The Life of Wisdom-1

Proverbs 13:6, “Righteousness guards the man of integrity, but wickedness overthrows the sinner.” Solomon in the proverbs loves to employ the literally technique called, “antithetical parallelism,” which basically means, “the second line contrasts with the first.”  For example, “The sinner goes to hell, but the righteous go to heaven.”  In the above proverb the antithetical…

Proverbs 13:10, “Pride only breeds quarrels, but wisdom is found in those who take advice.” King Solomon gives the root cause to all arguments and quarrels- pride!  Think about it… pride has been at the foundation of all arguments.  From Satan’s fall from heaven to the Jewish leaders who argued with Jesus- pride has always…

Proverbs 13:20, “He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm.” This proverb has to be one of my all time favorites.  I remember reading this when I first got saved and it was like a huge spot light just turned on and I could see everything so clearly. …

Proverbs 13:24, “He who spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is careful to discipline him.” Today as parents we have a choice to either obey what God said in His eternal unchanging word or what the trendy every changing culture says.  In the past corporal (physical) punishment for children was…

Proverbs 14:34, “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people.” Solomon was the King of Israel after his father David.  King Solomon had learned first hand the disgrace that came to Israel because of his Dad’s sin, 2 Samuel 12:11.  However, this did not stop him as the King from making…

Proverbs 15:1, “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” I don’t know about you but before I came to Jesus the last thing that would ever come to my mind when I was anger was a “gentle answer!”  Usually harsh words flooded my mind and the only discretion I…

Proverbs 15:22, “Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.” One of the most recent failures that I faced as a pastor was moving into a large facility and having to break our lease because of the lack of finances.  Words cannot describe how defeated and discouraged I felt.  I have…

Proverbs 15:31, “He who listens to a life-giving rebuke will be at home among the wise.” My Mom is Italian and my Dad is Polish.  Both of their grandparents came from the mother country.  They were the first generation to marry outside of their nationality- up until that time their parents and relatives married within…

Proverbs 15:33, “The fear of the Lord teaches a man wisdom, and humility comes before honor.” Solomon gives two important principles in the above proverb with their positive outcomes.  First, he mentions that the “fear of the Lord teaches a man wisdom.”  The fear of the Lord is an honor and respect for God and…

Proverbs 16:3, “Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed.” Have you ever seen two children fight over a toy?  One yells out, “Its mine!”  The other responds, “But I had it first- give it to me!”  I feel the same is true many times with God; however, we’re the only…