Proverbs 15:5. A fool despiseth his father’s instruction: but he that regardeth (keeps, accepts) reproof is prudent (sensible).
Oh mih Friends, one more day has just been added to our illustrious lives! Glory Hallelujah! What a wonderful God we serve and worship! A God of mercy, of LOVING-kindness, of forgiveness, of compassion, of comfort, and above all, of LOVE!
Wow! How could we not LOVE Him in return and bless and praise His Holy name and thank Him for the myriad of blessings He showers down on us each and every day eh, even if we don’t deserve them?
And all God’s people declared a loud and thankful: ‘All praise and glory be to God the Father, who in His never-ending stream of LOVING-kindness, sacrificed his only Son Jesus Christ on the rugged cross at Calvary so that we abominable sinners could be reconciled to Him, brought back into a holy and glorious relationship with Him, featuring salvation and eternal life!’
Yes my people, it is of the utmost importance that EVERYDAY we recognize and appreciate and give thanks for God’s goodness to us, the undeserving children of sinful men! A lot of us just take it for granted. But that is oh so wrong my brethren.
Remember too, that one of the reasons God created us from the dust of the earth, then blew the breath of life into our nostrils is so that we could laud and magnify Him, worship Him in all faithfulness, with pomp and splendour!
And since today is Sunday, the day that most of us recognize as the Lord’s Day – no divisive arguments over that now – it’s only fitting that we should gather at His sanctuary and fellowship with other believers, exhorting and encouraging each other in our faith, while giving the Lord the thanks and praise He so richly deserves!
And having said all of that, let’s turn to our Bit which encapsulates it all. ‘A fool despiseth his father’s instruction: but he that regardeth (keeps, accepts) reproof is prudent (sensible)’
And since those words are truth-bearing my brethren, it means that the majority of us on this planet earth are fools, because we very much despise and disobey our heavenly Father’s instructions, laid out for us in His Word. There’s no getting around that, if our Bit is true. And it certainly is, even by our mortal standards, as we saw from the several Proverbs we quoted yesterday, and will see from some more that we’ll quote today.
Yes Friends, we consider disobeying our earthly parents to be unwise, but hypocritically, we set up a different standard for our disobeying God. But disobedience is disobedience: in reality it’s the same; not abiding by the rules and regulations of a higher authority.
And Cousin Sol in his Proverbs, so wisely warns us that: ‘Poverty and shame shall be to him that refuseth (disdains, ignores) instruction: but he that regardeth (accepts) reproof shall be honoured.’ (Prov.13:18) And that my people goes for both the children of earthly men, and the children of our heavenly God!
When our children disobey us, we punish them; likewise, when we disobey God, we shouldn’t be surprised if He punishes us, because He states it quite clearly in His word. And if you don’t believe me, then just read Leviticus 26, where blessings for obedience are listed from verses 3-13, but penalties for disobedience run from verses 14-46. What does that intimate eh Friends? That there’s a very heavy price to pay for disobedience!
And in that vein, Cousin Sol tells us:’ A man of great wrath shall suffer punishment: for if thou deliver him, yet thou must do it again. Hear counsel, and receive instruction, that thou mayest be wise in thy latter end (days).’ (Prov.19:19-20)
And we come back to why there are so many disobedient children; because there are too many disobedient parents. Parents who are not rearing their children in the dictates of God, with a proper balance of LOVE and discipline! Oh my people, if we don’t teach them, the right way, someone else will teach them the wrong one, as is happening so much nowadays.
Hear these wise words from Cousin Sol. ‘Apply thine heart unto instruction; and thine ears to the words of knowledge. Withhold not correction from the child: for if thou beatest him with the rod, he shall not die. Thou shalt beat him with the rod, and shalt deliver his soul from hell. My son, if thine heart be wise, my (own) heart shall rejoice, even mine. Yes, my reins (my innermost being) shall rejoice, when thy lips speak right things.’ (Prov.23:12-16)
Now Friends, that doesn’t mean we have to beat our children senseless or abuse them, but by the same token if we don’t apply some measure of physical correction they’ll just turn out as they are today; spoiled rotten, undisciplined, ungrateful, believing that the world owes them a living, and all because the goody two shoes folks in their false wisdom declared that physical punishment tends to child abuse.
Hogwash! Most of us who received some sort of physical punishment for disobedience have turned out pretty good. Like everything else, if it’s overdone, it’s bad; just like mental and emotional punishment, or no punishment at all, can be abusive.
The only way our innermost beings can rejoice over our children’s behaviour, my brethren, is if we teach them discipline in the proper manner – just like God is trying to teach us, so that His heart can rejoice. (smile)
Anyway Friends, enough for today, let’s ponder all that we’ve read and heard, but in the end, let’s ensure that we are all following the Word of God, which is the only true wisdom that exists. Much LOVE!
…our world will only improve when discipline and self-control…based on God’s Word…take precedence over all else…
SCRIP-BITS 