Bible League: Living His Word No human wisdom or understanding or plan can stand against the LORD.— Proverbs 21:30 NLT Human wisdom does not stand up well compared to God's wisdom. Think about the wisdom of the so-called wise men of the world. Think about all the proclamations they have made over the ages on how people should live and what they should do. Their wisdom doesn't stand the test of time, but is constantly changing. It's like the Scripture says, "The wisdom of the wise will pass away, and the intelligence of the intelligent will disappear" (Isaiah 29:14). If our feeble human wisdom is ever going to help us make the right decisions in life, then it must be informed by, and guided by, the perspective provided by God's unchanging wisdom. Our verse also decries human understanding. Proverbs 3:5 says, "Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding." This is good advice, because, as it says elsewhere, "For my thoughts are nothing like your thoughts... And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine. For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so my ways are higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts" (Isaiah 55:8-9). To be effective, then, our limited human understanding of things must take its start from what God reveals of His unlimited understanding of things. Lastly, human plans come to nothing apart from God's plans. The Scriptures say, "You can make many plans, but the LORD's purpose will prevail" (Proverbs 19:21). And this is so because, "The LORDfrustrates the plans of the nations and thwarts all their schemes" (Psalm 33:10) and "He traps the wise in their own cleverness so their cunning schemes are thwarted" (Job 5:13). The point is, you can't expect your plans to succeed if they are against God's plans. In order to be effective and have lasting impact, human plans must be in harmony with the plans of God. Given all this, we should stop deceiving ourselves. "If you think you are wise by this world's standards, you need to become a fool to be truly wise" (1 Corinthians 3:18-19). That is, we should stop thinking that our wisdom, understanding, and plans can be effective apart from God. We should become foolish by the world's standards and humble ourselves before Him. Then, and only then, will we become truly wise. Bible in a Year Old Testament ReadingProverbs 19, 20 Proverbs 19 -- Better is the poor who walks in his integrity NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Proverbs 20 -- Wine is a mocker, and beer is a brawler. NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB New Testament Reading 2 Corinthians 3 2 Corinthians 3 -- Ministers and Glory of the New Covenant NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Reading Plan Courtesy of Christian Classics Etherial Library. Tyndale Life Application Daily Devotion For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—the Jew first and also the Gentile.Insight Paul was not ashamed because his message was the gospel of Christ, the Good News. It was a message of salvation, it had life-changing power, and it was for everyone. Challenge When you are tempted to be ashamed, remember what the Good News is all about. If you focus on God and on what God is doing in the world rather than on your own inadequacy, you won't be ashamed or embarrassed. Morning and Evening by Spurgeon Psalm 5:8 Lead me, O Lord, in thy righteousness because of mine enemies.Very bitter is the enmity of the world against the people of Christ. Men will forgive a thousand faults in others, but they will magnify the most trivial offence in the followers of Jesus. Instead of vainly regretting this, let us turn it to account, and since so many are watching for our halting, let this be a special motive for walking very carefully before God. If we live carelessly, the lynx-eyed world will soon see it, and with its hundred tongues, it will spread the story, exaggerated and emblazoned by the zeal of slander. They will shout triumphantly. "Aha! So would we have it! See how these Christians act! They are hypocrites to a man." Thus will much damage be done to the cause of Christ, and much insult offered to his name. The cross of Christ is in itself an offence to the world; let us take heed that we add no offence of our own. It is "to the Jews a stumblingblock": let us mind that we put no stumblingblocks where there are enough already. "To the Greeks it is foolishness": let us not add our folly to give point to the scorn with which the worldly-wise deride the gospel. How jealous should we be of ourselves! How rigid with our consciences! In the presence of adversaries who will misrepresent our best deeds, and impugn our motives where they cannot censure our actions, how circumspect should we be! Pilgrims travel as suspected persons through Vanity Fair. Not only are we under surveillance, but there are more spies than we know of. The espionage is everywhere, at home and abroad. If we fall into the enemies' hands we may sooner expect generosity from a wolf, or mercy from a fiend, than anything like patience with our infirmities from men who spice their infidelity towards God with scandals against his people. O Lord, lead us ever, lest our enemies trip us up! Daily Light on the Daily Path Psalm 104:23 Man goes forth to his work And to his labor until evening.Genesis 3:19 By the sweat of your face You will eat bread, Till you return to the ground, Because from it you were taken; For you are dust, And to dust you shall return." 2 Thessalonians 3:10 For even when we were with you, we used to give you this order: if anyone is not willing to work, then he is not to eat, either. 1 Thessalonians 4:11 and to make it your ambition to lead a quiet life and attend to your own business and work with your hands, just as we commanded you, Ecclesiastes 9:10 Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might; for there is no activity or planning or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol where you are going. John 9:4 "We must work the works of Him who sent Me as long as it is day; night is coming when no one can work. Galatians 6:9 Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary. 1 Corinthians 15:58 Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord. Hebrews 4:9 So there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God. Matthew 20:12 saying, 'These last men have worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the scorching heat of the day.' Isaiah 28:12 He who said to them, "Here is rest, give rest to the weary," And, "Here is repose," but they would not listen. New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit http://www.lockman.org. |
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