Watching Daily At Wisdom's Gates

Sheol and Abaddon are never satisfied, and never satisfied are the eyes of man. Proverbs 27:20 ESV  We might say that death and hell are never satisfied. The curse that they are is upon mankind, and even when we die, if we're not saved, we face an eternity of dissatisfaction in hell. Death is like a monster whose stomach is a bottomless pit- it's never filled.  This is a very powerful, strongly worded proverb, but how true it is! If we look for satisfaction in the things we can see, we will always been unfulfilled. Only the infinite God can fill the aching void in our souls.  No matter how much screen time we get, it's never enough! Just one more blog post, one more vlog, one more comment and like on a picture! And Solomon didn't even have all the technology that we have an insatiable appetite for!  Knowing that technology can never satisfy, I'm sure that the occasional detox wouldn't do us any harm. More properly, we might call such a detox a fast from technolo...

As in water face reflects face, so the heart of man reflects the man. Proverbs 27:19 ESV  If you want to know what someone looks like, of course you look at their face. If you want to know what someone actually is like however, you need to look into their heart. "The eyes are the windows of the soul".  So we can get a clue as to what people are like at heart, their facial expressions offer clues. We can also start to work people out by their words and actions. The Bible itself offers a mirror onto our souls.  So if we want to know ourselves, we will look into the mirror of God's Word. It will show us up as the rotten sinners that we are, with our deceitful hearts. But it will also show us we can get a spiritual heart transplant and be made righteous.  As God's children, our enemy satan wants us to see ourselves as hopelessly rotten sinners. Our Father in heaven though wants us to see ourselves as He does, as sanctified saints. We're not so much sinners who do good...

Whoever tends a fig tree will eat its fruit, and he who guards his master will be honoured. Proverbs 27:18 ESV  I'm not a great authority on fig trees if I'm honest. But I can assume that if you want figs, you're going to have to tend to your fig tree. It will need pruning to make it more fruitful.  In the UK it would need to be in a greenhouse for it to be warm enough to bear fruit. So if you want figs, you have to look after your fig tree. Similarly, if you want honour, and presumably promotion, you need to look out, not just for your own interests, but also for the interests of your employer.  After all, they're the one in a position to honour and promote you. We might often think of doing a good job as simply fulfilling the tasks assigned to us. But Solomon encourages us to go above and beyond, and to serve our employers with distinction.  Unfortunately, Solomon's skilled and promoted employee, Jeroboam, ended up snatching the ten northern tribes of Israel from ...

And Mary said: “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour" Luke 1:46-47 (NIV) The angel Gabriel had given Mary some inconvenient news. He told her that despite her being a virgin, she was pregnant with the Son of God. Nowadays, most teenage pregnancies would end in abortion.  Mary lived in far more moral days than nowadays. People don't think much of teenage pregnancies nowadays, just an inconvenience to be got rid of. Jesus could hardly have been born nowadays, because in all likelihood, He would have been aborted. Thankfully, Mary was a godly young woman, and she recognised the honour of bearing the Son of God, never mind the shame of a pregnancy outside of marriage in that religious culture. She knew it wouldn't be easy. Nonetheless, she was overjoyed at the glorious responsibility of carrying the Saviour of the world. Joseph took a bit more time to come around, understandably! He needed a dream to persuade him to go ahead with his marriage to ...

The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. Luke 1:35 (NIV) How can a virgin give birth? Nothing is impossible for God. He doesn't need a man to cause His everlasting Son to be conceived by His Holy Spirit. Jesus isn't just the Bethlehemite baby. He's the eternal Son of God in whom we can be reconciled to God the Father. We must trust in Him for our salvation. Nothing is impossible for God. He who caused the virgin Mary to conceive the Son of God can cause us to be born again by the same Holy Spirit. We just need to believe. Jesus is the Holy One. He's God incarnate. He's the only perfect man who ever lived. 'Father in heaven, please help us to trust in Christ for our salvation, to make us holy and acceptable in Your sight. In Jesus' name, amen'.

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6 (NIV) Jesus isn't just a baby born in Bethlehem. He's the King of kings and Lord of lords. We all need counsel: He is a Wonderful Counsellor. Jesus isn't just someone to advise us. He's Almighty God. At His arrest, He could have called down twelve legions of angels to prevent His torture and execution. Christ is the Everlasting Father of those who trust in Him. We don't have to be spiritual orphans. We don't have to be the prey of the evil one. Christ is the Prince of Peace. He came to bring peace on earth to those on whom His favour rests. If we reject Him, we have no peace with God. 'Father God, please help us to trust the Lord Jesus Christ for our salvation. In His name we pray, amen'.

But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days. Micah 5:2 (ESV) Jesus isn't just a cute baby, born in the little town of Bethlehem two thousand years ago. His coming forth is from of old, from ancient days. In fact, as He told the religious leaders of His day, 'before Abraham was born, I am'. 'I am' is God's name for Himself: Yahweh, or the LORD. He is the self existent One. He was, and He is, and He is to come.  The Lord Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever. He's the everlasting God. He's the eternal Son of God. The Roman governor Pilate crucified Jesus as the supposedly treasonous King of the Jews. Yet Jesus is also the King of kings and the Lord of lords. He's ruler not just in Israel, but over all. 'Heavenly Father, we praise You for sending Your Son for our salvation and ...

Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. Isaiah 7:14 (NIV) King Ahaz might have seemed pious for refusing to ask God for a sign. Yet God told him to ask for a sign. So He was being disobedient. Even though evil king Ahaz wasn't interested in a sign from God, He got one anyway. Isaiah promised Jesus, born of the virgin Mary. Jesus is Immanuel, which means God with us. He isn't just a miracle child. He's God incarnate. Christ is the eternal Son of God. He came to restore us to a relationship with God. Through Him we can know God's presence, by His Holy Spirit. 'Lord, we praise You for the miraculous sign of the virgin birth of Your Son. May we know You through Him and His Spirit. In His name we pray, amen'

“The days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, a King who will reign wisely and do what is just and right in the land. Jeremiah 23:5 (NIV) In Jeremiah's days, this verse seemed farfetched. David's kingly line had seemingly been destroyed. The final kings of Judah had their children murdered before their eyes. King Zechariah then had his eyes gouged out. Thankfully, David's line wasn't completely obliterated. Mary was descended from David via his son Nathan, another of Bathsheba's sons. Joseph, Jesus's stepfather and legal guardian, was descended from the kingly line of Solomon. Coniah whose children were murdered by Babylonians, seems to have adopted a child which continued the kingly line. So Jesus was born of the virgin Mary. He isn't just some fairy tale. He's the flesh and blood Son of David. Jesus is the King of the Jews. Not only so, but He's also the King of kings and the Lord of lords. He reigns ...

Out of the stump of David’s family will grow a shoot— yes, a new Branch bearing fruit from the old root. Isaiah 11:1 (NLT) Jesus was descended from David both legally (through His guardian stepfather Joseph, via Solomon), and physically (through His mother Mary, via Nathan, another of David's sons). This was important because God promised David a Descendant whose kingdom will never end. Jesus is the fulfilment of that promise.  Jesus is the King of the Jews, but He didn't establish a Jewish state and kick out the Romans. Jesus established the Kingdom of God on earth, in the hearts of all who trust in Him. The Kingdom of heaven is a spiritual entity, not an earthly polity.  From the root of Judaism, Jesus established Christianity. Even Gentiles like me can be grafted into spiritual Israel. There's room for all in God's kingdom. In Jesus's days, the house of David had fallen upon hard times, under pagan Roman occupation. Yet in Christ we can bear spiritual fruit, the ...

“The day will come, says the LORD, when I will do for Israel and Judah all the good things I have promised them. Jeremiah 33:14 (NLT) God has done so much good for Israel. What people have had a land promised and restored to them, not even just twice, but altogether three times? Even the modern state of Israel is a miracle, made up primarily of a bunch of refugees who swiftly turned their wilderness of a land into a prosperous, fruitful Western nation. To be honest, I don't think this verse is primarily about ethnicity or politics. The Bible is a spiritual book, and needs to be interpreted with the help of the Holy Spirit of God. I take this verse to be primarily about the Jewish Messiah and Saviour of the world, the Son of God. The Lord Jesus Christ is the One in whom all the promises of God are yes and amen. Even Gentiles like myself can be grafted into spiritual Israel and enjoy all the blessings promised to God's people. The ultimate good thing is eternal life, through fait...

Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another. Proverbs 27:17 ESV   I remember over a decade ago as prayer secretary of Aberystwyth University Christian Union leading a series of devotionals on Proverbs. My friend chose this proverb to speak on; he's now a pastor in New Zealand. Solomon's point is about the blessing of relationship.  We weren't designed to be hermits, living in "splendid isolation", aloof and apart from the world. God who is love and relational as Father, Son and Spirit created us in His image and likeness for relationship.  We might sometimes "rub each other up the wrong way", but it's good to positively relate to one another as fellow humans. Solomon uses the image of iron sharpening iron. If iron isn't sharpened by iron, it becomes blunt and useless.  The better quality interaction we have with one another, the more nuanced a blessing we become to one another. Just as the Word of God is sharp and "cuts to the chase...

A continual dripping on a rainy day and a quarrelsome wife are alike; to restrain her is to restrain the wind or to grasp oil in one's right hand. Proverbs 27:15-16 ESV   This is a bit of a theme for polygamous Solomon. I'm sure some of his seven hundred wives fit this bill. I think I must have memorised a bit of a paraphrase, because I always remember these proverbs as "a nagging wife is like a dripping tap!"  Repeated dripping on a rainy day reminds me of a "Chinese water torture". This is where irregular drips of water are dripped on the victim's face. In other words, a nagging wife is torture apparently, thankfully I wouldn't know personally!  Solomon uses a couple of other illustrations for the nagging wife. Restraining her is like restraining the wind- in other words a hopeless task. I'm also reminded of old king Canute who tried to hold back the tide.  The other illustration is of grabbing oil in your hand. Oil of course is extremely slipp...

Whoever blesses his neighbour with a loud voice, rising early in the morning, will be counted as cursing. Proverbs 27:14 ESV  Some acquaintances have a neighbour like this. Nice as the neighbour is, he always seems to be over the garden fence whenever my acquaintances happened to pass by. He is friendly and chatty, but sometimes you just want peace and quiet.  After all, "an Englishman's home is his castle!" If you're dragging yourself off to work early in the morning, the last thing you want is a chat about the weather with your next door neighbour. If you had to exchange such pleasantries every day, it would get so wearing as to seem like a curse!  Of course there's nothing wrong with being friendly. But it is possible to be over friendly. People don't want their neighbours to be over friendly, they want their personal space.  Of course, to the grumpy neighbour, it could be said that they need to lighten up. I think that's what Solomon's doing with t...

The prudent sees danger and hides himself, but the simple go on and suffer for it. Proverbs 27:12 ESV  I think in respect of this proverb of my namesake, UK Prime Minister Chamberlain. His policy in attempting to deal with Hitler was to attempt to appease him. He came back from one conference with him with a piece of paper and declared it to be "peace in our time". Soon, Hitler invaded yet another territory.  Eventually, Chamberlain declared war. Apparently, revisionist historians now suggest that Chamberlain privately knew Britain was unprepared for war. So he quietly built up the military ready for the inevitable conflict with Germany.  Most historians however see Chamberlain as naive rather than prudent. Another example of this proverb is in current British politics. A prudent British politician would put off becoming party leader and prime minister at the moment, with Brexit proving to be a poisoned chalice.  Any victory in the leadership contest at the time of w...

Be wise, my son, and make my heart glad, that I may answer him who reproaches me. Proverbs 27:11 ESV Even with a firstborn baby girl, I can empathise with Solomon here. When she does something good for the first time, like to clap her hands, I'm glad, and I applaud her! When she does something bad however, like loses her temper, I'm ashamed. What is true of me personally as a father, is even more true when other people start wading in with their opinions of how well or otherwise I might be doing as a parent, or how my kid behaves. Parents get mortified when their kids behave badly! This is because it reflects badly on them as parents, whether rightly or wrongly.  Of course, we shouldn't be paranoid about what others think about our kids or our parenting. Ultimately we're answerable individually to God Himself, not some nosy person interfering in our families. But we still want our kids to "do us proud", to please us with how good they are.  Sadly, Solomon didn...

Do not forsake your friend and your father's friend, and do not go to your brother's house in the day of your calamity. Better is a neighbour who is near than a brother who is far away. Proverbs 27:10 ESV In regards to this proverb, I think of a family who are good friends of ours. The parents are almost old enough to be our parents, but did Christian youth work when I was a youth, so I've always looked up to them.  In God's providence, they've become neighbours to us in comparison to our own families. So this family have become not just good friends, but very helpful too with babysitting our daughter, something geography doesn't allow our families to do so often.  That's the point of this proverb, in many ways, it's more valuable to have literally close friends than geographically distant families. To be honest, that rings true in my family's context.  This isn't to be a bad reflection on extended families. It's just that geography sometimes...

Like a bird that strays from its nest is a man who strays from his home. Proverbs 27:8 ESV This is almost the opposite of the English saying, "birds of a feather, flock together" which suggests there's safety in numbers and sticking with your own kind.  This proverb is saying that there's no place like home for safety. A bird that strays from its nest is risking being snatched by a predator. Similarly, a man who's always out at work is risking losing his family.  We're not to be absentee from our own families. It's not just workaholics who stray from home. We're to prioritise family over work. Work is only a means to the end of providing for our families.  Stereotypically, unfaithful husbands stray from home. But to have an affair is to destroy our families and our spiritual lives. It's not worth it!  "Almighty God, forbid that we should stray from our homes. May we be committed to our families, for Your name's sake, our heavenly Father, a...

Oil and perfume make the heart glad, and the sweetness of a friend comes from his earnest counsel. Proverbs 27:9 ESV  Scented oils are coming back in fashion. They were the products that were used to wash bodies in Solomon's days. They were luxury goods in the ancient world.  Perfume, or cologne as the male version is called isn't something I ever used to be bothered about. But since meeting my now wife, I was encouraged to beautify my scent, and now I regularly wear it! I do confess that sweet scenting products do make the heart glad, even if I used to be a typical boy who wasn't bothered!  Solomon didn't write about perfume to promote his own brand. Instead, he used it as an illustration of the sweetness of a friend's earnest counsel. One of the great things about marriage is that you get to live with your best friend and have their advice "on tap". When the Bible says it's not good for man to be alone, it doesn't mean to say we have to marry nec...

One who is full loathes honey, but to one who is hungry everything bitter is sweet. Proverbs 27:7 ESV We might assume that being full is a blessing, but it means that we don't appreciate sweetness. On a spiritual level, God's Word is sweeter than honey. But if we're full of self righteous, we're not going to appreciate it.  As Jesus said, "blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled". But this proverb seems to suggest that Jesus' blessing is more nuanced than we might assume. After all, to the hungry, even what is bitter tastes sweet.  We need to make sure we're being filled with the right stuff. If we're full of self righteousness, it's going to be bitter for us in the end. If however, we fill up on God's Word, it will be sweeter than honey for us.  At Passover, Jews have lamb garnished with bitter herbs. Jesus is our Passover Lamb who went through the bitterness of the cross so that we might enjoy th...

Faithful are the wounds of a friend; profuse are the kisses of an enemy. Proverbs 27:6 ESV This might seem a contradictory proverb to reality at first glance. Surely enemies wound, and friends kiss! But it's not necessarily so binary.  Imagine you're acting foolishly. If you do, your enemy will probably give you the "kiss" of their approval. A friend however, wouldn't be afraid to "wound" your feelings by telling you to sort yourself out. For example, I remember years ago, when I was medication that sedated me and made me sluggish. My brother was a true friend to me by compelling me to get up and go out for a walk. An enemy would have just "kissed" me and let me waste my life.  You don't want a flatterer for a friend, someone who's friendly to your face but stabs you in the back. You want someone forthright for a friend, who isn't afraid to tell it like it is and rebuke you if necessary. True friends are loving enough to be honest w...

Better is open rebuke than hidden love. Proverbs 27:5 ESV   Rebukes are hard to take. But it's better to be rebuked openly for something we've done wrong rather than have people talking behind our backs. Rebukes are important to take well.  If someone rebukes us, we usually deserve it and need it! So we should take rebukes in the spirit in which they're most likely given: as an attempt to improve us. I'm reminded of Paul opposing Peter to his face for refusing to eat with Gentiles. Hidden love is pretty pointless, and isn't much of a love at all. A common theme in some films is unrequited, hidden love. Thankfully it usually gets found out in the end, and they all live happily ever after. If you love someone, tell them!  Tomorrow isn't guaranteed for any of us, and we wouldn't want to live without someone knowing that we love them. I'm not so much on about romantic love as a spiritual love that transcends all boundaries and is prepared to rebuke someone i...

Wrath is cruel, anger is overwhelming, but who can stand before jealousy? Proverbs 27:4 ESV When we get wrathful, we're not just angry, we're out for revenge. For us to be wrathful is cruel. When God is wrathful however, He is just.  It's okay to get angry. In fact, if horrible things don't make us angry, there's something wrong. But we need to be careful in our anger not to sin, because it's easy to lose our tempers.  It's very easy to become overwhelmed by anger, when we consider how unjust this world often is. If we let that fact get to us, the danger is that we'd be in a permanently bad mood. But we're not to be bad tempered. Jealousy isn't necessarily wrong. God is jealous for His people. And (heterosexual, monogamous) marriage partners should be jealous for one another. But woe betide anyone who gets on the wrong side of a jealous person, or especially God in His jealousy.  "Jealous God, help us in our anger and jealousy not to sin. Ma...

A stone is heavy, and sand is weighty, but a fool's provocation is heavier than both. Proverbs 27:3 ESV If you've spent a day on the beach building sandcastles, you know that sand is weighty! One grain might be nothing, but the culmination of moving all that sand makes muscles tired! If you're a builder or stonemason, you'll know all about the heaviness of stones!  But something's weightier than both, and that's a fool's provocation. If you've ever come on the wrong side of an online troll, the truth of this proverb will weigh heavily upon you. Fools dedicate themselves to getting under people's skin purely to irritate and annoy them.  We have an untrue saying in English- "sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me". Sadly, a fool's provocation can hurt, like having someone throwing stones or sand at you. Physical wounds tend to heal quicker than emotional ones.  If you get tired playing in the sand or building w...

Let another praise you, and not your own mouth; a stranger, and not your own lips. Proverbs 27:2 ESV Solomon doesn't even need to explain himself in this proverb. We know that if we praise ourselves, that's pretty arrogant. So we're encouraged to not do that.  We're not to encourage others to praise us, but if they do, that praise is probably well deserved. We all remember that kid growing up who used to blow his own trumpet about how amazing he was. We also remember how unattractive that was!  If that childish trait of going on about how amazing we are continues into adulthood, that's really unpleasant! Let a stranger compliment you, not your own lips. To be honest, self promotion comes naturally to us.  I'm like a magnet with pianos- whenever I see one I feel compelled to play it. When I ask permission I'm sometimes asked if I'm good. I might admit I'm rather accomplished, but really I should let my hearers be the judges of whether I play the piano...

Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring. Proverbs 27:1 ESV James elaborates on this proverb in his letter. Don't talk about what you're going to do as if it's a done deal. Tomorrow never arrives, so nothing we have planned is guaranteed.  As an alternative to this proverb, James encourages us to say "God willing" before we talk about our plans for the future. After all, as Solomon reminds us, we don't know what a day may bring. Ultimately, what we end up doing is up to God.  If we think about it, confidently pontificating about what we're going to do is very arrogant. After all, it's God's will that prevails. I might want to win the lottery tomorrow, but that's probably not God's will, however much I believe it.  Some people think you can "name and claim" your future blessings. The Bible would suggest that that is very presumptuous. It's up to God whether He gives or withholds blessings.  "Al...

A lying tongue hates its victims, and a flattering mouth works ruin. Proverbs 26:28 ESV Liars will often try to justify themselves. "I was only trying to protect you!" they might claim if you find them out. But there's no justification for lying. We might not often think of the recipients of a lie as victims. But that's how Solomon describes them. Evidently the Bible takes deceitfulness more seriously that we often do!  Flattery isn't bigging someone up, it's setting them up for a fall. If you flatter someone you're being falsely nice to them. So they might feel good about themselves when really you should be rebuking them.  We might think of flattery as insincere but pretty much harmless. But Solomon describes it as causing ruin. If in a work situation, someone's flattered that they're competent when they're not, it's going to cause problems.  "Truthful God, may we also be defined by truthfulness rather than lies and flattery. For the...

Whoever digs a pit will fall into it, and a stone will come back on him who starts it rolling. Proverbs 26:27 ESV I remember once as kids we decided to build a "massive" pit in my friend's back garden. We tried to cover over the top so my friend's dad would fall into it. Thankfully he didn't, so we ended up jumping in ourselves!  People digging pits are usually up to no good, like I wasn't! But as happened with me and as Solomon warns- people who dig pits often fall into them. You might try and lay a trap for someone else, but you may just catch yourself out, or be caught out as a trickster.  I love what Matthew Henry said about this verse. He mentions Haman- a genocidal enemy of the Jews, being hung on a gallows of his own making. Then he quotes a Latin phrase which means "Nor is there any law more just than that the contrivers of destruction should perish by their own arts."  It's like Jesus said: those who live by the sword will die by the swo...

Like the glaze covering an earthen vessel are fervent lips with an evil heart.  Proverbs 26:23 ESV Just because someone's a great orator doesn't mean to say they don't have an evil heart. It might be expedient for US presidents to profess faith in Christ, but the ones who actually believe in Him are few and far between. To be honest, even in the largely post-Christianised UK, most if not all Prime Ministers have professed some kind of Christian faith.  An earthen vessel isn't a valuable antique. If it has a gold coloured glaze, it might give a gaudy appearance of value. But that doesn't change the fact it's just a moulded lump of clay. In a sense, we as humans are moulded lumps of clay by God. "Dust to dust", as we sometimes say at funerals. What gives us value isn't fancy words or impressive oratory, but the Spirit of God who gives us life.  Someone might talk the talk, but if they don't walk the walk, their fine sounding arguments are worthle...

The words of a whisperer are like delicious morsels; they go down into the inner parts of the body. Proverbs 26:22 ESV    Just because Solomon describes the words of the gossip as delicious morsels, doesn't mean to say he's justifying being a tell-tale. Just because something tastes good, or feels good, doesn't mean to say that it is good. Take junk food as an example!  We live in a society where one of the cardinal rules is to do what feels good. But whilst gossip might feel good to the gossip and the one they're gossiping to, it can be devastating to the one being gossiped about. Gossip can destroy a reputation.  Secrets are probably best kept that way. If you tell a secret, it's no longer a secret. The truth usually comes out in the end, but we shouldn't go rummaging around people's closets for skeletons.  The danger is for the gossip that one day they get a taste of their own medicine. "Gossip" columns in magazines remain hugely popular, althou...

Like a madman who throws firebrands, arrows, and death is the man who deceives his neighbour and says, "I am only joking!" Proverbs 26:18-19 ESV   There's a fine line between having a joke at someone else's expense and being some kind of destructive madman. I must confess however that Solomon's comparison seems a bit melodramatic. I can accept that it's wrong to deceive someone, but to compare it to a madman who goes on a shooting spree (that is probably the modern analogy)?  I think Solomon is on about people who trivialise serious stuff, and then when there's serious consequences make excuses. Imagine some false preacher who makes a mockery of talk of hell fire and damnation. If many of his hearers are deceived by him into hell, an "only joking" isn't going to cut it.  Deceit isn't just in what we say, but in what we don't say. So imagine a believer who doesn't warn his neighbours that they need to trust in Jesus for their etern...

For lack of wood the fire goes out, and where there is no whisperer, quarrelling ceases. As charcoal to hot embers and wood to fire, so is a quarrelsome man for kindling strife. Proverbs 26:20-21 ESV Here, in two proverbs, we have a similar illustration to make a similar point. The imagery is of fire, the point is about quarrels. What can start as a seemingly inconsequential spat, can quickly spiral out of control.  If a fire runs out of flammable material to burn, it goes out. If gossips didn't aggravate domestic disputes, they would hopefully be amicably resolved. They say there's no smoke without fire. But there isn't even a fire if there isn't someone stoking it.  It's not just gossips who perpetuate quarrels. Just as a fire can develop into an uncontrollable inferno, so a seemingly trivial quarrel can be kindled into strife and conflict. If someone's quarrelsome, a resolvable dispute can become an all out fight.  We aren't to be metaphorical firestarter...

Whoever meddles in a quarrel not his own is like one who takes a passing dog by the ears. Proverbs 26:17 ESV  I love the vividness of this illustration! If you grab a passing dog's ears, it's not going to end well for you. Similarly, if we meddle in quarrels not our own, that's not going to have a good outcome.  I think of many wars that are fought in the Middle East. When Western (or Eastern for that matter!) countries wade in, it just seems to make a messy situation even worse. If two people are fighting and you try and intervene, they may well both turn on you!  I'm reminded of Moses who tried to resolve a dispute. But his murder of an Egyptian had gone before him, and destroyed any credibility he might have wanted as a would be mediator. This proverb doesn't bode well for successive US presidents who seems to take it upon themselves to bring peace to the Middle East, and only end up creating more war.  Having said all that, it is also true that peacemakers are b...

The sluggard buries his hand in the dish; it wears him out to bring it back to his mouth. The sluggard is wiser in his own eyes than seven men who can answer sensibly. Proverbs 26:15-16 ESV  When these two proverbs are put together, the former one exposes the ridiculousness of the latter one. The sluggard might, if he could be bothered, be a self appointed expert/keyboard warrior with an opinion on everything. And yet he's too lazy to even eat!  The first proverb seems too ridiculous to be true- that someone would be too lazy to eat. And yet I think of the most extreme examples of gaming addicts. They are so addicted to their computer games that they can't be bothered eating!  The sluggard might think he's got all the excuses he needs in his armoury for his laziness. But even if he's wiser in his eyes than seven sensible people, in God's eyes he's a fool. We don't want to be in God's bad books!  A sensible man knows there's no excuse for laziness. If...

The sluggard says, "There is a lion in the road! There is a lion in the streets!" As a door turns on its hinges, so does a sluggard on his bed. Proverbs 26:13-14 ESV  The first of these two related proverbs is very similar to another in the book. The second of these proverbs betrays the reasoning behind the sluggard's reasoning in the first proverb. Whatever the sluggard's excuses in the first proverb, we see where his loyalties lie (literally!) in the second proverb.  Laziness is inexcusable. But the sluggard will seek to justify himself. He'll make excuses for not getting out and about- like the claim that there's a lion roaming around.  A lion in the street wasn't inconceivable in ancient Israel, like a mountain lion might wander into a Los Angeles suburb. But life can't be put on hold because of risks that are ever present in life. If it's too dangerous to go out, then at least have a productive day at home rather than lazing around!  The secon...

Do you see a man who is wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him. Proverbs 26:12 ESV  The second wisest man who ever lived (apart from the Son of God!) encourages us not to be wise in our own eyes. Wisdom is a bit like humility- if you think you have them, you probably don't. In fact, if you think you're wise, and humble, you're probably foolish, and proud.  It's much better to be recognised for your wisdom by others than to "blow your own trumpet". If someone assumes they're wise, they're less likely to be open to learn. We should always seek to be learning and not assume we've "reached" wisdom.  Wisdom isn't something static that we can simply acquire. It's a dynamic, priceless wealth that we can only ever get a small share in. But just because we can never plumb wisdom's depths doesn't mean to say we shouldn't dive in.  Someone who's a fool, but knows it, has more hope than someone who th...

Like a dog that returns to his vomit is a fool who repeats his folly. Proverbs 26:11 ESV The rather disgusting imagery of this proverb is quoted by Peter in one of his letters. He uses it to condemn false teachers. They know the truth but chose to peddle lies instead.  Unless God intervenes and turns a fool's life around, he's going to remain a fool. He's going to keep repeating the same mistakes again. A rather more tame illustration would be to say he's like a dog chasing its tail.  I live in a culture that venerates dogs as beloved family pets- after all, "a dog is for life, not just for Christmas". But they're not the brightest of animals.  To be compared to such a waif and stray in Solomon's time wasn't a complement! If, having been called by God to leave a life of folly, we go back to it, more fool us! We can't expect God to let us off if we utterly forsake Him. There's no back door into the heavenly city!  "Most wise God, don...

Like an archer who wounds everyone is one who hires a passing fool or drunkard. Proverbs 26:10 ESV A rather controversial and tragic modern illustration of this verse would be to talk about a mass shooter, who goes into a crowded place and shoots indiscriminately. It could just as easily be a knife attacker or a bomber.  Maybe they are too strong illustrations, although Solomon isn't afraid of hyperbole. Maybe Solomon is referring more here to what we might call "friendly fire", the accidental shooting of allies. Maybe Solomon's making a point about carelessness more than malice.  To be honest, I think that's probably the case. No one employs a passing fool or a drunkard without causing damage to themselves and others. Some random idiot employed is going to let his employer, colleagues and customers down. Best not to hire him in the first place!  Successful employers don't employ stupid people. To be honest, I've never had much joy in finding a successful ...

Like a thorn that goes up into the hand of a drunkard is a proverb in the mouth of fools. Proverbs 26:9 ESV  This is another proverb that I hope isn't true of me as I seek to write about every single proverb in this Bible book! If it is the case I may as well "pack up and go home". It wouldn't be worth the pain!  This proverb makes me think of my attitude to Shakespeare's plays. Because they're written in rather old fashioned English and are therefore hard to understand, I never enjoyed them. Maybe I also disliked them because I had to learn them at school.  Similarly, the wisdom of the book of Proverbs is lost on a fool. Furthermore, they do violence to it and find reading it a painful experience, maybe because it hits a bit close to home. A wise man appreciates a rose; A foolish drunk gets scratched by its thorns.  No one likes being exposed as a fool. That's why Proverbs is a painful experience for a foolish person, because they find it too convicting. ...

Like one who binds the stone in the sling is one who gives honour to a fool. Proverbs 26:8 ESV  If you bind a stone in a sling, it's going to swing round and hit you, rather than the enemy. Similarly, if you give honour to a fool, it's going to come back and hurt you. Imagine as a king for example, you honour a fool with the command of your army.You're setting yourself up to lose the war!  Honour is earned. As Christians we like to emphasise God's grace which honours us even though we don't deserve it. But we seek to honour God purely because He is honourable, He is worthy of praise.  If we honour a fool however, we're going to be painfully disappointed by him. God has the power to transform a fool into a faithful servant of His. But that fool needs to repent, believe, die to his folly, and receive the Holy Spirit. Otherwise he's a hopeless case.  Even if we are turned from fools into favoured servants of the most highGod, there's no room for boasting in...

Like a lame man's legs, which hang useless, is a proverb in the mouth of fools. Proverbs 26:7 ESV One thing Solomon can't be accused of, is political correctness. Nowadays, this proverb would be described as "ableist" or whatever the correct term is for discrimination against disabled people. But I suspect an actual disabled person would declare Solomon's analogy to be a fair comment.  Often, on the issue of disability, it's the elephant in the room. Able bodied people tiptoe around the subject, afraid to offend. But I suspect a wheelchair bound man would hold his hands up at this proverb and acknowledge the truth of what Solomon said.  Solomon isn't judging the disabled. He's not calling them any less worthy of respect as anyone else. He's just calling out disability for the inconvenience and uselessness it is, for the disabled as much as anyone.  I hope, having embarked on this endeavour to reflect on every single proverb, this particular proverb...

A voice of one calling: “In the wilderness prepare the way for the LORD; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Isaiah 40:3 (NIV) At the time of writing, people are preparing for Christmas. John the Baptist was the herald for the advent of Christ's earthly ministry. He was the one who called in the wilderness for people to prepare their hearts for the Lord. Jesus wasn't some political messiah to kick out the occupying Romans of Judea and Galilee. He is God incarnate. He is the Way, the Truth and the Life, no one comes to the Father except through Him. John the Baptist called people to repent and be baptised. Jesus called people to repent and to be baptised, not just in water, but in the Holy Spirit. This isn't some 'second blessing'. We receive the Holy Spirit the moment we believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. This would be a good verse to point out to those who deny Christ's divinity. He is the fulfilment of this verse. He is the Lord made flesh. He is...

By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers. 1 John 3:16 (ESV) The ultimate love is one that's willing to lay its life down for us. That's what the Son of God did for us on the cross. If we want to know what love is, we need look no further than the cross of Christ. John asks a lot of us. He tells us that we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. Tradition states that the vast majority of Jesus's closest followers were martyred for their faith in Him. Ironically, it's believed that John survived attempts to martyr him, although it's reckoned that he died in exile on the island of Patmos. We don't all have to be martyred for Jesus. We do however need to be willing to lay down our lives for one another. In much of the world today, Christians are laying down their lives for one another. To not be persecuted is the exception in the global church throughout history, not the norm. Jesus went as fa...

Whoever sends a  message by the hand of a fool cuts off his own feet and drinks violence. Proverbs 26:6 ESV   I have an anecdote about sending a message by the hand  of a fool. In my first job, I had a day off, but needed to ask for a fortnight off later on. So for some  reason, instead of asking the boss directly, I asked a colleague to let him know. When I returned to  my job a fortnight or so later, my boss fired me!  Even though I'd given my colleague a note saying  how much time I wanted off, he'd not properly read it and assumed I only wanted a week off. No  offense to my colleague, but he was a fool, and I was foolish to trust him. Losing a job is a raw  deal, but cutting off your own feet?  Solomon seems a bit extreme here. But just imagine you get  your foot trapped in a climbing accident. You send your friend for help, but he never comes back.  You may as well cut your foot off with a penknife!  Solomon is p...

  C.H. Spurgeon, the 'Prince of Preachers', from the 19th Century, wrote 'Through the Wicket Gate' for those who are in the most dangerous state: almost saved. It's not enough to be almost saved. Almost saved isn't saved. Spurgeon mentions how people are often more concerned about their pets than their souls. It's all too easy to drift through life with little or no consideration of our destinies. We need to ponder the way of salvation. It's not enough to ponder the way of salvation. We have to go 'Through the Wicket Gate' as it were. There's no room for excess baggage on the highway of holiness. It's harder for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven than for a camel to go through the eye of a needle. Sadly, there are many examples even in Scripture of people who may have come close to the way of salvation, but never embarked on the pilgrimage of eternal life. I think of the rich young ruler, king Agrippa, and the teacher of the law wh...

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. John 13:34 (NIV) It might not seem like a new command if we're familiar with the Old Testament. Does Moses not command us to love our neighbour? Yet Jesus raises the bar even higher. We're not just to love people as we love ourselves. We're to love people as Christ has loved us. How has He loved us? Jesus gave His life for us. He died as a sacrifice who makes us at one with God, reconciled to Him through faith in His Son's death on our behalf. We're to show others that kind of love. It might feel like Jesus is asking the impossible of us. Yet with the help of His Holy Spirit, we could have the strength to sacrifice ourselves for others. Nothing is impossible for God. 'Dear Lord, please help us to love one another as You have loved us. Please forgive us for putting limitations on our love for others. For Your honour and praise we pray, amen'

Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ Matthew 22:37 (NIV) God doesn't want lukewarm love. He wants wholehearted devotion. He doesn't want half an hour of our time on a morning. He wants every second of our lives. We're to give God all our emotions, our spirit, our everything. We're to give Him our intellect and our reasoning. He doesn't want us to leave our brains at the door when we come to worship Him. God is the Source of all wisdom, intelligence, science. So we can be bright and still worship Him. The Bible isn't a scientific textbook, but it doesn't contradict scientific facts. The Bible is a spiritual book. Science can tell us about the material world. Yet there's more to us than flesh and blood; we're spiritual beings of whom God demands everything. 'Lord our God, may we love You wholeheartedly as You deserve, for You love us without reservation. In Christ's name we...

 Answer not a fool  according to his folly, lest you be like him yourself. Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be  wise in his own eyes. Proverbs 26:4-5 ESV   These two  proverbs are unapologetically side by side in Scripture. Yet they seem to flatly contradict each  other. Do we answer a fool according to his folly, or not?  The answer to the question is evidently  "yes and no". The case for not replying to fools is that you shouldn't stoop to their level. By  seeking to answer their question, you somehow validate their comment.  The case for replying to  fools is that if you don't, they'll think they've won the argument. So is it a lose lose situation, or  win win? Well, if you don't answer him, you win, by refusing to stoop to his level. If you do  answer, he loses, because you expose him for the fool he is.  These verses are very helpful in  teaching us how to deal with online trolls. Some peop...

 A whip for the horse, a  bridle for the donkey, and a rod for the back of fools. Proverbs 26:3 ESV    In our days of animal and human rights activism, this  proverb probably won't go down very well. But the ancient world emphasised responsibilities over  rights. A horse had a responsibility to get the messenger from the sender to the recipient as fast as  possible. We forget that in our age of instant communications. If a horse is dawdling when the  king needs to know an enemy army is invading, it needs to be whipped into a gallop.  A donkey is a  beast of burden, and it needs to bear the burden willingly (although donkeys are notoriously  stubborn). A donkey needs to be bridled so it doesn't impulsively run off to the greener grass on  the other side. So Solomon wasn't an animal rights activist.  But neither was he a human rights  advocate, if that human was a fool. As king, Solomon wasn't afraid to command a b...

 Like a sparrow in its  flitting, like a swallow in its flying, a curse that is causeless does not alight. Proverbs 26:2 ESV   Sadly, a lot of Christians are rather superstitious about  curses. They talk about generational curses. But if your dad's rubbish, that doesn't mean to say  you're going to be a rubbish dad.  Someone might be really evil and curse you for being a rubbish  dad. But there's no need to get paranoid about it if you are in fact a good dad. A bad dad will  "curse" his family. But that doesn't mean to say his family are cursed to be bad themselves.  A very  common way of cursing is to flippantly swear "go to hell!" But if God's saved you by the blood of  Jesus, that undeserved curse isn't going to jeopardise your salvation. If a curse is undeserved, it has  no power.  Sadly, we are sinners, and we do deserve to be cursed with death. That is why we  eventually die, as God's punishment for our sin...

 Like snow in summer or rain in harvest, so honour is not fitting for a fool. Proverbs 26:1 ESV    In the summer we want warm sunny days, not snow! At  harvest time, the farmer is looking for dry days so he can harvest his crops. The last thing he wants  is rain!  Even in the UK, it hardly ever snows in the summer, except perhaps occasionally in the  Highlands of Scotland. Sadly, it does often rain in the autumn, at harvest time though. Apparently  however in Israel it doesn't tend to rain at harvest time.  The point of the proverb isn't a discussion  of the weather. Talk of unseasonal rain and snow is simply an illustration of the fact that honour is  not fitting for a fool. If someone got an award for something they don't deserve, there would quite  rightly be an outcry.  We might not deserve to be honoured by God. And we shouldn't delude  ourselves that we do deserve any honour from Him. But in His great mercy...

  A man without self control is like a city broken into and left without walls. Proverbs 25:28 ESV    Back in the day, a city without walls was easy prey for  the enemy. A modern equivalent would be a country without a missile defence system. If Israel  didn't have the "Iron Dome" missile defence system, well there's plenty of countries that would  like to wipe Israel off the face of the earth...  If we don't have self control, we're defenceless  against the attacks of the evil one. And he will attack us. And we will be broken into if we don't have the self control to resist.  John Bunyan, famous for his allegorical Pilgrim's Progress, wrote  another allegory called the Holy War. In it, he pictures a man as a city, the gates of whose walls  are the five senses. That's how satan attacks us- through what we see, hear, touch, smell and taste.   So are we hopeless if we're found like a city without walls, without self control ...

  It is not good to eat  much honey, nor is it glorious to seek one's own glory. Proverbs 25:27 ESV   Another proverb elaborates on the impact of over  indulging in sweet stuff: sickness. In this proverb, Solomon uses that as an illustration of  something else: self promotion. It's something I'm sure we're all guilty of.  It's part of our sinful  nature, that we seek our own glory. If we're to be supernaturally transformed to eternal  significance, we will instead seek God's glory. Ironically, in seeking our own glory, we are  inglorious.  We tend to be subtle in our self promotion, but when it's exposed for what it is, we see  how ugly it is. Far better to have someone else sing our praises than us ourselves. That's the whole  point of influencers- getting people to promote your company.  If we want to be glorious, we don't seek glory from others. We seek God to make us glorious by doing the good works that He's...

  Like a muddied spring  or a polluted fountain is a righteous man who gives way before the wicked. Proverbs 25:26 ESV    The man who comes to mind as an illustration of this  verse is Lot, Abraham's nephew. He chose to move to the wicked city of Sodom. Despite being  tormented by the wickedness all around him, Lot never spoke out against it.  Solemnly, Jesus  declared that if Lot had spoken up for righteousness in evil Sodom, the Sodomites would have  repented and the city would have remained at least to Jesus' day. As it was, he kept silent. God  destroyed Sodom with fire, perhaps a meteor shower.  What was a fertile land is to this day a salty  wilderness. Saint Francis of Assisi famously said "preach the gospel to all creatures. Where  necessary use words". Quite frankly, it's always necessary to use words to preach the good news.  Righteous Lot was impotent in the midst of the wickedness of Sodom. ...

 Like  cold water to a thirsty soul, so is good news from a far country. Proverbs 25:25 ESV    Imagine you're a refugee in a far off land. Then imagine  that you hear that your family have managed to escape the war zone you've already fled. Your  heart would rejoice.  The illustration here is of someone dehydrated, presumably in a sweltering  hot desert. To then find a well of cool refreshing water would be a delight. It would be like getting  good news from far away.  It's interesting that Solomon describes someone with a thirsty soul. As  Jesus said, "blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled". In  Christ and His Spirit, our spiritual thirst is quenched.  The gospel itself is the ultimate good news  from far away- from the highest heaven- from where God sent His Son to reconcile His people to  Himself. No matter who we are or where we're from, we can receive this go...

 It is better to live in a  corner of the housetop than in a house shared with a quarrelsome wife. Proverbs 25:24 ESV  Thankfully I can't confirm the truth of this proverb  through personal experience. I probably need to be nagged to get stuff done for my family to be  honest. But my wife is very long suffering with me, for which I am thankful.  Sadly, I'm sure  Solomon knew the truth of this verse among at least one of his seven hundred wives. We do know  that most if not all of his wives were pagan. No doubt some of them had theological quarrels with  him about faith in the Lord Vs. paganism.  Also sadly, it seems Solomon capitulated to his  quarrelsome wife(s). He allowed them to draw his heart away from the worship of Yahweh  towards paganism. Thankfully, I believe he wouldn't be in the canon of Scripture if he didn't  eventually repent, as I believe Ecclesiastes suggests.  Ancient Israelite roofs were flat, so th...

  Do not put yourself  forward in the king's presence or stand in the place of the great, for it is better to be told, "Come up  here," than to be put lower in the presence of a noble. Proverbs 25:6-7a ESV    Infamously, last time the US President was visiting the  Queen, he walked on ahead of her. He had to draw himself back to respect protocol with one of the  world's most respected heads of state. Solomon's on about that kind of thing here.  We might all be  guilty of self promotion. After all, if we don't put ourselves forward, who else is going to do it?  But it's better to be headhunted for a job than to have to apply and sell ourselves for it.  It's  inadvisable, foolish in fact, to think more highly of ourselves than we ought. If we set ourselves  up, we're only setting ourselves up for a fall. Authorities don't think well of people who try to ride  their coat tails to glory.  Instead, we should...

 Then the Lord said to me, “You have seen well, for I am watching over my word to perform it." Jeremiah 1:12 The Lord describes himself to the young Jeremiah as the master playwright. The play is history, and God is watching as it unfolds. He's not just a passive observer though, he's also the narrator who spoke it all into being. At Jeremiah's stage in the play of history, God is promising his people that he will enter into the story and deliver them from their sins. And oh how they need it. For their sins they are about to be carted off into exile from the promised land to Babylon. Only when they are brought back will the stage be set for his entry into the scene. When Jesus finally stepped onto the stage about 600 years later, his people were under the yoke of the Roman Empire. He didn't come as a political Messiah however, but as a spiritual Saviour. God's people have more eternal concerns than who is going to rule over them for the next few years. And so w...

 "God has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.” Acts 17:31 God calls all people everywhere to repent, and this verse is the reason why. There's a day of judgement coming and we need to be ready for it. God has already set a day, but we don't know when it is: it will come like a thief in the night. God will judge the world in righteousness. His verdict will be just. No one will be able to contradict his conclusions. If we are going to be judged in righteousness we need to be made righteous, because we are naturally unrighteous. Naturally we stand under God's wrath. Thankfully we can get to know the man he has appointed judge, the man Christ Jesus. We can't bribe him to be lenient, but we can plead his own righteousness to be credited to our account. He is a merciful and gracious judge and will hear our cries for clemency. How can we know t...

 We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away. Isaiah 64:6 The part of this verse about our righteousness being like filthy rags/a polluted garment is famous, but not the context. Jewish culture thought in terms of clean and unclean, more than right or wrong, or honour and shame. If someone was ceremonially unclean, they couldn't approach God in worship. The Jews as a whole had become unclean. They had abandoned anything more than lip service to God, and were relying on those who seemed to be in power for their security. If I may say it, American Christianity seems to have become too invested in the dirty politics of this world rather than proclaiming the pure power of Christ, and trust in him to protect and preserve. Anything good that we do is as Isaiah puts it, like a used sanitary product. Our righteous acts are offensive to a holy God. Even the stuff...

 "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope." Romans 15:13 An atheist flatmate came to church with me one time, in my university days. This was the text preached on. At first glance it wouldn't be very appropriate because it's addressed to believers, but it showed him what he was missing. God is a God of hope. Although he is also judge, he is never described as the God of condemnation. He doesn't want to condemn us but to give us hope of eternal life. This isn't pie in the sky when you die, this is a sure and certain confidence in the unfailing promises of a faithful God. God isn't some cosmic killjoy out to destroy our fun. He wants to fill us with all joy and peace in believing. There's no joy and peace in believing that all we're destined for is to become worm food. But in God there is because he is the source of all happiness and contentment. How can we aboun...

 But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God. Acts 20:24 Of course life is a valuable and precious thing. But if we hold it as valuable and precious to ourselves, we probably won't take risks and be adventurous in our lives. So it was with Paul: he knew that proclaiming the gospel would get him severe persecution but he did it anyway. Paul was like a marathon runner, what mattered to him was that he finished his course. He wasn't interested in a life of comfort and ease: he wanted to excel and persevere for his Lord. What about us: are we more interested in easy lives than taking risks for our Lord? When you receive a ministry from the Lord Jesus you are receiving the greatest honour anyone could. His work is not to be carried out carelessly or half heartedly. He gave everything for us: we should be prepared to give everythin...

 he says: “It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to bring back the preserved of Israel; I will make you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.” Isaiah 49:6 As the Lord speaks through Isaiah, his audience shifts from Israel as a whole to his servant, who we will discover is a suffering servant. But this servant has a great calling: to be a light not just to his own people of Israel, but to the whole world. God doesn't want to simply bless one people upon the face of the earth, he wants to bless all peoples of the earth. His means of doing it is through his servant. His servant's first job is to bring back the people of Israel to God, and through them to reach the world. So who is this suffering servant? Isaiah himself served God, and suffered for it. But his message was primarily for the Gentiles. Now Jesus said at one point that he only came for the lost sheep of Israel, but he went on...

 The Lord says to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.” Psalm 110:1 David was a sovereign king of Israel, not a vassal to a superpower. But he was a worshipper of the Lord God. Here though he mentions another Lord at the right hand of the Lord God. Who was he on about? Jesus was referred to as the Son of David. David was promised a Son who would have an everlasting kingdom. But as Jesus said, how can David refer to his  son, which suggests they're on a parr; as his Lord, which suggests he is greater? This is the mystery of the gospel: that God should become a man in order to establish his Kingdom of righteousness. According to the flesh Jesus was the son of Mary, descendant of David. But according to the Spirit Jesus is the eternal Son of God. Having been crucified and having risen again, Jesus is now sat at the right hand of the Father, until He makes all His enemies a footstool for His feet. Now is the time to abandon enmity with God and ...

 But the Lord is the true God; he is the living God and the everlasting King. At his wrath the earth quakes, and the nations cannot endure his indignation. Jeremiah 10:10 The context of this verse is a man who chops down a tree and decorates it with silver and gold, presumably in honour of the god of materialism for the winter solstice festival. Probably in the context it was actually in honour of Asherah, the goddess of sex. People worship all sorts of false gods, but the Lord is the true God. He isn't made by human hands, he forms human hands in the womb and causes them to grow through childhood. He is the creator of the heavens and the earth, not the creation of some enterprising idol merchant. Our 21st century idolatry might be more seasonal than 6th century BC- focused around Christmas and Easter and Halloween, but it's no less offensive to the one true God. Earthquakes aren't something that has God wringing his hands in helplessness. They are expressions of his wrath ...

 Stop regarding man, in whose nostrils is breath, for of what account is he? Isaiah 2:22 Judah was facing an existential threat. The Assyrian empire had already swallowed up her Northern neighbour of Israel. Egypt was a danger to the south. And Babylon, the empire that would eventually overthrow her, was growing in power. We live in similarly testing times. Brexit has thrown up a lot of regional uncertainty. The refugee crisis continues, fueled by instability in Africa and the Middle East. Putin seems determined to rebuild a Russian empire. America is about to elect a president who will be unpopular whoever wins, as the nation is rocked by shootings and racial tensions. I could go on... Solomon says in Ecclesiastes that whoever watches the wind will not plant. Similarly here, God is trying to give us perspective and to encourage us to get on with our lives quietly. Why worry about people, who are just a breath, then they are gone. Far more important to have regard for God, the divi...

 He will swallow up death forever; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces, and the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth, for the Lord has spoken. Isaiah 25:8 Death is the great enemy of mankind. It destroys our hopes and dreams. But the Lord will swallow up death forever. He's begun the process already. Christ has already defeated death by rising from the tomb. All who are in him will defeat death too. He will wipe every tear from our eyes. Beyond death and the return of Christ, perhaps the only tears in glory will be tears of joy. But the Lord will wipe them away, along with any sadness and regret we might have. The Lord will take away the reproach of his people. We are reproached for all kinds of reasons by all kinds of people. Muslims call us blasphemers, secularists call us bigoted. We get ridiculed and reviled. Some of us in some parts of the world even face imprisonment,  torture and death for our faith. But the Lord will remove all t...

 I appeal to you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Romans 12:1 God has been so merciful to us. He has given us his Son to reconcile us to himself. We cannot respond with indifference. Our lives can never be the same again. In view of God's mercy we must change. If God gave everything for us, we must give everything for him. Spirituality isn't ethereal and untouchable. The greatest spiritual act was Jesus giving up his body to be crucified for us. The least we can do in response is to offer our bodies as living sacrifices. When there's conflict between our spirits and bodies, we have to sacrifice our bodily appetites. Our bodies might be greedy; our spirits should be self controlled. Our bodies might be lustful; our spirits must be pure and prayerful. Our flesh might be tempestuous; the spirit is to be gentle. If we allow our spirits to defeat our sinful bodil...

 But for me it is good to be near God; I have made the Lord God my refuge, that I may tell of all your works. Psalm 73:28 Asaph, the writer of this Psalm, had a crisis of faith. He observed the wicked and the easy lives they have. They're proud, violent and oppressive. They pour scorn on the Most High God. It felt like his striving for holiness was in vain, because all he seemed to get was grief. So Asaph felt, until he joined in the corporate worship of God. He went to the sanctuary of God in Jerusalem, nowadays we go to church. If you've ever felt that life isn't fair or that there's no point trying to live a good life, go to church. There God will give you a heavenly perspective and a clearer understanding of his purposes in our topsy turvy world. Asaph came to realise that this life is just a breath: what does it matter if the wicked prosper when soon they will perish? What does it matter if the righteous suffer when soon we will be saved to sin no more? He was remi...

 Let not those who hope in you be put to shame through me, oh Lord God of hosts; let not those who seek you be brought to dishonour through me, oh God of Israel. Psalm 69 : 6  David was in a tough situation. He felt overwhelmed. His enemies were encroaching and he  As the king, David knew it would be shameful and dishonouring to his loyal, devout subjects to fall into sin. He didn't want that. He wanted those who hoped and sought after God to have no cause for disappointment and disillusionment. Traditionally, British and Western culture was concerned with what's right and wrong. Now it seems to be what feels good or bad. But in Eastern and Biblical cultures a big concern was about shame and honour; cleanliness and uncleanness. Culture today seems to call good evil and evil good, and to glory in what is shameful. But as a devout believer in God, David was concerned not to do anything shameful or dishonouring. Are we as serious about the honour of God and his people as he ...

Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you. Psalm 63:3 In the words of Matt Redman, "everyone announces what they adore". So what are you always going on about? What can't you shut up about? Whose praise is always on your lips? What is the best thing in your life? Maybe it's family, friends, work, hobbies. But what if something in your life was better than life itself? Maybe someone in your life is worth dying for. For David, the faithful love of God for him was better than life itself. He earnestly sought God. His soul thirsted for him and longed for him as in a dry and parched land. He remembered being in God's presence and beholding his power and his glory. God satisfied David's soul. God had proved to be his help. God had defeated his enemies. He loved God so much that he meditated on him at night and remembered all His goodness to him. "Oh God, you are my God, and your love is better than life. You gave everything for me...

 For He whom God has sent utters the words of God, for He gives the Spirit without measure. The Father loves the Son and has given all things into His hands. John 3:34-35 ESV The Lord Jesus Christ is the Son of God, whom the Father God sent to communicate His truth to the world. Father, Son and Spirit are in perfect unity in seeking to bring us into a relationship with Him. He does this through the sacrifice of the Son on our behalf. God gives us His word, and His Spirit without measure. We just need to trust in Him who gave Himself for us. He lavishly pours out His Holy Spirit upon us to help us to understand His word. Jesus is the Word of God made flesh. If we want to know what God would have to say to us, we need look no further than the Son of God. He communicates His love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Even though it was the will of Father God to crush the Son for our sakes, the Father loves the Son. He has risen Him from death on the third da...

but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8 (ESV) Cynics question how God loves us. They point out all the wars, famines, plagues and so on in the world and question how God can exist. It could well be questioned how atheists make sense of suffering, because without our Creator, life is meaningless, and therefore who cares about suffering? Thankfully, God demonstrates His love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. It's not like we can earn God's salvation. It's only by His grace that we can be saved. The implication of this verse is that if we trust in Christ, we no longer become defined by our sinfulness. Instead, the perfect righteousness of Christ is credited to our bankrupt spiritual accounts. We can be blessed with every spiritual blessing in Christ. The reformers used to describe us as simultaneously sinful and yet justified. Yet a day will come when we will be like Christ, for we will se...