The way of a fool is right in his own eyes,
Proverbs 12:15
but a wise man is he who listens to counsel.
Yesterday we took a look at the wrong list that a fool keeps in his or her box. We discovered that this lengthy list was found in just one chapter of Proverbs, chapter ten, and it contained a host of foolish and wicked and perverse thoughts, words and behaviors that God despises. There are many more ungodly traits given in Proverbs which we could add to this wrong list, but that would take more than a short devotional blog can hold.
What we can do for today’s devotional is notice from our key verse that the fool actually believes that this wrong list of opposing God’s righteousness, is right: at least in their own eyes. I guess we should add that trait of backward thinking to the wrong list. Fools stubbornly keep the wrong list, which they think is right, safely tucked away in their box. They thrive in the wrong list but they don’t believe it is wrong. I know, it gets confusing! And that is exactly what fools propagate: confusion and chaos!
I do not want to live in confusion and chaos and my guess is you don’t either! So, we need to find a new list…the truly right list! It won’t be hard to find. The truly right list is threaded throughout Proverbs giving the distinct contrast between right vs. wrong and wise vs. fool. Again, this would be a super-duper long list if we documented every verse in Proverbs about righteousness and godliness. But we will gather a good sample, and, again using just one chapter, twelve, from the New Living Translation.
v.1>The godly understand we learn through discipline.
v.2>God approves of those who are good.
v.3>The godly have deep roots of stability.
v.5>The plans of the godly are just.
v.6>Words of the godly save lives.
v.7>Family of the godly stands firm.
v.8>Sensible people receive admiration.
v.10>Godly people care for their animals.
v.11,14 >Hard workers have plenty of food.
v.12>The godly bear their own fruit.
v.13>The godly are not trapped by their words.
v.14>Wise words brings benefits.
v.15>The wise listen to others.
v.16>The wise stay calm when insulted.
v.17>An honest person tells the truth.
v.18>Words of the wise brings healing.
v.19>Truthful words stand the test of time.
v.20>Those who plan peace bring joy to others.
v.21>The godly are not harmed.
v.22>God delights in those who tell the truth.
v.23>The wise do not show off their knowledge.
v.24>Those who work hard will become leaders.
v.25>Those who use encouraging words cheer others.
v.26>The godly give good advice to their friends.
v.27>The diligent make use of every resource.
v.28>The way of the godly leads to life.
Jesus said…
Matthew 7:24-27 [NLT]
Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won’t collapse because it is built on bedrock. But anyone who hears my teaching and doesn’t obey it is foolish, like a person who builds a house on sand. When the rains and floods come and the winds beat against that house, it will collapse with a mighty crash.
Let’s keep the right list, from both the Old and New Testaments, in our boxes and keep our house built on the rock of Jesus’ Good News!
31 Days in Proverbs 