Proverbs – Life Skills
We all know the famous line from the commercial well, “So Jake from State Farm, what are you wearing?” This attack from a jealous wife at 3am is unwarranted as her husband is trying to make a deal with the insurance company. But one wonders, like the wife, why at 3am? At least, that was my first thought. So what was innocent looked entirely like something else. As women we all feel that the wife was right to guard what was sacred and to investigate what might be an attack on her marriage.
Marriages come under attack daily, almost hourly! It is up to us to guard our hearts, minds and souls as we protect the sanctity of our vows made in front of God to each other. It is so easy to be swept away into the temptations of this world. Remember, the enemy (the Temptress) as presented in this proverb is always “dressed to kill” with a goal to destroy all relationships that are good in the eyes of God. God is the enemy of The Temptress. He wants all that God deems pure and holy destroyed.Single people are greatly tempted with no one to hold them in check unless they have Christian friends to hold them accountable. (Highly recommended.)
HOLY PAUSE
Evil stands at the corner of life and death. Which way will you go? Who is attracting you most at this moment in life? Who do you talk about most? Who do you love above all?
Finally, what are we wearing? Do we seduce others to evil or are we clothed in a manner that leads others to Jesus?
“Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the flesh.” Romans 13:13-14, NIV
“And all who have been united with Christ in baptism have put on Christ, like putting on new clothes,” Galatians 3:27.
Proverbs 7, The MessageDressed to Seduce
1-5 Dear friend, do what I tell you;
treasure my careful instructions.
Do what I say and you’ll live well.
My teaching is as precious as your eyesight—guard it!
Write it out on the back of your hands;
etch it on the chambers of your heart.
Talk to Wisdom as to a sister.
Treat Insight as your companion.
They’ll be with you to fend off the Temptress—
that smooth-talking, honey-tongued Seductress.
6-12 As I stood at the window of my house
looking out through the shutters,
Watching the mindless crowd stroll by,
I spotted a young man without any sense
Arriving at the corner of the street where she lived,
then turning up the path to her house.
It was dusk, the evening coming on,
the darkness thickening into night.
Just then, a woman met him—
she’d been lying in wait for him, dressed to seduce him.
Brazen and brash she was,
restless and roaming, never at home,
Walking the streets, loitering in the mall,
hanging out at every corner in town.
13-20 She threw her arms around him and kissed him, boldly took his arm and said,
“I’ve got all the makings for a feast—
today I made my offerings, my vows are all paid,
So now I’ve come to find you,
hoping to catch sight of your face—and here you are!
I’ve spread fresh, clean sheets on my bed,
colorful imported linens.
My bed is aromatic with spices
and exotic fragrances.
Come, let’s make love all night,
spend the night in ecstatic lovemaking!
My husband’s not home; he’s away on business,
and he won’t be back for a month.”
21-23 Soon she has him eating out of her hand,
bewitched by her honeyed speech.
Before you know it, he’s trotting behind her,
like a calf led to the butcher shop,
Like a stag lured into ambush
and then shot with an arrow,
Like a bird flying into a net
not knowing that its flying life is over.
24-27 So, friends, listen to me, take these words of mine most seriously.
Don’t fool around with a woman like that;
don’t even stroll through her neighborhood.
Countless victims come under her spell;
she’s the death of many a poor man.
She runs a halfway house to hell,
fits you out with a shroud and a coffin.
EPILOGUE
Don’t be fooled by others who wear masks of hypocrisy and try to lure you into sin with them. Don’t be the one who lures others into sins you enjoy just so you have validation. Here is a final story that helps us to understand what it means to “put on”Jesus as Paul tells along with “clothe” ourselves with Christ. Fredrick Beuchner helps us gain some insight from a story he tells called “The Happy Hypocrite.” It’s a story about a man who was born with an awful facial deformity.
He grew up alone and lonely. When reaching adulthood, he decided to move from his town to begin a new life. On his way he discovered a beautiful mask that fit, making him look handsome. At first the mask was uncomfortable and he was afraid that people would find out who he really was, but he continued to wear the mask everyday.
In his new hometown, he made many friends and fell in love. But one day a wicked woman from his old home came to his town and discovered this man’s true identity. In front of his friends and fiancé, she forced him to remove his mask. When he removed the mask, it revealed a handsome face. His face had conformed to the mask.
Becoming like Christ is analogous to this. Go ahead and put on Christ. At first it may feel unnatural or uncomfortable, and maybe you may think, “Who am I trying to fool?” But everyday just keep putting on Christ and everyday you will grow to look more like him.Every day we are to “put on” Christ, and when we do, the Holy Spirit works at transforming us to be more and more like Jesus:
“Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like him,” Colossians 3:10.
Have you clothed yourself with Christ?
So Paul, what are you wearing? He tells us in God’s Word…even at 3am!“Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.
Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts. And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father.” Colossians 3:14-17, NLT
Dear Lord and Savior,
Help us by the power of your Holy Spirit in us to clothe ourselves, from the inside out, with all of you in us. Guide our every thought that precedes actions of behavior. Make us holy. Help us to live holy lives for your glory. May we be real authentic representatives of you, dear Jesus. Help us to avoid The Tempter at all costs. Deliver us from evil. Thank you.
In Jesus Name, Amen
Daily Manna (Coffee with Jesus) 