Spiritfire- Proverbs 22:11, “My friend, the King”

“He who loves a pure heart and whose speech is gracious
     will have the king for his friend.”
 
We live in a “Who Do You Know?” kind of world.  The proper connections can open doors to places that would have been closed before.  Gaining entry to such places sometimes requires a bribe, or a secret password.  Nepotism, the right clothes, and the right ethnic background can also gain you access.  For this proverb, we must go straight to the heart.  It must be pure, not fettered with selfishness, nor boastful and filled with brash arrogance.  Having a ‘pure heart’ is mentioned many times throughout Scripture as being one who loves self-sacrificially, 1 Timothy 1:5, and it is a necessity to gain the blessings of God, Psalm 24:4-5.
 
Having gracious speech is not always easy on the road or behind the wheel.  We are more prone to speak out of anger there for the price of foolish driving is too high.  Filling our mouths with wholesome words even for the foolish so that we may be regarded as obedient to Him is an area beyond the ability of many, save One.
 
When I asked my kids “Where is Jesus?”, they said, “He has the purest of hearts and the most kind of words.”  We considered Him who, on the cross, gave us the utmost definition of sacrificial love, and when He could have called down judgement on those who had crucified Him, He beseeched God to forgive them, Luke 23:34.  Jesus fulfilled all of this so that we may take on His righteousness and be made among His friends, the King of kings, John 15:15.

Spiritfire- Proverbs 22:10, “The Mocker’s Arsenal”

“Drive out the mocker, and out goes strife;
     quarrels and insults are ended.”
 
This proverb gives us an understanding of the arsenal the Mocker uses against its victims.  We mentioned before how:  “Mockers stand just off the path to Wisdom’s house, scoffing and casting stones of derision upon those who walk it.  They offer nothing of themselves and only find purpose in assaulting the pilgrims.”  According to this proverb, they also cause the strife of quarrels and insults.  
 
When I asked my kids if they’ve ever felt the sting of the Mocker’s weapons, they said they had.  Mockers, it seemed, also attended their junior high.  They were there leading their little groups, mocking and laughing at kids that were brave enough to try the different activities, often for the first awkward time.  We’ve all been there.  It’s almost as if it was a rite of passage.
 
Then I asked, “Where’s Jesus?”  Since we couldn’t find an example in Scripture of Jesus mocking anyone, we again looked at the reflection and saw Him there.  We restated this proverb according to what we saw:
 
“Invite Jesus into our lives, and in comes life:
    peace with God and blessings will begin.”
 
Again, we were privileged to see how Jesus fulfilled this verse by giving us His peace, John 14:27.  “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid,” KJV.  
 
Invite Jesus into your heart today.  Let His peace unite you with God, and may you be blessed.

Spiritfire- Proverbs 22:7 “The Borrowers”

“The rich rule over the poor,
     and the borrower is servant to the lender.”
 
It was a statement, a definition of how things were.  For my kids, it was a quick summary of the facts of life.  They understood it in terms of ‘owing favors’.  “If you wash the dishes this time, then you get to decide tonight’s movie,” is a common weekend arrangement in our house.  Though this proverb had more to do with social classes and financial hierarchy, I think they got the point.
 
When we looked for Jesus, we saw that He showed us a different Way.  In this world and in many cultures, the rich do rule over the poor, but in the Kingdom of God, Mathew 5:1-12 gives us a different understanding of a different economy.  In His Kingdom, it is not to the rich that inherit anything, but to the poor, humble, and meek who shall inherit the earth.  In His Kingdom, we are all the ‘borrowers’ of Jesus’ righteousness, Romans 3:23.  And though we, like Paul in Romans 1:1, are servants to such a glorious Lender, in His Kingdom, He calls us sons and daughters, 2 Corinthians 6:18.
 
So, suffice to say, yes this Proverb is right.  It is an accurate description of how things work, but Jesus fulfilled that economy on the cross and paid all our debts.  He provided a way for us to be free of its burden- meant to oppress, and He lifts up the downtrodden- meant to bless and reinstate us as citizens of His Kingdom.
 
It’s hard for the rich to even enter His Kingdom, Matthew 19:23.

Spiritfire- Proverbs 22:6 “The Cup of Wrath”

“Train a child in the way he should go,
     and when he is old he will not turn from it.”
 
There were many questions at the beginning of this proverb:  “What does it mean?”, “Is that what Spiritfire is?”, “It says ‘child’ and ‘old’, does that mean ‘middle-aged’ people will leave ‘the way they should go?’”  We spent some time trying to navigate these and others as we examined the seed of wisdom this proverb contained.
 
This proverb has been used over the years to calm the fears of generations of parents who do their best to raise their wayward children ‘in the way’ they should go.  As we have read and witnessed throughout this journey, there are many traps and pitfalls along the paths of this life.  Arming our kids with the discernment they’ll need to traverse these paths is key to gaining wisdom.  The warnings of traveling the path to Folly’s house have been quite clear for those who hear them.  Yes, it is the ‘hope’ and ‘goal’ of Spiritfire to help my children understand the paths, to know where they lead, and to hear what’s been done by Jesus to fulfill them beyond our ability to obey.  This is the Good News Jesus came to give us which makes the ‘old ways’ new, and gives us the hope to be made into new creations according to His work within us, 2 Corinthians 5:17.
 
When we began thinking about Jesus and how He fulfilled this proverb, we saw Him as a youth, Luke 2:40-52.  He was ‘filled with wisdom, and God’s favor was upon Him,’ verse 40.  The explanation Jesus gave to Mary and Joseph mapped out ‘the way He should go’.  It was for Him to be at His Father’s house, the focus, and definition of Wisdom’s house.  This journey led Him to many traps and pitfalls, beginning with Satan’s temptations, Matthew 4:1-11, to His time in the Garden of Gethsemane, Matthew 26:36-56.  We again see Psalm 91:11-12, the very verse Satan used to tempt Jesus with, to show us the battle that was truly being waged, verse. 53.  Though He prayed that this cup of wrath be taken from Him, Matthew 26:39, it was the way in which He was trained to go.  He fulfilled our salvation by not turning from it.

Spiritfire- Proverbs 22:5 “The Cost of the Path of the Wicked”

“In the paths of the wicked lie thorns and snares,
     but he who guards his soul stays far from them.”
 

One can imagine the wicked person barreling down such a path, legs scratched through their hole-torn pants, snagged by the thorns and snares that should hold them back but are disregarded because of the foolishness that drives them on.  Folly’s house is their destination and the stench of death is the mesmerizing aroma that they cannot resist.  This terrible place is where their soul is captured and begins to rot in the blinding darkness of worldly desire.

The righteous person is one who values his soul like a treasure and is repelled by such a path.  Even if they naively wander down this path they quickly turn away at the first prick of the thorns.  Wisdom’s house is their destination and the waft of a blessed life is the captivating aroma that invites them in.  This wonderful place is where their soul is free to thrive.

So, where is Jesus?  Because He is the Righteous One, He saved our souls not by avoiding the path of the wicked but by paying its price and redeeming those at its end!  Its thorns were placed on His head as a crown, and its snares lashed out at His body and tore His innocent flesh.  He cleared the path by taking the sins of the world on His own shoulders, carrying the punishment of death to the place of destruction, and crucifying it with His own body.

Jesus gave us a new path.  It broke the old paths of fear and shame by giving us Himself.  “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life.  No one comes to the Father except through Me.”  (John 14:6).  This path is straight, narrow, and direct to the eternal inheritance that is free to all who confess Him.

-Betsy

Spiritfire- Proverbs 22:4, “Signs, signs, everywhere are signs”

“Humility and the fear of the LORD
     bring wealth and honor and life.”
 
Here we found a road sign on the path to Wisdom’s House.  If you want these three things in life, you will only get them through the narrow gateway of ‘humility and the fear of the LORD’.  Narcissistic and arrogant leaders in the Church and home lead down a different path to a different end.  The gateway they need to use is much too wide.  It has to be for their egos to fit in.  If you don’t enter through the gate of humility and fear, those holy twins, you will never find the right path.  As is typical of the Proverbs, we read of wealth and honor and life as being received in this life much like in Joseph’s after he was made 2nd in control of Egypt, Genesis 41:41.
 
When we looked for Jesus and His fulfillment of this proverb that we may be made into new creations for His kingdom, my daughter saw Him washing His disciples’ feet, John 13.  Here we see the ‘fullest extent of His love’, 13:1.  In Philippians 2:1-11, we see Jesus enter by and fulfill the gate of humility and fear receiving praise and being ‘exalted to the highest place’.  Not only did Jesus fulfill humility and fear (the love of God and others), but He also fulfilled wealth and honor and life by His resurrection, Luke 24.  He awakened us to ‘an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade kept in heaven for us,’ 1 Peter 1:4.  He made us vessels of His righteousness, Romans 3:22.  He welcomes us to life eternal, 2 Peter 1:11.
 
As I looked deeper at the three rewards of this life, I noticed something familiar.  I saw the temptations Satan set before Jesus in Matthew 4:1-11.  The order is switched a little- life, honor, wealth, but it is there.  Unlike Adam and Eve’s failure with the serpent in Genesis 3:1-6, Jesus resolutely stayed at the gateway of humility and fear as is reflected in His answers to Satan.  In this way, we witness exactly how this gateway was first broken and is now fulfilled in Jesus.  Though He was tested in every way, Hebrews 4:15, He knew no sin, 2 Corinthians 5:21.
 
There are many road signs to various destinations of wealth and honor in this life, but only one has been fulfilled for our salvation.  Enter in the narrow gateway, Matthew 7:13-14, and follow His ways to ever more than this world can provide.  For Jesus fulfilled the way to real wealth, honor, and life that we can keep forevermore, John 3:16.

Spiritfire- Proverbs 22:1, “Hello, my name is…”

“A good name is more desirable than great riches;
     to be esteemed is better than silver or gold.”
 
Betsy opened this one with a brief explanation of Caleb. He was a spy sent with 11 others to get intel on Canaan, Numbers 13.  Moses wanted it explored to see what they will be faced with before they make it their home.  Most of the spies’ report said that it was a no-go, verses 26-33.  Caleb, however, gave this report in verse 30, “We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it.”  Because of his favorable response and that of Joshua’s in Numbers 14:6, God showed them favor by allowing them to enter the land they had spied on.  While the naysayers, along with those who should have known better, will die in the wilderness, Numbers 14:26-35.
 
Finding an Old Testament example of one who had great riches but not a good name seemed easy.  There were plenty of examples for both Israel and Judah had a number of wicked kings.  Hezekiah, king of Judah, however, did not start out that way, 2 Kings 18:3.  Perhaps it was the security of his great riches that led him to foolishness in 20:12-15.  For he showed all of them to a sympathetic ear during his time of sickness, who also happened to be the king of Babylon.  The prophet Isaiah told King Hezekiah that because he did that, all of his treasures will be taken by Babylon and some of his descendants will become their eunuchs, verses 17-18.  Instead of repenting and pursuing a good name, King Hezekiah said in 20:19, “The word of the Lord which you have spoken is good.” For he thought, “Is it not good, if [at least] there will be peace and security in my lifetime?” AMP
 
The question I then asked my kids of “Where’s Jesus?” brought complete fulfillment to this proverb.  For though the best we can gain of ourselves is a good name and even great riches, Philippians 2:9-11 says,
 
“Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
and gave him the name that is above every name,
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.”
 
We can gain His ‘Name above every other name’ in our lives by our faith in Him as Lord, John 3:16-21.  If we call on His Name we are saved and included in His Kingdom, Romans 10:13.  We will not be left to die in the wilderness of this life.  Call on His Name, His ear will not betray us, 1 Peter 5:7.  If we repent and believe in Jesus, our old life is gone and we are made new, 2 Corinthians 5:17.  We are even given new names, Revelation 2:17.  The riches in Jesus are boundless and unfathomable, Ephesians 3:8, they won’t ever perish, spoil or fade, Matthew 6:19-20, 1 Peter 1:4.
 
‘Peace and security’ in this life are not to be found here, 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11, but only in His courts gained for us by Jesus. 

Spiritfire- Proverbs 21:29 “A Bold Front”

“A wicked man puts up a bold front,
     but an upright man gives thought to his ways.”
 
After reading this proverb, my wife pointed us to Elijah and the prophets of Baal, 1 Kings 18, as a perfect example of the ‘bold-front of the wicked’.  In it, Elijah called for a showdown between the LORD and Baal, and in verse 21 he said to the people, “How long will you waver between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him.”  He called for the prophets to build an altar, sacrifice a bull and lay its parts on it, but not to burn it.  In turn, he would do the same.  He finished his challenge and said in v. 24, “Then you call on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the Lord. The god who answers by fire—he is God.”  Oh, and he dug a trench around his altar and had the people pour 4 large jars of water on it 3 times.  It says in verse 34 that the water had filled the trench.
 
We then explained that the wicked man puts up a bold front because that’s all he has.  He has nothing behind it.  Elijah was just himself against 450 prophets of Baal and 400 prophets of Asherah.  Their sheer number along with the wavering belief of the people would be enough to silence most, but after Baal did not answer no matter what the prophets did and for however long, the silence was theirs and it was deafening.  The text goes on to describe the LORD’s response to Elijah’s call in v. 38, “Then the fire of the Lord fell and burned up the sacrifice, the wood, the stones, and the soil, and also licked up the water in the trench.”
 
We then spoke about the path to Wisdom’s House and how giving thought to our ways keeps us on it.  Reflecting on that side of this ‘coin-proverb’, we can see how Elijah stayed on the path and did not abandon his faith or let it waver.
 
As we considered the ‘upright’ man, I asked my kids where is Jesus, the One who is both just and true, Revelation 15:3?  We once again found that in Him, the path to Wisdom’s House was fulfilled.  For though we are to examine ourselves as we are also directed by Paul in 2 Corinthians 13:5, we now do so in the light of Jesus, who fulfilled the law beyond our ability to obey.
 
The flame God sent to Elijah entirely burned up his sacrifice in the sight of all of the people, as Elijah said in verse 37, “so these people will know that you, Lord, are God and that you are turning their hearts back again.”  In the same way, God sent Jesus, who is so much more than a flame,  to turn our hearts to Him and make them new, Ephesians 4:23-24.

Spiritfire- Proverbs 21:24, “The Mocker”

“The proud and arrogant man- ‘Mocker’ is his name;
     he behaves with overweening pride.”
 
In this proverb, we were introduced to yet another member of Folly’s house:  The Mocker.  Mockers stand just off the path to Wisdom’s house, scoffing and casting stones of derision upon those who walk it.  They offer nothing of themselves and only find purpose in assaulting the pilgrims.
 
When I asked my family about it, my wife pointed us to the story of Elisha, 2 Kings 2:23-24.  Elisha was such a pilgrim on the road to Bethel and some kids jeered at him saying, “Get out of here, baldy!”  To which Elisha cursed them and 2 female bears came out and mauled 42 of them.
 
‘Proud and arrogant’ are two signifiers of the mocker, for he places himself above others.  ‘Overweening pride’ helps us to see how high he positions himself.  This was a big clue for us to see how Jesus fulfilled this Proverb that we may become new creations.  Again, we looked at its reflection and saw His example in John 13:3-17.  Jesus placed Himself below His disciples and took the role of a servant, Philippians 2:7, and washed their feet.
 
When we continued to peer into Jesus’ life and example, we saw that it was the ‘Mocker’ who was on the cross next to Him, Luke 23:39.  Of all the members of Folly’s House, the Mocker remained the closest to Jesus, till the very end. Yet not even his words could stop Jesus from saving us.  For though Elisha’s curse brought bears to maul the mockers, Jesus’ death and resurrection defeated sin’s curse and brought eternal life to all who believe in Him, John 3:16.

Survival | Defiance

When people get pushed around by the times, they either shut down and withdraw into themselves: survival mode or they fight back: defiant mode.

Let us be defiant with joy. Let us love bravely. Let us rise above this time with a smile on our faces. Let ‘them’ call us crazy. Let ‘them’ be mystified by us. Let ‘them’ be threatened by despair.

‘They’ don’t have Him. ‘They’ don’t know Him. ‘They’ think joy only works when you get a check.

Those in a survival mode won’t understand those who defiantly dance on top of the waves. They will look at us with confusion while we offer them a hand.