S3E156 – Proverbs 2-3: Trust

Remember the promises of God. They don't change, and He never fails.

It's the life spring one-year Bible coming to you from Riverside, California, and podcasting

since 2004, I'm your OG Godcaster, Steve Webb. This is the Daily Podcast where we're

reading through the entire Bible in a year. It's so good to be with you today.

This is Poetry Thursday and we'll read Proverbs 2 and 3. I'm calling this episode

Trust. Before we get started, let's pray.

Our gracious Heavenly Father, how we thank you for your Word and we thank you for this

time together. I pray, Lord, that you would teach us. Open our hearts, open our eyes,

and bless this time I pray in Jesus' name. Amen. Okay, are you ready? Let's get started.

These are the Proverbs of Solomon, the Son of David, and King of Israel. They will help you

learn to be wise, to accept correction, and to understand wise sayings. They will teach you

to develop your mind in the right way. You will learn to do what is right and to be honest

and fair. These Proverbs will make even those without education smart. They will teach young

people what they need to know and how to use what they have learned. Even the wise could

become wiser by listening to these Proverbs. They will gain understanding and learn to

solve difficult problems. These sayings will help you understand Proverbs, stories with

hidden meanings, words of the wise, and other difficult sayings. Knowledge begins with fear

and respect for the Lord, but stubborn fools hate wisdom refuse to learn. My Son, listen

to your Father when He corrects you, and don't ignore what your mother teaches you. What

you learn from your parents will bring you honor and respect, like a crown or a gold medal.

My Son, those who love to do wrong will try to trick you. Don't listen to them. They

will say, come with us. Let's hide and beat to death anyone who happens to walk by. We

will swallow them whole as the grave swallows the dying. We will take everything they have

and fill our houses with stolen goods. So join us, and you can share everything we get.

My Son, don't follow them. Don't even take the first step along that path. They run to

do something evil, and they cannot wait to kill someone. You cannot trap birds with a net

if they see you spreading it out, but evil people cannot see the trap they set for themselves.

This is what happens to those who are greedy. Whatever they get destroys them. Listen,

because them is shouting in the streets. She is crying out in the marketplace. She is

calling out where the noisy crowd gathers. Fools, how long will you love being ignorant?

How long will you make fun of wisdom? How long will you hate knowledge? I wanted to tell

you everything I knew and give you all my knowledge, but you didn't listen to my advice

in teaching. I tried to help, but you refused to listen. I offered my hand, but you turned

away from me. You ignored my advice and refused to be corrected. So I will laugh at your troubles

and make fun of you when what you fear happens. Disasters will strike you like a storm. Problems

will pound you like a strong wind. Trouble in misery will weigh you down. Fools will call

for me, but I will not answer. They will look for me, but they will not find me. That is

because they hated knowledge. They refused to fear and respect the Lord. They ignored

my advice and refused to be corrected. They filled their lives with what they wanted.

They went their own way so they will get what they deserve. Fools die because they refuse

to follow wisdom. Their content to follow their foolish ways, and that will destroy them.

But those who listen to me will live in safety and comfort. They will have nothing to fear.

Proverbs chapter 2 My Son, pay attention to what I say. Remember my commands. Listen to

wisdom and do your best to understand. Ask for good judgment. Cry out for understanding.

Look for wisdom like silver. Search for it like hidden treasure. If you do this, you will

understand what it means to respect the Lord, and you will come to know God. The Lord is

the source of wisdom. Knowledge and understanding come from His mouth. He gives good advice to

honest people and shields those who do what is right. He makes sure that people are treated

fairly. He watches over his loyal followers. If you listen to him, you will understand what

is just and fair and how to do what is right. You will gain wisdom and knowledge will bring

you joy. Planning ahead will protect you and understanding will guard you. These will

keep you from following the wrong path and will protect you from those who have evil plans.

Such people have left the straight path and now walk in darkness. They enjoy doing evil

and are happy with the confusion it brings. Their ways are crooked. They lie in cheat.

Wisdom will save you from that other woman, another man's wife who tempts you with sweet words.

She married when she was young, but then she left her husband. She forgot the marriage vows

she made before God. Going into her house leads to death. She will lead you to the grave. All who

enter lose their life and never return. Wisdom will help you follow the example of good people and

stay on the right path. Honest people will live in the land and those who do right will remain

there, but the wicked will be forced to leave. Those who lie and cheat will be thrown out of

the land. Proverbs 3. My Son, do not forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments

for length of days and years of life in peace they will add to you. Do not let kindness and truth

leave you. Bind them around your neck. Write them on the tablet of your heart so you will find

favor and good repute in the sight of God and man. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and

do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths

straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes. Fear the Lord and turn away from evil. It will be

healing to your body and refreshment to your bones. Honor the Lord from your wealth and from the

first of all your produce so your barns will be filled with plenty and your vats will overflow

with new wine. My Son, do not reject the discipline of the Lord or loath his reproof, for whom the

Lord loves, He reproves, even as a Father corrects the Son in whom He delights. How blessed is the man

who finds wisdom and the man who gains understanding? For her profit is better than the profit of silver

and her gain better than fine gold. She is more precious than jewels and nothing you desire compares

with her. Long life is in her right hand. In her left hand are riches and honor. Her ways are

pleasant ways and all her paths are peace. She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her

and happy are all who hold her fast. The Lord by wisdom founded the earth by understanding he

established the heavens. By His knowledge the deeps were broken up and the skies dripped with

you. My Son, let them not vanish from your sight. Keep sound wisdom and discretion so they will be

life to your soul and adornment to your neck. Then you will walk in your way securely and your foot

will not stumble. When you lie down you will not be afraid. When you lie down your sleep will be sweet.

Do not be afraid of sudden fear nor of the onslaught of the wicked when it comes. For the

Lord will be your confidence and will keep your foot from being caught. Do not withhold good from

those to whom it is due when it is in your power to do it. Do not say to your neighbor go and come

back and tomorrow I will give it when you have it with you. Do not devise harm against your neighbor

while he lives securely beside you. Do not contend with a man without cause if he is done you know

harm. Do not envy a man of violence and do not chase any of his ways. For the devious are in

abomination to the Lord but he is intimate with the upright. The curse of the Lord is on the house

of the wicked but he blesses the dwelling of the righteous. Though he scoffs at the scoffers yet he

gives grace to the afflicted. The wise will inherit honor but fools display dishonor.

Much of the teaching in chapter 2 and actually most of the book is directed at one of Solomon's

sons so the teaching is especially applicable to a young person just starting out in life but really

the lessons as noted earlier are good for everyone. Now Proverbs 3-5 says,

trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. Let's talk about

that a little bit. Here's a guy Solomon who could very easily be tempted to lean on his own

understanding if ever there was one like that being as wise as he was being given wisdom by God

himself. But Solomon had evidently learned that it's better to trust in the Lord with all your

heart than to lean on your own understanding. Let's face it, sometimes it is so hard to trust God

with our whole heart, right? Sometimes the bills pile up and we don't see any way out. Sometimes

we're misunderstood or mistreated. Tragedy strikes us or our family. We lose our job. Bad things

happen even to good people. And sometimes we look up and say, God, are you there? Do you see what

I'm going through? Why don't you help me? I need you now. And sometimes it seems as though our

prayers aren't heard. It seems as if God has just turned a deaf ear. Beloved, those are the times

when we tend to lean on our own understanding, right? We take the wheel. After all, something's

got to be done. We've all been through times like that, haven't we? But it's when life gets

hard that God is giving us an opportunity to grow. Hang in there. Remember the promises of God.

They don't change. And he never fails. Never. Even in the darkest times of my son's illness

several years ago, the lovely lady Leanna Knight never gave up on God. And slowly but surely,

Stephen recovered. And at every turn we prayed and we praised. Now, I don't know what you're going

through right now, and I don't know what God's plan is for you. But I do know that trusting in him

with all your heart is infinitely better than leaning on your own understanding.

Well, beloved, how are you doing on the leaning knot on your own understanding front? Is there an

area in your life where this is particularly hard? Tell me about it. Call the Life Spring Family

Hotline at plus one nine five one seven three two eighty five eleven or comment via boostagram.

You can also go to comment.lifespringmedia.com or you can email me at steveatlifespringmedia.com.

I do read every comment and I just might play your audio comment or read your comment on the show.

Let me hear from you tomorrow. We'll be prophecy Friday and we'll read the book of Lamentations.

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