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:
Proverbs 20:19-21 (AMP):
19 He who goes about as a talebearer reveals secrets; therefore associate not
with him who talks too freely.
20 Whoever curses his father or his mother, his lamp shall be put out in
complete darkness.
21 An inheritance hastily gotten (by greedy, unjust means) at the beginning, in
the end it will not be blessed.
The wisdom in
these verses specifically warns us not to associate with unscrupulous people and
not to curse our parents. The first warning in verse 19
is to stay away from a talebearer.
People that are always talking in a degrading fashion about others cannot be
trusted, as they will also talk about you behind your back. You cannot
trust these people with your secrets or private issues as they delight in
spreading such knowledge. They are "loose talkers." They are also the kind
of person who will manipulate people by using flattery to their face. They
are not sincere with their compliments, but only use that kind of flattery for
selfish reasons. We are told to avoid those types of individuals.
The second
warning is given to children who curse their parents. The basic meaning of
the word "curse" in Hebrew means "to speak evil of any one or wish evil on any
one." Many children would say they are never guilty of cursing their
parents; but in this verse, it also means to esteem lightly; therefore, when
children disrespect and disobey their parents, they are actually cursing their
own parents. One of the Ten Commandments in Exodus
20:12 says,
"Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which
the LORD thy God giveth thee."
In verse 20
of our study, we are told that the penalty for cursing one's parents is that the
children will lose their guidance
in this dark world (their lamp will be put out). This means that if we cannot
see the proper path we are to walk down, we can end up on the wrong path which
can lead to destruction. In the New Testament we find that we are promised long
life when we obey our parents, and our lives can be cut short when we disobey.
(This, of course, would exclude evil parents who would be a threat to a child's
safety.) However, those children who despise their parents' Godly advice
will end up with a life that is shortened. How many loving parents have
pled with their children to stay away from alcohol, tobacco, drugs, and evil
companions, only to have their words ignored and despised? Many of these
same children have had their lives cut short because they did not heed the
advice of their parents.
Ephesians 6:1-3:
1 Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right.
2 Honour thy father and mother; which is the first commandment with promise;
3 That it may be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth.
Continuing in
our study, verse 21
of Proverbs deals
with another parent/child relationship. This issue is about inheritance. A
warning is given to siblings that if they obtain their portion (or their siblings'
portion) of their parents' inheritance by greed or by unjust means, they will
lose the blessing that goes with it. There is a story in the Bible about a
brother who through deceit took his brother's birthright (his inheritance) and
it caused him the loss of a relationship with his brother and he lived in fear
for many years that his brother would kill him for his act of treachery. His
name was Jacob and his brother's name was Esau. His mother was also a party to
deceiving her husband into giving his "blessing of the birthright" to the first
born, to the youngest son. Jacob gained it by trickery, instead of it
going to the rightful heir, Esau. Eventually, Jacob repented and was restored to
his brother; but the whole incident caused much heartache for the entire
family. You can read the story in Genesis 25:20-34
and Genesis 27.
As Christians, the Bible teaches us that we should value relationships more than
things.
Dear
Father, Thank You for the wonderful friends and family You have given to me.
Lord, may I always value these gifts of love and friendship and never violate
them. May I always be the kind of friend that is trustworthy and that
others will know their secrets are safe with me. Guard my mouth and let me
only speak things that are edifying and needful. May I always respect my parents
and elders and give them honor. Lord, may I treasure my relationships and always
value them above things. If I lose things, they can be restored; but if I
lose a relationship because I value material things above my friendships and
cause a brother or sister to be offended, I may never win their trust again.
Help me always to embrace the truth that -- relationships are more valuable than
things. I ask this in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
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