August 1, 2024 -- Proverbs 1:32-33 -- What are you humming?

For the simple are killed by their turning away,
    and the complacency of fools destroys them;
33 but whoever listens to me will dwell secure
    and will be at ease, without dread of disaster.”
Proverbs 1:32-33 ESV

There are two paths: the way of fools (the simple) and the way of wisdom. The fool ignores the Word of God, mocking it. He does whatever seems right in his own eyes, following the rebellious fashions of the world. The fool will in the end exhaust himself in his sinfulness and by his folly lose his life.

The man who takes hold of wisdom takes hold of life. There is no fear of disaster. The fool and the wise will both face good and bad governments. Both will experience sickness and health. Both will experience riches and poverty. So, what is better about the way of the wise?

The man who walks in the way of wisdom finds it to be the path that leads a man to know Jesus Christ. The path of wisdom raises a man’s understanding so that he knows this life is not all there is. The Father in heaven has provided Jesus, Who is wisdom and Whose walk in wisdom brings life to all who obediently follow to Him. The Spirit of God leads a man in wisdom’s way, at ease no matter the circumstances because the he knows his life is guarded by God. However long or short he lives, whatever trials or joys, all of these he knows are used by God to shape him for God’s holy purposes so that even death itself, the great dread of the fool, is rendered toothless and without a sting, because it is the entrance to eternal life in the wondrous presence of God.

How does one obtain wisdom? Read the word of God. Apply it to your daily life. Ask friends who are Christians to help you and advise you in the way of wisdom when you are not sure what to do next. Confess your sins and the times you have wandered down wrong paths. Talk to God, throughout the day. Pray to Him. Sing Psalms to Him.

Alistair Begg noted when facing suffering or joy, there is a distinguishing mark between the Christian and the non-Christian. It is music. When a non-Christian is happy, he’ll sing a ditty, pointless, pagan paeans. However, the happy Christian sings and recites the Word of God back to God. The rich Word of God gives formfulness to the Christian's day. The Psalms of God express the depth and breadth of human emotions and lead one to greater joy and security in the Presence of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

O Lord God of Heaven’s Armies, hear my prayer.
    Listen, O God of Jacob. 

9 O God, look with favor upon the king, our shield!
    Show favor to the one you have anointed.

10 A single day in your courts
    is better than a thousand anywhere else!
I would rather be a gatekeeper in the house of my God
    than live the good life in the homes of the wicked.
11 For the Lord God is our sun and our shield.
    He gives us grace and glory.
The Lord will withhold no good thing
    from those who do what is right.
12 O Lord of Heaven’s Armies,
    what joy for those who trust in you.
Psalm 84:8-12 New Living Translation

https://youtu.be/8RzGnpvUFFw?si=MjvM7TrwIQ-bQjeP Psalm 23

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