Category Archives: Walk with Jesus

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.

Spiritfire- Proverbs 21:23, “Calamity”

“He who guards his mouth and his tongue
     keeps himself from calamity.”
 
My kids already understood a portion of the depths of the wisdom in this proverb.  So early on does this proverb speak so clearly, as early as the first word that crosses our lips.  As triplets, my kids get to experience the benefits as well as the not so beneficial aspects of being the same age.  When one of them makes a mistake, the other two are quick to point it out.  As my daughter, who was attempting to put her interrupting brothers in their place, famously shouted, “If you won’t listen to me, then I won’t listen to me!”, this quote has been used many times to point out when our words get ahead of our mouths.
 
Betsy and I went straight to James 3:1-12 to give our kids a clear concept of what power we have in our mouths.  Matthew 15:18 drew us in even deeper for the tongue gets its signal from the heart.  When I asked my kids, “Where’s Jesus?”  We were immediately brought to the beginning of the book of John 1:1, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”  In v. 14, we read of how “The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us.”  When we considered Jesus as the Word of God, the Proverb flipped and we saw the depth of the heart of God.  If the words on our tongue come from our hearts, then the Word of God must come from His.  However, Jesus was not guarded, and the calamity of the cross was not avoided, 1 Corinthians 15:3-4.  For our sakes, he bore our sins, 1Peter 2:24, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness and become new creations in Him, 2 Corinthians 5:17.
 
Jesus fulfilled this proverb by taking its truth and wisdom upon Himself for our sake.  He took our sin and the calamity it brings to the cross.  A way has been made for us; a way beyond death that starts even now for all who believe in Him.  Come to faith in Jesus even now.  Become a new creation in Him, and live your new life today!

Spiritfire- Proverbs 21:22, “The Mouthpiece of God”

“A wise man attacks the city of the mighty
     and pulls down the stronghold in which they trust.”
 
We opened this one in military fashion and read it like advice given by an old experienced General.  We then thought of the story of David and Goliath, 1 Samuel 17.  When Goliath- the mighty mouthpiece of the Philistine army, was brought down by David, a child of Israel- by the power of God, the Philistines ran.  It was a great example that highlighted the seed of wisdom embedded in this proverb.
 
When I asked my kids, “Where’s Jesus?”  We thought of a similar story of Jesus and the Gerasene demoniac, Mark 5.  In it, we read of how a man- tormented by demons and mighty in strength, ran to Jesus.  The demons begged Jesus and first implored Him, by God, not to torment them, v. 7.  Then they implored him a second time ‘not to send them out of the country’, v. 10.  Again, for the third and final time, they implored Jesus to send them into the nearby herd of swine, v. 12.
 
It was the imploring of the demons that still sticks in my mind even to this day.  When I look at both this story and the Proverb, I look down and see the reflection of the Great Commission staring back at me, Matthew 28:16-20.  In it, compared to the demons, we see that likewise, the disciples came to Jesus, but in worship, not in fear.  Both verses declare Jesus’ sovereignty, Mark 5:7/Matthew 28:18.  Jesus came to direct them both- one in fear that they would be sent out of the area, the other in love to be sent to the ends of the earth, Mark 5:10/Matthew 28:19.  Both stories sought incarnation, one of possession, the other of surrender, Mark 5:12/Matthew 28:20.  When obeyed, the teachings of Jesus guide us to eternal life with Him, while the possessed pigs ended in destruction, Matthew 18:20/Mark 5:13. 
 
We then spoke about how this man was made into a new creation at the feet of Jesus, v. 15.  He may not have been beheaded like Goliath and paraded around before the nearby town.  Something much more frighteningly beautiful had happened.  It was the townspeople who were frightened, like the Philistines, and it became their turn to implore Jesus to leave when they should have implored Him to stay.  The story ends with the man imploring Jesus that he might accompany Him, v. 18, but Jesus commissioned him to stay and tell everyone what had happened.  In a way, we saw how Jesus fulfilled this proverb and remade the man into the mouthpiece of God.  And in the pigs’ reflection, that they must have seen in the waves before their fatal “baptism”, in their doom, we see the hope in who Jesus calls us to be.  
 
We see the two.  What will we choose: the path of new creations that Jesus, our General, calls us to in love, or the path of the pigs?

Spiritfire- Proverbs 21:21, “Beyond the Tales of Fairies”

“He who pursues righteousness and love
     finds life, prosperity, and honor.”
 
Such a wonderfully put if/then proverb.  If one pursues this, then one receives even more.  The path could not be clearer, and as we described it to our kids, the movie ‘Princess Bride’ came to mind.  The scene was at Miracle Max’s:  Fezzik and Inigo Montoya had just brought a lifeless Westley to Max’s door in need of a miracle.  When Max asked for payment, they only had 65 and the noble cause of ‘true love’ to offer.  Even though this ultimately became a game of denial to Max who, as explained by his wife Valerie, had his confidence to perform miracles shattered by Prince Humperdinck, it was only after he heard that the Prince would suffer if Westley was healed that he agreed to work for them.  Even though the promise of revenge would be enough to inspire Max’s aid, it remained clear that the pursuit of true love was the ‘noblest of causes’.
 
And yet when I invited my kids to look beyond Hollywood, where the story is scripted and the fairy tale ending exists, we were confronted with what happens when life, prosperity, and honor do not accompany the pursuit of righteousness and love.  We found the story of Job to be unshakably clear.  His was a story that matched the beginning of the proverb, but found death, poverty, and shame instead.  His misery of losing everyone and everything was topped with his health, Job 2:7-8, as it reads that Satan covered his body with boils.
 
My kids already have a ‘real life’, though thankfully lesser, example in watching me with my health and already intimately understood the failings of this proverb.  They already saw the gaping hole in its logic and heard its cry that begged to be fulfilled.  We then looked to the only One who can and has fulfilled it, Jesus, the Son of God.
 
This life was broken in the lives and actions of Adam and Eve, Genesis 3, but was fulfilled in the resurrection of Jesus, 1 Corinthians 15.  Not only that, but we found that we are the ones pursued by God, John 3:16.  And we are the ones who become His righteousness through our faith in Jesus, 2 Corinthians 5:21.
 
Our salvation by God’s true love is the ’noblest of causes’.  Jesus fulfilled it and creates us anew free from sin to live eternally with Him beyond the tales of fairies.