Proverbs 16:7 When a man’s ways please the LORD, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him.
8 Better is a little with righteousness than great revenues without right.
9 A man’s heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps.
You notice here that it is not an automatic thing that we please the LORD. God created man to please Him. Sin changed that. Now we can only please the LORD if we turn to Him in repentance and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation.
Romans 8:8 So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.
There is nothing the lost person can do that pleases God. When a lost person humbles himself and is saved, that pleases the LORD. When the saved person humbly submits to the LORD and walks obediently with Him, that pleases Him.
God says that even the ungodly will be at peace with the man whose ways please the LORD. Some years back there was a man in the town we lived in that hated me. I did not know it at that time. I had never met the man. I wrote a weekly article for the local newspaper and he told me later that he would pick up that paper every week and read my article, just so he could hate me more.
Those articles were obviously speaking to his heart. I have always made it a practice of my ministry to use Bible verses in my writing and in my preaching and witnessing. My words are not that important. God’s Word is quick and powerful.
Eventually that man visited our church. I got to know him and he eventually was saved. We became good friends. If I would have been a compromiser, I might have had occasion to go for a beer with him and play some cards or some other foolish thing, but I would not have been able to help him.
The lost often do not appreciate the truth. A few will come to see the importance of the truth and will get saved. Many will die in their sins. However, they will come to regret their rebellion.
Jesus gave the account of the rich man and Lazarus in Luke 16. The Bible tells us that in hell the rich man changed his attitude toward Lazarus. While he was alive, he had no time or use for Lazarus. Lazarus was a poor man and he was sick. The rich man thought he needed nothing.
The text tells us that in hell he looked up to Abraham and he wanted Lazarus to dip his finger in some water and then wet the rich man’s tongue with that water. He further wanted Lazarus to go back to earth and warn the rich man’s brothers of the need to get saved.
He changed his attitude about Lazarus, but it was too late. It is important to listen to God. I know there are people who do not appreciate me now. I have no intention of changing my beliefs just to try to make friends. I am not always right, but the Bible is my authority. Where I am wrong, I need to get it right. I need to grow in the Lord. I am willing to spend time with anyone who wants to hear what God has to say. I am not that interested in debating on a humanistic level. That is a waste of time. Man’s opinions are a dime a dozen. The Word of God is precious and powerful. We need it.
In verse 8 God reminds us that little with righteousness is better than lots of friends and a big bank account without right. The world tells us we need lots of friends. The world tells us to forget about truth and just get along with others. The world is wrong. Even our P.M. with his lies and his evil ways, cannot get everybody to like him. I’m sure he has more friends than I do. I am also sure that if he persists in his ways, he will be all alone in a multitude of people in hell. There will be thousands of people in hell, and yet hell will be a lonely place. Everyone there will be so absorbed with their own torment, they will have no time to hear anyone else’s concerns. It is a terrible place.
In verse 9 we are reminded that our hearts can devise our way. We can make plans. However, God does not always let us live out our plans. You may be planning a trip, but then you get sick or the car breaks down or someone else gets sick or dies. Those people on that plane that crashed all had plans. Those plans were abruptly changed.
God did not want any of them to perish. He is in charge of the weather. Mother nature does not exist. He made the gravity and the atmosphere. He made the conditions so that man can build planes and fly them. However, it is necessary to respect His order and His right to change weather patterns. There are many planes that fly successfully. There are many pilots who finish out their careers and never see anything close to what that young co-pilot experienced.
The wise person submits to the LORD and asks Him to direct his steps.
Psalm 37:23 The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD: and he delighteth in his way.
24 Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the LORD upholdeth him with his hand.
It is important to want God to direct your steps. He will never lead you astray. He wants each person to know His peace and blessing. The only way to have that is in submission to Him. Be sure He is your life and your guide.
Pastor Bartel