Read through Proverbs in 31 days, Today’s reading is entitled “Correction and Instruction”
Read Proverbs 6 – A big part of the guidance seen in Proverbs 6 relates to commitment, along with learning from the occasional punishments. Commitment comes in many forms, such as keeping your promises to do something. Other examples of commitment include avoiding a slothful approach while working toward those commitments and fidelity in your marriage. So far today we have looked at the instruction side of the focal point, but the correction side can be experienced as easily as flipping over a coin. What happens when you make a promise to your boss and fail to keep it? The same would go for being unreliable in your friendships and marital relationship – some negative circumstances are likely to result. What points should we consider for today?
The simple answer is all of them, but the purpose of your reading is to choose five.
- Always stick to your commitments if at all possible. When all efforts have failed, immediately acknowledge that shortcoming and beg forgiveness from the recipient of that promise.
- The animals and insects of nature provide a perfect example of following wisdom. Although there is no leader in control of their actions, they labor to prepare for the future.
- Obey the commands of your father and mother to avoid the seven things the Lord hates – haughty eyes, lying tongue, hands that take innocent blood, a heart bent on evil, feet that race toward wrongs, a false witness and those who sow discord in a family.
- Keep wise counsel in your heart, tie it around your neck, because wisdom leads to protection while you sleep and advice on your journeys.
- Although a thief may excuse his crime by starvation; he will still be punished if caught, paying back seven times what was stolen.
How can you gain wisdom and knowledge? Well, you can ask your parents, elders and read God’s Word. According to today’s reading in Proverbs, you can also follow the example set by the animals and insects. They follow the natural instinct of survival and store away food while it is available so that they can eat during the winter months. Take a look at the squirrel. If you are in the rural south, and many other rural areas, you probably see that bushy-tailed grey “rodent” every day. Take a look at the small ant who has extreme power and capabilities when teaming up with a few hundred of his friends. God has given us many examples of leadership, teamwork and survival in nature. How could such a loving God hate anything? Well, there are many who will not accept a wrathful God who would dare to invoke such a thing as punishment. Then again, there are some who believe that humans have free will which includes the ability to believe whatever they want about God. Hey, that’s me, your standard Free Will Baptist. Does that mean that people also have the right to believe that God doesn’t exist? Sure, but they don’t have the free will to push atheist beliefs upon others. Meanwhile, back to the seven things that God hates. They are mentioned above so we will skip repeating them here. Now that you have read them again, is there a common theme among these seven abominations? This is where you take the Winnie the Pooh approach and tap your noggin while saying “think, think, think.” Yes, you figured it out, all of these are sins. Although we may excuse sins based on specific circumstances, as in today’s verses, God cannot excuse sin. Instead of giving us a free pass to sin as much as desired, God sent His Son to die on the cross to pay for all sins past, present and future. Yes, all sins committed by all sinners who will accept His forgiveness.
