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April 28, 2020

No Need for Stripes

By Anthony Baker

Proverbs 19:29

“Judgments are prepared for scorners, and stripes for the back of fools.”

Reality Shows

Have you ever watched reality television? “Reality shows,” as they are called, are television programs that seek to entertain the viewer with the craziness of other peoples’ lives. Reality television is usually anything but true reality, however. But what happened last night while I was preaching was anything but fake.

Before I get into the details of this post, it has been pointed out by more than one person that our family needs to star in its own reality TV show. The only problem is that no one would believe it.

It Happened During Church

(The following happened in 2013) Just after 9 p.m. I got a phone call from a concerned church member: “Pastor, are you all right? You OK?” “Well…yeah…I guess,” was my reply. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

Come to find out, a lady across the street from our church wrote on Facebook that bounty hunters had shot at a man, chased him, and arrested him in our church parking lot – while church was going on! No one inside the church knew a thing! But what is even more amazing is that the man had come to visit our church, and his wife was in the sanctuary. She never knew her husband was taken away!

Why did all this happen? Evidently, the man was wanted for a parole violation, and they followed him to church. He and his wife had been in trouble many times, but they had visited Sunday morning and felt that it was time for a change. That is why they came back last night.

Judgments and Stripes

There is more to the above story, most of which is sad, but I told it in order to help make a point. You see, actions have consequences. Sin has a price. Even though this poor couple realized that they needed God in their lives, judgment caught up with them.

All is not lost, however. Many times God’s judgment is what it takes to open the eyes of the sinner. As I prayed with the woman whose husband was hauled away, I reminded her that the road ahead would be very hard, but that God loves her, and her husband.

By His Strips

This might be a good time to point out that wounded people need to be loved. Too many people feel unworthy to come to church, and it’s all because they feel like they will be judged, like everyone else is “better” than them. The fact is that we are all sinners, but Jesus bore the punishment for our crimes, so our job is to love each other as Christ loved us.

This man and woman may have to pay a temporal price for the sins they have committed. It may mean jail time. But there is no need for them, or you, to suffer the eternal penalty for sin – separation from God. Jesus took upon Himself our sins and bore them to the Cross (1 Peter 2:24). There He was “wounded for our transgressions, and by His stripes we are healed (Isaiah 53:5).”

Don’t continue to be a “scorner.” Don’t be a “fool.” 

“This is real love–not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.” – 1 John 4:10 NLT

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” – 1 John 1:9 KJV

 

 

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Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , | posted in advice, Fools, Love, Mercy, sin

March 20, 2020

Friend to the Giver (Money Or Marbles)

By Anthony Baker

Proverbs 19:6

“Many will intreat the favour of the prince: and every man is a friend to him that giveth gifts.”

Lottery Winners

If there is anything I wish I could be, while at the same time being happy I am not, it’s a lottery winner. Who would not want to suddenly come into a boat load of money, right? But then again, who would really want to have all those “friends.”

Sometimes when I scroll down through my list of “friends” on Facebook I am amazed at how many I don’t even know. I have several hundred friends on Facebook, but only a few of them would come to a party if I invited them. On the other hand, if I were to win the lottery…well…there wouldn’t be enough room to hold all the “friends” that would show up.

One thing that lottery winners find out when they win is that one is never short of cousins in need of life-or-death surgery and the cash to pay for it. When one has money there is always somebody who wants to be his friend – or relative.

Gift Givers

I have known people who love to give nice gifts. I have known a few other people who love to give really nice gifts, but for the wrong reasons. One of the saddest things to witness is when a person gives an expensive gift in hopes that another will become a friend.

There once was a little girl on the school bus I drove whom most of the other kids seriously disliked. She was loud, whiny, spoiled, and usually complaining that everything was “unfair.” One day, however, she started handing out marbles to every child that got on the bus. “Here’s your free marble,” she would say with a sugary smile. “It’s free! You can keep it!”

“Why are you giving away all your marbles?” I asked. “You don’t have a lot, to begin with. You should probably keep what you have” (yes, I said it).

“If I give them free marbles,” she said, “they won’t hate me…they’ll be my friends.” How sad is that? “That’s not how you make real friends,” I told her. “If you want to have friends ‘you must show yourself friendly.'”

Then, as if on cue, a first-grader boy said, “Yeah, nobody hates you; we just don’t like you.”

The Best Gifts

Today’s proverb is more about how people are nice to the ones in power and cozy up to the ones who are liberal with their funds. So, for the most part there is nothing really encouraging about this proverb, except in that it should cause us to be careful with who we call “friend.”

Therefore, let me encourage you with the following passage from Luke. We may not be lottery winners or know anyone who is, but we do have access to the throne room of the Heavenly King, our Father.

“So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. “Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” – Luke 11:9-13 NIV

 

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , | posted in Friendship, Money and Finances

May 21, 2019

God’s Words vs. Man’s Words

By Anthony Baker

Proverbs 8:8-9

“All the words of my mouth are in righteousness; there is nothing froward or perverse in them. They are all plain to him that understandeth, and right to them that find knowledge.”
Man’s Words

All one would have to do is look at the average text message or Facebook rant to figure out the difference between the words of God and the words of man.

For one thing, every word of God is pure, as pure as silver refined seven times (Ps. 12:6). The average text message is about as pure as water in a ditch – next to a barn yard.

And what about knowledge? God’s words are plain to those who want to hear, and completely factual in all things. The average Facebook post has about as much objective truth as the National Enquirer.

So, why is it that we continually seek man’s wisdom, instead of the Lord’s? There is more than enough wisdom to be had if only we would ask (James 1:5) and do His will (Ps. 25:14). King David said, “I understand more than the ancients because I keep thy precepts” (Ps. 119:100).

God’s Words

Unlike the foolish, prideful, arrogant words of men, the Wisdom of God is trustworthy and plain. Unlike the wisdom of men which is limited to knowledge gained from a finite perspective, the Wisdom of God is unlimited, infinite, and enjoys an omniscient perspective.

You can select any number of works from off the shelf of your nearest Books-a-Billion, each one written by the wisest of worldly philosophers, but they will all sound similar. It matters not if the book was written by Plato, Socrates, Hume, Samuel Clemens, or Oprah and Dr. Phil – it’s all human opinion.

But pick of God’s Word and you will find something totally different. You will find wisdom inspired by the Holy One. You will find hope, life, and joy.

More importantly, you will find Truth.

A Prayer

OH, Lord Jesus! How much we need your wisdom to guide us in these troubling days! We need not the shifting wisdom of men. We need more than the unpredictable advice of our emotions. We need the pure words from your mouth. Give liberally and don’t hold back. Speak, Lord, for your servants are listening.

1 Comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , | posted in Wisdom, Word of the Lord

March 22, 2016

No Need for Stripes

By Anthony Baker

Proverbs 19:29

“Judgments are prepared for scorners, and stripes for the back of fools.”

Reality Shows

Have you ever watched reality television? “Reality shows,” as they are called, are television programs that seek to entertain the viewer with the craziness of other peoples’ lives. Reality television is usually anything but true reality, however. But what happened last night while I was preaching was anything but fake.

Before I get into the details of this post, it has been pointed out by more than one person that our family needs to star in its own reality TV show. The only problem is that no one would believe it.

It Happened During Church

Just after 9 p.m. I got a phone call from a concerned church member: “Pastor, are you all right? You OK?” “Well…yeah…I guess,” was my reply. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

Come to find out, a lady across the street from our church wrote on Facebook that bounty hunters had shot at a man, chased him, and arrested him in our church parking lot – while church was going on! No one inside the church knew a thing! But what is even more amazing is that the man had come to visit our church, and his wife was in the sanctuary. She never knew her husband was taken away!

Why did all this happen? Evidently, the man was wanted for a parole violation, and they followed him to church. He and his wife had been in trouble many times, but they had visited Sunday morning and felt that it was time for a change. That is why they came back last night.

Judgments and Stripes

There is more to the above story, most of which is sad, but I told it in order to help make a point. You see, actions have consequences. Sin has a price. Even though this poor couple realized that they needed God in their lives, judgment caught up with them.

All is not lost, however. Many times God’s judgment is what it takes to open the eyes of the sinner. As I prayed with the woman whose husband was hauled away, I reminded her that the road ahead would be very hard, but that God loves her, and her husband.

By His Strips

This might be a good time to point out that wounded people need to be loved. Too many people feel unworthy to come to church, and it’s all because they feel like they will be judged, like everyone else is “better” than them. The fact is that we are all sinners, but Jesus bore the punishment for our crimes, so our job is to love each other as Christ loved us.

This man and woman may have to pay a temporal price for the sins they have committed. It may mean jail time. But there is no need for them, or you, to suffer the eternal penalty for sin – separation from God. Jesus took upon Himself our sins and bore them to the Cross (1 Peter 2:24). There He was “wounded for our transgressions, and by His stripes we are healed (Isaiah 53:5).”

Don’t continue to be a “scorner.” Don’t be a “fool.” 

“This is real love–not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.” – 1 John 4:10 NLT

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” – 1 John 1:9 KJV

 

 

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , | posted in advice, Fools, Love, Mercy, sin

February 17, 2016

Friend to the Giver

By Anthony Baker

Proverbs 19:6

“Many will intreat the favour of the prince: and every man is a friend to him that giveth gifts.”

Lottery Winners

If there is anything I wish I could be, while at the same time being happy I am not, it’s a lottery winner. Who would not want to suddenly come into a boat load of money, right? But then again, who would really want to have all those “friends.”

Sometimes when I scroll down through my list of “friends” on Facebook I am amazed at how many I don’t even know. I have several hundred friends on Facebook, but only a few of them would come to a party if I invited them. On the other hand, if I were to win the lottery…well…there wouldn’t be enough room to hold all the “friends” that would show up.

One thing that lottery winners find out when they win is that one is never short of cousins in need of life-or-death surgery and the cash to pay for it. When one has money there is always somebody who wants to be his friend – or relative.

Gift Givers

I have known people who love to give nice gifts. I have known a few other people who love to give really nice gifts, but for the wrong reasons. One of the saddest things to witness is when a person gives an expensive gift in hopes that another will become a friend.

There once was a little girl on the school bus I drove whom most of the other kids seriously disliked. She was loud, whiny, spoiled, and usually complaining that everything was “unfair.” One day, however, she started handing out marbles to every child that got on the bus. “Here’s your free marble,” she would say with a sugary smile. “It’s free! You can keep it!”

“Why are you giving away all your marbles?” I asked. “You don’t have a lot, to begin with. You should probably keep what you have” (yes, I said it).

“If I give them free marbles,” she said, “they won’t hate me…they’ll be my friends.” How sad is that? “That’s not how you make real friends,” I told her. “If you want to have friends ‘you must show yourself friendly.'”

Then, as if on cue, a first-grader boy said, “Yeah, nobody hates you; we just don’t like you.”

The Best Gifts

Today’s proverb is more about how people are nice to the ones in power and cozy up to the ones who are liberal with their funds. So, for the most part there is nothing really encouraging about this proverb, except in that it should cause us to be careful with who we call “friend.”

Therefore, let me encourage you with the following passage from Luke. We may not be lottery winners or know anyone who is, but we do have access to the throne room of the Heavenly King, our Father.

“So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. “Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” – Luke 11:9-13 NIV

 

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Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , | posted in Friendship, Money and Finances

May 16, 2013

No Need for Stripes

By Anthony Baker

Proverbs 19:29

“Judgments are prepared for scorners, and stripes for the back of fools.”

Reality Shows

Have you ever watched reality television? “Reality shows,” as they are called, are television programs that seek to entertain the viewer with the craziness of other peoples’ lives. Reality television is usually anything but true reality, however. But what happened last night while I was preaching was anything but fake.

Before I get into the details of this post, it has been pointed out by more than one person that our family needs to star in its own reality TV show. The only problem is that no one would believe it.

It Happened During Church

Just after 9 p.m. I got a phone call from a concerned church member: “Pastor, are you all right? You OK?” “Well…yeah…I guess,” was my reply. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

Come to find out, a lady across the street from our church wrote on Facebook that bounty hunters had shot at a man, chased him, and arrested him in our church parking lot – while church was going on! No one inside the church knew a thing! But what is even more amazing is that the man had come to visit our church, and his wife was in the sanctuary. She never knew her husband was taken away!

Why did all this happen? Evidently, the man was wanted for a parole violation, and they followed him to church. He and his wife had been in trouble many times, but they had visited Sunday morning and felt that it was time for a change. That is why they came back last night.

Judgments and Stripes

There is more to the above story, most of which is sad, but I told it in order to help make a point. You see, actions have consequences. Sin has a price. Even though this poor couple realized that they needed God in their lives, judgment caught up with them.

All is not lost, however. Many times God’s judgment is what it takes to open the eyes of the sinner. As I prayed with the woman whose husband was hauled away, I reminded her that the road ahead would be very hard, but that God loves her, and her husband.

By His Strips

This might be a good time to point out that wounded people need to be loved. Too many people feel unworthy to come to church, and it’s all because they feel like they will be judged, like everyone else is “better” than them. The fact is that we are all sinners, but Jesus bore the punishment for our crimes, so our job is to love each other as Christ loved us.

This man and woman may have to pay a temporal price for the sins they have committed. It may mean jail time. But there is no need for them, or you, to suffer the eternal penalty for sin – separation from God. Jesus took upon Himself our sins and bore them to the Cross (1 Peter 2:24). There He was “wounded for our transgressions, and by His stripes we are healed (Isaiah 53:5).”

Don’t continue to be a “scorner.” Don’t be a “fool.” 

“This is real love–not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.” – 1 John 4:10 NLT

“If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” – 1 John 1:9 KJV

 

 

1 Comment   |  tags: , , , , | posted in advice, Fools, Love, Mercy, sin

April 23, 2013

Friend to the Giver

By Anthony Baker

Proverbs 19:6

“Many will intreat the favour of the prince: and every man is a friend to him that giveth gifts.”

Lottery Winners

If there is anything I wish I could be, while at the same time being happy I am not, it’s a lottery winner. Who would not want to suddenly come into a boat load of money, right? But then again, who would really want to have all those “friends.”

Sometimes when I scroll down through my list of “friends” on Facebook I am amazed at how many I don’t even know. I have several hundred friends on Facebook, but only a few of them would come to a party if I invited them. On the other hand, if I were to win the lottery…well…there wouldn’t be enough room to hold all the “friends” that would show up.

One thing that lottery winners find out when they win is that one is never short of cousins in need of life-or-death surgery and the cash to pay for it. When one has money there is always somebody who wants to be his friend – or relative.

Gift Givers

I have known people who love to give nice gifts. I have known a few other people who love to give really nice gifts, but for the wrong reasons. One of the saddest things to witness is when a person gives an expensive gift in hopes that another will become a friend.

There once was a little girl on the school bus I drove whom most of the other kids seriously disliked. She was loud, whiny, spoiled, and usually complaining that everything was “unfair.” One day, however, she started handing out marbles to every child that got on the bus. “Here’s your free marble,” she would say with a sugary smile. “It’s free! You can keep it!”

“Why are you giving away all your marbles?” I asked. “You don’t have a lot, to begin with. You should probably keep what you have” (yes, I said it).

“If I give them free marbles,” she said, “they won’t hate me…they’ll be my friends.” How sad is that? “That’s not how you make real friends,” I told her. “If you want to have friends ‘you must show yourself friendly.'”

Then, as if on cue, a first-grader boy said, “Yeah, nobody hates you; we just don’t like you.”

The Best Gifts

Today’s proverb is more about how people are nice to the ones in power and cozy up to the ones who are liberal with their funds. So, for the most part there is nothing really encouraging about this proverb, except in that it should cause us to be careful with who we call “friend.”

Therefore, let me encourage you with the following passage from Luke. We may not be lottery winners or know anyone who is, but we do have access to the throne room of the Heavenly King, our Father.

“So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. “Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!” – Luke 11:9-13 NIV

 

Related articles

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , | posted in Friendship, Money and Finances

March 12, 2013

Update to Readers (3/12/13)

By Anthony Baker
Woo Hoo!

You may not be aware, but in just a few weeks Proverbial Thought will be celebrating it’s 1st anniversary! Amazing, isn’t it?

Yes, on April first (or 1 April, depending on which side of the lake you are from), 2012, we started Proverbial Thought as a daily commentary with a twist. Now, nearly a year later, we are just over half-way through the book. We still have a way to go, but it should be fun.

A Challenge

In celebration of our upcoming anniversary, I would like to ask you to do something very special. As a matter of fact, there are a few things I would like to ask all of our readers to do…

  1. If you are a regular reader of this blog, would you take the time to leave a comment? Either leave a comment on any upcoming post, or on the new GUEST PAGE. Tell us who you are, where you are from (i.e., country, state, etc.), and what you enjoy most about Proverbial Thought. It would make our day to hear from you.
  2. Invite someone else to visit Proverbial Thought. You could do this by forwarding a link by email, posting us on Facebook, or just by saying to a friend, “You should check this out! It’s the coolest thing since iced tea!”
  3. Then, go to our Facebook page and post a picture of yourself with a “Happy Anniversary!” sign or card. If you do, then I will pick several of those to post on the blog during the first week of April.

Again, thank you so much for taking the time to visit Proverbial Thought.

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , | posted in Uncategorized

July 4, 2012

God’s Words vs. Man’s Words

By Anthony Baker

Proverbs 8:8-9

“All the words of my mouth are in righteousness; there is nothing froward or perverse in them. They are all plain to him that understandeth, and right to them that find knowledge.”
Man’s Words

All one would have to do is look at the average text message or Facebook rant to figure out the difference between the words of God and the words of man.

For one thing, every word of God is pure, as pure as silver refined seven times (Ps. 12:6). The average text message is about as pure as water in a ditch – next to a barn yard.

And what about knowledge? God’s words are plain to those who want to hear, and completely factual in all things. The average Facebook post has about as much objective truth as the National Enquirer.

So, why is it that we continually seek man’s wisdom, instead of the Lord’s? There is more than enough wisdom to be had if only we would ask (James 1:5) and do His will (Ps. 25:14). King David said, “I understand more than the ancients because I keep thy precepts” (Ps. 119:100).

God’s Words

Unlike the foolish, prideful, arrogant words of men, the Wisdom of God is trustworthy and plain. Unlike the wisdom of men which is limited to knowledge gained from a finite perspective, the Wisdom of God is unlimited, infinite, and enjoys an omniscient perspective.

You can select any number of works from off the shelf of your nearest Books-a-Billion, each one written by the wisest of worldly philosophers, but they will all sound similar. It matters not if the book was written by Plato, Socrates, Hume, Samuel Clemens, or Oprah and Dr. Phil – it’s all human opinion.

But pick of God’s Word and you will find something totally different. You will find wisdom inspired by the Holy One. You will find hope, life, and joy.

More importantly, you will find Truth.

A Prayer

OH, Lord Jesus! How much we need your wisdom to guide us in these troubling days! We need not the shifting wisdom of men. We need more than the unpredictable advice of our emotions. We need the pure words from your mouth. Give liberally and don’t hold back. Speak, Lord, for your servants are listening.

Leave a comment   |  tags: , , , , , , , | posted in Wisdom, Word of the Lord