Proverbs 3:7 Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil.
8 It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones.
9 Honour the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase:
10 So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine.
Verse 7 reminds us that trusting the Lord is the opposite of being wise in your own eyes. Again, the son needs to have a humble heart. It is not that women can do as they please. What it reminds us of is that God expects men to be godly. We have already read some warnings about the strange woman. If the man is godly, he will never go after the strange woman. If the strange woman cannot find a “soulmate” it will help her to see the need to turn to the Lord.
Nobody wins in fighting against the LORD. The humble son will walk in the fear of the LORD. The son that walks in the fear of the LORD will depart from evil. There is so much Biblical instruction that exposes the lie of the New Evangelical camp. New Evangelicals condone all kinds of sin. I spoke with a man recently who claims to have found God. He did not talk of being saved or of being born again. He found God. Since finding God he still has huge piercings in his ears and one in his nose. He is also covered in tattoos. The tattoos would be difficult to erase, but the piercings could be removed in an instant. If he were truly saved, that would be what would happen.
I realize there may be some who will take offence at what I just wrote. You are free to make your judgment call. The fact is that your argument is not with me, but with the God before Whom you will stand one day. There is no Biblical defence for men walking around with piercings. Someone that loves the LORD, and is walking in the fear of the LORD, would have an awakened conscience and the Holy Spirit would be dwelling in him.
Lost people can get themselves into all kinds of messes. A carnal Christian might get himself into messes as well. However, one that is walking in the fear of the LORD is one who will depart from evil. He will not want to be identified with the world, but rather, with the LORD.
In verse 8 we are reminded that true Biblical humility will be health to they navel and marrow to thy bones. The navel is the indicator of where you were fed while you were in your mother’s womb. It is the centre of your being. Marrow in the bones is where the blood is made. God is talking of the central part of the son’s being. When your source of food is the LORD and the source of your blood is the LORD, it will affect the rest of your being.
God’s salvation is powerful. It cannot be ‘squared’ with the majority of the present day professions of salvation. There is no similarity. There is a danger in rejecting the truth for the sake of convenience.
James 2:19 Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble.
God directed King Solomon to write:
Ecclesiastes 1:9 The thing that hath been, it is that which shall be; and that which is done is that which shall be done: and there is no new thing under the sun.
In these devotionals we have often used the term “new evangelical”. That is a term coined in 1948, but according to God’s Word, the philosophy under which that movement operates is nothing new. The nation of Israel went into exile because they tried to mix pagan religions with the true God.
In Matthew 7 Jesus addressed those who claim to believe in the true God but are estranged from Him. In fact that reality is often addressed in the Bible.
In spite of the fact that the Bible is so clear on these matters, the majority of those who profess to believe in God today, take great offence to hearing the truth. God stated:
Hebrews 3:15 While it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation.
That was a reference to the forty years of wilderness wandering that the nation of Israel had to endure because they rejected God. All but two men from an entire generation died out in the wilderness in those forty years. They died, not of old age, but under the judgment of God.
It is important to listen to God. As God stated in verses 7-8 of our text, spiritual health is only found when we fear the LORD, and depart from evil.
In verse 9 we are reminded of the necessity of honouring the LORD with our substance. The godly son has been bought with a price and all that he has and all that he is belongs to the LORD. The firstfruits are the first of all things. That is why the godly son begins his day with the LORD and chooses His path for the day. He understands that his decisions needed to be examined by the LORD and he needs to have them refined and even changed by the LORD.
We can rationalize many things. If we look at the world, they might seem very reasonable. However, when we honestly and humbly submit to the Lord, things look much different.
In verse 10 we see the difference there is when God comes first. The son will have an entirely different perspective on life. He will have an abundance of that which is right and good when God’s comes first. Of course we know the “new wine”, is not alcoholic drink. That is abundantly clear from the Bible.
God wants to bless us. We need to know Him in order to know His blessings. His Word is given to us so that we can know Him. Be sure you build your philosophy of life on the Truth.
Pastor Bartel