Tag Archives: Foolishness

September 17, 2020 · 7:15 am

PROVERBS 1:29

A Five Minute Devotional

The video shown below is the devotional from September 17th, 2020. The full text of the devotional follows the video.

Calvary Chapel Rosarito – English Devotional by Gary Wiram

WELCOME

Good morning. I am Gary Wiram and it’s my pleasure to welcome you to Today’s Good News!

INTRODUCTION

Currently, we’re teaching through the first chapter of Proverbs. As a reminder, this section of Proverbs is aimed at providing a basic summary contrasting wisdom and foolishness. Today, we will be looking at Proverbs 1:29. Before we do that, let me tell you a non-Scriptural story that may help set the stage for today’s topic.

An 86 year-old man was out in his fishing boat when he heard a voice say, “Pick me up!” The old man looked in the water and there, floating on a lily pad was a frog. The man said, “Are you talking to me?” The frog replied, “Yes, I’m talking to you. Pick me up. Then, kiss me and I’ll turn into the most beautiful woman you have ever seen. I’ll make sure that all your friends are envious and jealous because you will have me as your bride.” The man looked at the frog for a minute then he reached over, picked up the frog carefully, and placed it in his front pocket. The frog screamed, “What, are you nuts? Didn’t you hear what I said?? I said kiss me and I will be your beautiful bride!” The old man opened his pocket, looked at the frog and said, “No thanks! At my age I’d rather have a talking frog.”

THE FEAR OF THE LORD

Whether or not you see the humor in that story, it’s pretty easy to understand. Proverbs 1:29 says, “Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the Lord,” That’s a message I found much more challenging to understand. And once I understood it, I realized, it’s not so humorous.

In order to understand the cryptic message of Proverbs 1:29, I think you have to go back to the key verse for the entire book. That’s Proverbs 1:7 that tells us, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, But fools despise wisdom and instruction.” 

WISDOM

This section of Chapter 1 has been subtitled “The Call of Wisdom”. It is God calling us to be wise. In the verses leading up to 1:29, it’s obvious that His call is made openly and it’s loud and clear. But, in our sin, we foolishly choose to not listen and even when rebuked by God, we continue to do so. That leaves God no alternative but to allow us to continue down the path we’ve foolishly chosen, a path that leads to a destination of calamity, terror, destruction and anguish. Finally, then, we may call out to God but when that comes too late, He may no longer answer, He may no longer  be there. Proverbs 1:29 tells us that’s due to our choosing not to fear Him and instead, hating His knowledge.

True wisdom is always grounded in a healthy, respectful, reverent “fear” of God. When we choose not to fear the Lord, when we choose not to place Him in His proper place in our lives, we despise knowledge, and refuse to act wisely. Verse 29 emphasizes how this results in catastrophe.

FOOLISHNESS

In my eyes, there is no greater catastrophe than what’s currently going on in the U.S.A. Presently, the ever-deepening division in its population makes it seem to be on the verge of civil war. To explain this, many look to aspects of American life that are nearly the polar-opposite of the way they were in the nation where I grew up. The common thread running through all these aspects is that the vast majority of the population no longer gives priority to things they recognize as being greater than themselves. Weekly attendance at a house of worship once was nearly universal and Judeo-Christian values were the foundational qualities of most individual lives, families, neighborhoods and communities. In other words, today’s American catastrophe has resulted from ignoring true wisdom grounded in a healthy respectful reverent “fear” of God, through not choosing to place Him in His proper place in their lives, through despising knowledge and refusing to act wisely.

HUMBLE PRAYER

So, in the face of this tragic sadness, what are we to do? Well, God Himself has given us the answer in His Holy Word. In 2 Chronicles 7:14, he tells us, “If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” One aspect of this that can still seem intimidating is where God says, “If my people”. It may be natural to think, “What can I do to get an entire people to turn back to God?” Well it’s kind of like answering the question “How do you eat an elephant? That is “One bite at a time.”  So the answer to “What can I do to get an entire people to turn back to God?” is “By setting an example, one person at a time … beginning with you and me.”

And THAT, is Today’s Good News.

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September 3, 2020 · 7:15 am

PROVERBS 1:19

A Five Minute Devotional

The video shown below is the devotional from September 3rd, 2020. The full text of the devotional follows the video.

Calvary Chapel Rosarito – English Devotional by Gary Wiram

WELCOME

Good morning! My name is Gary Wiram and it’s my pleasure to, again, welcome you to Today’s Good News.

INTRODUCTION

Today, as we continue to teach through the first chapter of Proverbs, my assignment is Proverbs 1:19. To set the right tone for what this Scripture has to teach us, let me remind you that this section of Proverbs provides a basic summary contrasting wisdom and foolishness. Actually, the key verse is Proverbs 1:7, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, But fools despise wisdom and instruction.”

Here’s a non-Scriptural story that may help us in relating to this topic:

A man comes across an old bottle. He pulls out its cork and out pops a genie! The genie says, “In return for freeing me, I will grant you three wishes.” The man says “Great! First, I want one billion dollars in a Swiss bank account.” Poof!” A paper with Swiss bank account numbers appears in his hand! “Next, I want a brand new red Ferrari.” Poof!” A brand new red Ferrari appears right next to him! “Finally, I want to be irresistible to women.” Poof!” He turns into a box of chocolates.

GREED

Proverbs 1:19 tells us, “So are the ways of everyone who is greedy for gain;

It takes away the life of its owners.” Of course, we all understand that greed won’t actually turn you into a box of chocolates but it can “take away life” in many ways.

When this verse says, “So are the ways…”, it’s referring to ways mentioned in the immediately preceding verses. These are:

  • Their feet run to evil
  • They lie in wait and make haste to shed blood
  • They lurk secretly for the innocent

Those are some pretty dramatic ways, aren’t they? And, I think it’s obvious they’re ways we should avoid. But greed can blind us to the obvious and just as often, they can be pretty subtle. In a way, as a guy who spent the majority of his professional life in Sales, it reminds me of what I  learned early-on about the key motive for buying and for selling. That is, “What’s in it for me?” Actually, that is a legitimate function when the buyer is looking for a solution to a need in his business and the seller has a product or service that meets that need. However, when either party is solely focused on their own greedy gain, that takes away from the legitimacy.

This is well illustrated by a familiar cross reference for Proverbs 1:19. It’s 1 Timothy 6:9-10, that says, “But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.”

I think this, also, illustrates an aspect of the sort of greediness we have to deal with today. It’s not so much the greediness of others that we have to be on guard for. It’s our own greediness and in many ways, often due to peer pressure, it’s so subtle that we don’t recognize it in ourselves. A good example of this, that you’ve probably heard said, is that the American dream has become  striving to buy more things we don’t need with money we don’t have to impress people we don’t like. By itself, that seems sort of amusing. But when you consider its cost, it’s actually pretty sad.

NO EARTHLY SATISFACTION

I recently read an article in MoneyWatch, entitled “The dark reasons so many rich people are miserable human beings”. It put the wisdom of Proverbs 1:19 into focus in today’s terms. A few highlights from that article are:

  • Once a certain household income is reached, more income is actually associated with reduced life satisfaction and a lower level of well-being.
  • The wealthier we get, the less we value social connectedness — and that eats into our overall sense of well-being.
  • Children who come from affluent families are more likely to suffer from depression, anxiety and substance abuse than those who come from less affluent families.

When you scrutinize this, considering wisdom versus foolishness, I think it’s pretty easy to put this in the category of foolishness.

ETERNAL SATISFACTION

So, what is the best way to contrast this foolishness and replace it with wisdom? Of course, all you have to do to answer that question is to look to the Scriptures. I recommend Matthew 6:19-21, that says, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. 

And Scripture, also, tells us where to find the wisdom needed in order to do this. James 1:5 tells us, “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him.”

And THAT, is Today’s Good News!

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