I'm Following Jesus – Page 1421 – Mark 8:34 And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.

King James Bible Study – “And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.” – Mark 8:34

Date: Wednesday, June 03, 2020
Chapters: Proverbs 1-3
Message: True Wisdom Comes

Hello My Friend,

As I was praying this morning it occurred to me that while it may have seemed like everything I failed at, or I thought I failed it, was actually God’s plan to get me in His will. Yes, we make some unwise decisions that are not God’s will for us, and sometimes it may even seem as though they are. And yes, we can be a little stubborn when God attempts to get us back in His will by obstacles to keep us from going our own way. Then when we finally listen, get back in His will, and look back on that failure, we discover it was no failure at all, rather it was God all along, keeping us from something that would have been detrimental to us. I have finally come to the conclusion that everything God allows us to go through, even if we are the cause of the pain, gives us the knowledge and wisdom to bring others to Christ.

[1 Corinthians 10:11-13 Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. 12 Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall. 13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.]

[that ye may be able to bear it.] There is nothing that God does not allow in our lives that we cannot bear, that is as long as we come to Him, and trust Him to get us through them. The Book of Proverbs contains thirty-one chapters, the author is Solomon, around 995 to 990 BC. The book was first written to the Jews, but is addressed to all believers. The purpose of the book is to teach that fearing God is the beginning of knowledge. What we are to learn from the book is that it is God who teaches us His wisdom so that we can live a prosperous life as we learn to fear Him. If we honestly want God to be a part of our lives, then we get in His Word, listen to what it tells us to do so that He will be, and follow it. To be honest, we hear what we want to hear, and the reason so many reject Christ or make up some watered down version of Him is because they do not want to hear the truth. True wisdom comes when we hear the Word of God, and believe every word to be true.

[Proverbs 1:5-7,26-33 A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels: 6 To understand a proverb, and the interpretation; the words of the wise, and their dark sayings. 7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction. 26 I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh; 27 When your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish cometh upon you. 28 Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me: 29 For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the LORD: 30 They would none of my counsel: they despised all my reproof. 31 Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices. 32 For the turning away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall destroy them. 33 But whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell safely, and shall be quiet from fear of evil.]

[shall attain unto wise counsels: To understand a proverb,] Attain; To reach; to come to or arrive at. Proverb; A short sentence expressing a well known truth or common fact, ascertained by experience or observation. Do you understand that there is nothing that man has not done that God has not seen? All these riots and disregard for life, God has seen it all, and then some. True wisdom comes when we reach the conclusion that sin comes with consequence, and the only one who can save us is Jesus. Keep in mind, all those who are evil will stand before Christ, therefore, they will not only die in their sin, Christ will deny them. [Matthew 10:32-33 Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. 33 But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.]

[and be filled with their own devices.] We cannot blame God for the evils of the world, man has brought that upon themselves by not acknowledging God, and loving the sin that they commit. We cannot expect God to do great things in our lives, and this includes many Christians, if there is constant sin in their lives. Fearing God is not about living in fear that He will strike us down at every wrong thing we do, it is honoring, respecting, confessing, loving Him, and not leaving Him, even when it makes no sense or we have sinned. True wisdom comes when we understand that our salvation is not justification to live a sinful life, rather a virtuous life.

[Proverbs 2:1-6,10-13 My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee; 2 So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding; 3 Yea, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding; 4 If thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures; 5 Then shalt thou understand the fear of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God. 6 For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding. 10 When wisdom entereth into thine heart, and knowledge is pleasant unto thy soul; 11 Discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee: 12 To deliver thee from the way of the evil man, from the man that speaketh froward things; 13 Who leave the paths of uprightness, to walk in the ways of darkness;]

[and find the knowledge of God.] People want to understand God, but their heart is not in it, and therefore, they have no clue. True wisdom comes when we hear the Word of God, and apply it to our heart. [Proverbs 3:1-8 My son, forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments: 2 For length of days, and long life, and peace, shall they add to thee. 3 Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart: 4 So shalt thou find favour and good understanding in the sight of God and man. 5 Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. 6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. 7 Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil. 8 It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones.]

[and he shall direct thy paths.] Let me tell you, I have never realized just how much God directs my path, I do not always understand why He takes me where He does, but that is not for me to figure out, rather trust that He knows what He is doing. And I will tell you something else, as much as I trip on that path, He gets me right back up, and moves me forward. Oh, I might suffer some, but once it all comes to pass and I have reached my destination, I discover exactly what God’s path led to all along. True wisdom comes when we trust and praise God through the chastening as well as the blessings.

[Proverbs 3:11-18 My son, despise not the chastening of the LORD; neither be weary of his correction: 12 For whom the LORD loveth he correcteth; even as a father the son in whom he delighteth. 13 Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding. 14 For the merchandise of it is better than the merchandise of silver, and the gain thereof than fine gold. 15 She is more precious than rubies: and all the things thou canst desire are not to be compared unto her. 16 Length of days is in her right hand; and in her left hand riches and honour. 17 Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace. 18 She is a tree of life to them that lay hold upon her: and happy is every one that retaineth her.]

[and in her left hand riches and honour.] Just imagine what applying God’s wisdom to every area of our lives will do for us? Long life, riches, honor, above and beyond what we think, and I do not mean possessions, [Ephesians 3:19-20 And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God. 20 Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us,]

[which passeth knowledge,] There is a good reason why God does not give us knowledge of certain things. God’s wisdom far exceeds that of mans, and the sooner we figure that out the longer we will live not only in this life, but in the life yet to come if we have received Christ as our Saviour. Honestly, it takes the Holy Spirit in us to understand His wisdom, many people read the Bible and claim they know God, but unless they have the Holy Spirit in them they can never truly understand Him, they will continuously question His ways and make excuses for not believing that every word of God is pure and true. True wisdom teaches us to treat others with respect, even when they do not treat us with respect, and that evil never goes unpunished.

[Proverbs 3:24-34 When thou liest down, thou shalt not be afraid: yea, thou shalt lie down, and thy sleep shall be sweet. 25 Be not afraid of sudden fear, neither of the desolation of the wicked, when it cometh. 26 For the LORD shall be thy confidence, and shall keep thy foot from being taken. 27 Withhold not good from them to whom it is due, when it is in the power of thine hand to do it. 28 Say not unto thy neighbour, Go, and come again, and to morrow I will give; when thou hast it by thee. 29 Devise not evil against thy neighbour, seeing he dwelleth securely by thee. 30 Strive not with a man without cause, if he have done thee no harm. 31 Envy thou not the oppressor, and choose none of his ways. 32 For the froward is abomination to the LORD: but his secret is with the righteous. 33 The curse of the LORD is in the house of the wicked: but he blesseth the habitation of the just. 34 Surely he scorneth the scorners: but he giveth grace unto the lowly.]

[but his secret is with the righteous.] What is God’s secret with the righteous? Eternal life through His Son, [Romans 6:23]. As Christians, we are not always going to make wise decisions, if fact, many times we will get caught up in something because we leaned on our own understanding. God’s grace and truth is what gets us back on His path, and even helps us through those bad decisions. When we lean on our own understanding, we are only looking at the surface of things, and we will make those bad decisions if all we see is the surface. True wisdom comes when we sincerely confess our sin, trusting that He will cleanse us from our unrighteousness, [I John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.]

Today’s Prayer: God, When our minds are constantly bombarded with all sorts of doubts, guilt, frustrations, grief, anger, or hate, we can lose sight of the fact that You are in control and know the path that I take. Thankfully You are full of mercy and grace help us when we lean on our own understanding, and guide us back to Yours. Thank You for Your wisdom and showing us how to take the knowledge You gave us and use it for Your glory. We may not always understand it, but when we take the time to study Your Word, receive it, and obey it, then You will give us riches, honor, and long life. Lord, Lead us and guide us, fill us with Your wisdom so that we do not lean on our own understanding. Give us Your mercy, grace, compassion, direct our paths and show Yourself mighty in our lives for all to see. I ask these things in Your name, Jesus, Amen.

God Bless You, I am praying for you,

Christina

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