Read through Proverbs in 31 days, Today’s reading is entitled “Follow the Bright Path of Righteousness”
Read Proverbs 4 – Now that you have read the fourth chapter, are you feeling a bit of remorse over the relationship with your own father? You may feel blessed that parental relationships were healthy and devoid of any major conflict as you were growing into adulthood. In both of these cases, God understands and supports you as His own child. He understands after you have rebelled and are now ready to return to Him as the prodigal son did in Luke 15. You even have the right to believe that you have done too many things to be forgiven followed by a true death bed confession and invitation. God forgives even the Adolph Hitlers and Saddam Husseins of the world if they would only ask!
What five points are presented in today’s scripture reading?
- Listen to your father’s good guidance and correction.Don’t turn from those instructions because they are given in love, drawn from life’s experiences.
- Are you searching for the key to life? Listen to the wisdom of your father
- Greatly prize that wisdom and you will be great and honored, as if a beautiful crown has been bestowed upon you.
- Following the way of righteousness is like the first gleam of dawn, shining brighter and brighter as you move along it; while the path of wickedness leads only into darkness and stumbling
- Don’t allow your heart or mind to get sidetracked from the straight path of life
We haven’t dwelled much on the results of following those bent on evil ways, so we will start with that today. One of our points for today reminds us that the evil way leads only to darkness and stumbling. You may argue with the literal meaning of this statement by pointing out that you were perfectly happy and content living in sin, for a while at least. When considering eternity alongside the choice to follow sin, you can fully understand this statement. Without personal repentance and God’s Grace, your only destination is stumbling into the eternal abyss of hell.
How do you avoid this abyss full of fire and damnation? Listen to your father’s guidance and correction. Apply these lessons into your life, learn more from them every day. If your earthly father doesn’t provide this guidance, turn to your Heavenly Father who will never let you down. You can be sure that Jesus, God’s Son and member of the Holy Trinity, has been subjected to all temptations and did not give in to the wiles of satan. It is because of His sinlessness that Jesus was able to die on the cross as a spotless lamb for the sins of the world. Cherish that wisdom, wear it as you would a jeweled crown and share what God has done in your life with everyone you meet. Even though this reading has some negative points, let’s close out today on a truly positive note. While following the path of righteousness given by God, your faith and knowledge will grow. The attitude and words presented as a witness to those around you will become brighter and brighter like the first gleam of dawn. Wake up every day with a smile on your lips and an openness to what God has in store for you. That statement, in a nutshell, encompasses the purpose of this 31 day challenge.
