Never rashly presume things to be holy especially when making vows in marriage

It is a snare to say rashly, “It is holy,” and to reflect only after making vows. (Proverbs 20:25)

There are people at times who rush into getting married. These rashly say they are doing what is holy since they love their soon-to-be spouse and their soon-to-be spouse loves them. And five years post marriage, there are arguments in their marriage, with the eventual divorce.

These never checked each others temperament nor adaptability before marriage. They just only “saw” love but didn’t both to check the truth. I mean the truth about being long term, even till death do them apart upon getting married. These are the one’s who make their wedding vows first and only few years later reflect if they made the right decision. “A few years later”, yes that’s correct.

Instead of checking things out before marriage they only do their assessment of marriage much later. Now not every divorce happens due to rash decisions going into marriage, there could be other things which might have not been possible to detect earlier, but I do hope you get the idea that faulty plans can get into faulty marriages.

Yet, if these couples who are thinking of divorce get Bible based counsel or just pray with sincerity to the Lord God they can save their marriages from ending into disaster.

Now, the Biblical warning mentioned above in Proverbs 20:25 is not limited to marriage vows. It can be your business decisions, various types of contracts, friendship agreements and anything that involves taking oaths, including taking the oath of speaking the truth in the court of law.

Be wise everywhere for the glory of God!

Indeed true

Proverbs 17

17 Better is a dry morsel with quiet
    than a house full of feasting with strife.
² A servant who deals wisely will rule over a son who acts shamefully
    and will share the inheritance as one of the brothers.
³ The crucible is for silver, and the furnace is for gold,
    and the Lord tests hearts.
⁴ An evildoer listens to wicked lips,
    and a liar gives ear to a mischievous tongue.
⁵ Whoever mocks the poor insults his Maker;
    he who is glad at calamity will not go unpunished.
⁶ Grandchildren are the crown of the aged,
    and the glory of children is their fathers.
⁷ Fine speech is not becoming to a fool;
    still less is false speech to a prince.
⁸ A bribe is like a magic stone in the eyes of the one who gives it;
    wherever he turns he prospers.
⁹ Whoever covers an offense seeks love,
    but he who repeats a matter separates close friends.
¹⁰ A rebuke goes deeper into a man of understanding
    than a hundred blows into a fool.
¹¹ An evil man seeks only rebellion,
    and a cruel messenger will be sent against him.
¹² Let a man meet a she-bear robbed of her cubs
    rather than a fool in his folly.
¹³ If anyone returns evil for good,
    evil will not depart from his house.
¹⁴ The beginning of strife is like letting out water,
    so quit before the quarrel breaks out.
¹⁵ He who justifies the wicked and he who condemns the righteous
    are both alike an abomination to the Lord.
¹⁶ Why should a fool have money in his hand to buy wisdom
    when he has no sense?
¹⁷ A friend loves at all times,
    and a brother is born for adversity.
¹⁸ One who lacks sense gives a pledge
    and puts up security in the presence of his neighbor.
¹⁹ Whoever loves transgression loves strife;
    he who makes his door high seeks destruction.
²⁰ A man of crooked heart does not discover good,
    and one with a dishonest tongue falls into calamity.
²¹ He who sires a fool gets himself sorrow,
    and the father of a fool has no joy.
²² A joyful heart is good medicine,
    but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.
²³ The wicked accepts a bribe in secret
    to pervert the ways of justice.
²⁴ The discerning sets his face toward wisdom,
    but the eyes of a fool are on the ends of the earth.
²⁵ A foolish son is a grief to his father
    and bitterness to her who bore him.
²⁶ To impose a fine on a righteous man is not good,
    nor to strike the noble for their uprightness.
²⁷ Whoever restrains his words has knowledge,
    and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding.
²⁸ Even a fool who keeps silent is considered wise;
    when he closes his lips, he is deemed intelligent

Know wisdom by reading God’s Word

To know the wisdom of God for your life you don’t always need to wait for an emotional event with some grand piano music playing around. Nor does it always have to be mysterious nor mystical. You can pray that you get the wisdom of God. And then do the simplest thing to receive his wisdom; READ THE HOLY BIBLE.

For this commandment that I command you today is not too hard for you, neither is it far off.  It is not in heaven, that you should say, ‘Who will ascend to heaven for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say, ‘Who will go over the sea for us and bring it to us, that we may hear it and do it?’ But the word is very near you. It is in your mouth and in your heart, so that you can do it. (Deuteronomy 30:11-14)

There are people who can prophesy the words of God to you in true holiness. Then there are people who have studied the Bible and can so remind you of God’s words as per your situation. But what do you do when you don’t have such blessed people around you? No need to fear, just open up your Bible and read it.

In the Bible you can refer to the Gospel for your salvation. About the end times you can refer to the various books of the prophets such as Daniel, Ezekiel etc and also the Book of Revelation. For reflection and comfort in God you can always read the Psalms. To get instructions on wise conduct you can read the books of wisdom such Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. All these books are in the Bible. Don’t stop at them, there’s a lot of other books and verses in the Bible that you can read to get inspiration, knowledge, testimonies, protection, counsel that the Lord God has desired for you to receive since the creation of time.

Guard your heart

One must always guard one’s own heart because once your heart it influenced you will surely start acting out as per your own intentions. It is silly to blame only the devil for all the bad things that happen in the world. People also sin because they choose to do from their own heart.

A serial killer, allows thoughts of murder in his heart on a great level, which then lead him to commit murder. He had a choice to not allow murderous thoughts but he let it be otherwise. No wonder his sin is upon him.

No adulterer can say that they had absolutely no lustful thoughts before getting into the vile sin of adultery. As much as they were aware of their marriage vows so also in that measure were they aware that thoughts of lust and immorality are entering their heart. They had their choice to say no but simply bypassed that. That is why they are in sin.

Christian martyrs (God bless them) chose to let only thoughts of faithfulness to Jesus be in them. That is why even in the face of imminent death they chose to keep their faith in Jesus and die for him rather than reject him. That is why they are worthy disciples of Jesus.

Do have good and holy thoughts that lead you to all actions that glorify God. The more you allow thoughts that are worthy, the better will your walk of faith be in Jesus. Avoid giving your heart to silly and vulgar jokes, immoral forms of entertainment, worthless books and novels, hate promoting songs, this list could go on and on but I do hope that you got my point.

Here are a few scriptures that you could reflect on:

Proverbs 4:23 Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.

Matthew 12:34 You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.

Matthew 15:18-19 But the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart, and these defile them. For out of the heart come evil thoughts–murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander.

Mark 7:21 For it is from within, out of a person’s heart, that evil thoughts come–sexual immorality, theft, murder,

Luke 6:45 A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.

Deuteronomy 4:9 Only be careful, and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them fade from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and to their children after them.

2 Kings 10:31 Yet Jehu was not careful to keep the law of the LORD, the God of Israel, with all his heart. He did not turn away from the sins of Jeroboam, which he had caused Israel to commit.

Proverbs 23:19 Listen, my son, and be wise, and set your heart on the right path:

Deuteronomy 4:9 Only take heed to yourself, and keep your soul diligently, lest you forget the things which your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart all the days of your life: but teach them to your sons, and your sons’ sons;

Mark 14:38 Watch ye, and pray that you enter not into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.

1 Peter 5:8 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:

Related articles

• “a Lamp to my feet. a Light for my path.” – Mark 7:20-23
• Which of the moral rules in the Old Testament are still binding on Christians?
• What defiles?
• Foundational Keys to Overcoming Lust
• Do Not Go Near The Door
• The lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life – is not of the Father but is of the world
• Gluttony and the Bible
• Introduction to Biblical Counseling, Week Four: The Heart
• Say “No” to Adultery!

Live smart

The person who believes in Christ is called to be smart. Obviously, there is a lot of emphasis in the Bible on being truly smart. In the language of the holy writ they use the word wise rather than smart but it means the same thing.

God’s wisdom calls out to everyone to leave being simple and start to be wise. Read Proverbs 1:20-22 – Wisdom cries without; she utters her voice in the streets: the cries in the chief place of concourse, in the openings of the gates: in the city she utters her words, saying, How long, you simple ones, will you love simplicity? and the scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge? …

Again in Proverbs 8:1 – Doesn’t wisdom cry out? Doesn’t understanding raise her voice?

We do hear a lot of people use the term ‘common sense’ whenever they speak or rather give advice to their teenagers and servants too. It’s just that they expect people to do something wise which is so clear and should be quite common to any wise person.

A smart person takes time to get knowledge even if it means to hear someone out. Here we go:

• Proverbs 18:15 – An intelligent heart acquires knowledge, and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge.
• Proverbs 19:20 – Listen to advice and accept instruction, that you may gain wisdom in the future.

Some caution however is to be exercised in classifying anything as true wisdom. Yes, I mean just because you want to enjoy a good time at a luxury resort, you don’t take in bribes though you might be told by someone who says its good money. Not everyone is capable of giving you wisdom. Just imagine a person took a bribe and got caught, would he even be able to enjoy in the resort or would he spend time in jail.

So the hallmark of wisdom is that it gives freedom and won’t land you in trouble. In fact a good part of wisdom is just staying out of trouble, that too undue trouble. A few verses on that:

• Proverbs 24:3-7 – By wisdom a house is built, and by understanding it is established; by knowledge the rooms are filled with all precious and pleasant riches. A wise man is full of strength, and a man of knowledge enhances his might, for by wise guidance you can wage your war, and in abundance of counselors there is victory. Wisdom is too high for a fool; in the gate he does not open his mouth.
• Proverbs 21:20 – Precious treasure and oil are in a wise man’s dwelling, but a foolish man devours it.
• Proverbs 10:8 – The wise of heart will receive commandments, but a babbling fool will come to ruin.
• Proverbs 15:22 – Without counsel plans fail, but with many advisers they succeed.

Now true wisdom comes from the Lord God who obviously made wisdom. Believe me the Lord gives wisdom too. You don’t need to spend like 25 years on top of a mountain to get wisdom. You instead need to get it from the Lord who gives it freely. The best place to get it is from the Bible. There is much you can learn.

• 2 Timothy 3:16-17 – All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.
• Proverbs 13:14-16 – The teaching of the wise is a fountain of life, that one may turn away from the snares of death. Good sense wins favor, but the way of the treacherous is their ruin. In everything the prudent acts with knowledge, but a fool flaunts his folly.

The words of Jesus are wisdom and benefit those who follow it but at the same time those who reject his words find themselves in trouble. Jesus himself said, “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.” (Matthew 7:24-27)

I would therefore like that every person who stands up for God, stands up in wisdom. Getting wisdom is like getting a blessing. Like in Proverbs 3:13-26 it says, Blessed is the one who finds wisdom, and the one who gets understanding, for the gain from her is better than gain from silver and her profit better than gold. She is more precious than jewels, and nothing you desire can compare with her. Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor. Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace. …

Keep yourself away from things that are not wisdom like I said earlier. See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ (Colossians 2:8).

Keeping the wisdom of Christ and not of the world is good combination indeed for you can’t walk to the right and to the left at the same time otherwise at sometime a breaking point will appear which might not be so nice. Also concentrating only on true wisdom helps you to utilize your resources more efficiently in the right direction.

Be smart, be blessed.

 

 

Related articles

• How do you read the Book of Proverbs? (tentmaker.co.uk)
• Wisdom of Man Pt. 1 (isaacsotero.wordpress.com)
• Why Should I Read My Bible? (biblebelievernet.com)
• Wisdom…Where Does It Begin? (promisebook.net)