July 6, 2009
Central Truth
When you fear the Lord, you do not have to fear anything else!
Fearing the Lord leads to life,
and one who does so will live satisfied; he will not be afflicted by calamity.
(Proverbs 19:23)
1
Better is a poor person who walks in his integrity
than one who is crooked in speech and is a fool.
2
Desire
1
19:2
Or A soul
without knowledge is not good,
and whoever makes haste with his feet misses his way.
3
When a man's folly brings his way to ruin,
his heart rages against the LORD.
4
Wealth brings many new friends,
but a poor man is deserted by his friend.
5
A false witness will not go unpunished,
and he who breathes out lies will not escape.
6
Many seek the favor of a generous man,
2
19:6
Or of a noble
and everyone is a friend to a man who gives gifts.
7
All a poor man's brothers hate him;
how much more do his friends go far from him!
He pursues them with words, but does not have them.
3
19:7
The meaning of the Hebrew sentence is uncertain
8
Whoever gets sense loves his own soul;
he who keeps understanding will discover good.
9
A false witness will not go unpunished,
and he who breathes out lies will perish.
10
It is not fitting for a fool to live in luxury,
much less for a slave to rule over princes.
11
Good sense makes one slow to anger,
and it is his glory to overlook an offense.
12
A king's wrath is like the growling of a lion,
but his favor is like dew on the grass.
13
A foolish son is ruin to his father,
and a wife's quarreling is a continual dripping of rain.
14
House and wealth are inherited from fathers,
but a prudent wife is from the LORD.
15
Slothfulness casts into a deep sleep,
and an idle person will suffer hunger.
16
Whoever keeps the commandment keeps his life;
he who despises his ways will die.
17
Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the LORD,
and he will repay him for his deed.
18
Discipline your son, for there is hope;
do not set your heart on putting him to death.
19
A man of great wrath will pay the penalty,
for if you deliver him, you will only have to do it again.
20
Listen to advice and accept instruction,
that you may gain wisdom in the future.
21
Many are the plans in the mind of a man,
but it is the purpose of the LORD that will stand.
22
What is desired in a man is steadfast love,
and a poor man is better than a liar.
23
The fear of the LORD leads to life,
and whoever has it rests satisfied;
he will not be visited by harm.
24
The sluggard buries his hand in the dish
and will not even bring it back to his mouth.
25
Strike a scoffer, and the simple will learn prudence;
reprove a man of understanding, and he will gain knowledge.
26
He who does violence to his father and chases away his mother
is a son who brings shame and reproach.
27
Cease to hear instruction, my son,
and you will stray from the words of knowledge.
28
A worthless witness mocks at justice,
and the mouth of the wicked devours iniquity.
29
Condemnation is ready for scoffers,
and beating for the backs of fools.
I struggle with trusting God. Trusting that He is bigger and better than anything my finite little mind can come up with. Many times I find myself pursuing things that I think will bring me life. Often, I look to people, my job, movies, books, or the latest and greatest trend for my happiness. I start to think that by pleasing people, looking perfect, telling the best story, or possessing material items, I will be fulfilled and free. I care more about what others think and how they perceive me than what God thinks of me. This is dangerous because I’m essentially saying that I fear these outside things more than I trust the Lord. Even though I have had a relationship with the Lord for many years, I have put people, performance, and possessions at the center of my life instead of Christ. And this has never brought me freedom, contentment, or peace. Instead, it has brought heartache, depression, burdens, lies, and more fear into my life.
The Lord is teaching me, however, what it looks like to turn these fears over to Him. He has been gracious to meet me in the middle of these wrong thought processes. The Lord has shown me through His Word that when I put Christ at the center of my life, everything else that I fear pales by comparison. He does not want me to be burdened by the bondage of slavery (Galatians 5:1), which for me looks like living in fear of man. But the Bible tells me that “Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe.” (Proverbs 29:25, NIV)
How amazing is it that by fearing the Lord, we do not have to fear anything else! Fearing Him leads to being in awe of who He is and what He has done for us. When my focus is on thanking, praising, and trusting the Lord, I am filled with the peace of God that transcends all understanding. (Philippians 4:7)
1. Are you trusting the Lord today with every part of your life? Or are you trying to hold on to what the world says will give you life and happiness?
2. What does fearing the Lord mean to you? What passages of Scripture help you understand what it means to fear the Lord?
3. What idols do you have in your life that keep you from experiencing the freedom that Christ promises? (Galatians 5:1)