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KNOWABLE WORD

Helping ordinary people learn to study the Bible

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WHEN GOD SEEMS ABSENT IN BIBLE READING

September 23, 2024 By Ryan Higginbottom

Christian Gafenesch (2022), public domain

In my previous post, I wrote about the way God reveals himself through the
Scriptures. I claimed that he meets with us when we seek him in the Bible and
that he entices us to continue seeking him.

I’m guessing some readers finished that post and muttered, “yeah, right.” For
many people what I described seems like a dream, completely divorced from their
difficult reality. For these Christians, Bible reading is not joyful, but
difficult. It feels much less like a meeting with a loving, fatherly God than it
does a dry, drowsy duty. They gain no encouragement, conviction of sin, or
measure of hope when they open the Word.

In short, it feels like God is absent.

If this describes your situation, you’re in good company. Not only do I have
some good news for you from the Bible, but many Christians now and throughout
history feel and have felt exactly the same way you do.

IS GOD ACTUALLY ABSENT?

For Christians, God is not absent. This isn’t to deny what people feel and
experience, just to state the Scriptural reality: God has promised never to
leave or forsake his people (Heb 13:5).

You may feel that God is distant or absent, and that is a common feeling and
experience. But when God the Holy Spirit comes in our conversion, he does not
leave. This presence of God himself is a down payment or a small taste of the
full divine presence we will enjoy in the new creation.

So, God may not be absent, but it sure feels like he is sometimes. We might not
be able to point to a specific cause behind this effect, but we can easily find
similar expressions of this feeling in the Bible.

LAMENTING GOD’S ABSENCE

Prayer in the Bible comes in many flavors, including prayers of lament. A lament
is simply an honest cry to God about the sorrowful parts of living life in a
fallen world. And these parts include feeling like God is absent.

Hear the ways the psalmists pray.

> How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever?
> How long will you hide your face from me?
> How long must I take counsel in my soul
> and have sorrow in my heart all the day?
> How long shall my enemy be exalted over me? (Psalm 13:1–2)
>
> My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
> Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning?
> O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer,
> and by night, but I find no rest. (Psalm 22:1–2)
>
> But I, O Lord, cry to you;
> in the morning my prayer comes before you.
> O Lord, why do you cast my soul away?
> Why do you hide your face from me? (Psalm 88:13–14)

These Biblical prayers do not fit our present condition exactly; however, they
are all examples of saints who were expecting God to be present in their
troubles and their experience is the opposite. (It has been helpful for me to
realize that many of the psalms are psalms of lament; here is a list to
consult.)

HOW TO HANDLE GOD’S PERCEIVED ABSENCE IN OUR BIBLE READING

My basic advice when Bible readers don’t secure a take-home nugget every day was
it’s okay and keep going. My advice in this post is basically the same, but with
a few more specifics.

Pray. It is good for us to share our hearts with the God who already knows them.
Use some of the language of the psalms of lament or put your frustration into
your own words, but talk to God! Ask him: he has promised never to leave you, so
why does it feel like he has?

Ask others to pray. As I mentioned above, this feeling is not unusual. If you
take someone aside after church, you’ll almost always see a sympathetic smile in
return. Enlist your Christian friends to ask God to make his presence real to
you again.

Read with others. In the global west, we often individualize our relationships
with God, but this doesn’t have to be! If you’re struggling to read or study the
Bible on your own, perhaps a friend would be willing to read or study the Bible
with you a few days each week. God may use this shared experience to meet with
you more intimately.

Keep reading. The Bible is a treasure because it reveals God himself. Sometimes
this treasure seems easy to access, like candy at Halloween. At other times, it
seems entirely invisible. Talk with older saints and listen to their
testimonies: these dry periods eventually come to an end.

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Filed Under: Method Tagged With: Bible reading, God's Presence, Lament

PROVERBS PURPOSE #2: TO RECOGNIZE THOSE WHO SPEAK WISDOM

September 20, 2024 By Peter Krol

> To understand words of insight (Prov 1:2)

Before we examine this statement further, a brief explanation of Hebrew poetry
is in order. The Old Testament poets chiefly relied on a literary device called
parallelism, which means that each unit of thought (usually one verse) contains
two or more short lines that generally say either a similar thing or a different
thing.[1] The poet’s intention is for the lines to be compared with each other
in order to arrive at their meaning. As Waltke states, “Proverbs cannot be
interpreted correctly without asking the question: ‘How are the versets [the two
lines] related to one another?’”[2] Thus the reader should be careful not to
force the lines apart and interpret them each in isolation (we’ll especially see
the impact of this method when we reach verse 7).

So in Proverbs 1:2, we have two parallel lines that say similar things:

> To know wisdom and instruction,
> To understand words of insight.

The first half of the verse focuses on the abstract concept of wisdom; Solomon
wants us to recognize certain facts as containing “wisdom.” The second half of
the verse focuses on the concrete communication of wisdom; Solomon wants us to
recognize, in any given interaction with other people, whether they are speaking
words of wisdom or not.

Photo by Jacqueline Smith on Pexels.com

For example, when you see an advertisement on television, is it commending some
wise behavior to you, or is it simply playing on your anxiety or passions in
order to make a buck? When you speak with a friend, should you take her advice
on a matter or respectfully decline it? As you sit in your class, can you tell
whether the instructor is speaking truth in line with God’s perspective, or
merely soliciting your servile obeisance to folly through bombastically
sesquipedalian obfuscation? (In other words, is the prof leading you astray by
impressing you with big words?)

In short, Solomon aims to equip us first to know what is wise and what is
foolish so we can then identify whether a particular person in a particular
situation is communicating wisdom or foolishness to us. In other words, he wants
to train people to know wisdom.

Wisdom is: Knowing whether any particular counsel is the right thing to do in
any particular situation.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[1]I intend this as a gross oversimplification to keep things simple. For a far
more nuanced discussion of Hebrew parallelism, see this article by Jeff Benner.

[2]Waltke, Proverbs 1-15, p.45.

This post was first published in 2012.

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Filed Under: Proverbs Tagged With: Discernment, God's Wisdom, Parallelism,
Proverbs

THE PURPOSE-DRIVEN GENEALOGY

September 18, 2024 By Peter Krol

Have you wondered what to do with the genealogies of the Bible? In his piece
“Why Genealogies?” Jacob Toman explains what role the Bible’s genealogies play,
along with examples of some of the most significant genealogies in the Bible.
Toman looks at Genesis 11, 1 Chronicles (with implications for Ezra-Nehemiah),
and Matthew 1.

> These lists give the reader of the Bible a historical account that shapes an
> overarching story worthy of reading, worthy of remembering, and worthy of our
> study.

Check it out!

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Filed Under: Check it Out Tagged With: Bible Study, Genealogies, Jacob Toman

PROVERBS PURPOSE #1: TO KNOW WISDOM

September 13, 2024 By Peter Krol

“Why should I read this book?” is what’s on my mind any time a friend recommends
a book to me. I’m busy enough already, and I hear more recommendations than I
know what to do with. Solomon knows my pain. He cares, and right up front he
gives us reason to care about his book. In the next few Proverbs posts we’ll
examine Solomon’s five purposes for writing Proverbs, and along the way we’ll
piece together a definition of wisdom from each building block. As we progress,
we’ll see why we should care about wisdom as much as Solomon does.

To begin with, observe the five-fold repetition of the word “to” in Prov
1:2-7. Solomon completes his sentence from the first verse: “The proverbs of
Solomon … (are) to know wisdom (Prov 1:2), to understand words of insight (Prov
1:2), to receive instruction (Prov 1:3), to give prudence (Prov 1:4-5),
and to understand a proverb (Prov 1:6).” By means of these “to” phrases, Solomon
lists his reasons for writing.

Photo by Eduardo Braga on Pexels.com

TO KNOW WISDOM AND INSTRUCTION (PROV 1:2A)

The first use of “to” is found in the first half of Prov 1:2. Solomon writes
these proverbs so we might “know wisdom and instruction.” He wants to
communicate facts about topics such as God, people, and the world, in order to
equip us to believe the truth and reject error.

For example, is God near to us or far from us (Prov 3:32-35)? Can we expect him
to care about our lives or not (Prov 16:9, 20:24)? Is he trustworthy (Prov
3:5-6), righteous (Prov 15:9), and just (Prov 29:26)?

What about people? How do we persuade them to believe the truth about God (Prov
16:23)? How do we interact with others who are as selfish and arrogant as we
ourselves are (Prov 18:1)? If I love God, what should my business practices
(Prov 16:11), love life (Prov 22:14), and social activism (Prov 28:27) look
like? How do people change (Prov 4:23)?

In addition, there is the world. What is a godly perspective on animal rights
(Prov 12:10)? How can I skillfully use the resources given to me by God to
develop and produce more (Prov 14:4), without just destroying what I’ve already
got (Prov 21:20)? What perspective should I have toward material goods (Prov
3:9-10)?

Knowing wisdom and instruction involves much more than the ability to answer
these questions correctly on a test. We must be able to translate these
objective truths into the choices of every moment. We do that by first believing
these truths, and then insightfully applying them in any specific situation. For
example, anyone with a smattering of biblical education can answer the question
“can God do all things” (Prov 16:9)? However, when the little ones are
frightened by a thunder storm, a wise parent will confidently connect their
experience with the truth: “Pray with me, Bobby: Jesus, please help. I’m
scared. Thank you for taking care of me. Amen.”

Remember that proverbs deal with the mundane and messy details of life. Their
intention is not only to load us with doctrines or ethical ideals. Rather, they
aim to connect those doctrines and ethical ideals with the day-to-day situations
we face. Therefore from this first purpose we can unravel the first part of
Solomon’s definition of wisdom.

Wisdom is: Knowing the right thing to do in any particular situation.

This post was first published in 2012.

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Filed Under: Proverbs Tagged With: Definition, God's Wisdom, Knowledge, Proverbs

4 PRACTICES THAT CAUSE BOREDOM WITH THE BIBLE

September 11, 2024 By Peter Krol

My co-blogger Ryan has provided a very helpful explanation for why the Bible is
not boring. Pastor Mitch Chase also recently wrote about 4 reasons you might
think the Bible is boring. His reasons are:

1. You’re ignoring the christological shape of Scripture.
2. You’re unaware of certain historical matters.
3. You’re reading inconsistently.
4. You’re reading prayerlessly.

Chase offers some excellent guidance for ways to pull out of each of these
situations and find more delight in God’s word.

Check it out!

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Filed Under: Check it Out Tagged With: Bible reading, Boring, Mitch Chase

DEVOTION BEGETS DEVOTION: ENCOUNTERING GOD IN THE BIBLE

September 9, 2024 By Ryan Higginbottom

Arvid Hoidahl (2019), public domain

The force of gravity that one object exerts on another depends on a few factors:
the mass of each object, a gravitational constant, and the distance between the
two objects. But in the calculation, distance is in the denominator of the
fraction, meaning that, all other things being equal, gravitational force and
distance have an inverse relationship. The closer the two objects are, the
greater the gravitational pull.

If you have trouble with formulas and forces, picture a whirlpool. A feather
caught in the outside of the spinning water starts to move slowly in a circle.
But the longer it stays in the whirlpool, the faster it moves, pulled steadily
inward and down until it disappears.

A BOOK LIKE NO OTHER

The Bible is a book like no other. We do not read it like a biography, a novel,
or a textbook. We can return to it again and again with much profit. It is
deeper and greater and more wonderful than anything else we could ever read.

Why do Christians read the Bible? If you are a Christian, why do you read the
Bible?

We read the Bible to know God. About the Bible, the Westminster Confession of
Faith states that “it pleased the Lord, at sundry times, and in divers manners,
to reveal himself, and to declare that his will unto his Church” (my emphasis).

God reveals himself! This means that reading or studying the Bible is no
ordinary endeavor. We are not reading just for information or even inspiration.
We are studying the Scriptures to learn from God, to know and love him. And as
we learn from him and love him, this should kindle a desire to draw even closer.

GOD ENTICES US

When we read the Bible, God teaches us about himself. He also shines light into
our hearts and convicts us of sin. God shows us his Son and removes the
blindness from our eyes. And like many in first-century Galilee, we are eager to
follow the Rabbi-King, Jesus.

By his Spirit, God works on our hearts as we read the Bible. He meets with us
and entices us to return and meet with him again.

Reading the Bible creates a longing within us for what is to come. When the
world seems to be crumbling around us, we have a sure promise that all will be
put right (Rev 21:4). And we will enjoy fellowship with God face to face (Rev
21:3).

Additionally, as we read, we see more of what we will become. In all the ways we
offend God and our neighbors, we can cultivate hope that these stubborn sins
will not last forever. God’s commands are for our good, and one day we will
embrace and obey them fully.

FURTHER DOWN AND FURTHER IN

If you’ve talked to any older saint recently, you’ve probably noticed they are
still eager for the Scriptures. Even after a lifetime of reading and hearing and
studying, they are not tired of those familiar words.

The Bible may be bound like other books. It may sit on our tables, support
coffee mugs, and sport dog-eared pages and pencil scribbles like other volumes.
But what the Bible offers we can find nowhere else.

God reveals himself to us in the pages of this holy book. To the novice and the
expert, to the young and the old, God offers himself to those who would take up
and read. And as we taste and see how good the Lord is, we’ll joyfully take
another lap around the whirlpool, drawing closer and closer to the God who made
and redeemed us.

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Filed Under: Method Tagged With: Bible reading, Devotions, Sanctification

WHY ‘PROVERBS AREN’T PROMISES’ IS STILL MISLEADING

September 6, 2024 By Peter Krol

A few weeks ago, I republished, with some editing, a 2016 post about why the
conventional Bible study advice that “proverbs aren’t promises” is misleading.
Then Pastor Paul Carter interacted with my piece on The Gospel Coalition Canada
site, concluding that “proverbs aren’t promises” is true after all.

I would encourage you to check out Carter’s article, as he defends the
conventional wisdom and illuminates a few places where my argument is not as
clear as it ought to be. Below, I will seek to rectify that. But first let me
point out what I appreciate about Carter’s piece, along with how important our
definitions are.

SUBSTANTIAL AGREEMENT

First, while Carter makes use of scholarship to assist his arguments, he
primarily looks to the Scripture itself for guidance. For this I am grateful. He
takes pains to highlight the wisdom literature’s own view of the world,
especially life in a fallen world.

Second, while holding to the maxim that proverbs aren’t promises, Carter makes
sure to also state that “Proverbs are true and can be trusted entirely.” And
that “They are truths you can build your life upon.” I affirm these conclusions
wholeheartedly. I believe that these truths are in tension with the claim that
“proverbs aren’t promises” on account of definitions, but more on that below.
I’m just grateful up front that Carter recognizes the need to be explicit about
the trustworthiness of the Proverbs.

Third, Carter’s argument is almost entirely based on the nature of life in a
fallen world. And I would agree with him on his analysis of the wisdom
literature’s description of our fallen existence: “Sometimes the righteous get
what the wicked deserve and the wicked get what the righteous deserve. I’m not
sure how anyone living on planet earth could deny that.” Agreed. In no way am I
denying that reality.

Finally, Carter affirms the long-term view taken by the Proverbs: “Proverbs are
true and can be trusted, but because the world is fallen, a person may have to
wait until the Final Judgment and the resurrection for the full enjoyment of
that truth and the full possession of the rewards associated therewith.” I fully
agree with the fact that the truth of proverbs is often not fulfilled in the
present age. Now strikingly, Carter believes that “promise” is the wrong label
for this “full enjoyment of that truth and the full possession of the rewards
associated therewith” that comes in the Final Judgment.

It is on that point of labels and definitions that my disagreement chiefly lies.
So let me turn to that.

WHAT IS A BIBLE PROMISE, REALLY?

If by “promise,” we mean a deistic, impersonal mechanism, by which certain
inputs infallibly result in guaranteed outputs, then I would agree that proverbs
aren’t promises. And all over Carter’s article, it is clear that this is what he
means by “promise.”

* “Is the Bible promising that all who work hard will be rich? Is the Bible
promising that all who are wise will receive honour? Or is it stating general
principles?”
* “Sometimes things happen that our view of the world would not lead us to
expect, which is why, many would argue, it is best not to refer to proverbs
as promises.”
* “it is best not to think of Proverbs as ‘promises’ lest that phraseology lead
one to expect immediate and inevitable fulfillment in this life.”

So for Carter, a “promise” is:

1. A universal and perhaps impersonal mechanism for rewarding certain inputs
(such that, for example, all who work hard will get rich and all who are
wise will receive honor).
2. Something that always delivers the very thing our view of the world would
lead us to expect.
3. Something that creates an expectation of immediate and inevitable
fulfillment in this life.

It’s as though God embedded into the source code of the universe a touch screen
kiosk for ordering fast food. Just input your diligent labor, and pre-programmed
robotic servers will bring riches and wealth right to your table.

Again, if that is what is meant by “promise,” then I agree that proverbs aren’t
promises.

Photo by Jasmine Carter on Pexels.com

However, the biggest problem here is that this is not what a promise is in the
Bible. And that is the basis for my entire argument that “proverbs aren’t
promises” is misleading.

In the Bible, a promise is:

* Contextual: Promises are made to particular people at particular times and
for particular reasons, and will therefore have differing (or no) application
to people other than the intended recipient(s). It takes a lot of work for us
to establish whether, how much, and how a Bible promise applies to us today.
For example, “When your feet enter the city, the child shall die” (1 Kings
14:12) is a clear promise from God, but not for anyone reading this post.
* Covenantal: Promises are made within the context of a person’s or group’s
contractual relationship with God and cannot be treated as impersonal deistic
mechanisms for securing a desired reward. For example, Deuteronomy 28
promises to Israel, in extravagant detail, many blessings for obeying the law
and many curses for disobeying the law. These promises are alluded to
frequently in the rest of the OT history as reasons why Israel stands or
falls before God in her covenantal relationship with him.
* Conditional: Not all, but many of the Bible’s promises are contingent on
belief, obedience, or both, and therefore cannot be treated as universal
guarantees. For example, “If you will walk before me, as David your father
walked … then I will establish your royal throne over Israel forever, as I
promised…” (1 Kings 9:4-5).

The promises of the book of Proverbs fit squarely within these characteristics.
The assurances and predicted rewards or curses (I’m not sure what else to call
them besides “promises”) are offered to the young nobility of Israel in the
kingdom period [contextual], on the basis of their fear of the Lord (Prov 1:7,
9:10) and their standing in his steadfast love and faithfulness (Prov 3:3)
[covenantal], and on condition of walking faithfully on a straight path away
from self-reliance and toward Yahweh their God (see Proverbs 1-9, which is the
foundation for the practicals in the rest of the book, and especially Prov
3:5-6) [conditional].

No, the assurances of Proverbs are not mathematical functions within a
universal, deistic machine. Yes, the assurances of Proverbs function just like
the rest of the Bible’s promises. We can come up with exceptions to the
assurances of Deuteronomy 28 on account of the world’s fallenness. But nobody
thereby concludes that “covenant blessings and curses aren’t promises.” So why
do we make that claim about the Proverbs? Yes, they are promises. We just need
to define “promise” the way the Bible does.

I’m grateful to Carter for his article, which illuminated the need for me to
clarify this presupposition of my argument. My concern with the maxim “proverbs
aren’t promises” lies not with what it says about proverbs but with what it says
about promises.

SOLVING ONE PASTORAL PROBLEM ONLY TO CREATE MORE WORSE ONES

The conventional wisdom that “proverbs aren’t promises” always appears to arise
from one of two observations:

1. People use Prov 22:6 to guilt-trip hurting parents with wayward children.
2. People are confused by how Prov 26:4-5 appear to provide contradictory
guidance.

Both of those concerns are real pastoral problems. Yet when we address them with
a sweeping hermeneutical solution (that proverbs aren’t promises), the
collateral damage is even greater than the presenting problem.

First, if it is true that proverbs aren’t promises, then it must follow that
none of the following particular proverbs are promises:

* “The name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous runs into it and is
safe” (Prov 18:10).
* “Every word of God proves true; he is a shield to those who take refuge in
him” (Prov 30:5).
* “Better is a little with righteousness than great revenues with injustice”
(Prov 16:8).

Many more examples could be given. And if none of those are promises (the way
the Bible defines “promise”), where does that leave us? Under the guidance
offered by the conventional principle, as Bruce Waltke recognized decades ago, a
psychologically well person could scarcely trust God.

Second, if it is true that proverbs aren’t promises, how can we even say we
expect their fulfillment in the Final Judgment or the new heavens and new earth?
Isn’t it the case that many of the Bible’s promises are not fully true—i.e. we
will experience apparent exceptions to them—until the age to come? “The wolf
shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat …
They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain” (Isaiah 11:6-9). Carter
claims that “promise” is the wrong label for truths that “will be resisted and
delayed until the Final Judgment.” So what, then, should we call those
assurances in other parts of the Bible that will be resisted and delayed until
That Day?

Third, if the assurances of Proverbs can be refuted by appealing to self-evident
exceptions to them in a fallen world, what is to prevent us from approaching any
of the Bible’s promises the same way? For example, God promised to David that
his son would sit on his throne forever (2 Sam 7:13). It is self-evident that
Solomon did not reign forever, providing an exception to the larger promise of
David’s dynasty. Does that mean that 2 Sam 7:13 is not a promise, just like
“proverbs aren’t promises”? (Psalm 89 wrestles with a very similar question.) Of
course not; we now know God was talking most fully about the Messiah. But this
takes us back to the previous point: If the fulfillment of the promise delays
until a future age, does that make it no longer a promise?

Fourth, if the assurances of Proverbs can be refuted by appealing to exceptions
that violate our expectations of how the world ought to work (something to which
Carter appeals numerous times in his article), what is to prevent us from
approaching any of the Bible’s promises the same way? For example, “If you ask
me anything in my name, I will do it” (John 14:14). But my experience has shown
numerous times when Jesus did not do what I asked in his name; this violates my
expectation about how Jesus said the world ought to work. Does that mean this
can’t be a promise, just like “proverbs aren’t promises”? Of course not; there
must something contextual, covenantal, and/or conditional that I must grasp from
John’s gospel to help me overcome the pastoral problem of this verse. After all,
promises are not universal, deistic mechanisms for attaining what I want.

Fifth, when the guidance that “proverbs aren’t promises” sinks in, people lose
interest in the book of Proverbs. If all I find here are “general principles”
and “probabilities” which may or may not be true in my life — and there’s no way
of predicting whether they will be true in my life or not — then why would I pay
any attention to this book at all? The book of Proverbs used to be core to
Christian discipleship, as evidenced in part by its inclusion with the Psalms in
the Gideons’ “New Testaments.” These days, I find it rare to come across
Christians who have any real familiarity with the book of Proverbs at all.
There’s just not much motivation to soak in this book when you’ve been told you
can’t bank on what you find there. And in our generation, we sure would benefit
from soaking in this book to guide us through the mess we’re facing.

To be fair, Carter explicitly denies the idea that the truths of Proverbs can’t
be trusted. But he is not clear about how “proverbs aren’t promises” and “they
are truths you can build your life upon” can both be true, when denying the
latter conclusion follows directly downstream from affirming the former.

My point is simply that we create far more serious pastoral problems when we
apply a sweeping hermeneutical solution to the presenting set of pastoral
problems. This, I believe, is the very concern of which Dr. Waltke tries to warn
us in his commentary.

A WORD ABOUT DR. WALTKE

Carter is not the first critic to claim that I have misread Bruce Waltke’s
commentary, which I quoted in my original article. But the criticism goes like
this:

* You invoke Waltke in support of your claim that ‘proverbs aren’t promises’ is
misleading.
* But look at all these other places where Waltke clearly denies that proverbs
are universal, deistic mechanisms for attaining reward.
* Therefore, you have misread him (or not allowed for his nuance).

This is to miss the point of my citation of Dr. Waltke. I do not claim that Dr.
Waltke supports a deistic, mechanistic view of the promises of Proverbs. Nor do
I argue myself in favor of a deistic, mechanistic view of the promises of
Proverbs.

All that Dr. Waltke is saying, to which I am appealing, is that to solve the
pastoral problems of Proverbs with a sweeping hermeneutical maxim that “proverbs
aren’t promises but probabilities” is “stating the matter badly.” By the way we
have chosen to frame the hermeneutical principle, we have created a host of
“theological, practical, and psychological problems” that are even worse than
the original matter we set out to address.

So again, I deny that proverbs are universal, deistic, mechanisms for attaining
reward in this present life. But I strenuously urge us all not to frame our
correction with the language of “proverbs aren’t promises.” By doing that, we
create even worse problems for the people we’re trying to help.

WHAT’S AT STAKE

I am not arguing, as Pastor Carter claims at the start of his article, against
the overstatement of a valid hermeneutical principle. I am arguing against even
the bare statement of such a faulty principle, even though the principle is
well-intended to address a real problem.

To continue repeating the oft-repeated maxim that “proverbs aren’t promises” is
to throw into question all of the Bible’s promises, because the same arguments
against proverbs being promises can be directly applied to promises from other
genres of the Bible. That is why the statement “proverbs aren’t promises” is
misleading.

But that which truly concerns Pastor Carter, along with the myriad other
proponents of the conventional guidance, is something with which I fully agree.
Proverbs are not mechanistic guarantees for life in this fallen world. Can we
not simply frame the matter that way, and do away with the label of “not
promises”?

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Filed Under: Proverbs Tagged With: Interpretation, Misinterpretation, Paul
Carter, Promises, Proverbs

THE UNIQUENESS OF JOHN’S GOSPEL

September 4, 2024 By Peter Krol

Micahel J. Kruger explains 7 traits that make the Gospel of John unique:

1. John is the last gospel.
2. John is the most personal gospel.
3. John is the most beloved gospel.
4. John is the most distinctive gospel.
5. John is the most theological gospel.
6. John is the most “Old Testament” Gospel.
7. John is the most “plain” gospel (about the message of eternal life).

> To be clear, all four of our gospels are special, inspired, and unique in
> their own ways. But, John offers a unique contribution to our vision of the
> ministry of Jesus. And he proves that Jesus’ person is so deep, so
> multi-faceted, so profound, that there are always more things to say about
> him.

Check it out!

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Filed Under: Check it Out Tagged With: Gospels, John, Michael Kruger

PROVERBS: SOLOMON’S INTENTIONS AND OVERSIGHT

August 30, 2024 By Peter Krol

As we continue our overview of the book of Proverbs, we ought to take note of
Solomon’s intentions for this book, along with his failure to heed his own
advice.

SOLOMON’S INTENTIONS

Solomon has an agenda for each of the types of people he addresses.

To the simple, he offers a gift: prudence, knowledge and discretion (Prov
1:4). You can’t stay at the crossroads forever. Not to make a decision is to
make the wrong decision. Turn to the Lord (trust in his Messiah, Jesus); start
moving toward him and becoming like him. Then you’ll live up to your created
potential, and you’ll obtain your redeemed glory.

To the foolish, he offers a challenge: fear the Lord and begin to have knowledge
(Prov 1:7). Be a fool no longer. Give up what you cannot keep (your own
self-satisfied condition and individualistic righteousness) to gain what you
cannot lose (entrance into the eternal kingdom, fullness of life, most
delightful joy). It will cost you everything and be the most difficult thing you
ever do, but it’s the only way to true freedom and lasting insight. Jesus died a
fool’s death so fools could know the wise life by knowing him.

To the wise, he offers both encouragement and caution: you’re running on the
right path, but don’t slow down (Prov 1:5)! You’re never finished. You haven’t
arrived yet. Wisdom is not something you are; it is something you are doing. We
can never be wise; we can only become wise. It’s a journey, not a
destination. The wise person grows closer and closer to the Lord Jesus until the
last day.

Solomon himself needed to hear this last point over and over again, but he
forgot.

SOLOMON’S OVERSIGHT

Have you ever wondered how the wisest person who ever lived could end up such a
wretched fool? Solomon married 1000 women and turned away from the Lord to
worship their gods (1 Kings 11:3-4). If he was so wise, how could he do such a
foolish thing? After the Lord gave him such wisdom, how is it possible that he
could fail in the end?

Image by René Schindler from Pixabay

These questions troubled me for years until I finally heard a good answer in a
lecture by Bruce Waltke. Solomon himself forgot this most crucial principle of
wisdom: It is a path, not a destination. “Cease to hear instruction, my son, and
you will stray from the words of knowledge” (Proverbs 19:27).[1] You can’t ever
let off the gas or set the cruise control. You must actively pursue wisdom every
moment of every day. Don’t grow weary or lose heart.

But even more importantly, Solomon was not the primary one God had in mind when
he made those promises of Sonship and Kingdom in 2 Samuel 7:12-16. Jesus
was. Remember the opening line to Mark’s Gospel? “The beginning of the gospel of
Jesus Christ, the Son of God” (Mark 1:1). Remember last year’s Christmas
cantata? “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his
Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever” (Revelation 11:15, quoted in
Handel’s Messiah).

This is Good News for us, because if for one moment our standing before God
depended on our own wisdom, we would be dead. We wouldn’t last. But if instead,
all we must do is trust in Jesus, and his wisdom and righteousness replace our
failure and make us right before God, then we have hope! You see, what really
makes someone wise is that he knows he’s got further to go in order to be
wise. When measured against the wisdom of Jesus, he will always lack and
therefore need more. So he turns to Jesus, rests on him, and hopes in him.

Photo by Tom Fisk on Pexels.com

We’ve bet the house on this one horse, and if Jesus loses the race, we lose
everything.

Such reckless abandon is mandatory for any who want to be wise. Is there any
hint of such abandon on your pursuit of wisdom?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[1]See also Waltke, The Book of Proverbs Chapters 1-15, p.36. (Affiliate link)

This post was first published in 2012.

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Filed Under: Proverbs Tagged With: Audience, Foolish, Overview, Proverbs,
Simple, Wise

DON’T MAKE MEDITATION TOO DIFFICULT

August 28, 2024 By Peter Krol

In his last post, my co-blogger Ryan mentioned meditation as a wonderful way to
grow in our understanding of, love for, and obedience to God. Tim Challies would
agree, and in his recent article, “Maybe We Make Meditation Too Difficult,”
Challies encourages us all to find some way to work this practice into our
spiritual disciplines.

> What is meditation? Meditation is pondering the words of the Bible with the
> goal of better understanding and sharper application. Ideally, meditation
> leads us to understand the words we have read and to know how God may call us
> to work them out in our lives. It is one of the ways that we output wisdom
> after inputting knowledge.

Challies explains the natural tendency to turn meditation into something quite
abstract, solitary, and scripted. He offers suggestions on ways we can each
adapt the discipline of meditation to our own preferences and personalities.

Check it out!

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Filed Under: Check it Out Tagged With: Discipline, Meditation, Quiet Time, Tim
Challies

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