“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16: 11) Growing Dominion, Part 60 “He that gathereth in summer is a wise son: but he that sleepeth in harvest is a son that causeth shame” (Prov. 10:5). In Scripture business is closely related to family. But this is not a ancient truth, relevant …
A Slow Burn
It takes wisdom to understand the origins of strife. The Scriptures tell us that one source of strife is anger. “A wrathful man stirreth up strife: but he that is slow to anger appeaseth strife” (Prov. 15:18). But often this is missed because the one who vents his anger succeeds in browbeating people into a …
Proverbs and Beyond
“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16: 11) Growing Dominion, Part 59 We have already addressed the fact that Proverbs is full of generalizations, and the fact that they are generally true. We also have to reckon with the fact that the substance of some of these generalizations is repeated over …
Ceasing From Strife
We learn from Proverbs that it is an honor for a man to cease from strife (Prov. 20:3). This is one of many examples in Scripture that show how the wisdom of God is 180 degrees out from the wisdom of man. In how many fruitless quarrels have participants refused to back down from the …
Jumping to Conclusions
We all understand what the phrase “jumping to conclusions” means. But we sometimes do not appreciate what the alternative–reserving judgment–actually means. As we live together in covenant community, it is essential that we master the art of “not jumping,” even if the conclusion looks to us like a safe landing place. This is particularly the …
Faithfulness Covers
As we labor to learn how to speak as Christians, we have to take care to learn our lessons from Scripture. This is because sin is always defined by God, and not by our own instincts. We must always define sins of the tongue according to the Word. Scripture says that a “talebearer revealeth secrets: …
Proverbial Generalizations
“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16: 11) Growing Dominion, Part 58 The book of Proverbs is filled with a number of divinely inspired generalizations. This means that it contains true statements that describe how God generally governs the world. For example, laziness is generally rewarded with lean times, and industry …
Basics
“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16: 11) Growing Dominion, Part 57 We sometimes think we are mature enough to start forgetting our Sunday School lessons. But we never outgrow certain things, like the fundamental principles of honesty. These are principles which are operative when you are ten-years-old and running your …
Proof-reading Your Life
“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16: 11) Growing Dominion, Part 56 Each of us is telling a story every day, and we are the central character in the story we tell. We tell the story, but many of us do not have the perspective to proof-read our own story, the …
God in Battles
The Lord Jesus taught us to be confident in God when He said that not a sparrow falls to the ground apart from the will of the Father. God’s sovereignty is not concerned with generalities—for example, He does not look at a battle from a middle distance, determining only the large issues, such as which …