March 27, 2016
Hymn 324 - Into a tent where a gypsy boy lay
Prayer
So, we’ve been going through Proverbs 2. We will be continuing with that today.
We are going to start with a single word: choice. We are going to learn about this word today.
We have talked about having wisdom: God’s Word and way in our heart. They will guide and direct us in life. And when we let them guide us, we will have wisdom in our heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to us.
Verse 11 uses the words preserve and keep. What do we need to be preserved and kept from? We need to be kept from the way of the evil man. The word discretion is sometimes translated as “wise choices.” We’ve all made choices over several different things, but some choices are more important than others. Discretion can keep us from going the wrong way with our choices and suffering from them.
God wants to keep us in the right way. V. 12 uses the word deliver meaning “keep from.” We must make wise choices to be kept in the right way. We can make right choices in our friends. Friends have a great influence on us, so we must be careful they don’t take us down the wrong road.
A blessing is given to those who follow the way of the upright. The wrong path only brings consequences that bring sorrow. Jonah is a fine example of this. He made a wrong choice and went the opposite way of what God told him to go. His consequence was getting eaten by a large fish. Jonah disobeyed God; it was a wrong decision and he suffered the consequence for it.
Another example is Ruth. Elimelech and Naomi had moved from Bethlehem in Israel to the land of Moab. Maybe that was a wrong choice to begin with on their part. Elimelech, Mahlon, and Chilion ended up dying while they lived in Moab. Naomi then decided to return to Bethlehem, and her two daughters-in-law wanted to go with her. Naomi tried to persuade them to return to Moab. One of them listened to her and went back; but Ruth clung to her, and wouldn’t go back. Ruth was blessed for following Naomi, and choosing right. She married Boaz and was in the line of David which was the line in which Jesus was born. Ruth was blessed for her right choice.
Moses is yet another example. He had been saved from death in a very dangerous time, and lived with Pharaoh’s daughter. Moses had a choice to make. He lived with the richest man in all the land; he had everything anyone could want. But Moses chose to leave it all behind and live, and suffer with the Children of Israel. He ended up leading the Children of Israel out of Egypt. Moses chose to serve God, and today he is known was one of the great men of God. He was certainly blessed for his choice of following what was right.
So, in our examples some have been good choices while others have been bad choices. We can be kept in the right path by having wisdom in our hearts. We obtain wisdom by studying God’s Word. As we spend more and more time in it, we will learn to enjoy it. It will give us the desire to love and honour God, and then God can bless us for the right decisions. It is very important that we stay faithful in this while we’re young; although, it is important for everyone of every age. We would do well to ask God for help to make wise decisions in our life.
Philippians 2:19-30
We have four people set before us in this chapter, each displaying different qualities.
First, this chapter shows us “Christ our example,” and He is shown obeying (v.8). Paul speaks of being offered as a sacrifice, but was rejoicing (vv.17-18). Then we get Timothy, who cared (v.20), and finally Epaphroditus, who was a fellow labourer (v.25). Paul was looking to rejoice in the day of Christ (v.16), Timothy sought the things of Jesus Christ (v.21), and Epaphroditus did the work of Christ (v.30). All these sacrificed the life God gave them: Paul was in prison, Timothy sacrificed his own care for theirs, and Epaphroditus had been nigh unto death. They are examples of normal Christian experience in working for the Lord.
Paul was looking forward to the time when Christ will have His way in this world. Though he saw himself as a sacrifice in his work for the Lord, he still rejoiced. It wasn’t fun to be in prison and chains, but he had the hope of Christ’s coming kingdom.
Paul couldn’t travel to Philippi, so he was going to send Timothy instead. He wanted to know the state of the Philippians; it would comfort him. Our state and our standing are like a thermometer. A thermometer’s position on the wall doesn’t change, just as our standing before God doesn’t change. We are in Christ and nothing can take us out of Him; safe in both Jesus’ and the Father’s hands. That standing never differs. Our state, however, goes up and down like the temperature. It’s good to check it. When our state is low, something is wrong, and we could be headed for trouble. How are we “getting along” (DT) spiritually? Paul was concerned for the Philippians, and wanted their love for the Lord to be warm.
Paul had no one like Timothy who would care for the Philippians with genuine feeling (DT). We care physically for our children and others, but how about spiritually? As Paul looked around, everyone he saw was self-centred, not Christ-centred. We need to be concerned about the Lord’s things, but what are they? His people are His, and we can be concerned with them and their spiritual growth. Timothy is a good example of this. He had been with Paul, and served with him in the gospel. He sought the Lord’s things, and served the Lord’s people.
So Paul was going to send Timothy to Philippi, hoping that the Lord would release him so that he could come shortly, too. He had been before the Lord about this, and we can see that by how he talks about trusting in the Lord (vv 19, 24).
Paul was also sending Epaphroditus. Epaphroditus possibly took down this epistle, and he would deliver it. He was more than just a brother in the Lord; Paul could have fellowship with any brother. Epaphroditus was a brother, a companion in labour, a fellow soldier, the Philippians’ messenger, and a minister to Paul’s wants. He brought the Philippians’ gift to Paul, and now he would bring them back Paul’s letter. He was a busy man!
Hymn - Dare to be a Daniel
Prayer