Title: Life Philosophy of the People of God
[Min Byeong-seok's Proverbs Explanatory] 51
Life Philosophy of God's People
Text: (Proverbs 24:1 - 12)
Today's exposition of Proverbs will receive grace with the words, 'The philosophy of life of the people of God. Because Christians are people who are called in the world, their lifestyle cannot be the same as the people of the world. The Bible commands us to be new. Ephesians 4:22 says, “Put off the old man, which is corrupt according to the lusts of deceit, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and put on the new man, which after God was created in righteousness, truth and holiness.” said. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” These words mean that our life needs to be changed anew. That is why we must have a new philosophy of life as God's people.
1. A life that does not envy the prosperity of the wicked
Look at the words in verses 1 and 2. First, God's people are commanding not to envy the prosperity of the wicked. We learned many of these verses while studying the verses of Proverbs. Proverbs 3:31 says, “Do not envy a tyrannical man, and do not follow any of his deeds.” There is a similar saying in verse 23:17. “Do not envy the prosperity of sinners in your heart, but always fear the Lord.”
We see evil people succeeding in business in this world and prospering in the world around us all around us. You can also see the fact that things run by tyrannical people are going well. So, when God's people pray but do not receive it, they do not get what they want with their heart, and they live according to God's will, but when they have difficulties, they become discouraged and serve God is not in vain There are times when his heart is shaken by doubting.
A prophet named Habakkuk struggled with this kind of problem and even begged God for an answer. In verse 3, he says, “You have pure eyes, so that you cannot see evil or see rebellion. Why do you stand by the deceivers, and keep silent when the wicked swallow up those who are more righteous than them?” Habakkuk couldn't stand it, wondering what he was doing about God's neglect and the wicked oppressing the righteous, but God's silence. Habakkuk also said: O LORD, how long will I cry, but you will not hear me? I cry out for violence, but the Lord does not save me. He asked, "Why do you make me see wickedness and see rebellion?"
God gave Habakkuk an answer to this problem. He said, “The suffering of the righteous is temporary, and the prosperity of the wicked is temporary.” These short words were God's answer to Habakkuk. If we look at the brief life of a person in the Bible, we cannot understand God's providence for that person and the end of life for the righteous or the wicked. However, if you look at the footsteps of a person from the beginning to the end, you can clearly understand and know the will of God. God is always evaluating a person's entire life in terms of living it.
As an example, let us consider the case of the person named Joseph. In his life, if you only see that he was persecuted by his brothers when he was a child and sold as a slave to Egypt, then Joseph was a man of God, but he was a man who lived an extremely unhappy life, and how happy his brothers who did evil to him were. I do not know. But what happened in the end? Joseph eventually ascended to the high position of the Egyptian prime minister, and his brothers fell down at their younger brother's feet and made a big bow.
The sight of Joseph being tempted is terrifying. Why should God's people be tested in such a desperate fate? I can't help but shake my head. But his ordeal was not long. God delivered Joseph from such a test and gave him glory. We should not easily judge a person who is undergoing refinement like Joseph. We should not judge by only looking at the suffering that God endures for a short time without thinking about the beautiful crown or reward that God has kept for such a person in heaven.
When we are going through a difficult test, we should remember a man named Job. Job was subjected to a severe test that he did not deserve. However, Job endured God's test well. In the end, because of this, Job received God's approval even more, and he received double the wonderful blessing he had enjoyed so far. And he said to us, 'Imitate the patience of Job'.
In the case of Haman and Mordecai in the book of Esther, we can understand the meaning of the saying that the suffering of the righteous is temporary and the prosperity of the wicked is only temporary. Haman's plan to kill Mordecai went well. Haman was the second most honored person after the king in that country. Mordecai, on the other hand, was only a gatekeeper at the gates of the palace. Whoever saw it, the victory was with Haman. However, at the end of this case, Haman hangs himself on a pole in the yard of his house to hang Mordecai, resulting in his death. And Mordecai took the place of Haman and took the place of the glory that Haman had enjoyed. Who did this? Therefore, God's people should not always envy the wicked when they see them prosper. God's people must be able to look to God in hope and live by faith, no matter how difficult they are and live a life of hardship.
2. God's people to live with wisdom
Next, God's people are instructing them to live with wisdom. Let's look at the words in verses 5 and 6. It says, "A wise man is strong, and a man of knowledge increases strength. Fight with counsel, for the victory is in the abundance of counselors." who is strong? It is said that the wise are the strong. who has the power? He was said to be knowledgeable. God's people must be armed with wisdom and knowledge and live in this world with that wisdom and knowledge. Verse 3 compares a man to a house and tells the problem of how to build one's life. A house is built with wisdom and fortified with understanding. The Christian character must be built up with wisdom. Wisdom means the fear of God, that is, the word of God. If we build our character through the word of God, we become strong and powerful people of God.
A wise person lives his life looking into the future, but a foolish life is only concerned with the present. A wise life lives by looking at hope, but a foolish life lives by focusing only on the fleshly things that are in front of them. Then, why does the one who has attained wisdom have a future, and his hope does not cease in his life? God's Word gives us promises. Those promises are for our future. It's about salvation, it's about heaven, and it's about the blessings that come from God. Regarding this hope, Paul tells us in Romans 8, “For through hope we have been saved, and the hope we see is not hope. Who can hope for what we see? If we hope for what we do not see, let us wait with patience.”
Among the hopes of us Christians, the greatest and most decisive hope is that we are heirs of God. In Romans 8:17 Paul says, “If children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, so that we must also suffer with them in order that we may be glorified with him. It is not worthy to compare.”
The glory that will be revealed to us is unspeakably great. This hope comes from wisdom. The Bible tells us that Christ is the wisdom of God. God's people are to build up his character with this wisdom. You have to build your own life with this wisdom and use it as the incense burner for your life.
How, then, do you get this wisdom? Proverbs 23:19 says, “Listen, my son, and be wise.” Those who listen to the word of God gain wisdom. Those who come close to God and listen to his words can gain this kind of wisdom. Proverbs 8:33 says, “He who listens to instruction finds wisdom.” Discipline is a word of caution. People are always eager to hear sweet sounds, but they try to stay away from reproaching words. Even when God's Word calls for warning, rebuke, and judgment, he turns away from it, and when he turns his head, he draws closer to him when he calls for peace, blessing, and prosperity.
But true wisdom comes from reproof. Those who can listen to those words that point out and rebuke my sins will be blessed. Those who gratefully accept the words of caution that pierce my heart can acquire the true wisdom of God. We need wisdom to have a future in our lives. If you want to live a fleeting life and live a temporal life, you are wise and knowledgeable, and there is no benefit. But if we look to the future of our life and the hope of our life, we must not neglect to obtain the wisdom of God.
3. God's people who should not be discouraged in the day of trouble
Next, God's people must not be discouraged in the day of trouble. Let's look at verse 10. It says, “If you become discouraged in the day of trouble, you show the weakness of your strength.” We should not be discouraged no matter what adversity we face. Because all of the things we are going through right now are not yet confirmed as a single fruit, but are a process of accomplishing God's will. God said in Psalm 50:15, “Call on me in the day of trouble, and I will deliver you, and you will glorify me.” God hears our prayers in the day of our troubles and delivers us from those troubles. Therefore, the tribulation experienced by Christians does not end in tribulation, so it is a tribulation with hope. It is by no means a tribulation to be discouraged like the people of the world.
God has promised to glorify us through our tribulation. The Christian's tribulation contains such precious hope. If you look at the footsteps of the lives of the forefathers of faith in the Bible, they are all people who met God's salvation in the midst of tribulation. These are people who have experienced the miracles of God in their tribulation. They are those who have tasted the power of God in the midst of tribulation. Those who have been blessed by God through tribulation. God's people should never be afraid of tribulation. God's people should be courageous when faced with tribulation and use it as an opportunity to win with hope.
Conclusion: Do not be envious when you see the prosperity of the wicked. I hope that you, who listen to wisdom and walk the path of life with a future, know how valuable the path of life is now and become a person of faith who can give thanks to God. Psalm 42:5 tells us not to forget our hope in God in a life of hardship where we cannot help but be discouraged. “My soul, why are you discouraged and troubled within me? Look to God, and I will rather praise you for the help of His countenance.” I pray in the name of the Lord that your life will become the people of God who walk the path of a blessed life that only God desires. *