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I die devotionals, Nathan Dooley

Guarding the paths of justice, and He preserves the way of His godly ones | P2-V8

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The Pursuit of Wisdom Brings Security

Proverbs 2; I die daily devotional.

 8 Guarding the paths of justice, And He preserves the way of His godly ones.

PATHS

Sometimes … our paths don’t seem so clear. As I meditate on this verse, a continuation from yesterday’s verse, altogether reads:

7 He stores up sound wisdom for the upright; He is a shield to those who walk in integrity, 8 Guarding the paths of justice, And He preserves the way of His godly ones.

I think about Job from my writing yesterday, and how Job’s path in relation to mine, is clear—for me. But is it clear to my family and friends?

… *sigh* …

I feel like the most painful form of abuse is spiritual abuse; that’s not to take away from anyone who would disagree for reasons beyond me, but on our subject of Job; I believe his case will prove most enlightening to spiritual abuse in our lives today.

If we can imagine our lives from the viewpoint or perspective of Job while dealing with his family and friends, will see the similarities to intent and motives of our own believing families and friends that mean well on God’s behalf, but completely misrepresent God. And it is dangerous, as we’ll see in the book:

Job 42:7 — It came about after the LORD had spoken these words to Job, that the LORD said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “My wrath is kindled against you and against your two friends, because you have not spoken of Me what is right as My servant Job has. 8 Now therefore, take for yourselves seven bulls and seven rams, and go to My servant Job, and offer up a burnt offering for yourselves, and My servant Job will pray for you. For I will accept him so that I may not do with you according to your folly, because you have not spoken of Me what is right, as My servant Job has.” 9 So Eliphaz the Temanite and Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite went and did as the LORD told them; and the LORD accepted Job.

See I fear that I’ve been guilty of misrepresenting God by seeing with a lens of human eyes rather than the lens of a godly heart; I see and hear what’s happening in the United States politics and think of “sins” that might have caused our present conditions; being a democrat or republican can procure an argument between friends, but the question is…

…what is the right path?

JUSTICE

Without fail, Job looked through his wife’s advice to curse God, his friends advice to accept defeat, and pleaded for the source—the only One Who could put an end to, or explain, his constant agony:

Job 2:10 — But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we indeed accept good from God and not accept adversity?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips.

Job 6:1 — Then Job answered, … 8 “Oh that my request might come to pass, And that God would grant my longing! 9 “Would that God were willing to crush me, That He would loose His hand and cut me off! 10 “But it is still my consolation, And I rejoice in unsparing pain, That I have not denied the words of the Holy One. 11 “What is my strength, that I should wait? And what is my end, that I should endure? 12 “Is my strength the strength of stones, Or is my flesh bronze? 13 “Is it that my help is not within me, And that deliverance is driven from me?

Jesus guards our paths of justice just as He did Job’s, and not only Job’s, but his wife’s and friends; Job didn’t cave into sin because the testimony about Job’s faith (blameless, upright, fearing God and turning away from evil) proved true even when put to the test by our enemy.

Will your faith prove the same for you?

So what if we choose not to put our faith in our government, but the sustenance of God’s Word? Could it be then that the path of a democrat, or a republican, prove null and void, because those paths don’t actually matter?

When I look at the book of Job and think about Jesus, I see a path guarded and preserved for my soul.

Do you see that for you?

Job 42:10 — The LORD restored the fortunes of Job when he prayed for his friends, and the LORD increased all that Job had twofold. 11 Then all his brothers and all his sisters and all who had known him before came to him, and they ate bread with him in his house; and they consoled him and comforted him for all the adversities that the LORD had brought on him. And each one gave him one piece of money, and each a ring of gold. 12 The LORD blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning; and he had 14,000 sheep and 6,000 camels and 1,000 yoke of oxen and 1,000 female donkeys. 13 He had seven sons and three daughters. 14 He named the first Jemimah, and the second Keziah, and the third Keren-happuch. 15 In all the land no women were found so fair as Job’s daughters; and their father gave them inheritance among their brothers. 16 After this, Job lived 140 years, and saw his sons and his grandsons, four generations. 17 And Job died, an old man and full of days.

There is so much more I want to dig into with this devotional, but unfortunately, my deadline is fast approaching…

The last little bit of insight I found from Job for my character development was that Job was instructed to pray for his friends, even though they proved worse than no help, he prayed and afterwards was restored. Notice it was when Job prayed for his friends that he was restored, not before.

Are you praying for your brothers and sisters in Christ on both sides of our democracy? Or consider this… we’re all liberal and conservative at the same time, so there is no side but liberty in Jesus Christ.

  • Do you trust that your path is guarded, and that your way is preserved?

RECOURCE

[BP]

Proverbs 2 (NASB)—blueletterbible.org
1 My son, if you will receive my words And treasure my commandments within you, 2 Make your ear attentive to wisdom, Incline your heart to understanding; 3 For if you cry for discernment, Lift your voice for understanding; 4 If you seek her as silver And search for her as for hidden treasures; 5 Then you will discern the fear of the LORD And discover the knowledge of God. 6 For the LORD gives wisdom; From His mouth come  knowledge and understanding. 7 He stores up sound wisdom for the upright; He is a shield to those who walk in integrity, 8 Guarding the paths of justice, And He preserves the way of His godly ones. 9 Then you will discern righteousness and justice And equity and every good course. 10 For wisdom will enter your heart And knowledge will be pleasant to your soul; 11 Discretion will guard you, Understanding will watch over you, 12 To deliver you from the way of evil, From the man who speaks perverse things; 13 From those who leave the paths of uprightness To walk in the ways of darkness; 14 Who delight in doing evil And rejoice in the perversity of evil; 15 Whose paths are crooked, And who are devious in their ways; 16 To deliver you from the strange woman, From the adulteress who flatters with her words; 17 That leaves the companion of her youth And forgets the covenant of her God; 18 For her house sinks down to death And her tracks lead to the dead; 19 None who go to her return again, Nor do they reach the paths of life. 20 So you will walk in the way of good men And keep to the paths of the righteous. 21 For the upright will live in the land And the blameless will remain in it; 22 But the wicked will be cut off from the land And the treacherous will be uprooted from it.

COMMENTARY

Matthew Henry (P2-V7) Commentary
3. He has particularly provided that good men, who are sincerely disposed to do his will, shall have that knowledge and that understanding which are necessary for them, Jn. 7:17. Let them seek wisdom, and they shall find it; let them ask, and it shall be given them, v. 7, 8. Observe here,

  • (1.) Who those are that are thus favoured. They are the righteous, on whom the image of God is renewed, which consists in righteousness, and those who walk uprightly, who are honest in their dealings both with God and man and make conscience of doing their duty as far as they know it. They are his saints, devoted to his honour, and set apart for his service.
  • (2.) What it is that is provided for them.
    • [1.] Instruction. The means of wisdom are given to all, but wisdom itself, sound wisdom, is laid up for the righteous, laid up in Christ their head, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, and who is made of God to us wisdom. The same that is the Spirit of revelation in the word is a Spirit of wisdom in the souls of those that are sanctified, that wisdom of the prudent which is to understand his way; and it is sound wisdom, its foundations firm, its principles solid, and its products of lasting advantage.
    • [2.] Satisfaction. Some read it, He lays up substance for the righteous,  not only substantial knowledge, but substantial happiness and comfort, Prov. 8:21. Riches are things that are not, and those that have them only fancy themselves happy; but what is laid up in the promises and in heaven for the righteous will make them truly, thoroughly, and eternally happy.
    • [3.] Protection. Even those who walk uprightly may be brought into danger for the trial of their faith, but God is, and will be, a buckler to them, so that nothing that happens to them shall do them any real hurt, or possess them with any terrific apprehensions; they are safe, and they shall think themselves so. Fear not, Abraham; I am thy shield. It is their way, the paths of judgment in which they walk, that the Lord knows, and owns, and takes care of.
    • [4.] Grace to persevere to the end. If we depend upon God, and seek to him for wisdom, he will uphold us in our integrity, will enable us to keep the paths of judgment, however we may be tempted to turn aside out of them; for he preserves the way of his saints, that it be not perverted, and so preserves them in it safe and blameless to his heavenly kingdom. The assurances God has given us of his grace, if duly improved, will excite and quicken our endeavours in doing our duty. Work out your salvation, for God works in you.
I die devotionals, Nathan Dooley

They ambush their own lives | P1-V18

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The Enticement of Sinners

Proverbs 1; I die daily devotional.

18 But they lie in wait for their own blood; They ambush their own lives.

We’ve seen this verse before, hadn’t we? No. And actually. The script is flipped now.

It was back at verse 11 we read—if they say, “Come with us, Let us lie in wait for blood, Let us ambush the innocent without cause—that the child of Wisdom is warned not to consent to the enticement of sinners.

THEIR OWN BLOOD

Their goal of gain in this life is at the cost of innocence. Their choice is made, they’ve chosen to love their own soul above their God who gave it to them, and ultimately, entices the innocent by that behavior, influencing a lie—a pleasure—about the way of their demise—justifying and blaming the world around them—rather than repenting of their selfish endeavors for the sake of God. But they won’t, they don’t repent; the sinner will seek to devour the innocent without a thought of losing their own soul for the sake of preserving the innocent—for the sake of Christ. The sinner says, “You need sex with multiple partners. You need pornography. You need to make more money. You need a vacation, cut loose, and just enjoy life.” But their gain is the ambush of their own lives, and once the innocent is converted… will he or she repent?

  • Do you believe in Jesus Christ?
  • Do you have faith that Jesus is resurrected?
  • Have you accepted responsibility for your sin?
  • Are you actively repenting of your sin?
  • Do you believe in Jesus Christ?
  • Do you have faith that Jesus is resurrected?
  • Have you accepted responsibility for your sin?
  • Are you actively repenting of your sin?
  • Have you sought to make your belief known?
  • Find a body of believers.
  • Tell them the meaning of salvation.
  • Seek to be baptized.
  • Study the Word of God.
  • Become equipped in your hope.
  • Practice your defense with believers.
  • Preach the Word of God to this world.
  • Be faithful to Christ.
  • Be faithful to your church body.
  • Understand how death is defeated.
  • Love God; Love neighbor.
  • Pray, Jesus come. Amen.

RESOURCE

Proverbs 1 (NASB)—blueletterbible.org
1 The proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel: 2 To know wisdom and instruction, To discern the sayings of understanding, 3 To receive instruction in wise behavior, Righteousness, justice and equity; 4 To give prudence to the naïve, To the youth knowledge and discretion, 5 A wise man will hear and increase in learning, And a man of understanding will acquire wise counsel, 6 To understand a proverb and a figure, The words of the wise and their riddles. 7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; Fools despise wisdom and instruction.  8 Hear, my son, your father’s instruction And do not forsake your mother’s teaching; 9 Indeed, they are a graceful wreath to your head And ornaments about your neck. 10 My son, if sinners entice you, Do not consent. 11 If they say, “Come with us, Let us lie in wait for blood, Let us ambush the innocent without cause; 12 Let us swallow them alive like Sheol, Even whole, as those who go down to the pit; 13 We will find all kinds of precious wealth, We will fill our houses with spoil; 14 Throw in your lot with us, We shall all have one purse,” 15 My son, do not walk in the way with them. Keep your feet from their path, 16 For their feet run to evil And they hasten to shed blood. 17 Indeed, it is useless to spread the baited net In the sight of any bird; 18 But they lie in wait for their own blood; They ambush their own lives. 19 So are the ways of everyone who gains by violence; It takes away the life of its possessors. Wisdom Warns 20 Wisdom shouts in the street, She lifts her voice in the square; 21 At the head of the noisy streets she cries out; At the entrance of the gates in the city she utters her sayings: 22 “How long, O naïve ones, will you love being simple-minded? And scoffers delight themselves in scoffing And fools hate knowledge? 23  “Turn to my reproof, Behold, I will pour out my spirit on you; I will make my words known to you. 24 “Because I called and you refused, I stretched out my hand and no one paid attention; 25 And you neglected all my counsel And did not want my reproof; 26 I will also laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your dread comes, 27 When your dread comes like a storm And your calamity comes like a whirlwind, When distress and anguish come upon you. 28 “Then they will call on me, but I will not answer; They will seek me diligently but they will not find me, 29 Because they hated knowledge And did not choose the fear of the LORD. 30 “They would not accept my counsel, They spurned all my reproof. 31 “So they shall eat of the fruit of their own way And be satiated with their own devices. 32 “For the waywardness of the naïve will kill them, And the complacency of fools will destroy them. 33 “But he who listens to me shall live securely And will be at ease from the dread of evil.”

COMMENTARY

Matthew Henry (P1-V18) Commentary
Herein,

  • (1.) They are like the silly bird, that sees the net spread to take her, and yet it is in vain; she is decoyed into it by the bait, and will not take the warning which her own eyes gave her, v. 17. But we think ourselves of more value than many sparrows, and therefore should have more wit, and act with more caution. God has made us wiser than the fowls of heaven (Job 35:11), and shall we then be as stupid as they?
  • (2.) They are worse than the birds, and have not the sense which we sometimes perceive them to have; for the fowler knows it is in vain to lay his snare in the sight of the bird, and therefore he has arts to conceal it. But the sinner sees ruin at the end of his way; the murderer, the thief, see the jail and the gallows before them, nay, they may see hell before them; their watchmen tell them they shall surely die, but it is to no purpose; they rush into sin, and rush on in it, like the horse into the battle. For really the stone they roll will turn upon themselves, v. 18, 19. They lay wait, and lurk privily, for the blood and lives of others, but it will prove, contrary to their intention, to be for their own blood, their own lives; they will come, at length, to a shameful end; and, if they escape the sword of the magistrate, yet there is a divine Nemesis that pursues them. Vengeance suffers them not to live. Their greediness of gain hurries them upon those practices which will not suffer them to live out half their days, but will cut off the number of their months in the midst. They have little reason to be proud of their property in that which takes away the life of the owners and then passes to other masters; and what is a man profited, though he gain the world, if he lose his life? For then he can enjoy the world no longer; much less if he lose his soul, and that be drowned in destruction and perdition, as multitudes are by the love of money.

I die devotionals, Nathan Dooley

A scoffer does not listen to rebuke.

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Proverbs chapter 13; I die daily devotional!

1 A wise son accepts his father’s discipline,
But a scoffer does not listen to rebuke.
2 From the fruit of a man’s mouth he enjoys good,
But the desire of the treacherous is violence.
3 The one who guards his mouth preserves his life;
The one who opens wide his lips comes to ruin.
4 The soul of the sluggard craves and gets nothing,
But the soul of the diligent is made fat.
5 A righteous man hates falsehood,
But a wicked man acts disgustingly and shamefully.
6 Righteousness guards the one whose way is blameless,
But wickedness subverts the sinner.

Wisdom speaks in a language that is always directed at the heart and soul of a person. When wisdom encourages a wise son to accept his father’s discipline (v.1), how does that language inspire you? As for me; I don’t only think of how my dad disciplined me as a boy, but how I’m being disciplined as an adult with a spiritual nature of a child. Because even though I’m an adult, I’m not entitled. Jesus—who is the Child of God—is still teaching me what that means in Luke 18:17 (“Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it at all.”). And I don’t want to see anyone miss out on receiving the kingdom of God because of a (wicked) entitlement issue.

A scoffer…

Does not listen to rebuke. Now this is a hard lesson for me! Because sometimes it’s difficult to discern the nature of that condition. The spiritual condition of a scoffer; I myself have been guilty of this because it’s easy to put my ego before my ears. I mean, it doesn’t exactly feel nice when being told how jacked-up I am. Not that that gave me an excuse. It was natural for me to scoff at someone (like my wife) when my flaws were exposed. So there is a choice on how to respond:

  • Ignore, (react internally) get angry (use abusive language or worse) and suppress it (magnify the issue narcissistic-ally) as though it never happened.
  • Or shut-up, listen, and reason the issue for an appropriate adjustment/correction.

The former is noticed by people arguing politics on social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Etc), and especially now during this election debacle (voter ballot malpractice, undermining voter confidence) whatever; without guarding your heart to be blameless will result in being overthrown to a wicked cause or as the proverb says, subverted (v.6).

“How do we guard against that?”

Wisdom

7 There is one who pretends to be rich, but has nothing;
Another pretends to be poor, but has great wealth.
8 The ransom of a man’s life is his wealth,
But the poor hears no rebuke.
9 The light of the righteous rejoices,
But the lamp of the wicked goes out.
10 Through insolence comes nothing but strife,
But wisdom is with those who receive counsel.
11 Wealth obtained by fraud dwindles,
But the one who gathers by labor increases it.
12 Hope deferred makes the heart sick,
But desire fulfilled is a tree of life.
13 The one who despises the word will be in debt to it,
But the one who fears the commandment will be rewarded.
14 The teaching of the wise is a fountain of life,
To turn aside from the snares of death.

The one who pretends to be rich has nothing to do with money, but whether you have a spirit of wisdom. You might be someone who is literally rich—I’m talking millionaire status—and thinks “I must be wise”. But in-fact, is poor! Because the wealth of our proverb means to buy and sell (or exchange) wisdom; not ecommerce.

Numbers…

Will give definitive answers about the condition of our lives and predictions depending on the trajectory that our spiritual condition reveals. Don’t get confused by what numbers mean from a worldly perspective because the ruler of this world devises deception. When the proverb (8 The ransom of a man’s life is his wealth, But the poor hears no rebuke.) talks about ransom of life; the ransom is symbolic to your soul. Your soul is your wealth, not money.

But get this,

Your soul is condemned to die because of sin; which means that every human soul is needing a remedy or vaccine to be saved from their debt of sin that we each owe, but can not pay. That is why we are cursed to die. We were never meant to experience the consequence of this knowledge through disobedience; as the saying goes, “knowledge is power”. Since we ate the fruit of knowledge (Gen 3), we now experience the ramifications of that disobedience and are responsible for not trusting a HOLY GOD at His Word!

God said,

“…you will surely die…”

And I’m very confident that our God is a Person of His Word considering the emphasis on…

“…you shall not eat…”

All in that same verse of Genesis chapter 2 verse 17! It says it all! It’s not like we’re experiencing life and death for the hell of it… literally… the hell of it!

15 Good understanding produces favor,
But the way of the treacherous is hard.
16 Every prudent man acts with knowledge,
But a fool displays folly.
17 A wicked messenger falls into adversity,
But a faithful envoy brings healing.
18 Poverty and shame will come to him who neglects discipline,
But he who regards reproof will be honored.
19 Desire realized is sweet to the soul,
But it is an abomination to fools to turn away from evil.
20 He who walks with wise men will be wise,
But the companion of fools will suffer harm.
21 Adversity pursues sinners,
But the righteous will be rewarded with prosperity.
22 A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children,
And the wealth of the sinner is stored up for the righteous.

“…for in the day that you eat from it…”

Yah, I better shut-up or this will be the longest post yet!

Okay

Verse (20 He who walks with wise men will be wise, But the companion of fools will suffer harm.) is awesome because that is what I hope for the future of everyone, wisdom that prevents harm. Don’t be a stupid idiot and built-up your environment with foolish people! Or you’ll suffer through the way of escape. Whenever we dig in the dirt using our hands, our fingernails will feel the harm from the dirt compressed between the finger and the nail. That is what it feels like when you surround yourself with unbelief being a believer; believers with the Helper [Holy Spirit] in them are the shovel for your hands!

Now we all experience the fruit of the Helper in different ways and at different times; for example—you might be experiencing a flavor of clarity to a person who is experiencing confusion. The fruit of the Spirit is the same for all believers, but the flavors are different for specific purposes. If I’m confused about my finances, someone who is skilled in that area of expertise might perk up because of that Helper inspired to be of service for me.

You know what…

…let’s get a little…

…Personal!

My wife has a discipline of self-control in an area where I am desperate for that help; that’s what makes us interwoven. But she’s weird, you know! She does not experience a lust for the flesh; that makes no sense to me! That is my weakness. A wickedness that will subvert the sinner, me! So the counsel from her Helper (the Holy Spirit of her soul) is what I crave and desire more fervently than my desire for sexual sin. We have the same “fruit” (Spirit). But see without counsel, I’d be addicted to Pornography to relieve my appetite, or some other form of distraction; rather than accepting the truth of my condition and reason through it for the sake of…

My Wife!

Because she is…

…My…

…Wisdom!

23 Abundant food is in the fallow ground of the poor,
But it is swept away by injustice.
24 He who withholds his rod hates his son,
But he who loves him disciplines him diligently.
25 The righteous has enough to satisfy his appetite,
But the stomach of the wicked is in need.

Do you have abundant food? You might check your heart to see if you need some counsel, because if you don’t find it you’ll be swept away by the injustice incurred by wicked influences.

Go to church!

Or bring church home to you, but don’t neglect the life-giving spirit that the apostle Paul tells the Corinthians (So also it is written, “The first MAN, Adam, BECAME A LIVING SOUL.” The last Adam became a life-giving spirit.).

LIFE-GIVING SPIRIT…

That is in you!

in Chapter 15 verse 46… Don’t neglect the last Adam [Jesus Christ] by denying the truth of the Helper that saves you, blesses you with your spouse [Wisdom], and gives you life [God], by the promise of the Holy Spirit [Grace, Mercy, Forgiveness, and Reconciliation]!

If you’re hungry, don’t worry; the righteous has enough to satisfy his appetite in Jesus Christ! Bread is not sufficient to satisfy an appetite for wisdom, but the Word of God is!

Believing in Jesus Christ by way of the gospel is what it means to be wise and to not ever worry about surviving death! Rather; accept the logical conclusion about death and survive the lie of the devil, “The serpent said to the woman,

“You surely will not die!”

Yes

You

WILL

YOU WILL DIE!

The glory of holiness does not mix with the sin of wickedness, so accept the discipline of a heavenly Father throughout your life even until death! Because our heavenly Father loves us too much to behave wickedly!

“God is Love”