Daily Devotional
Betty Miller shares her daily devotionals which are based on the book of
Proverbs in the Bible.
The Wisdom of God
Verses for the Day:
1 A good name is
rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favour rather than silver and
gold.
2 The rich and poor meet together: the LORD is the maker of them all.
Proverbs 22:1-2 (AMP):
1 A good name is rather to
be chosen than great riches, and loving favor rather than silver and gold.
2 The rich and poor meet together; the Lord is the Maker of them all.
Thoughts for the Day:
These verses in
Proverbs tell us that the value of virtue in one's life is better than being
wealthy, as material prosperity will mean nothing on judgment day. Verse 1
admonishes us that if we were given a choice over great riches, or a good
name and loving favor, we would be wise to choose the later. King Solomon, who
wrote the book of Proverbs, could certainly testify to this, as he was
given a similar choice by God in a dream. Because he was unselfish, and made the
right choice, God then gave him riches also. Solomon could have asked for
anything, but
Here is the story:
1 Kings 3:5-14:
5 In Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream by night: and God said, Ask
what I shall give thee.
6 And Solomon said, Thou hast showed unto thy servant David my father great
mercy, according as he walked before thee in truth, and in righteousness, and in
uprightness of heart with thee; and thou hast kept for him this great kindness,
that thou hast given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day.
7 And now, O LORD my God, thou hast made thy servant king instead of David my
father: and I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in.
8 And thy servant is in the midst of thy people which thou hast chosen, a great
people, that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude.
9 Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I
may discern between good and bad: for who is able to judge this thy so great a
people?
10 And the speech pleased the Lord, that Solomon had asked this thing.
11 And God said unto him, Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked
for thyself long life; neither hast asked riches for thyself, nor hast asked the
life of thine enemies; but hast asked for thyself understanding to discern
judgment;
12 Behold, I have done according to thy words: lo, I have given thee a wise and
an understanding heart; so that there was none like thee before thee, neither
after thee shall any arise like unto thee.
13 And I have also given thee that which thou hast not asked, both riches, and
honour: so that there shall not be any among the kings like unto thee all thy
days.
14 And if thou wilt walk in my ways, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as
thy father David did walk, then I will lengthen thy days.
Solomon certainly
had the loving favor of God upon him. The "favor of God" comes in many forms; such as protection, health, blessing, provision, and it can also come by the
favor we find with men. In the New Testament we find that Jesus had that favor
on His life. It came as He increased in wisdom. Praying to have
wisdom would be a "wise" thing to do.
Luke 2:52:
And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.
Verse 2 in
our study verses tells us that one day, the rich and the poor will meet
together, as all men will have to come before the judgment seat of God and give
an account for their lives. At that time, money will not do the rich men
any good as they certainly will not be able to "pay off" God for a favorable
report about their lives. The Bible tells us that every person will have to
appear before Christ and be judged for what they have done in this life.
2 Corinthians
5:10-11a:
For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may
receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it
be good or bad. Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men...
Romans
14:10-12:
10 But why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at nought thy
brother? for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.
11 For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and
every tongue shall confess to God.
12 So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.
Jesus will be a
righteous judge, because He gave His life on the cross for all who would come to
Him and repent of their sins and believe in Him. He told us that He came to save
men, not judge them. We are judged by the Word of God and Jesus'
commandments. When we violate the Word of God, that is sin, and there is
only One Who can take away sin and that One is Jesus.
John 12:44-50:
44 Jesus cried and said, He that believeth on me, believeth not on me, but on
him that sent me.
45 And he that seeth me seeth him that sent me.
46 I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not
abide in darkness.
47 And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came
not to judge the world, but to save the world.
48 He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him:
the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day.
49 For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father which sent me, he gave me a
commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak.
50 And I know that his commandment is life everlasting: whatsoever I speak
therefore, even as the Father said unto me, so I speak.
1 John 1:8-9:
If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to
cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
Prayer for the Day:
Dear Heavenly
Father, I am grateful that You sent Your Son to die for my sins. Thank You
for saving my soul. I am happy that my name is written in the Book of
Life. Lord, use me to tell others that their names can be written in that
same book. Should I be forgetful about praying for the lost, please remind me to
do so. I do not want to stand before You ashamed because I have failed in
my witness on this earth. I want to hear those words, "Well done, thou
good and faithful servant." Open my eyes and give me eternal vision so that the
things of eternity are more important to me than just the things I see with my
natural eyes. I ask this in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
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