Year 5, Day 334: Ecclesiastes 4

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Chemistry

• Chemistry asks whether the person in question can work with the other people that God has called.

Chemistry is all about community.  Very few – if any of us – are truly designed to be in complete solitude.  Even the introverts among us don’t usually want to be completely alone, they want to know the close relationship of a few friends.  Trust me, I know.  I’m one of those people.  I’m an introvert.  But I would die if I had to be in complete solitude.

I think that this is a part of what Solomon is going after in this passage.  When Solomon talks about toil, he says that it is best for a person to work in conjunction with another person.  In other words, work is best shared.  That’s what chemistry is about.  We all need to work; we learned about that a few chapters back.  But work is best done when we have someone to share it with.  Work is best shared when we have someone to share it with whom we enjoy.

That’s why chemistry is important.  After all, when I fall down, don’t I want someone there who wants to help pick me up?  When I am frustrated in my work, don’t I want someone there who wants to help me see it from a new angle?  When I am celebrating a success, don’t I want someone there who celebrates with me because they understand what that victory took?  It is one thing to be alone.  It is another thing to be among others.  But true joy comes when we can be among people with whom we have good chemistry.

Furthermore, I think this issue of chemistry is also found at the end of this passage when Solomon talks about the young poor wise man.  A young wealthy wise man will have all kinds of people wanting his attention for all the wrong reasons.  Such a person won’t be able to find people with whom they have chemistry because their money will always draw otherwise motivated people to them.  But a young poor wise man will have the space to find people with whom they do relate well.  The young poor wise man will have the space to consider chemistry.

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Year 5, Day 333: Ecclesiastes 3

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Rhythm

• Rhythm: We are designed to work from rest, not rest from work.  God has created us to be a people of rhythm in which we rest (abide), grow, work (bear fruit), and prune.  The better we understand this natural rhythm in life, the more satisfied we will feel in life and the more we will be able to be in tune with succeeding in what God desires our life to be about.

Ecclesiastes 3 is a section that is largely about understanding that the world is not as black and white as many of us would like it to be.  We want this to be right, that to wrong, this to be desirable, that to be avoidable.  But unfortunately that is seldom the case.

For example, is it always right to laugh?  Of course not, just like it is not always wrong to cry.  Is it always right to try and prove yourself to be the smartest or fastest or prettiest?  Of course not.  But is it always wrong?  No!  Is it wrong to tease someone?  No.  But neither is it always appropriate.

The point of Ecclesiastes 3 is that there are very few black and white circumstances in the world.  Actually, most things have a time in which they can be very much appropriate as well as times where they are very much inappropriate.  We shouldn’t be a people who are setting up rigid walls around our life.  We should be a people who are willing to examine each situation and carefully assess what a proper response to the environment around us might be.

That’s where rhythm comes into play.  There is a times for stopping and resting and listening and talking and sharing.  There is a time for growing and learning and asking questions and doubting and changing.  There is a time for bearing fruit and seeing the results of our effort and pride in our work.  There is a time for examining ourselves, taking the good away from the bad, and repenting in those places that need it.  But we need a rhythm of all of those things.  If we spend too much time in any one category then we will find ourselves out of balance.

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Year 5, Day 332: Ecclesiastes 2

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Appetite

• Appetite: We all have needs that need to be filled.  When we allow ourselves to be filled with the people and things that God brings into our life, we will be satisfied because our In will be in proper focus.  But when we try to fill ourselves with our own desires we end up frustrated by an insatiable hunger.

In this chapter, Solomon struggles with three issues: having stuff, having wisdom, and work.  I think in all three circumstances Solomon is talking about appetite.  Let’s examine each one.

The first one is clearly an issue of appetite.  Solomon is saying that getting everything you eye desires is just not satisfying in the end.  That’s an issue of appetite!  It is not good for us to binge on anything.  We need to learn self-control.

The second one is harder to see as an issue of appetite.  Solomon is saying that wisdom and folly are equally vain.  More precisely, Solomon is actually saying that wisdom can save us no better than folly can save us.  In the end, the wise die just as often as the fools do.  In this we can see the appetite issue, although keep in mind that Solomon is not saying that there is no point to gaining wisdom.  The reason that this is an appetite issue is because of the reason we are gaining the wisdom.  If I am seeking the wisdom for my own benefit and for my own gain, then it is an issue with appetite and I am in the wrong.  Where wisdom can be beneficial is when I seek wisdom that can benefit the community around me.

This same logic can be applied to the third area: work.  There is nothing wrong with work.  Those of us who have sat around for a few days being unable to do anything know that feeling of being cooped up and useless.  But work for the sake of work is not good, either.  We should work because it is good for us to provide for ourselves.  Yet we should not work just because, either.  Neither should we work for the stuff that it provides.  After all, that would take us back to the first of Solomon’s trio of vanities in this chapter.  Work is good, but it is only good why our appetite is truly turned towards God and what He wants for us.

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Year 5, Day 331: Ecclesiastes 1

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Calling

• Calling asks whether or not God has called the person to the particular work at this point in their life.

Ecclesiastes is such an interesting book to read.  It is full of grand truth.  However, it is also full of depressing truth because it is such an honest look at life.  Ecclesiastes is not a book to be read unless we are willing to look into the mirror deeply and accept what we see.

This first chapter is an incredibly popular one.  What can mankind do that really is worthwhile?  Can we do anything that will really last?  Is there any lesson that I will learn that will be remembered by the third or fourth generation from now?  What about the hundredth generation from now?  Will anyone even care about me or anything I do after a thousand years of time?

As you can see, this is a rather depressing look at the human existence.

Yet, it is an incredibly profound chapter.  There is something that is the same from Solomon’s day to our day today.  The thing that is the same is God and His desire to save mankind.  The thing that remains unchanged is humanity’s need to be saved by someone greater than life, death, and even time.

Fundamentally, this is why I chose to focus on calling.  If I am interested in my own desires and my own successes, I’ll be lucky to be remembered a generation after I die.  But if instead I am focused upon God’s calling for my life, then whether I am remembered is irrelevant.  This is true because God will still be relevant then.  God’s work will still be going on.  I’ll just be one piece in a very long and very consistent effort on God’s behalf.

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Year 5, Day 330: 2 Timothy 4

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Bear Fruit

• Bear Fruit: We bear fruit after we grow.  Bearing fruit is ultimately the goal of abiding and the goal of being called into the Kingdom of God.  However, while bearing fruit is our calling, it is not the end.  We bear fruit so that we can then prune, abide, grow, and bear more fruit in another season.  Bearing fruit is not the end, but rather only a portion of the whole rhythm of life into which God has called us.

As Paul goes to finish this letter to Timothy, he puts things back into perspective.  Remember, Paul is in prison, likely to be tried for his ministry.  Timothy is in Ephesus, trying his best to lead a church in spite of his inexperience and his age.  Paul has given advice to Timothy about the future.  Paul has exhorted him to continue the work that he’s begun.  So what is left for Paul to say?

Paul reminds Timothy to continue to bear fruit.  Preach. Reprove.  Rebuke.  Exhort.  Teach.  Be Patient.

In other words, keep making disciples.  Keep helping those who are disciples become better disciples.  Teach other people how to make disciples.  Bear Fruit.

When life gets tough, it is good for us to remember perspective.  When I am being persecuted, it is good to remember the calling that God has for me and to focus on bearing fruit.  When life is easy and things are going my way, it is good for me to remember my calling from God and to make sure I am bearing fruit.  While bearing fruit may not be the complete endgame, it is great at giving us perspective.

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Year 5, Day 329: 2 Timothy 3

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Character

• Character: Having the interior life that is necessary to support the work that God sets before a person.  It is hearing from God and obeying.  It is doing the right thing when nobody is looking.

When Paul is writing to Timothy about some advice about the future days, Paul really focuses in on character.  Notice what Paul says about the character of human beings in general.  Lovers of self.  Selfish.  Lovers of money.  Out of control.  Unable to be appeased.  Conceited.  Pleasure seekers.  Two-faced.  Yeah, that sounds about right.

Don’t get me wrong.  I’m not saying that human beings are that way all the time.  In fact, I’d be willing to bet that very few if any human beings are that way all of the time.  If we were that way all of the time, what on earth would God find redeemable?  Of course, I am over-asserting my point.

At the same time, though, as I read through the list I cannot say that there are any qualities on that list that are not a part of me.  In fact, I cannot say that there are any qualities on that list that I don’t fight – some even on a daily basis!  So while I doubt that any human being falls prey to qualities on that list all the time, I do think it is fair to say that most human beings find themselves fighting something on that list all the time.

That’s why this is a chapter on character.  Character is who you are when nobody is looking.  I know on a good day that who I am when nobody is looking is a man who is resisting the self-centered humanity within me.

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Year 5, Day 328: 2 Timothy 2

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Approval

• Approval: We all need to feel as though we are accepted.  When we seek the approval of God, our Up is in the right place.  But when we seek the approval of other people besides God, we open the door to pursuing false gods and risk putting someone or something other than God in our Up position.

I can’t help but to read this chapter and ask myself if this is really true about me as well.  Am I truly seeking God’s approval more than the approval of the world?  Am I seeking God’s approval more than I am even seeking my own approval?  Am I really about God’s agenda more than I am about my own agenda?

I think that is one of my biggest challenges.  I want to do what I want to do.  I want my life to be arranged as I want it.  I want my pleasure, my fame, my success, my prosperity.  I know that it shouldn’t be that way, but deep down in my core that is the struggle.  As Paul asserts in verse 4, no soldier ever gets involved in civilian plans.  The question is, am I really interested in the plans of the Lord or am I interested in my own plans?

That’s why this is fundamentally a question of approval.  If I am seeking the approval of God I would be like that soldier who is interested in that which the one who enlisted me is interested.  Or, if I am seeking out the approval of God I would be like that athlete who wants to play by the rules.  If I am truly seeking the approval of God, that is precisely what my life should look like.

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Year 5, Day 327: 2 Timothy 1

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Imitation

• Imitation: This is the second over-arching step of the discipleship process.  First we gain information, then we imitate our spiritual mentor.  Imitation leads to innovation of spirituality in our own life.

One of the reasons that Paul and Timothy are so famous is because of the relationship that is between them.  They are often lifted up as the model for the discipleship process.  Paul is a strong man of the faith, and he takes a willing Timothy into his life in order to pass that faith on.  As much credit as Paul gets, however, I think that the true credit belongs to Timothy.  Paul already was a man of faith.  Of course he could pass on what he had been taught by God.  Timothy was the one who lived in such a manner as to welcome Paul’s influence into his life.  Had Timothy not been willing to imitate, Paul would have been able to do very little.

We actually see this shown all throughout the first chapter of Paul’s second letter to Timothy.  At the very beginning Paul says that Timothy is his beloved child – a child of faith, of course.  Here we see the relationship that Timothy has embraced.

But it didn’t start with Paul.  Timothy was already open to the moving of the Spirit before Timothy met Paul.  Timothy was open to being taught by his mother Eunice and his grandmother Lois.  Their faith passed into him and he learned to imitate that faith.

At the end of this chapter, Paul talks about his suffering.  Everyone who openly follows Jesus will experience persecution in this life.  Paul knows this fact.  Therefore he encourages Timothy to continue to imitate the faith.  It is always easy to fall away when persecution comes.  But even in the midst of persecution Paul encourages Timothy to imitate his faith.

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Year 5, Day 326: 1 Timothy 6

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Character

• Character: Having the interior life that is necessary to support the work that God sets before a person.  It is hearing from God and obeying.  It is doing the right thing when nobody is looking.

It should really make sense to end a letter like 1 Timothy with a discussion on character.  After all, this is a personal letter from Paul to Timothy.  Of course he is going to end with a charge to live a righteous life!

So what does living in a righteous manner look like?  I think it is important to examine what Paul talks about.  We are to teach truth but not enjoy spiritual controversy.  We are to be content with having our needs met and not seeking after the luxuries of the world – because the love of money is the root of all evils.  But perhaps most importantly, we are to guard the deposit of faith that has been set within us.  Should this be lost, what will we truly have?

If find this to be a very challenging list.  It is easy to know that we should pursue righteousness.  But it is hard to set righteousness as the constant goal of every action.  It is easy to know that the riches of this world are not worth pursuing.  But it is difficult to not want what we see people around us having.  It is easy to know that the faith within us is our most valued gift.  Yet because it comes free of charge with so much grace from God it is easy to get our priorities out of whack and therefore have our faith lose value in our daily choices that we make.

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Year 5, Day 325: 1 Timothy 5

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Father

• Father: This is the pinnacle of the Covenant Triangle.  God is the Father.  He is the creator.  He is love.  Our relationship with the Father is rooted in His love for us.  We get our identity through Him.  When the Father is in our life, obedience becomes clear.

The opening verses from Paul to Timothy in chapter 5 are about dealing with one another.  There is one consistent theme through these pieces of advice.  We are to respond out of love.  In fact, it goes more deeply than that.  We are to respond out of familial love.  We are to treat our elders like mothers and fathers.  We are to treat those like us like brothers and sisters.  We are to treat widows and orphans much like extended family, including them in our activities whenever possible in order to show support to them.

This should make much sense to us who are Christian.  God is our Father, and God shows love to us.  So if God is the Father of all of us, then we are spiritual family.  If we are spiritual family, we should be treating each other as family.  That means we should be looking to display love to one another.  We should be watching out for each other in terms of protection and resources.  We are to be family with one another because God is our Father.

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Year 5, Day 324: 1 Timothy 3 & 4

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Authority

• Authority: Our calling.  This comes from God as king.  Because He calls us as His representatives, He gives us authority to go and do His will.

I was about to write another post on character, which I don’t think would have been difficult.  But as I write an awful lot about character, I thought a post on authority would be just as meaningful.  In truth, I think both posts end up drawing the same conclusions just from a different perspective.

1 Timothy 3 is largely a chapter about Timothy establishing expectations for the early church leaders.  Leaders are supposed to live up to the standards that God establishes for godly living.  But this makes sense form an authority perspective.  If we are going to have any meaningful authority in this world, won’t we be receiving our authority from God?  If we are living out the authority of God, shouldn’t we be living up to His standards?  Who will believe our testimony or respect our authority if the witness of our life doesn’t match what God expects of us?

1 Timothy 4 is largely the same information.  In this chapter, though, Paul is directing the teaching at Timothy rather than leaders in the church in general.  But here Paul takes it a step further.  He specifically reminds Timothy to not allow anyone to discredit him because of his youth.  He reminds Timothy of the prayer and prophecy that was declared over him at the time of his commissioning. Timothy isn’t leading because of his innate giftedness or even because of his training.  Ultimately, Timothy is leading because of the authority bestowed upon him by God.

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Year 5, Day 323: 1 Timothy 1 & 2

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Challenge

• Challenge: God does not merely wish us to be in relationship with Him as we are.  He challenges us to grow, stretch, and transform as we take on the mantle of being His representatives to this world.

As I read through this chapter, I couldn’t help be challenged by one of the most fundamental basics of Christianity: Law and Gospel.  This is the crux of Christianity.  Without the Law we cannot know our need for Christ.  Without Christ and the grace of God, we cannot know genuine forgiveness.

This is really where the challenge comes into play.  When I am challenged by God to turn from my sin, it is easy for me to turn to grace and solely desire to be reminded of God’s forgiveness.  Rather than repent and become a different man, I want to be wrapped in the idea of grace so that I can stay the same.  This is why Paul talks about the Law being laid down because of the disobedient.  We need to Law to understand our obedience and turn from it.

On the other hand, I also find that I cling to the Law at the wrong times.  When God is calling me out of my comfort zone in order to try something new or go to someone new, it is easy to cling to the Law in a desperate attempt to stay the same.  I want to keep my comfortable traditions rather than risk temptation and going someplace new.

We are truly challenged by Law and Gospel.  But it isn’t just the concepts of Law and Gospel that challenge us, it is the appropriate application of the Law and Gospel that often challenges us.  Knowing when to lean on the Law and when to lean upon God’s grace.

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Year 5, Day 322: Proverbs 31

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Character

• Character: Having the interior life that is necessary to support the work that God sets before a person.  It is hearing from God and obeying.  It is doing the right thing when nobody is looking.

As we close out Proverbs, we get two really good perspectives on character.  The first perspective is that of what it means to be a leader.  Take a long look at the two topics that the author desires for her son to hear. 

• First of all, leaders do not give themselves to women.  Now, this doesn’t mean that a leader doesn’t get married or know the blessing of a strong marriage.  What it means is that a leader doesn’t give himself over to the pursuit and desires of women.  A leader leads, and lets those be drawn to him who will come through his example.
• Second, leaders don’t participate in strong drink.  I find this point amusing.  How often in culture do we assume that leadership and alcohol mix together?  Don’t we joke about board meetings truly being completed in the drinks that follow the meeting?  How often do we think that decisions are best made with a drink in hand?  Yet the message here is really clear.  Decisions need to be made with a clear mind, not clouded with that which alcohol brings.

The last thing that we hear in the book of Proverbs is a wonderful testimony to the character of a good wife.  A good wife trusts.  A good wife seeks the good will of her family.  She is a servant leader.  She is a hard worker.  She is generous.  She anticipates the needs of those underneath her care.  She teaches out of her wisdom.  What a wonderful way to end this book!

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Year 5, Day 321: Proverbs 30

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Identity

• Identity: Our true identity comes from the Father.  Only when our identity comes from God can we be obedient in ways that satisfy our person to our core.

I’m going to take an interesting approach to identity today.  As the description above says, our best identity comes from the Father.  Our best identity comes when we realize that we cannot do it ourselves and rather need to turn to God.  Our best identity comes with a humble understanding of who we really are and how much we need God.

I think this is actually what the author of this chapter is going for as he opens with his words.  A true man knows when he is weary.  A true man knows the limit of his understanding.  A true man realizes that he cannot get himself into salvation or the presence of God.  In other words, a true man knows his limitations. 

I believe that part of having a good identity is understanding what we cannot do.  When we understand what we cannot do, we understand our need for God.  When we understand our limitations, we also understand why we need to rely upon God and what He can do through us.  We need to understand where our human identity is lacking so that we can value and embrace the identity that comes to us from the Father.

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Year 5, Day 320: Proverbs 29

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: People of Peace

• People of Peace: A person of peace is someone whom God has prepared to hear God’s message through you.  God does all the work of preparing that person for your presence in their life. Because of this preparation, these people will like you.  They will listen to you.  They will serve with you as you live out God’s calling for your life.

It’s been a while since I’ve spoken about people of peace.  While it may not seem like it at first, this chapter has people of peace theory all throughout it.  The idea of people of peace is the idea that we must be willing to listen.  A person of peace is someone to whom you can speak because they are open to what you have to say.

If we look at this chapter in Proverbs we hear several different perspectives on this topic.  The first perspective are all the verses that speak about listening to the wrong voices.  The companion of prostitutes squanders.  The fool rages against the wise.  The ruler who listens to falsehood has officials that are corrupt.  When we keep the company of sinfulness, we become sinful ourselves.

Another perspective that this chapter gives is our response to other people speaking into our life.  If we are rebuked and we stiffen our neck, we are asking for things to go poorly for us.  If we love wisdom, our elders are made glad.  The rod and reproof brings wisdom; but if we seek to be left alone from these things we will only bring shame into our life.

Finally, we have words to the speaker.  The truth is that we are not only to go through this life looking for those people that can influence us but also those whom we can ourselves influence.  Kings should seek justice for the poor – or otherwise oppressed.  Parents should seek to bring up their children rightly.  When speaking, we would do well to consider our words and hold our tongue.

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Year 5, Day 319: Proverbs 28

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Character

• Character: Having the interior life that is necessary to support the work that God sets before a person.  It is hearing from God and obeying.  It is doing the right thing when nobody is looking.

Proverbs 28 speaks frequently about justice.  The underlying principle of justice is obedience.  Of course, this principle is what some of us talk about when we speak of being a “rule follower.”  When a person says that they are a rule follower they are talking about thus underlying value of obedience and justice.  This is inherently an issue of character.

Look at just how many of these proverbs speak to what we do and whether or not we obey.  Proverbs 28:4, 7, 9, 13, 14 contrast those who forsake the Law versus those who obey it.  Proverbs 28:5, 16, 25, 26 talks about the relationship between those who understand justice or not.  Proverbs 28:6, 18 speaks about living with integrity versus living to simply satisfy our desires.  Proverbs 28:10, 23 speak about passing obedience on to others.  Of course, these are only the verses that deal with the idea of justice.  If we were to add the verses that deal with using money properly – which also ties significantly into this idea of justice – then we would list an even greater portion of the chapter!

This chapter is concerned with how we live.  This chapter is concerned with how we treat others.  This chapter is concerned with doing the right thing even when nobody is looking.  This chapter is concerned with truly being a person of character and not just being a person who seeks their own success and advantage.

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Year 5, Day 318: Proverbs 27

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Imitation

• Imitation: This is the second over-arching step of the discipleship process.  First we gain information, then we imitate our spiritual mentor.  Imitation leads to innovation of spirituality in our own life.

Iron sharpens iron.  It is perhaps the most often quoted proverb.  But we always hear it in the same context.  When I need to grow, I need to find someone who can challenge me.  I need to find someone who can push me beyond my current limitations.  I will not grow by hanging out only with people who are of a lesser status or a weaker condition. If I want to grow, I need to find someone who is capable of meeting my mettle and standing firm.

This is talking largely about the discipleship process.  We aren’t discipled by people who are weaker than us.  We aren’t discipled by people who cannot push us.  We aren’t discipled by people who don’t have a firm lesson to share.

What we are inherently talking about, then, is imitation.  If I want my own iron to become sharp, then I need to find someone who has what it takes to sharpen my iron.  Then I need to imitate them.  I am sharpened by imitating those who are capable of sharpening my character.

We need to understand this dynamic as we go through life.  Without a person to sharpen us – without a person to imitate – we will become stagnant.  But if we can find that person or persons to imitate, then we are that iron being sharpened by iron.

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Year 5, Day 317: Proverbs 26

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Character

• Character: Having the interior life that is necessary to support the work that God sets before a person.  It is hearing from God and obeying.  It is doing the right thing when nobody is looking.

As I was preparing the blog for today, I reread what I wrote in my blog post three years ago.  I spent a large portion of space talking about what the Bible really means when it says the word fool.  Re need to remember that this is not a word that refers to a person’s intelligence.  Rather, he is to what it does refer:

The fool is the person who should know better but doesn’t care.  The fool is the person who can make a good decision but doesn’t.  The fool is a person who knows that they should ask for guidance and who doesn’t.  Can an intelligent person be a fool?  Absolutely.  Can an uneducated person be a fool?  Absolutely.  One’s education doesn’t make one a fool.  One’s choices are what makes one a fool.

When we are talking about fools, it really makes sense to talk about choices and not education.  The fool chooses to follow the wrong path.  The fool chooses to not seek the wisdom of the community around him.

For me, this is really a character issue.  Character is about doing what is right in all circumstances.  By definition, the fool doesn’t do this.  The fool seeks his own pleasure in the moment without having the desire or the forethought to consider the future.

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Year 5, Day 316: Proverbs 25

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Character

• Character: Having the interior life that is necessary to support the work that God sets before a person.  It is hearing from God and obeying.  It is doing the right thing when nobody is looking.

So many of the proverbs talk about the character of a person.  I really believe that I could have spoken about character every single chapter in Proverbs had I wanted to do so.  But I wanted to save the topic for when it seemed to be a major topic of each chapter.

This is an interesting chapter to look at character.  After all, look at the first verse.  Solomon says that it is to the glory of God to conceal things.  How many of us genuinely feel that way?  Don’t we get suspicious when things are concealed?  Don’t we get angry when we aren’t let in on the plot?  Of course we do!  That just means that Solomon is truly teaching us a deep spiritual lesson here.  We want to know everything, but we also want it to be brought to us and told.  Solomon is saying that it is to God’s glory to conceal things because it forces us to seek it out.  Only when things are concealed is the one who knows able to see who the ones are that truly desire to seek.  It is to God’s glory that things are concealed because it gives us an opportunity to prove our own character.  We should be slow to anger when things are concealed.  In those instances it is an opportunity for us to prove our character as we seek out what is concealed!

The verses that follow likewise speak about character.  When we are in the presence of others, do we seek to elevate ourselves or do we seek to be humble?  Do we assume places of importance or do we wait until we are invited into them?  What does it say about our character when we have an over-inflated ego?

Or what about the verses in this chapter that speak about how we treat our enemies?  Do we seek to avenge ourselves or do we trust that God will be the avenger?  Do we treat our enemies with kindness so that we can win them over with love and set an example of grace or do we give them what we think that they deserve?

There is always room to examine our character.  None of us are perfect and we always have room to grow.  For me, often the question isn’t whether I think I have room to grow.  The true question is often whether or not I even want to know the places where I can grow.  That is why chapters like this are useful.

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Year 5, Day 315: Proverbs 24

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Approval

• Approval: We all need to feel as though we are accepted.  When we seek the approval of God, our Up is in the right place.  But when we seek the approval of other people besides God, we open the door to pursuing false gods and risk putting someone or something other than God in our Up position.

After spending two days on appetite, I figured that it was only fitting to speak about approval.  Human beings seem to either be chasing their own desires or chasing the desires of the people around them.  Part of chasing the desires of the people around us is getting their approval.

Proverbs 24 specifically warns us about this.  At the opening of the proverb we hear that we are not to be envious of evil men and we are not to desire to be in their company.  When we continue the opening thought we hear the Solomon is warning his son that the reason for this is the desire in their heart and the way that their evil comes out upon their words.  In other words, evil in other people is contagious.  If we spend time in the company of evil people then their evil may well transfer into us.  We will learn their behavior.

In fact, we will learn their behavior willingly!  If we seek to be in the presence of evil people then we will embrace what they embrace.  If we desire what evil people desire then we will imitate them in order to get what they have!  If we seek to be in the company of evil people we will learn to talk as they talk and let evil pour forth out of our mouth.

It is amazing what humans will turn to when we are looking for approval.  It is important to know the quality of the person from whom we are seeking approval.  If we are not careful, we will find ourselves imitating evilness and self-centeredness while we tear down the community around us that we should be building up and with whom we should be participating.

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Year 5, Day 314: Proverbs 23

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Appetite

• Appetite: We all have needs that need to be filled.  When we allow ourselves to be filled with the people and things that God brings into our life, we will be satisfied because our

So much of this proverb really has to do with tempering our appetite.  It begins and ends with appetite.  There are words sprinkled throughout the whole chapter that speak of appetite.

For example, take the way that this chapter begins.  The first eight verses have to do with desire.  We are not to desire the opulence of kings.  We are not to be blinded by all that they have to offer.  What bargains will we make to share in their goods?  What moral and character flaws will we tolerate because of the ease they can bring to our life?  No, when we desire the opulence of others we open ourselves up to all kinds of bad judgment.

Neither are we are not to desire the things of people who are stingy.  After all, why would we desire to be in the company of those who are not generous?  When it comes time for us to prosper, will the stingy be content if we are stingy in return?

In the middle of this proverb we talk about those who associate to much with drunkards and gluttons and slothful people.  Solomon’s point here in these verses is that when we associate too deeply with people who are happy in this life that we will learn habits from them.  We will learn to make bad decisions with respect to priorities.

We also hear about prostitutes.  Solomon warns us about sexual appetite as well.  Solomon calls her a robber.  People with unscrupulous sexuality teach us to value the wrong things.  They also steal things that are hard to replace: honor, righteousness, and purity.

At the end of the chapter, we once more hear about drinking and the dangers of wine.  The reality is that Solomon knows what happens when one becomes intoxicated.  We make poor decisions.  We don’t see clearly.  We speak poorly and without thought.

Human beings have a problem with appetite.  We want.  When we want, we don’t often think.  When we want and don’t think, we usually make poor decisions and sacrifice things that are worth far more than that which we desire.

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Year 5, Day 313: Proverbs 22

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Appetite

• Appetite: We all have needs that need to be filled.  When we allow ourselves to be filled with the people and things that God brings into our life, we will be satisfied because our In will be in proper focus.  But when we try to fill ourselves with our own desires we end up frustrated by an insatiable hunger.

There are a number of verses in this chapter that have to deal with wealth and the management of resources.  I think that what we are talking about in each of these verses is the idea of appetite.  What do we want, and how badly do we want it?

For me, I believe that these verses are talking greatly about the timing of appetite.  The truth is that we all have desires.  The question that remains is whether or not our desires determine our actions or whether our spirit determines our action.

Proverbs 22:7, 26-27 are great verses that speak to this topic.  If our appetite rules over our spirit, then the rich will always rule over the poor.  This is because we will place ourselves in debt to get what we want.  We will put things up for collateral that we truly need so that we can get what we want.  When our appetite rules our spirit, we leverage our needs for our wants.  This is utterly backwards, and it is Solomon’s point as he writes this.  We must have our appetite in check.

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Year 5, Day 312: Proverbs 21

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Approval

• Approval: We all need to feel as though we are accepted.  When we seek the approval of God, our Up is in the right place.  But when we seek the approval of other people besides God, we open the door to pursuing false gods and risk putting someone or something other than God in our Up position.

I am often captivated by certain verses – especially certain topics.  One of my favorite topics is just how many things that the Old Testament tells us that God loves more than animal sacrifices.  Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to say that the sacrifices are wrong.  Clearly the Levitical Law tells us that sacrifices are a joy to the Lord when done the right way and for the right reasons.  But that doesn’t mean that the Lord doesn’t love something more.

In Proverbs 21:3 we have such a captivating verse.  Doing righteousness and living out justice is more pleasing to the Lord than sacrifice.  I think it is worth my time today to dive deep into this particular verse at the expense of the rest of the chapter.  It is always a good pursuit to determine what is pleasing to the Lord.

The reason for these verses is quite simple.  When we live righteously, we demonstrate to the Lord that we know His expectations and we live up to them.  When we seek justice we demonstrate to the Lord that we value what He values.  It should make much sense to think that the Lord would prefer us to value what we values before we speak or act than to have to apologize and rectify that we made an error!  Who wouldn’t want to have the people choose to share values before acting than to have to repent and change in retrospect?

Thankfully, we can seek forgiveness when we make mistakes because our Lord is forgiving.  But if we truly want the approval of the Lord, we need to learn to value what the Lord values and live that way.  People may say that “it is easier to ask forgiveness than permission,” but in truth it is easiest to live by assimilating the Lord’s culture and being able to live without needing to ask anything because the Lord’s ways already are our ways.

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Year 5, Day 311: Proverbs 20

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Competency

• Competency: Being able to accomplish what one is called to do.

I think that the idea of competency and righteousness often go together when we are talking about spiritual matters.  We are always called to live in righteousness.  We are always called to be holy.  God asks us to be different in this world.  God asks us to be a beacon to the world that highlights Him and His ways.  The question isn’t whether or not we are called.  The question is if we have the competency to do what we are asked.

When we read Proverbs 20 this idea really comes through strongly, especially in the opening verses.  Sluggards do not put in the time to do things the right way.  Anyone can talk about how great they are, but how many of us truly are as great in practice as we proclaim in reality?  How many of us use unequal means for measuring so that we can seek our own benefit?  Do not children – or all human beings – show their true character by what they do?

Acting righteously is truly one of mankind’s greatest dilemmas.  We know that we are called to live rightly.  We know we are called to live with a perspective that is not about getting an advantage for ourselves.  We are not to be self-centered in our focus.  But how often do we live up to that standard?  Are we really competent enough to live up to our calling?  This is a very important question for self-reflection.

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Year 5, Day 310: Proverbs 19

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: King

• King: This is the pinnacle of the Kingdom Triangle.  When we look towards God’s position in the universe, we acknowledge that He is an omnipotent king.  Authority comes from Him.  Power comes through His authority.  He is looking for representatives for His kingdom.

As I was reading through this chapter, I was once more struck by the wisdom of Proverbs 19:3.  This verse bears the soul of humanity and exposes it wide open.  Our folly brings our life to ruin.  We bear the consequences of our own choices.  We make our own bed and have to lie in it.

But the reality is that we are never happy about it.  We are never content living into our consequences.  It’s always someone else’s fault.  It’s always something happening to us.  We make excuse after excuse as to why we’re not guilty.

Or, we get mad at God.  We get angry at God because our life isn’t going the way we want it to go.  We get mad at God because life is occasionally lived in tough spots.

But is it really His fault?  Does God deserve our wrath?  Should our consequences be laid at His feet?

More to the point, when I feel that way am I demonstrating that He is King of my life?  If I get angry at God for my choices, am I sending Him the message that He is king of my life?  Or am I really more treating Him like a scapegoat?

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Year 5, Day 309: Proverbs 18

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Competency

• Competency: Being able to accomplish what one is called to do.

As we surge through Proverbs, I find it interesting that we still seem to focus on the “fool.”  In today’s chapter, we get to focus especially on the tongue of the fool.  As I spoke about yesterday, it is better to be thought a fool than to open my mouth and prove myself to be one.

For example, take the contrast given to us in Proverbs 18:4 and Proverbs 18:6-7.  In Proverbs 18:4 we hear that the mouth of the wise is like a bubbling brook.  By this Solomon means that words of wisdom are refreshing and they bring comfort.  By in Proverbs 18:6-7 we hear that a fool’s mouth is his ruin and a snare to his soul – inviting the fool into dangerous places.  Even in Proverbs 18:21 we hear that life and death are in the power of a tongue.

The truth is that there is great power in what we say.  When we speak just to hear ourselves talk we give bad advice and show ourselves to be a fool.  But when we are silent until called to speak forth in God’s wisdom we give good advice and show ourselves to be wise.  Our tongue is one of our greatest weapons and tools.

This is what brings me to the idea of competency.  Our tongue – our words – are such an incredible power.  The difference in whether our tongue is a weapon or a tool is really an issue of competency.  If we are competent with our tongue, we are wise and our tongue is a tool that brings forth God’s truth.  But if we are incompetent with our tongue, we are a fool and it becomes a weapon of destruction in human hands under human control.  Those competent with their tongues bring refreshment to the people around them in the truth that they speak.  Those incompetent with their tongues bring destruction in their folly.

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Year 5, Day 308: Proverbs 17

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Character

• Character: Having the interior life that is necessary to support the work that God sets before a person.  It is hearing from God and obeying.  It is doing the right thing when nobody is looking.

We get a lot of talk about the “fools” in Proverbs.  This chapter is especially heavy in the talk about fools.  Ultimately, I think the designation of “fool” is a character issue.  Let’s face it.  We can all be foolish at times in our lives.  We can all even have foolish thoughts.  But there are two old adages that I’d like to share.  The first is from Abraham Lincoln and is quite popular.  “Better to remain silent and be thought a fool than to speak out and remove all doubt.”  The other is from William Shakespeare and is lesser known but very true.  “A fool thinks himself to be wise, but a wise man knows himself to be a fool.”

I think what both of these quotes point us towards is that while we all can be foolish from time to time, one of the main differences between a fool and a wise person is in action.  A foolish person simply puts everything into action without consideration of the effects.  The wise person contemplates their actions and words before putting them forth and only lets the truly wise ones out through their internal filter.  That’s why I think this is an issue of character.  Those with character have what it takes to filter their foolishness out of their public life.

Look at what this chapter of Proverbs says on this topic.  It is better to meet a she-bear robbed of her cubs than to meet a fool in his folly.  He who sires a fool gets sorrow and the father of a fool gets no joy.  The discerning sets his face towards wisdom, but the eyes of a fool are on the ends of the earth.  Whoever restrains his words has knowledge, and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding.  Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise; when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent.

The truth is that folly is destructive.  That’s why it is a character issue.  When I am foolish, I destroy things around me. I destroy relationship.  I destroy myself.  I destroy the community around me.  None of those things are good things.  But if I have the character to keep my mouth shut in my moments of foolishness, my life and the world around me are spared.

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Year 5, Day 307: Proverbs 16

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Approval

• Approval: We all need to feel as though we are accepted.  When we seek the approval of God, our Up is in the right place.  But when we seek the approval of other people besides God, we open the door to pursuing false gods and risk putting someone or something other than God in our Up position.

When I read this chapter in proverbs, I really get an overarching sense of humbleness.  I don’t know about you, but I like my life to be about myself.  I like my life to be passionate about my needs and my feelings and my emotions and my desires.  I want my life to revolve around my interests.

However, that isn’t really what this chapter of Proverbs is all about.  Verse 1 tells us that while our plans may be in our heart, the answer is in the Lord.  Verse 2 tells us that we are always right in our own eyes, but it is the Lord who weighs us.  Verse 3 tells us that we should commit our work to the Lord.  Verse 9 tells us that while our hearts may govern our steps, it is the Lord establishes our steps.

Each of these verses cause me to ask where it is that I get my approval.  Do I want to approve my own actions?  Do I seek the approval of the people around me?  Or am I interested in the Lord’s approval and letting Him establish my ways?

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Year 5, Day 306: Proverbs 15

Theological Commentary: Click Here

Discipleship Focus: Grace

• Grace: Grace comes to us when we make mistakes and have a failing of character.  Grace comes to us when we have a typical D₂ moment.  Grace comes to us when we need space to recognize a mistake, repent of it, and allow God to redeem it while calling us back into His will.  Grace is partnered by Time and Vision.

Yesterday we spoke about how important forgiveness is because we all make mistakes.  None of us enjoys being seen in fault.  But there is another dynamic at work in partnership with forgiveness.  With forgiveness we experience grace.  Grace comes to us when we make mistakes and are given an opportunity to continue forward anyways.

We see this dynamic in several places in Proverbs 15.  In the first verse we hear that a soft answer turns away wrath.  In verse 4 we hear that a gentle tongue is a tree of life.  In verse 18 we hear that a hot-tempered response stirs up trouble while those who are slow to anger quiets contention. 

What we need to understand about life is that it is best lived in grace.  It is best experienced by others when we live it in grace.  It is most enjoyed by ourselves when we live in their grace.  Grace simply makes the world go around better.

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