Tag Archives: the book of Proverbs

“Do not wear yourself out to get rich; do not trust your own cleverness. Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle.” (Proverbs 23: 4-5, NIV)

There is an old ditty about money that goes like this: “Money talks, and that’s no lie; I heard it once, it said, ‘bye-bye.'”

God’s wisdom reminds of the deceitfulness of riches, and warns us of the perils of chasing money.  The bumper sticker says, “He who dies with the most toys wins.”  However, the “winner” still dies and all of the “toys” he has accumulated will pass to someone else in an estate sale — or in a garage sale — at a small fraction of the original retail price!

The wise person works for the treasure that “moth and rust cannot corrupt; and thieves cannot break-in and steal.”  The wise person does not work for the treasure that is here today and gone tomorrow; but for the treasure that is earned today and is remembered by the Creator of the universe for all time.  – Luther

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“Like a city whose walls are broken through is a person who lacks self-control.” (Proverbs 25:28, NIV)

Today’s proverb is reflected in the words of a 20th Century philosopher — movie character Harry Callahan — who stated:  “A man’s got to know his limitations.” (“Dirty Harry,” 1973)

We err on two fronts when we uncritically adopt the conventional wisdom that “the sky is the limit” when it comes to human endeavor.  For example, much of our fatigue and lack of focus is due to our failure to preserve (and to observe) wholesome limits on our personal ambitions; or in protecting ourselves from the unvetted demands of others.  Here, we err by excess.

We err by deficiency when we stop well-short of our personal boundaries (aka “limits”) for doing good.  Have we reached the limit of our compassion for others?  Have we reached the limit of our mercy for the wounded?  Have we reached the limit of our love for the unloved and for the unlovely?

To lack “self-control” is to deprive oneself of opportunities for blessing and good works, as much as it is to protect oneself from trouble.  – Luther

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“Do not fret because of evildoers or be envious of the wicked, for the evildoer has no future hope, and the lamp of the wicked will be snuffed out.” (Proverbs 24: 19-20, NIV)

When it seems that evil and the servants of evil have gotten the upper hand, the word of God reminds us to “not fret” because “the evildoer has no future hope.”

The resistance of evil can be wearying to the spirit because there never seems to be an end to it.  Evil seems to be everywhere and in everything; and its agents seem to thwart even the smallest grace.

Even so, remain faithful to the word of God and to the leading of the spirit of God.  There is no future in the practice of wickedness; and there is no hope for the agents of evil.  The extent to which we are able to confront evil without becoming like it; and to resist evil without losing heart, is a measure of our faith.  – Luther

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