Monday, January 7, 2019

Proverbs 4:14 says, Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men.  As followers of Christ, we can be certain that He will never lead us down the path of the wicked, so if we are on that path it is by following our own will.  The path of the wicked may even look tempting, but we cannot allow ourselves to follow it.  Verse fifteen states,  Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away.  This is just a further warning not to be tempted to go down the path of the wicked.  We can either follow God through wisdom that leads us to faith in Christ, or we can follow the way of the wicked.  There are no other choices.  Verse sixteen says, For they sleep not, except they have done mischief; and their sleep is taken away, unless they cause some to fall.  Solomon says that the wicked cannot even sleep until they have carried out some evil plan.  I believe this means that the wicked are always plotting ways to gain from their actions, no matter what.  Verse seventeen continues, For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence.  I believe that Solomon is saying that everything that the wicked do is guided by their wickedness.  What we must realize is that anything we do that is not done in accordance with God's will is wicked, even if it might not seem substantial in the eyes of the world.  Verse eighteen declares, But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day.  The way of the just, those who follow Christ, is a filled with the light of God.  We do not have to stumble around in darkness, and the farther down the path we get, the brighter it should become.   Verse nineteen says, The way of the wicked is as darkness: they know not at what they stumble.  I believe this means since the wicked do not acknowledge the wisdom of God that they don't even realize that they are stumbling around in darkness.  If we do not acknowledge God, then we cannot acknowledge our sins, which leaves us in spiritual darkness.  Verse twenty states, My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my sayings.  Then verse twenty-one adds, Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart.   This is a call for us to live by the things that we are taught in the Bible.  These are more than Solomon's words to his son.  They are God's words to all people who would follow Him.  Verse twenty-two says, For they are life unto those that find them, and health to all their flesh.   The word of God is indeed life to those who find it.  We are made whole by the our faith in Christ, Who God's word will always point us to.  Verse twenty-three adds, Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.  Though we might see the mind as the source of all thoughts, we still tend to see the heart as the center of all emotions.  We are to keep our feelings, our deepest self, diligently devoted to God.  Verse twenty-four states, Put away from thee a froward mouth, and perverse lips put far from thee.  I believe this is a call to have what we say to bring honor to God.  Verse twenty-five states, Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee.   This tells us that we are to keep our eyes on the path that God leads us on and to not become distracted by the things of this world.  Verse twenty-six says, Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established.  I believe that this is a call for us to always be thinking about where we are going in life.  We should always know where God is leading us.  Verse twenty-seven warns, Turn not to the right hand nor to the left: remove thy foot from evil.  Once we know the path of God, we are not to stray off it in any direction.  We are just to follow the path that God set's before us if we are truly to be followers of Christ.

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