church today, however, it is not closely followed.  Children need to see a consistent theology and a life that validates that theology with God-honoring behavior.  They need to see the love of Christ demonstrated, but most of all they need to understand the gospel.  Just growing up in a family that goes to church and prefers Christian media is not sufficient to be called child training.  Though the church can and should help, parents must take full responsibility for themselves to teach their children what the Bible is about, why they should believe it, and why it is reliable in a world that hates Jesus and rejects the Bible.  They must guide their little hearts down the right path, and, as the children grow older, they can see the errors of others’ paths and the benefits of the right way.  Children are ultimately responsible for their own direction in life, but parents can have confidence and assurance that their children will persevere in the truth if their hearts belong to Jesus Christ.  This is why child training is not about getting a child to submit and follow a system, but it is about guiding their hearts to love Jesus and showing them why that is the best decision and the only sensible way. 

Verse 7:  The general reality of the world is that those who have riches tend to treat the poor in an oppressive manner, and there is a tendency to show personal favoritism toward other rich people.  This is why God commands Christians to be different and to think against the grain by valuing other human beings and loving when others hate and think only of themselves.  Debt should be avoided as much as possible to avoid any chance of being exploited by the rich.  Debt may be necessary for a time, but it is wicked to not pay it back (Psalm 37:21).  Thus, any borrowing must be done in wisdom and not greed, and too much debt only leads to destruction.  Dave Ramsey has great instruction concerning this and this is an underlying principle in many of his teachings.

Verse 8:  The end of evil deeds is wrath and judgment, and God will render justice due a person on account of their wrongdoing.  There is no eternal value in a life lived without Christ and against His commands, for it is ultimate vanity and meaninglessness.  Those who live to stir up anger and get ahead in life regardless of what it means for others will one day die, and they will pay for what they have done. 

Verse 9:  The church should care for those in need within its fellowship first and foremost, but it should also be mindful of those in need in the surrounding community (Galatians 6:10).  The mission of the church extends to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8), and thus there should always be a concern for those in need regardless of where they live (Matthew 5:16).  God will honor and bless those who act in generosity toward the poor, and this is a personal act of love toward the Savior (Matthew 25:45). 

Verse 13:  Fear, whether real or imagined, can lead a person to become lazy and unproductive, both practically and spiritually.  Christians must not bury their talents in the ground out of fear of failure or any other fear.  They must take the gospel to the street and proclaim it from the rooftops so that their boldness and confidence can even make the enemies of Christ tremble.  A lazy person makes excuses, but a faithful person finds reasons to participate in the Lord’s harvest.  Not only does this have to do with our spiritual laziness, but our practical laziness as well.  How often do you put something off because of a stupid reason in reality.  We often find excuses to cover our fears.  We will say things like Moses said.  “I can’t speak well, I don’t have enough money, I just don’t think it will work out..”  When God calls us to something we need to do it and not hide in fear, instead we need to step out in faith.  If we fail at whatever we endeavour, we should just look at it as a lesson and continue on.  God wants us to be a diligent people.

Verse 14:  Those who commit adultery bring great destruction upon themselves and their families.  Those who fear God will stay far away from any provision for the lusts of the flesh, while those who are cursed of God and sons of the devil will eagerly tread the minefield of immorality.  God is always ready and willing to forgive sin, but, particularly in the case of sexual immorality, some damage is very difficult to reverse. 

Verse 15:  There is a need to train children in righteousness because all children are born with fallen and sinful hearts.  They instinctively know how to rebel and to be stubborn, and they need to be trained as to what is right, good, and pleasing to God.  They need discipline to set their boundaries and to show them that their parents are concerned for their well-being and that they seek to protect them from danger.  Discipline is not wrathful or cruel, but it is a loving means of teaching, training, and protecting one’s children from sin, evil, and unnecessary harm.  Each child responds to varying methods of reproof and correction differently, and parents must be attune to their child’s needs and continue to find out what is the best way to help shape their character and to teach them to obey.  Anger at one’s children or abusive practices have no place in Christian discipline, but parents who train their children long to see their children learn wisdom and forego foolish thinking and behavior. 

Verse 16:  Those who take unrighteously from the poor to benefit the rich unfairly and those who do harm to the poor by using them for selfish gain reveal the wickedness of their hearts and the reality that they will be eternally impoverished in hell.  If justice is served on earth, they ought to be punished for their crimes. 

Verses 17-21:  By seeking after wisdom and eagerly absorbing sound teaching from the Word, a person can be filled with peace and joy and ready to speak good, helpful advice to others.  Wisdom moves a person to trust wholly in God and not in self, to love Him above all else, and to value his neighbor as more important than himself.  Wisdom believes in the certainty of the truth of Scripture, and the Scripture by faith in Christ works to make a person wise and able to give a wise response as needed.  The more confidence a believer has in the Word of God and the fact that it is eternal, certain, and irrefutable, the wiser he will be, the more He will be moved to study the Word, the more it will impact him, and the more his life will impact the world as he is better equipped to give an apt answer to those who ask (1 Peter 3:15). 

Verse 22-23:  Those who rob the poor and are cruel to the poor show themselves to have wicked hearts that care only for their own gain.  These who do not fear God enjoy oppressing the less fortunate, and they will suffer God’s wrath on the day of judgment and maybe even in this life.