Tag: bible

An open, ancient Bible resting on a weathered wooden surface, bathed in warm, directional light streaming through a window. The light illuminates the pages with a sense of truth and clarity. The mood is contemplative and honest — neither overly dramatic nor soft. Subtle dust particles float in the beam of light. The image conveys candor, trustworthiness, and the weight of timeless words. Photorealistic style.

Telling It Like It Is

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“The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life, but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence. Hatred stirs up conflicts, but love covers all offenses. Wisdom is found on the lips of the discerning, but a rod is for the back of the one who lacks sense. The wise store up knowledge, but the mouth of the fool hastens destruction. The wealth of the rich is his fortified city; the poverty of the poor is their destruction.” (Proverbs‬ ‭10‬:‭11‬-‭15‬ ‭CSB – Read the chapter)

One of the things we expect from the Scriptures, is for them to tell us how the world should be. The world isn’t that, and they give us guidance on how to get from here to there. Of course, there are plenty of passages that tell us how and why we are wrong. We naturally expect to find those there as well. And, all of this, of course, falls under the heading of judgment. One of the things we don’t expect to find in the Scriptures, though, our verses that simply tell us without judgment how the world is. While there are many proverbs that point us toward bringing our lives more in line with God’s righteousness, there are a few that simply describe the world as it currently exists. We find one of those in this next group of proverbs. Let’s take a look together.

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Hiker choosing between trails marked “EASY PATH” and “HARDER PATH”

A Choice of Two Paths

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“Blessings are on the head of the righteous, but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence. The remembrance of the righteous is a blessing, but the name of the wicked will rot. A wise heart accepts commands, but foolish lips will be destroyed. The one who lives with integrity lives securely, but whoever perverts his ways will be found out. A sly wink of the eye causes grief, and foolish lips will be destroyed.”(Proverbs‬ ‭10‬:‭6‬-‭10‬ ‭CSB‬‬ – Read the chapter)

While the world loves to paint with shades of gray, in the final analysis, there will be two kinds of people in this world: the righteous and the wicked. Proverbs not only offers counsel for how to be one instead of the other, it furnishes numerous examples of the outcomes one will experience or cause to be experienced versus the other. Now, the Gospel helps us paint with more nuance than the Old Testament sometimes does, but still, learning to recognize the path that will lead to one end and the path that will lead to the other is worthwhile. Let’s take a look at some pointers in this passage.

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Woman writing notes beside open books at a home study table

Wisdom for the Road

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“Solomon’s proverbs: A wise son brings joy to his father, but a foolish son, heartache to his mother. Ill-gotten gains do not profit anyone, but righteousness rescues from death. The Lord will not let the righteous go hungry, but he denies the wicked what they crave. Idle hands make one poor, but diligent hands bring riches. The son who gathers during summer is prudent; the son who sleeps during harvest is disgraceful.” (Proverbs‬ ‭10‬:‭1‬-‭5‬ ‭CSB‬‬ – Read the chapter)

Today we start a new section in our journey through Proverbs. We have made it through the lengthy opening section featuring Solomon offering wise counsel to his children. That section flowed fairly smoothly and there was a significant amount of continuity from one verse to the next. This next section has us entering the rhetorical territory we typically associate with Proverbs. For the next few weeks, we are going to be working our way through individual proverbs. Rather than taking one proverb at a time each day, though, which might take us the next couple of years, we’ll take a look at them in blocks. Some will invite longer reflection than others, but all of them invite us to consider what it looks like to live in the righteousness of God. Let’s get started.

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Runner tackling a difficult trail

Encouragement for When Life Gets Hard

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“Consider it a great joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you experience various trials, because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its full effect, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking nothing.” (James‬ ‭1‬:‭2‬-‭4‬ ‭CSB‬‬ – Read the chapter)

I have a friend who is struggling right now. He got an unexpected encounter with mortality, and the whole experience rather understandably has left him shaken. He called me yesterday and asked for a word of encouragement. After spending a fair bit of time in prayer over the whole thing, these words came to mind and wouldn’t leave. So, in a bit of a departure from the norm, let’s talk about trials, patience, and the long and winding path to spiritual growth.

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Spider-Man swinging between Manhattan skyscrapers above a busy avenue

Best New Day

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“From now on, then, we do not know anyone from a worldly perspective. Even if we have known Christ from a worldly perspective, yet now we no longer know him in this way. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, and see, the new has come! Everything is from God, who has reconciled us to himself through Christ and has given us the ministry of reconciliation.” (2 Corinthians 5:16-18 CSB – Read the chapter)

Between taking a break through the month of July and exploring different aspects contributing to a growing church, it has been a while since we have reflected on culture together. Well, if you’ve missed that, I’m not going to keep you waiting any longer. This summer, Hollywood managed to do something it had not accomplished in quite some time. It released a genuine superhero blockbuster film. And I don’t just mean a little blockbuster either. This one smashed what had become a bit of a superhero glass ceiling into a million pieces. It also served to finally get the monkey off of the back of Marvel Studios that has been plaguing the company ever since Avengers: Endgame came out. I’m speaking, of course, about the latest Spider-Man film, Spider-Man: Brand New Day. Let’s talk about why this one was a grand slam in every way. And just for the sake of those who haven’t yet seen it, this will have spoilers.

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