Listen to the Gambler

Proverbs 20:3 (KJV) It is an honour for a man to cease from strife: but every fool will be meddling.

I hope you are familiar with that song, which I think is called, “The Gambler”.  It goes to the effect that you got to know when to hold, know when to fold.  In my mind, it’s Kenny Rogers doing the singing, but since I’m not a big consumer of country or western music, that is just a guess.  It brings a great deal of wisdom to life and it’s almost as if the writer of the song had been reading Proverbs 20.

I find that the CSB brings a bit of a different slant and it’s language.

Proverbs 20:3 (CSB) Honor belongs to the person who ends a dispute, but any fool can get himself into a quarrel.

How often have you found yourself in a disagreement, realizing that the other person is getting more and more angry, knowing that the angrier they get the less they listen, and knowing that they didn’t have a great amount of reasoning ability to start with, and you’re going to lose.  Maybe you won’t lose, but you know you won’t win.  It’s at that point that wisdom kicks in and you need to take the high road.

Taking the highroad can be dangerous because too many times it makes you abandon things which are important, to compromise truth, and walk away from what is right.  The honor here is to find a way to back up and restate things in an acceptable way that in important areas is a valid compromise, but does not desert the truth.

So?  I guess real wisdom will keep you from getting in the dispute in the first place.  Know when to back off.  Know what the real issues are.  Know whom you’re arguing with. 

Break the Eggs

Psalms 88:14 (KJV) LORD, why castest thou off my soul? why hidest thou thy face from me?

(Proverbs 19 also read)

This might qualify as the most depressing passage of scripture in the entire Bible. The author is going through great difficulty.  He is suffering.  He feels totally abandoned.  He calls upon God again and again.

Is God listening?  I think he asked that question earlier.  Is God going to answer?  To be honest, I don’t think so.  I see in this entire Psalm there is one thing that is missing.  There is one ingredient that does not show up.  He mentions God’s love and kindness.  He mentions great things about God, but he leaves out the key ingredient.

Have you heard the proverb that you can’t make an omelette without breaking a few eggs.  I think we could apply that here and say that you can’t expect answers to prayer without repentance.  Maybe I’m being too harsh.  I see this in the number of the Psalms.  The writers cry out to God, as if it’s a problem with God.  At the same time, they never admit sin in their own lives.

So?  There are several places where the Bible points out God does not answer the prayer of sinners, the unrepentant.  We’re not saying that you have to get all your act gather.  I’m not claiming that you have to be perfect.  What I am saying is that God is expecting you with confession of sin, and an attitude of repentance.

Caution, Ego Ahead.

Proverbs 18:2 (KJV) A fool hath no delight in understanding, but that his heart may discover itself.

This verse speaks to me even in the KJV.  When I looked at the CSB, it gave me an even better insight.

Proverbs 18:2 (CSB) A fool does not delight in understanding, but only wants to show off his opinions.

As someone who occasionally gets a chance to preach or teach Sunday school, this advice struck home.  When I was preaching regularly, one of the temptations I always had was to allow my pet peeves to become the center of the sermon.  I don’t know how many times I had to stop, look at what I have written so far, get honest about the scripture, and go back and start over again.

To be honest I wish that more pastors and teachers took this to heart.  When you get up to preach on a text you’re supposed to preach on the text.  You’re not supposed to, at worst, just give your personal opinions.  You’re not supposed to, at second worst, talk about things that are in the Bible somewhere, but not in the text you are preaching on.

So?  OK, you are not the preacher.  Spend some time praying for the preacher.  Pray that your pastor would actually focus on the lessons that the Bible has to offer to make it possible for you to live a more holy life. 

An Angel of Another Color

Proverbs 17:11 (KJV) An evil man seeketh only rebellion: therefore a cruel messenger shall be sent against him.

It is interesting the use of the word “messenger” here. The actual Hebrew word is usually translated as “angel.”  I know an angel is a messenger, one sent on assignment for a superior.  The quality of the angel is in the adjective and in the assignment.  Here the adjective is “cruel”.  I would assume that God has many angels to pick from.  I don’t know if they have personalities or whether they are assigned an attitude de jour.

Who is this angel?  Someone with an attitude that enjoys inflicting punishment?  Was he assigned the task and told this is the way you will behave?  We don’t know.  What we do know is that he had an assignment to go against the rebel.

At Christmas time we see angels in other roles.  They appear to Mary and to Joseph.  They made the announcement to the shepherds in the field.  I don’t know about you, but if I were an angel, I would prefer those tasks.

So?  Try to pick what kind of messenger you’re going to be.  God may choose you to be one who is tasked to deliver a stern warning to someone or a rebuke.  We know we would rather be the one bringing the Christmas presents but our job is to be obedient to our calling.

OT Grace

Psalms 85:7 (KJV) Shew us thy mercy, O LORD, and grant us thy salvation.

(Proverbs 16 also read)

These words are so full of the character of God that they could have come from the mouth of Jesus.  We see my favorite word in the Old Testament chesed, translated as either “loving kindness”, or “mercy”.  This is God extending towards us His undeserved love and yes, grace.  This is God giving us what some call undeserved mercy but really it’s just an example of God‘s love in action.

Thus the result of this is the desired goal:  salvation.  Noticed that it is going to be granted and not earned.  Notice there is no mention of the sacrificial system or offerings.  There is no mention of anything other than God’s mercy extended toward us.

So?  Everywhere you look the Bible exudes the love of God towards His people. Yes, that includes us.  Rejoice.

Backwards

Psalms 80:18 (KJV) So will not we go back from thee: quicken us, and we will call upon thy name.

(Proverbs 15 also read)

Asaph has a definite view of God and Israel.  I would say that his perspective is at the heart of why God allowed Israel to be deported and debased.  If my memory serves me correctly, you never have Asaph speaking of repentance.  He seems totally unaware of why God was allowing His people to suffer.  It’s very clear to the prophets.  It’s clear in the history’s.  It makes me wonder why he couldn’t see, but he misses it.

Even here we see a reversal of the order of how things should be.  He reminds me of Wimpy saying that he would be glad to pay you on Tuesday if you would buy him a hamburger today.  Here we see a typical way to try and get around repentance.  Asaph says if you revive us, if you touch us, if you pull us out of our difficult situation, then we will call upon Your name.

So?  It doesn’t work that way when we call upon God.  We approach Him with repentance.  We confess our sin.  We believe in Jesus.  In a word, we call upon His name.  And then He will “quicken us”.

I Don’t Understand

Proverbs 14:6 (KJV) A scorner seeketh wisdom, and findeth it not: but knowledge is easy unto him that understandeth.

I’m sure we have all run into a situation where we carefully explain some thing and make it perfectly obvious and the person we’re talking to will get a puzzled look on their face and say, “I don’t understand.”  Sometimes you can take a look at what you were saying and find a little bit better way to clarify it, but often all you can do is kind of shake your head and wonder what part of clear facts don’t you understand?

I think that the CSB gives us an insight here,

Proverbs 14:6 (CSB) A mocker seeks wisdom and doesn’t find it, but knowledge comes easily to the perceptive.

The use of the word “perceptive” is a good choice.  When I look up the word in my software, part of the definition of being perceptive, having understanding, involves paying attention.  One of the great ways to understand some thing is to actually pay attention.

So?  Read.  Listen.  Contemplate.  And of course, that leads to a better chance of understanding.  Also include the assumption that you really want to understand.  Keep in mind that claiming you don’t understand on judgment day won’t carry a lot of weight.