Wisdom for the Ages: Love God’s Wisdom. Message Magazine’s Online Devotional for Monday, February 12, 2018
Listen to “Thoughts in Worship 02.12.2018” on Spreaker.
“To deliver thee from the strange woman, Even from the stranger which flattereth with her words; Which forsaketh the guide of her youth, And forgetteth the covenant of her God. For her house inclineth unto death, And her paths unto the dead. None that go unto her return again, Neither take they hold of the paths of life. That thou mayest walk in the way of good men, And keep the paths of the righteous. For the upright shall dwell in the land, And the perfect shall remain in it. But the wicked shall be cut off from the earth, And the transgressors shall be rooted out of it.” (Proverbs 2:16–22)
Refresher Needed
This is one of the few times in our devotional thoughts where you absolutely need to read preceding posts. Please read or listen to the last two devotional thoughts for context.
Now back to our regularly scheduled program.
If you wish to be safe from over-sexualized women, learn to love God, His wisdom, and His knowledge. I will admit that I am taking today’s passage at face value, to begin with.
Solomon was an unfortunate expert on this subject. He had too many woman. They worshipped many false gods. To say that this caused God’s man a world of hurt and trouble, is an understatement.
Too Hot
However, there is so much more to this than meets the eye. Obviously countless people around the world find adultery enticing. Depending upon the context and what is at stake, most will admit that it’s wrong. When the thrill of the chase, forbidden liaisons, covert meetings and messages all wear off, or are exposed, that which was thrilling becomes shameful. Families, governments, companies, and all sorts of people and groups suffer beneath the burden of promiscuity. The healthcare system is overwhelmed in some parts of the world because some of us are too free with our sexual behavior.
What if there are spiritual implications in the text, beyond those that are of an overtly sexual nature, which is serious enough?
Symbolic Faithful and Unfaithful Women
The Bible contains plenty of examples of God using the pure woman as a symbol of His people in a dedicated relationship with Him. He gave all so she could respond to His love with spiritual fidelity. She would have no other gods before Him.
Unfortunately, there are tons of examples of loose women in Scripture. They represent God’s people who have gone astray, and been ravaged in the arms of human devising and false worship.
We see this clearly illustrated in Hosea 3, Jeremiah 3, Ezekiel 16, and in God’s final message to humankind – the book of Revelation. In Revelation 17, the false church feins royalty, majesty, and the priesthood, but denies the law of God, and seeks to replace God. She’s a blasphemer. She attempts to force people to disrespect the character and eternal government of God (Read more about her in Revelation 13).
Wisdom’s Inspiration
My point is this, Solomon, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, has used a familiar concept, sexual indiscretion, to guide our minds to a higher principle, fidelity toward God in all things.
As we prepare to meet King Jesus when He returns, it is our privilege and need to welcome His wisdom and instruction. If we wish to avoid the blasphemous false religion of the last days, which attempts to subvert the Scriptures, we must submit our wills, intellect, and understanding to God so we can walk in the paths of righteousness.
God is preparing a place for all who love Him to live eternally. He is looking forward to having unbroken relationship with us wherein sin will never arise again. This is possible only for those who embrace God, His wisdom, and His knowledge, as He guides us in paths of righteousness through His Holy Word until Jesus comes.
A word to the foolish is wasteful. A word to the wise is sufficient.
