No Rest for the Righteous

(Proverbs 13:1 KJV)  A wise son heareth his father's instruction: but a scorner heareth not rebuke.

We tend to think of wisdom as being dispensed.  Here we see that wisdom has a strong element of reception.  The “wise” (2450) accepts “instruction" (rebuke NASB) (1606).

That means that wise people will still make mistakes.  We often say, “No one is perfect.”  Usually we mean the other guy, not ourselves because in our hearts we know we are pretty close.  One of the characteristics of the spiritual walk is growth.  That involves learning from our mistakes.

A baby may be wonderful.  My firstborn was an awesome experience.  He still needed to be potty trained and weaned.  He still needed to learn to walk.  He still needed to learn to pick up his sox.  Come to think of it he still has issues with the sox. 

So?  Keep moving.  We can never rest on our laurels.  Righteousness and wisdom involve growth in grace.