Posted on 06/26/2021 4:23:36 AM PDT by Pilgrim's Progress
“Seest thou a man wise in his own conceit? there is more hope of a fool than of him” (Proverbs 26:12).
So, as bad as the fool is; and we've seen that over the previous 11 verses, in verse 12 we see that a man full of conceit can be worse. We are told that there is “more hope of a fool than of him.” A man who is wise in his own conceit thinks he's better looking than just about anybody else in the world, he thinks that he is more talented, and that he is smarter than just about anybody else in the universe. This guy has a serious problem.
“Though thou shouldest bray a fool in a mortar among wheat with a pestle, yet will not his foolishness depart from him” (Proverbs 27:22).
Now, this one of those verses where you need some of the words explained. Braying is not what a donkey does. In this case, braying is taking grain and crushing it. The mortar is a little flat rock that's kind of in the shape of a bowl, that you put the grain in, and then you take a pestle and you crush the grain in it, throw it up in the air, and the hull is blown away and you're left with grain. Then you can grind that grain down into flour. He says, “though thou shouldest bray a fool,” so, there comes a point where the fool can be literally put through the ringer, and ground down by life and judgment, and he still just a fool.
Now, we have access to the word of God, the oil of gladness, poured over us all the time. If the average believer in America doesn't avail himself of it anymore, by God’s grace you do.
“As the bird by wandering, as the swallow by flying, so the curse causeless shall not come” (Proverbs 26:2 KJV).
Do you know where the bird goes? It goes where God tells him to go. He doesn't go anywhere without a cause. Well, the curse doesn't come on you without a cause, see, “the curse causeless shall not come.” People say, “Why did that happen to me?” Well, you deserved it.
Now, I realize that in the case of a Christian, you are talking about a situation where it could have been the devil, but there again there is a cause for it, “all that live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.” So, it’s a good cause and you should have expected it. And you don’t need to ask why that happened to you—if you are living godly.
Here are passages that deal with curses in the Bible.
“How shall I curse, whom God hath not cursed? or how shall I defy, whom the LORD hath not defied?” (Numbers 23:8).
Deuteronomy 27:15-26 is the whole package on curses. See, a curse will not come without a cause.
Galatians 3:13, that's where Christ is made a curse for you. You are cursed because of sin. You are not going to go to hell causeless. A person goes to hell for a good cause. A curse is on him.
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4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.
3 And did all eat the same spiritual meat;
4 And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.
11 Give us this day our daily bread.
If we need physical bread daily, then what about spiritual meat - doesn’t that also imply a daily need to read the word of God?
15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
16 But shun profane and vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness.
17 And their word will eat as doth a canker: of whom is Hymenaeus and Philetus;
Yes, STUDY!!! Or at least read. :-)
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