10/13/12. Proverbs 3:11-35. Blessed Is The Man Who Finds Wisdom-my devotional

Proverbs 3:11-35                                                                                   Kevin Jesmer NIU UBF

Key verse 3:18                                                                                      10/13/12

 ^“She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her; those who hold her fast will be blessed”“

     Dear Lord, thank you for your love, grace and provision in our lives. Thank you that I could trust in you. I pray that I may seek you and live to please you, my Lord and savior. I pray that you may bless the Network of Nations to continue to do their great work among the internationals at NIU and reveal the love of God to them. Help my kids to participate in this all important ministry. Bless the square dance next week to be full of joy and respect and the love of God for all people. I pray that you may help us to glorify Jesus Christ and the Gospel through our house church. Please grant me one word of God to hold on to through this passage. I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen!

Part 1: The Lord’s Discipline (11-18)

Verses 11-18, “¹¹ My son, do not despise the Lord’s discipline, and do not resent his rebuke, ¹² because the Lord disciplines those he loves, as a father the son he delights in.¹³ Blessed are those who find wisdom, those who gain understanding, ¹⁴ for she is more profitable than silver and yields better returns than gold. ¹⁵ She is more precious than rubies; nothing you desire can compare with her. ¹⁶ Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor. ¹⁷ Her ways are pleasant ways, and all her paths are peace. ¹⁸ She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her; those who hold her fast will be blessed”

Wisdom from God is more precious that gold or jewels. it is worth making a great sacrifice to obtain it (14-18) God teach us his wisdom though discipline. When he disciplines us, we must first remember his love. Then we must seek to learn what he wants to teach us. We are very foolish if we resent or despise God’s discipline. We only suffer more and do not grow. Taking hold of God’s wisdom involves, not despising God’s discipline and not resenting his rebuke. It means putting ourselves out there to find the wisdom of God. It means seeking to gain the understanding of God. It means holding fast to wisdom. Holding fast is holding on to something, even when everything seems to be forcing us to let go.

      I must have this attitude in seeking out God’s wisdom. I must seek, find, accept and hold fast to wisdom. The definition of holding fast is, (http://www.thefreedictionary.com/hold+fast) “To stick to firmly.”  God’s wisdom does not just come through osmosis. We think that we are going to be wise by simply living life. It is true that this may be to some extent…one will never gain the wisdom that God wants to pour into our hearts. We can be wise beyond our years if only we will seek and find and hold fast to the wisdom of the Lord.

There are many forces trying to get me to ignore and let go of the wisdom of God. The busy-ness of life. Family dynamics that have stopped a disciplined study of the word of God with each other. Negative emotions that want to drive me to despair instead of turning to Jesus Christ.      Isolation and passivity in my life. All these things hinder me from holding fast to the wisdom of God. I repent and I wish to hold onto the most valuable item… the wisdom of the Lord.

That wisdom is the most valuable. There are some who think that making money and taking care of your health are the most valuable things in the world. But then they find that they cannot maintain their family life. They end up divorcing and loosing half of their wealth. They get years of stress that is the health equivalent of smoking a pack of cigarettes a day. Truly the most valuable thing is taking hold of the wisdom of the Lord.

Verses 11-12, “¹¹ My son, do not despise the Lord’s discipline, and do not resent his rebuke, ¹² because the Lord disciplines those he loves, as a father the son he delights in”  God disciplines those he loves. I need to always accept the Lord’s discipline as his love. God is disciplining me in so many ways. He is doing it through studying theology studies, through resolving conflicts in the home, through the different struggles within relationships, through preparing new Bible material, through working as a nurse. Life in this world is tough. It is very tough. There are many things that want to bring us down. But we need to accept them and God’s fatherly love, disciplining those he loves. He loves me. How do I know? It is because he does not ignore my but disciplines me so that I can share in his holiness and know his grace and to have a close relationship with him.

Part 2: The Lord’s Wisdom (19-35)

Verses 19-35, “. ¹⁹ By wisdom the Lord laid the earth’s foundations, by understanding he set the heavens in place; ²⁰ by his knowledge the watery depths were divided, and the clouds let drop the dew. ²¹ My son, do not let wisdom and understanding out of your sight, preserve sound judgment and discretion; ²² they will be life for you, an ornament to grace your neck. ²³ Then you will go on your way in safety, and your foot will not stumble. ²⁴ When you lie down, you will not be afraid; when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet. ²⁵ Have no fear of sudden disaster or of the ruin that overtakes the wicked,  ²⁶ for the Lord will be at your side and will keep your foot from being snared. ²⁷ Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to act. ²⁸ Do not say to your neighbor, “Come back tomorrow and I’ll give it to you”— when you already have it with you. ²⁹ Do not plot harm against your neighbor, who lives trustfully near you. ³⁰ Do not accuse anyone for no reason— when they have done you no harm. ³¹ Do not envy the violent or choose any of their ways. ³² For the Lord detests the perverse but takes the upright into his confidence. ³³ The Lord’s curse is on the house of the wicked, but he blesses the home of the righteous. ³⁴ He mocks proud mockers but shows favor to the humble and oppressed. ³⁵ The wise inherit honor, but fools get only shame.

God is the source of all wisdom. He created the world by his wisdom. He gives us his wisdom through his written word. He tells us not to live by our feelings but to exercise sound judgment and discernment. If the Lord is our confidence, then we can sleep peacefully. Here are some examples of God’s wisdom, from this passage. We must deal with others in God’s way, not according to our pride or anger (27-32). We must not envy a violent man and choose his ways. God blesses the righteous and gives grace to the humble.

Again, how can we ever ignore the wisdom of God in the Bible? We can never ignore the grace of our God, that he offers us life and safety and protection. He will be at our side and grant us peace. This is grace. On our own, before meeting Jesus, we were separate from God. We could only look forward to few years of life in this world and then judgment. But because of the grace of Jesus we can not be the recipients of God’s grace and blessing. God will be with us in the raising of our kids. He will be with us in the light of some career changes. He will be with us in Julie’s and my relationship. He will be with Jenn in Montreal. He will be with us as we for a new life in Kishwaukee Bible Church. (as well as UBF). He will be with us in our struggle against sin, this world and the devil. God will be with us all the way to the Kingdom of God. He will guide us by the wisdom imparted to our hearts through his word and his spirit. Thank God for his grace.

“Lord, teach me your wisdom and your love. Help me to walk in your ways.”

One word: Discipline for those he loves.