PROVERBS DEVOTIONAL

WEEK 1

 Wk. 1 Monday 

PROVERBS 1:1-6 ¹proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel; ²know wisdom and instruction; to perceive the words of understanding; ³receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, and judgment, and equity; ⁴give subtilty to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion. ⁵wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels: ⁶understand a proverb, and the interpretation; the words of the wise, and their dark sayings.

DO YOU LACK WISDOM?

People often ask, “How can I live a life of integrity?”  That is the theme of the book of Proverbs.  Solomon, David’s son by Bathsheba, is its author.  Solomon reveals the purpose of the Proverbs with the use of the word “to”.  I am reminded of what James says in James 1:5 “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.” We would all do well to spend time here in the book of Proverbs.  Its 31 chapters fit nicely into a one chapter a day reading plan.  Proverbs is addressed to the “young men” in verse 4.  A young man is one who is characterized as a grown up boy.  He is inexperienced in the ways of the world and is in need of lessons of wisdom and discretion.  Who of us do not have such a need?  The purpose then is to make “wise men” out of foolish, young, spiritually immature people.  Unfortunately many of us who know Christ as savior have not yet put away childish things and stand in need of the wisdom of the Proverbs.    

List the benefits that you find in verses 2,3,4, and 6. Are these benefits ones that you need in your own life and practice?  If so, then spend time today praying that God would make these benefits a reality in your life as you seek to obey the Word of God today. Ask God for wisdom, and then apply it to your life today. 

Knowledge knows a fact. Wisdom knows what to do with that fact.

Wk. 1  Tuesday 

Proverbs  1:7-9 ⁷fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction. ⁸son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother: ⁹they shall be an ornament of grace unto thy head, and chains about thy neck.

 

RULES FOR THE ROAD OF LIFE!!

In today’s passage we find Solomon instructing young people directly and older people indirectly.  He gives two rules that will help make young people what they should be.  First in verse 7 Let all young people regard God as their supreme.  The knowledge of God is the fountain head of knowledge.  Of all things to be known, the fact that God is to be feared, reverenced, served and worshipped is evident.  Without a holy reverence for God we are not qualified to profit from the instructions from God’s Word.  Those are fools who do not fear God and value the Scriptures.  Our trouble today is that so many have their heads filled with knowledge but their hearts are empty.

Secondly, Solomon says let the young people regard their parents as their superiors.  Parents, that puts the burden on us to exercise our wisdom in the instruction of our children.  We must be careful not to give our children law without instruction.  Next the children are charged to both receive and to retain the good lessons and laws that their parents give them.  They are to receive it with readiness and to retain it with resolution.  Solomon goes on to say that when the young people do this it is very graceful and brings honor to us. 

Are we as Christians receiving with readiness, and retaining with resolution the instruction of our Heavenly Father?

Knowledge not put into practice is useless

Wk  1 Wednesday

Proverbs 1:10-19 ¹⁰ My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not. ¹¹ If they say, Come with us, let us lay wait for blood, let us lurk privily for the innocent without cause: ¹² Let us swallow them up alive as the grave; and whole, as those that go down into the pit: ¹³ We shall find all precious substance, we shall fill our houses with spoil: ¹⁴ Cast in thy lot among us; let us all have one purse: ¹⁵ My son, walk not thou in the way with them; refrain thy foot from their path: ¹⁶ For their feet run to evil, and make haste to shed blood. ¹⁷ Surely in vain the net is spread in the sight of any bird. ¹⁸ And they lay wait for their own blood; they lurk privily for their own lives. ¹⁹ So are the ways of every one that is greedy of gain; which taketh away the life of the owners thereof.

CAUTION!!

Peter gave new converts some excellent advise in Acts 2:40 “And with many other words did he testify and exhort, saying, Save yourselves from this untoward generation.”  One of the wisest moves we can ever make is to avoid the snare of bad company.  That is the theme of today’s passage.  Solomon paints for us a picture of the enticement the world exercises on our children.  The world would have our children to join them in verse 11. Then in verse 14 our children are further enticed to participate in the evil that the world does.  Notice the cruelty of the world in verses 11 and 12.  Notice their covetousness in verse 13.  They call worldly wealth precious substance.  Worldly wealth is actually neither precious nor substance.  The trap of the world is the love of money.  Notice the promise that sin gives in the last part of verse 13.  Finally in verse 15 Solomon cautions the young people not to even set their foot into the same path that the world trods.  He then shows the destructive nature of the sin of the world in verses 16-19.

Let us remain anchored to Christ lest the waves of this world sweep us away with the rest of mankind.  Christ is the solid ROCK.

Be cautious in choosing friends,

be even more cautious in changing them.

Wk. 1 Thursday

Proverbs 1:20-23  ²⁰ Wisdom crieth without; she uttereth her voice in the streets: ²¹ She crieth in the chief place of concourse, in the openings of the gates: in the city she uttereth her words, saying, ²² How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? and the scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge? ²³ Turn you at my reproof: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto you.

Wisdom calls—Are we listening?

Here we find wisdom taking on life so to speak.  Today’s passage shows us the opposite of yesterday’s passage. Wisdom is calling us, are we listening?  God is actually the one calling in this passage, but the way He calls is through wisdom.  We hear God calling through human wisdom.  The light and law of nature, the powers and abilities of human reason, and our conscience are different ways that God uses wisdom to call out to us.  Civil government is wisdom.  It is ordained of God to set out right rules and regulations for the governing of mankind.  Through these rules and regulations we can see what is right and wrong, and the call to reform or be punished.  Divine revelation is wisdom.  God’s written word in all its dictates, all its laws, and all its commandments are the embodiment of wisdom.  They call out to us to heed, and obey them.  Christ himself is wisdom and the fountainhead of wisdom.  He says in John 14:6  “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”   Notice the three groups that wisdom calls out to in verse 22.  The simple ones are sinners who fill their heads with the simplicity of human understanding.  Scorners delight in scorning. These are proud people who take pleasure in making fun of everything that comes their way.  The worst of sinners, however are those who scorn the things of God.  Finally we find that the fools are haters of knowledge.  The worst of fools are those who hate to be instructed in the areas in which they are in error.  In verse 23 they are invited to repent and become wise.  Turn you at my reproof they are instructed.  Turn to God and they shall find grace in the wisdom and love of God. 

To whom are we listening?  An evaluation of our family values will tell us to whom we are listening.

Jesus calls us o’er the tumult of life’s wild restless sea,

Day by day His sweet voice soundeth,

Saying Christian follow me.

Wk. 1 Friday

Proverbs 1:24-33 ²⁴Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded; ²⁵ye have set at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof: ²⁶also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh;
²⁷your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish cometh upon you.  ²⁸shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me: ²⁹that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the LORD: ³⁰would none of my counsel: they despised all my reproof. ³¹shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices. ³²the turning away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall destroy them. ³³whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell safely, and shall be quiet from fear of evil.

Procrastination

Procrastination is a word that means to put off something until later.  Procrastination is the thief of time.  Today we find a stern rebuke to those who put off listening to the wisdom of Jesus Christ.  What is the crime against Jesus that we see in verse 24?  That’s right it is rejecting Him.  Their rejecting of Christ indicates that they believed that there was nothing in their lives that deserved rebuke.  What folly it is to ignore the counsel of God. Again in verse 30 they are chided for the same thing.  What is the outcome for those who reject the call of Christ?  Look at verses 26-28 for the answer.  The final analysis of rejecting Christ is found in verse 31.  The one who rejects Jesus shall eat of the fruit of his own way.  The root cause of man’s rejection of Jesus is pride.  Even when man finally realizes his need to receive Christ, procrastination takes over and the decision is put off.  Often times it is put off until it is too late.  But, Glory to God; there is solace for those who put their trust in Jesus. Verse 32 tells us that we who trust in Christ dwell in safety and are free from the fear of evil.  Is your trust in Christ today?  Do you have the assurance of dwelling safely in Him?  If not, pray now and commit your life to Jesus.  The main thing that comes to a man who waits is regret for having waited.

Wk. 1 Saturday

Proverbs 2:1-9 son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee; ²that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding; ³, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding; ⁴thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures; ⁵shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God. ⁶the LORD giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding. ⁷layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous: he is a buckler to them that walk uprightly. ⁸keepeth the paths of judgment, and preserveth the way of his saints. shalt thou understand righteousness, and judgment, and equity; yea, every good path.

 

Are you hiding God’s Word or hiding from God’s Word?

Job asked in Job 28:12, 20 But where shall wisdom be found? and where is the place of understanding? Whence then cometh wisdom? and where is the place of understanding? Solomon tells us both where we may find it and how we may get it.  First we are told by what means we may obtain wisdom.  Verses 1-2 instructs us to pay close attention to God’s word which is wisdom.  We must be convinced that it is the source of wisdom. We must receive it with all readiness of mind.  We must hide it in our heart and not hide from it.  We must incline our ear to it.  We must apply it to our hearts.  Verse 3 tells us to be much in prayer crying after the wisdom of God.  Peter says in 1 Peter 2:2 “As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:”  Verse 4 tells us that we must be willing to pay the cost for wisdom as one who digs for silver or searches for buried treasure.  Verses 5 and 9 assures us of receiving that which we have searched for.  We shall know how to maintain our worship and fellowship with God.  We will know how to live our lives in relation to the world and towards others.  Verses 6-8 tells us the value of this wisdom.  God has it to bestow.  He has blessed us with the knowledge of His will.  He has laid up for us instruction, satisfaction, protection and grace to persevere to the end. 

There are four steps to accomplishment:

Plan purposefully

Prepare prayerfully

Proceed positively

Pursue persistently