God Has the Final Say

The Way of the Wicked

Proverbs 15:9 ESV

 

“The way of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord,

    but he loves him who pursues righteousness.”

 

The wicked are those who make it their practice to do evil, to sin against God. They are not just those who make no profession of faith in Jesus Christ, but they include many who profess Jesus as Lord and as Savior. For, not everyone who confesses Jesus as Lord with his lips truly believes in Jesus in his heart. For, true faith in Jesus results in dying with Christ to sin and living to Christ and to his righteousness.

 

The way of the wicked is the way of sin. It is the path of those who live for themselves and not for God, who make sin their practice, and who do not practice righteousness. Although they may profess faith in Jesus Christ, they do not honor him as Lord of their lives, but they continue on in their sin, and they live their lives the way they want, for self-pleasure, and for self-gratification, and in self-indulgence, and not for the Lord.

 

And this is why the way of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord because they despise the commands of God (New Covenant), and they make up their own rules, according to their ways, and not according to God and his ways. For, although God has made himself plain to them, by their unrighteousness they suppress the truth, and they do not honor the Lord as God. And they worship the creation rather than the creator. So they are without excuse.

 

[Rom 1:18-32; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-17; Eph 4:17-24; Matt 7:21-23]

 

There is Severe Discipline

Proverbs 15:10-11 ESV

 

“There is severe discipline for him who forsakes the way;

    whoever hates reproof will die.

Sheol and Abaddon lie open before the Lord;

    how much more the hearts of the children of man!”

 

The Scriptures are very clear on this subject, and this applies to everyone who makes sin his practice and who does not practice righteousness. If we walk in darkness but we claim that we are in fellowship with God, we lie, and we do not live by the truth. If we claim to know Jesus Christ, but we do not keep (obey) his commands, we lie, and the truth is not in us. So, if sin is what we practice, and we do not practice righteousness, we are not of God.

 

Also, if we sow to please the flesh, from the flesh we will reap destruction. But if we sow to please the Spirit, from the Spirit we will reap eternal life. If we walk (in conduct, in practice) according to the flesh, and not according to the Spirit, and if sin is what we practice, we will die in our sins. We will not have eternal life with God no matter what we confess with our lips or think that we believe in our hearts.

 

[1 Jn 1:5-9; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Jn 3:4-10; Gal 5:16-21; Gal 6:7-8; Rom 8:1-17]

 

Those Who Seek Knowledge

Proverbs 15:14,19,26 ESV

 

“The heart of him who has understanding seeks knowledge,

    but the mouths of fools feed on folly.

The way of a sluggard is like a hedge of thorns,

    but the path of the upright is a level highway.

The thoughts of the wicked are an abomination to the Lord,

    but gracious words are pure.”

 

There are many professers of faith in Jesus Christ who are greatly lacking in spiritual understanding and godly wisdom, even though they may seek some knowledge. And this is because they feed on folly and not on godly wisdom. They are spiritually lazy, who go with what’s easy, because the Christian life that the Scriptures teach is too hard for them. And so they just go back to what feels good, and they continue to follow the flesh and not the Spirit.

 

There is a difference between seeking knowledge just so you know stuff and just so you can look smart and/or spiritual because you can rattle off a bunch of stuff you know, and that of seeking knowledge so that you can actually learn something which can be applied to your life. So, not everyone who seeks knowledge has a heart of understanding. It all depends on what we do with the knowledge that we attain if we have understanding or not.

 

Those who are truly walking with the Lord are not spiritually lazy. It doesn’t mean that they are perfect, but that they are dedicated to the Lord and to his service and to walking in his ways and in his truth. Their desire is for him to do his will, and they will stay the course, even when the road gets harder, because they love the Lord, and they want to please him, and they want to be used of him in the lives of others.

 

The Fear of The Lord

Proverbs 15:12,31-33 ESV

 

“A scoffer does not like to be reproved;

    he will not go to the wise.

The ear that listens to life-giving reproof

    will dwell among the wise.

Whoever ignores instruction despises himself,

    but he who listens to reproof gains intelligence.

The fear of the Lord is instruction in wisdom,

    and humility comes before honor.”

 

I think that most people don’t enjoy being reproved. I mean it is not a pleasant experience for most of us, I would imagine. The Scriptures even talk about the Lord’s discipline being painful. So, it is okay if you feel pain when you are reproved. You don’t have to feel guilty about feeling pain. But what this is talking about is those who resist being reproved, who scoff at it, who reject it, and who may even fight back against it.

 

So, those who are not willing to be reproved, when necessary, and when based on truth, and not on lies, they will not seek out godly counsel. Or if they do, and they don’t like the counsel, they will reject it, and they may even fight against it, and they may even verbally attack the one from whom they asked for counsel. And they will attack as a way to get even and also to try to silence the one giving the counsel.

 

Now, not all counsel is good. Not all counsel is godly, even if it comes from a pastor or a Bible teacher or an elder in the church. So, we can reject counsel that is ungodly, that is not biblical. That doesn’t make you a bad person. But be sure the counsel does not agree with the Scriptures before you just cast it off. Test what you are being told against the Scriptures, in context, so that you don’t end up quenching the Spirit by refusing good counsel.

 

But if the counsel is godly, and if it is biblical, and if the person giving you the counsel is leading you in the way of biblical truth and righteousness and holiness, then you should give the person’s counsel to you serious consideration, in prayer before the Lord, seeking the counsel of God as to what He wants you to do with it and how you are to proceed. For the Lord should always have the final word in this. His counsel trumps all!

 

All I Ask of You

 

by Andrew Lloyd Webber

 

No more talk of darkness,

Forget these wide-eyed fears;

I'm here, nothing can harm you,

My words will warm and calm you.

Let me be your freedom,

Let daylight dry your tears;

I'm here, with you, beside you,

To guard you and to guide you.

 

Let me be your shelter,

Let me be your light…

 

Love me, that's all I ask of you

 

The above lyrics are taken from a secular song, “All I Ask of You,” but these quoted lyrics express God’s words to us, that we would let him be our freedom, that we would let him shelter us and be our light, and that we would find our hope, and our peace and safety in him and not in the things of this dark world. All he asks of us is that we love him, which means we submit to him as Lord, and we obey his commands.