Category Archives: Knowledge

April 6, 2013

Big Ears

By David

Proverbs 18:13 

He that answereth a matter before he heareth it, it is folly and shame unto him.
To answer before listening – that is folly and shame. (NIV)

It doesn’t matter how much teaching we receive on the subject of listening, or how many times we are reminded by Scripture (James 1:19) to be quick to listen and slow to speak, most of us are not good listeners. Isn’t it true that when we are on the listening end of a conversation we are only partially listening? Generally we are working out our reply and looking for the opportunity to interrupt so that we can say what we want to say.

Our failure to be listeners exists despite our own experience of being in conversations where we know that the other person hasn’t heard a word we have said. Such experience means that we are all acutely aware of the need to be good listeners. It is foolish, rude, and shameful to interrupt with a response when the other party to a conversation has not finished speaking.

Listening requires focus and concentration. It is important that we hear correctly and understand what is being said, not just in conversations with other people, but when we come to God in prayer. So how do you approach God in prayer? With a listening heart or a chattering mouth? Or do you start out planning to listen but end up butting in so many times that you never really hear what God is saying to you? God speaks to us in many different ways. It is essential that we take time to ensure that we hear what He is saying. While that means listening carefully, it also means growing in our understanding and knowledge of Him. It is a bit like learning to speak a foreign language effectively. It requires practice and a lot of work to achieve real understanding.

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March 26, 2013

A People of Understanding

By Jason Sneed

Proverbs 18:2

A fool hath no delight in understanding, but that his heart may discover itself.

Time after time the book of Proverbs has given us characteristics of a fool:

  • Fools despise wisdom & instruction (Proverbs 1:7) 
  • Fools hate knowledge (Proverbs 1:22)
  • Fools slander (Proverbs 10:18)
  • Fools cause mischief (Proverbs 10:23)
  • Fools are deceitful (Proverbs 14:8)

Our verse today adds one more characteristics – a fool is someone who does not want to understand.

Bla_Bla_Bla_by_explosiv22I knew a guy in college that was never wrong, even when he was wrong. He did not want to even consider the possibility of being wrong. He knew everything and had the answer to ever question that has ever been asked.

You know the type of person that I am talking about! They have no interest in hearing the truth but are speaking to hear themselves talk and to show others just how much they know.

The New Living says, “Fools have no interest in understanding; they only want to air their own opinions.” Fools want to talk all of the time and tell other people their opinions and how things should be done but don’t want to hear any instructions themselves because they know best. Many times, these people talk just to hear themselves, and all that the other people are hearing is “BLA, BLA, BLA”.

FULL CIRCLE

There are several verses in Proverbs that do this, but I believe that our verse today comes full circle with the whole theme of Proverbs. Proverbs 1:7 says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.”

As Christians, how can we expect to fear the Lord and grow in knowledge when we want to live our lives the way we want to and aren’t willing to submit to HIS will for our lives. We are saying to Him that I just don’t want to understand Your ways and I think that I can do better. If we are living our lives this way, we are nothing but fools, but I do it all the time!

Lord, I pray that you would help me and others to live our lives in such a way that we would not be fools with our lives. I pray that we would be willing to submit ourselves to you and understand Your ways. 

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March 23, 2013

Let Our Words Be Few

By Jason Sneed

Proverbs 17:27

He that hath knowledge spareth his words: and a man of understanding is of an excellent spirit.

Our Words

For years, it was said that women would speak about 20,000 words per day while men only speak around 7,000. But, more and more research is showing that nowadays men and women are both speaking around 16,000 words per day.

Some of those words that are spoken are very well thought out, while others are just blurted out.

Mark Twain said,

“It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a fool than to open it and remove all doubt.”

Solomon is warning us to learn how to restrain our words and to keep a level head. The ESV says our verse this way, “Whoever restrains his words has knowledge, and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding.”

Proverbs, and the Bible for that matter, is full of wisdom on how we should use our words.

Ecclesiastes 5:2 reiterates Proverbs 17:27, “Be not rash with your mouth, nor let your heart be hasty to utter a word before God, for God is in heaven and you are on earth. Therefore let your words be few.”

The words in Ecclesiastes are talking about making promises or saying hasty words straight to God but I believe that we can carry this over to our communication with those around us. We should take the time to think about our words and not just “shoot off” at the mouth.

Keep Calm

As I was child I played baseball for years at a local recreational park. Each year I hoped that I would not be on one particular coach’s team simply because every call that did not go his way he would just go off on the umpires. To the point that many games he was tossed from the game! I guess you could say that he had a very short fuse. We all know something like that.

Solomon is saying in the second part of our verse that a man of understanding has an “excellent spirit” or has a “cool spirit”. Having a cool spirit means that one is not soon angry, but is calm,  and not easily provoked to wrath.

Are you a person of “few” words and of an “excellent spirit”?

Lord, I pray that you would make us all men and women of knowledge and understanding. May our words be thought out and spoken wisely and may our demeanors be calm and not easily provoked. May we live our lives in a way that would be pleasing to You!

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February 14, 2013

Everyday Valentine

By Daniel M. Klem

Proverbs 16:23

23 The heart of the wise teacheth his mouth, and addeth learning to his lips.

As I write this, St. Valentine’s Day is approaching.

Do you know who Valentine was?

Valentine was a man who was killed by the Roman Empire on February 14 in 269 or 270. Why?

His biggest crime was helping Christians get married (which makes St. Valentine’s Day make some more sense). At that time, Christianity still was not recognized as a legal, and, in fact, it was illegal for Christians to marry.

It was also illegal for Christians to do many things.

Valentine, on the other hand, loved God more than he loved the Roman Empire.

Learned and Spoken

The more Valentine learned the love of God for people, the more he had to share it.

The closer his heart got to the heart of God, the more spoke up for people society said were worthless.

The more he attained of God’s wisdom in his heart, the more he spoke of the need for peace and grace.

The more wisdom taught his heart of God’s purity, the more he taught chastity to single men and women.

Valentine taught what he knew: God’s love and grace for all people at all times.

Will you be my Valentine?

Do you think you can live like Valentine?

It is really quite simple: Love everyone.

This is accomplished by letting the love and wisdom of God fill your heart, and “out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks” (Luke 6:45, ESV).

Let the love and wisdom of God flow through and out of you to reveal to others the truth of God’s love. There is no greater learning you can get. As Valentine would attest.

Loving God, teach us to be wise by Your standard: to learn to love as You love; to share Your words of love; to show love to all people.

2 Comments   |  tags: , , , , , | posted in conversation/speech, Knowledge

February 13, 2013

THINK

By Jason Sneed

Proverbs 16:21-22

The wise in heart shall be called prudent: and the sweetness of the lips increaseth learning. Understanding is a wellspring of life unto him that hath it: but the instruction of fools is folly.

Think before you speakWise Words (v. 21)

Are you a person who thinks about every word that comes out of your mouth or do you just talk and think later about what you said?

I had a professor in college that, when asked a question, he would take several minutes to think about his words and then proceed to answer the question.

This drove me crazy! Even if he knew the answer right off the top of his head – he still thought about every word he said. His reasoning for choosing his words correctly is that he wanted to make sure the words he used explained the question in the best way possible.

My professor was wiser than I thought!

Get Understanding

So what exactly is understanding? Understanding is the ability to comprehend or grasp the true nature of something. It is the correct and proper analysis of a dilemma, event, or situation that sees all the angles and consequences.

God wants us to be people of understanding but true understanding can only come from God. Proverbs 2:6 says:

For the Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding;

According to our verse, those who have understanding are like a wellspring or a fountain of life.

Lord, I pray that each and every day we would seek after YOU and your wisdom. I pray that you would show us how to use our speech for good and not to hurt others around us. Keep us in your care and help us to strive to understand you more and more.

3 Comments   |  tags: , , , , | posted in conversation/speech, Fear of the Lord, Knowledge, Uncategorized, Wisdom

January 24, 2013

Perception and Reality

By Anthony Baker

Proverbs 16:2

“All the ways of a man are clean in his own eyes; but the LORD weigheth the spirits.”

The Way We See It

If I have heard it said once, I have heard it said a thousand times, “perception is reality.” And if I have puked once…

What is it with man’s twisted view of reality and truth? Where do we get the idea that reality is what we perceive it to be? Is truth really relative to our own perception of the way things are? Just because a person believes something to be true doesn’t make it true, only believed.

Have you ever argued with someone who is color-blind over the color of a tie? Have you ever tried to convince someone dying of thirst that it’s not really water, but a mirage? Have you ever tried to convince a 3-year-old that germs are real and that hands need to be washed before eating? Some people think they know what they see, but they don’t.

Clean Drunks

Several years ago I was unfortunate enough to transport a bunch of college kids to a party. It was unfortunate because long before some of them ever got on the school bus they had already been drinking.

The place they were going to was up a mountain. About 5 minutes into the trip, about the third or fourth curve, one girl decided to vomit on the window, down the inside wall, and between the seats. It was all liquid, all alcohol, and all nasty. A few minutes later she felt she was ready to go party some more, for, in her eyes, she was perfectly clean. The only problem was that we (everyone on the bus) could tell she was soaked…in other words, we weighed the “spirits.”

God Sees Everything

When it comes to self-perception, reality is what God sees. He not only sees the outside, but the heart is bare before Him. As the proverb says, a man may consider himself clean, which is his own perception of reality, but the Lord knows what’s really going on.

It is foolish for men to try to justify their sinful, dirty actions before a holy God. It is foolish to depend on our own perception of what is right and wrong. Our eyes only want to see what makes us look good, not evil. That is why we need God’s wisdom.

“For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” – Hebrews 4:12

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January 21, 2013

Hating Yourself

By Daniel M. Klem

Proverbs 15:32

32 He that refuseth instruction despiseth his own soul: but he that heareth reproof getteth understanding.

Abused

People who have a history of abuse tend to have something else in common: they hate themselves thinking they caused the abuse they received.

It indeed is a sad way to go through life, but it is the reality many people face every day.

What is interesting and also sad is that there are people who have little to no reason to hate their lives, yet they abuse themselves. They abuse themselves with drugs, alcohol, food, lack of food, pain, and any number of other things.

The saddest of all are those who abuse themselves intellectually and spiritually, often intentionally.

Not Listening

There are some who refuse to give in to intellectual honesty. This is most often found in the realm of politics, but it can be seen everywhere. These are the people who are approached with facts, but they believe something else so strongly that they refuse to believe the evidence in front of them.

The others see the evidence of the spiritual and refuse to acknowledge it or to see its importance. It is often combined with intellectual dishonesty, but in any event it is the most dangerous.

Whether they follow a religion or are irreligious in any fashion (including within a faith-system … including Christianity and all of its facets), people will refuse to listen to the One True God.

Rebuked and Loving It

Those who listen to the God of the Universe come to understand that there is only One God (Deuteronomy 6:4), we are all messed up and in need of His saving us (Romans 3), and that Jesus is the only Way to salvation (John 14:6).

We realize that God has rebuked our sin and atoned for it through the Life, Death, and Resurrection of Jesus Christ. It is only because of His great love for us that He does rebuke our sin, that He came to personally pay the price to restore the relationship.

Do not hate your soul. Hear God speaking to you, and follow Him!

Gracious God, thank You for loving us enough to call out our sin and then saving us from our sin! Help us to see Your love for us, and help us to love You more for it.

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January 12, 2013

A Timely Word

By Jason Sneed

Proverbs 15:23

“A man hath joy by the answer of his mouth: and a word spoken in due season, how good is it!”

In yesterday’s Proverbial Thought – “Purposes Established!”, it was discussed just how important it is to seek counsel. Today’s verse we flip to the other side of the coin and talk about when someone come to us seeking advice what is our response. Today’s verse focuses on not only giving the right advice but giving it at the appropriate time. I love the way the HCSB says our verse, “A man takes joy in giving an answer; and a timely word — how good that is!”

The book of Proverbs contains many words of advice and wisdom regarding our speech. It also gives us several reasons for our words:

It’s All About the Timing

As it was says earlier, a wise person not only knows the correct response to give but also gives it at the correct time. This wise counsel was given to us in Ecclesiastes 8:5-6:

“Whoever keeps a command will know no evil thing, and the wise heart will know the proper time and the just way. For there is a time and a way for everything, although man’s trouble lies heavy on him.”

Proverbs 25:11 also tells us:

“A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in a setting of silver.” 

We have all either heard of stories or experienced them ourselves. The story of someone going through a hard time, having a loved one die or receiving some extremely bad news. And then it happens. Someone who is trying to console them with words tells them of their cousin’s best friend’s mother who went through the exact same thing but tells them of the horrific end that took place.

Why do we (yes, I have done this myself) think this is going to make them feel better? The timing was way off and not at all comforting to the receiver.

This reminds me Job. During the time that he was devastated by the news he had just received, three visitors came to him and basically started telling him it was all his fault. How is that for positive reenforcement!

Solomon is telling us in our verse that the proper words spoken at the proper time will be good news to both the giver of those words and the receiver.

So the next time you are going to give advice to someone, not only remember that there are right words to say but that there is also the right time to say them.

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December 23, 2012

He Sees Good in Evil

By Daniel M. Klem

Proverbs 15:3

3 The eyes of the Lord are in every place, beholding the evil and the good.

There is a big fancy word that means “God sees everything” which can also be said “God knows everything”: omniscience.

God is omniscient. He can see everything going on in the world, all that we do or do not do.

Firstly, this is a reminder God knows every time evil is taking place in this world. To avoid a big theological controversy here, we will stick with He is always within reach for those undergoing the effects of evil in this world.

Secondly, God sees how each of us truly is:

“This is the evil in everything that happens under the sun: The same destiny overtakes all. The hearts of men, moreover, are full of evil and there is madness in their hearts while they live, and afterward they join the dead.”
(Ecclesiastes 9:3, NIV)

Yes, we are all evil, especially when compared to God. It does not mean there is nothing good in us, as we were created by God.

Even though God is fully aware of how evil every single one of us is, he still loves us. He wants to see all the good in us there can be.

Therefore, He came to us, as a baby. That baby grew to become a man, and after a few decades of a perfect life He died on a cross to erase our guilt and rebuild the relationship lost due to our sin.

All we must do is believe this and let Him change our hearts through the indwelling of His Holy Spirit to the glory of the Father.

Then, one glorious day, we will stand before God. All He will see when He looks at us is the perfection of Jesus Christ! He will see good where once there was evil.

Heavenly Father, thank You for loving us in our rebellion, of which You are fully aware. You know every evil deed and thought we have, yet You came to get us anyway. Thank You, Lord.

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December 4, 2012

The Evil Dead

By Nick

Proverbs 14:19

‘Evil men will bow down in the presence of the good,
    and the wicked at the gates of the righteous.’

Slim Consolation

The Bible is full of good honest people asking the question ‘Why do bad people prosper, and good people suffer?’ This is a question that still haunts us now. The song writer Josh Garrels quips in his song ‘Farther Along’ – ‘Tempted and tried, I wonder why the good man dies, bad man thrives and Jesus cries cus He loves them both.’ The Bible also tells us that the bad, or evil will get their comeuppance. But when we are seeing the evil thrive very close to home while we also struggle to live the way we’d like, not to mention all our brothers and sisters all over the world facing persecution for Christ, this can be hard to swallow. This verse may provide some comfort in the thought that one day things will be made right, but what about now?

The Inconvenient Truth

Romans 11 verse 14 tells us that one day every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord, whether they want to or not! One day you may be falling to your knees in worship while the person next to you is having an uncomfortable moment of realisation and regret. What will you think in that moment? Will you be glad that the evil are finally about to get their just desserts? Or will you be wishing you had done more to help people see Jesus in this life so they are not surprised in the next?

2 Comments   |  tags: , , , | posted in Faithfulness, Fear of the Lord, Knowledge, Love, The Righteous, The Wicked, Truth, Wisdom