Wednesday May 21, 2003

~ Words of wisdom ~

   The words of the wise are like goads, their collected sayings firmly embedded nails – given by one Shepherd. Be warned, my son, of anything in addition to them.
   Of making many books there is no end, and much study wearies the body.

Now all has been heard;
   here is the conclusion of the matter:
Fear God and keep his commandments,
   for this is the whole duty of man.
For God will bring every deed into judgement,
   including every hidden thing,
   whether it is good or evil.

— Ecclesiastes 12:11-14 (NIV) —

   There are many who say they seek out wisdom or truth, but how many seek out goads? Goads are the ancient day version of a cattle prod. They were usually sticks with sharp points on them to keep cattle and other animals moving in the right direction. How many of us would like a cattle prod applied to us? *ZAP* to the rear? I’d say that we’d be inclined to avoid the cattle prod like the plague. But read a bit further and we find that words of wisdom only come from one source, our Shepherd. I don’t think it could refer to any one other than Jesus himself. So the words of Jesus should guide us along our path.
  
   Not only are they what keeps us on the right path, they are the only thing that can do so. Anything in addition to them are suspect. That means the words I speak are suspect. The only thing real, without a doubt, is the Word of God himself. There will always be more books being written, more knowledge to shift through… but there seems to be no point in collecting all the knowledge and reading all these books… The only thing consistent is the wisdom of God.
  
   Finally the conclusion of the entire book of “Meaningless!” Fear (read respect) God and obey the word of God. Realize that all things will come to light… and that the purpose of man (or woman) is to obey God in all things, regardless of whether it is in the full light of day, or in the shadows of night, whether you are by yourself and no one is looking, or everyone is watching… Keep your eyes upon the judgement, where God will reveal what each of us has done, both publicly and secretly. All our defenses will be stripped away and there will be nothing hiding, from the depths of our black hearts, to the sins lurking within our minds… there will be nothing left to hide behind. What will we do then?
  
   Father God, thank you for the prods of wisdom… usually annoying, sometimes convicting, and always right. Keep us in Your paths, Lord. May we be careful of the spiritual food we eat and may we know the difference between poison and good spiritual food. Thank you, Jesus for comming and dying for me, a sinner before I knew you you and a sinner still. Thank you for dying for me, for a person without hope, except in you. May Your wisdom keep this truth close to my heart and teach me to show the grace that you showed to me, when you came here and died for me. I pray all this in Jesus name, Amen.