Obedience and Scripture

"Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath" (Jas. 1:19). "A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and a man of understanding shall attain unto wise counsels" (Prov. 1:5). "Take fast hold of instruction; let her not go: keep her; for she is thy life" (Prov. 4:13). "Bow down thine ear, and hear the words of the wise, and apply thine heart unto my knowledge" (Prov. 22:17). "A reproof entereth more into a wise man than an hundred stripes into a fool" (Prov. 17:10). "For the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are the way of life" (Prov. 6:23). That should be a sufficient amount of agreeing scripture to make a simplistic and valuable point today. The reason that a whole lot of folks are void of divine understanding and power is because they instinctively do NOT adhere to the rules of these scriptures that I've posted from the Bible. A WHOLE lot of people are "ever learning, and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth;" because they are talking when they should be listening, and trying to teach when they should be learning. Oh yeah, and they just can't take anything that is against their grain, as in "reproofs of instruction," as copied above. It's a simple matter of pride, and nothing else really; as the scripture also attests to: "Only by pride cometh contention: but with the well advised is wisdom" (Prov. 13:10). One of the main elements of pride that keeps God's people and other people as well from learning truth and gaining faith and power with God; is the notion of, "If I don't know or have it, then I sure as heck am not going to acknowledge that someone else does." You cut yourself off from blessing from God with that stance, because you will miss out on something that God has sent your way for your good. I see it all the time, people just don't want to believe that someone has understood or experienced what they themselves have not. Don't get me wrong now, PLENTY of people are willing to receive FALSE things from others, as the apostle Paul noted in his day: "For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ... For ye suffer [receive] fools gladly, seeing ye yourselves are wise. For ye suffer [allow], if a man bring you into bondage, if a man devour you, if a man take of you, if a man exalt himself, if a man smite you on the face" (II Cor. 13:19,20).

It's the age old nemesis of man being his own worst enemy, which is so well quoted from an old Simon and Garfunkel song that I reference often: "A man hears what he WANTS to hear, and disregards the rest." The reason for this malady of mankind is very simple, as is all truth and reality: There is always a cost in receiving something from God, but the deception of receiving false things is one of gain only. "BUY the truth, and sell it not; also wisdom, and instruction, and understanding" (Prov. 23:23). "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold ALL that he had, and BOUGHT it" (Mat. 13:45,46). "But what things were gain to me, those I counted LOSS for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ" (Philip. 3:7,8). See what I mean? Yes friend, it is pride that isn't willing to suffer loss and acknowledge the value of what God has given to someone else to bless THEM with. And it is the same pride that is MORE than willing to allow someone who is NOT following after the Spirit of God to impart spiritual garbage unto them so that they can thereby make a compromise with their conscience. This mindset among God's people has brought graphic fulfillment to the wise observation of Solomon: "I have seen servants upon horses, and princes walking as servants upon the earth" (Eccl. 10:7). Those who minister falsehood have always been seen by God's people of their day as the big guns, while the great people of the Bible that we read about were disesteemed, alone, persecuted, killed and the like by those who were bound and determined to "hear what [they] wanted to hear, and [to] disregard the rest." By the way, "the rest" in that equation just happens to be what God sent to them by his servants for their good and their hope's sake; which good and hope has always been overwhelmingly rejected by God's people. You don't believe me? Start reading the Bible, it's all there in living color. You think something has changed? Think again my friend. Don't let pride rob you of anything that God would like to add to your faith and knowledge of him, for we are all in need (Mat. 5:3). Amen.