Tag: Proverbs 20:24
The future is guaranteed!
Scripture reading for November 28th: 2nd Peter 3, Psalm 87, Proverbs 20
2nd Peter 3:`10-13 “But the Day of the Lord will come like a thief, and then the heavens will pass away with a roar, and the heavenly bodies will be burned up and dissolved, and the earth and the works that are done on it will be exposed. Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming Day of God, because of which the heavens will be set on fire and dissolved, and the heavenly bodies will melt as they burn! But according to His promise we are waiting for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.”
Peter’s closing letter to the Church of Jesus Christ was a bold statement of what the future ‘Day of the Lord’ would be like. No one of the world would know its coming–like a ‘thief’ was the description. But believers can be assured of what will happen because God has decreed it in His Word. The heavens and earth will be dissolved and renovated by fire at that appointed Day. Because of the certainty of this day coming and it’s destruction, believers should be motivated to live holy and godly lives while they wait for the promised ‘new heavens and new earth’, the home of eternal Righteousness in Jesus’ reign as King of Kings on Mt. Zion, the eternal City of God in the New Jerusalem. Only through God’s Word can man know with certainty the future!
Psalm 87:1-3 “On the holy mount stands the city He founded; the Lord loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwelling places of Jacob. Glorious things of you are spoken, O city of God.” (Selah)
Prayer: Father God, thank You for the settled certainty that comes through trusting Your Word concerning future events. Your amazing plans are eternal and settled in heaven by Your Word and glorious power. Thank You for directing our steps into the Way of Christ and faith. We as believers are looking forward to Your rule as King of Kings in the City of God and enjoying the new heavens and new earth for ever!
Proverbs 20:24 “A man’s steps are from the Lord; how then can man understand his way?”
The Light of Men!
Scripture reading for October 16th: John 1, Psalm 56, Proverbs 20
John 1: 1-5 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him was not any thing made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”
John, the beloved Apostle of Jesus Christ, begins his Gospel account focusing on Jesus Christ as the “Word.” The Genesis account of creation is the record of God’s creation through speaking His Word. Out of nothing, at His Word, the various elements of creation were formed. “All things were made through Him” is John’s proclamation! This includes life itself, the living creatures great and small as well as man made in God’s image and likeness. But death came on the scene through man’s disobedience and men were plunged into darkness. But God sent His Son to reveal God’s light and life in each human life: “His life was the Light of men.” Jesus Christ, born of a woman, but the Son of God, reveals grace and truth through the light of His perfectly obedient life. He gave His life to reveal the Father to all in darkness!
Psalm 56:12-13 “I must perform my vows to You, O God; I will render thank offerings to You. For You have delivered my soul from death, yes, my feet from falling, that I may walk before God in the light of life.”
Prayer: Father God, thank You for Jesus Christ, the Word of Life. In the light of His life, my inner darkness has been revealed and chased away by His glorious Light. You have delivered me from darkness, kept my feet from falling, and enabled me to walk before You in the Light of Life! Use me this day to testify to those still in darkness of Jesus Christ, the Word made flesh, the Light of Life to all mankind!
Proverbs 20:24, 27 “A man’s steps are from the Lord; how then can man understand his way?” . . .”The spirit of man is the lamp of the Lord, searching all his innermost parts.”
Thankful for God’s Purposes!
Scripture reading for July 18th: Proverbs 16-20
Key Scriptures: Proverbs 19:21, “Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.” Proverbs 20:5 “The purposes of a man’s heart are deep waters, but a man of understanding draws them out.” Proverbs 20:24 “A man’s steps are directed by the Lord. How then can anyone understand his own way?”
The writer of Proverbs understood a little of the mystery of God’s purposes and direction of men. Men have many plans and dreams of the future and what it might hold. They often try and work out those plans and purposes. Men of insight into God’s will and Word draw out God’s purposes from the deep waters of the heart of God. But sometimes, man’s steps are taken from the path of our will into new territory through events and circumstances beyond our control. This is a mystery only understood as we seek God and walk with Him.
Our God leads us into His will: “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. And He who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance with God’s will. And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.” (Romans 8:26-28)