Proverbs – Life Skills
GOD’S NOT DEAD
He’s fully alive!
Living on the inside
Roaring like a lion…
God’s Not Dead!
This song is playing in the background of my mind as I read this next proverb of wisdom. The writer takes a look at what the world says along with results of the folly of believing there is no God. The metaphors abound.
This proverb reminds us of the many times Jesus, while teaching on mountain, explained the differences between living God’s ways and the ways of the world. Religion had diluted and changed Truth. God’s Law had lost God’s original intent and meaning. So, Jesus would begin with, “You have heard it said,..but I say to you…” You knew Truth, personified in Jesus, was about to set the people straight about God’s Law with how to think and how to behave to please God with hearts that love God. (See Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 5-7).
Proverb 30, The Message
God? Who Needs Him?
1-2 The skeptic swore, “There is no God! No God!—I can do anything I want!
I’m more animal than human;
so-called human intelligence escapes me.
3-4 “I flunked ‘wisdom.’
I see no evidence of a holy God.
Has anyone ever seen Anyone
climb into Heaven and take charge?
grab the winds and control them?
gather the rains in his bucket?
stake out the ends of the earth?
Just tell me his name, tell me the names of his sons.
Come on now—tell me!”
5-6 The believer replied, “Every promise of God proves true;
he protects everyone who runs to him for help.
So don’t second-guess him;
he might take you to task and show up your lies.”
7-9 And then he prayed, “God, I’m asking for two things before I die; don’t refuse me—
Banish lies from my lips
and liars from my presence.
Give me enough food to live on,
neither too much nor too little.
If I’m too full, I might get independent,
saying, ‘God? Who needs him?’
If I’m poor, I might steal
and dishonor the name of my God.”
10 Don’t blow the whistle on your fellow workers behind their backs;
They’ll accuse you of being underhanded,
and then you’ll be the guilty one!
11 Don’t curse your father
or fail to bless your mother.
12 Don’t imagine yourself to be quite presentable
when you haven’t had a bath in weeks.
13 Don’t be stuck-up
and think you’re better than everyone else.
14 Don’t be greedy,
merciless and cruel as wolves,
Tearing into the poor and feasting on them,
shredding the needy to pieces only to discard them.
15-16 A leech has twin daughters
named “Gimme” and “Gimme more.”
Four Insatiables
Three things are never satisfied,
no, there are four that never say, “That’s enough, thank you!”—
hell,
a barren womb,
a parched land,
a forest fire.
17 An eye that disdains a father and despises a mother—
that eye will be plucked out by wild vultures
and consumed by young eagles.
Four Mysteries
18-19 Three things amaze me,
no, four things I’ll never understand—
how an eagle flies so high in the sky,
how a snake glides over a rock,
how a ship navigates the ocean,
why adolescents act the way they do.
20 Here’s how a prostitute operates:
she has sex with her client,
Takes a bath,
then asks, “Who’s next?”
Four Intolerables21-23 Three things are too much for even the earth to bear,
yes, four things shake its foundations—
when the janitor becomes the boss,
when a fool gets rich,
when a whore is voted “woman of the year,”
when a “girlfriend” replaces a faithful wife.
Four Small Wonders
24-28 There are four small creatures,
wisest of the wise they are—
ants—frail as they are,
get plenty of food in for the winter;
marmots—vulnerable as they are,
manage to arrange for rock-solid homes;
locusts—leaderless insects,
yet they strip the field like an army regiment;
lizards—easy enough to catch,
but they sneak past vigilant palace guards.
Four Dignitaries29-31 There are three solemn dignitaries,
four that are impressive in their bearing—
a lion, king of the beasts, deferring to none;
a rooster, proud and strutting;
a billy goat;
a head of state in stately procession.
32-33 If you’re dumb enough to call attention to yourself
by offending people and making rude gestures,
Don’t be surprised if someone bloodies your nose.
Churned milk turns into butter;
riled emotions turn into fist fights.
WHAT DO WE LEARN?
No, God’s not dead, He’s surely alive! Did you know that the message of this song was inspired and driven by 3 passages of God’s Word? Hosea 11:10: “They will follow the LORD; He will roar like a lion. When He roars, His children will come trembling from the west.”
… John 14:19: “Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live.”
…and Revelation 10:2-4: “He was holding a little scroll, which lay open in his hand. He planted his right foot on the sea and his left foot on the land, and he gave a loud shout like the roar of a lion. When he shouted, the voices of the seven thunders spoke. And when the seven thunders spoke, I was about to write; but I heard a voice from heaven say, ‘Seal up what the seven thunders have said and do not write it down.’”
How can listeners apply that message when we listen to the song?
It seems like culturally that atheism (along with “don’t care-ism”) has become more and more prevalent. God is being taken out of so much of our culture and has been for years. People are just deceived. There’s a lack of Truth and in some Christian music circles and in Christians in general, there’s a lack of boldness. What resonates is the bold message of this song. What’s most disheartening is that even in Christian music there are so many songs that don’t proclaim the Name of Jesus. A lot of us say great things that may coincide with biblical principles and social justice, and I don’t know about you, but the boldness of this song is what attracts me. The message is that believers can still have an impact on people and culture.
This song resonates with all people. People are embracing the message of the song. Why? The Gospel turns the world upside down. We need to live as Christians with God’s upside down expectations that defy the world’s expectations. Like Jesus, we must declare Truth. “You heard it said…but Jesus says…” Learn Truth. Live Truth.
“Make ’em wonder what you’ve got…” Shine, another song just popped into my mind…also sung by the Newsboys is what happens when you really believe that what you believe is really real! (Read that again. Camp on it if you have to.)
And when the world asks, be ready to tell, “God loved you and the rest of the world so much that He sent Jesus, His One and Only Son to save you and all others who believe Him.”
Truth: God’s not dead. Jesus saved my soul.
This is My Story, This is My Song. All Day Long.
O Lord,
What a wonder you are! Thank you for saving our souls and not leaving us to wonder around not knowing. Thank you for your Presence. Thank you for all you have done, are doing and will do as we walk with You and talk with you. Thank you for desiring an intimate relationship with us and providing a way, The Way in Jesus, to make that possible. Continue to transform me to be all you intended for me to be..then do.
In Jesus Name, Amen
Daily Manna (Coffee with Jesus) 