Reflect
Today’s passage, I believe, can be summed up by two of the verses--17 and 18. Verse 17 commands us to ‘not envy sinners’ and verse 18 promises us that ‘our hope will not be cut off.’ The rest of the passage builds on this command and promise, illustrating the folly of a life of sin and the wisdom of fearing the Lord. I think it can be very tempting for us to envy the lives of those who are not following Jesus. Some of them may have a lot of possessions or appear to have their lives together, but if we believe the Bible, the truth is that nothing in this world will satisfy the desires of our hearts outside of the will of God. It can be very destructive for us to look at those who are not following Jesus and think “if only I had that freedom...” This is what the prodigal son did in the famous parable! The reality is that we are truly free and truly living the best life when we are following Jesus, when our hearts are set on Him, and when our hope is found in Him rather than in temporal things. Take a moment to repent of any time you may have ‘envied’ a sinner. What does this reveal about your heart? Ask Jesus to fill that desire with Himself.
Pastor Daunavan
Pray
- Pray for our Executive Pastor, Terry Okken and for his family and his ministry.
- Pray for Craig and Maureen Moody, NAB missionaries we support.
- Pray for our Children’s Ministry Assistant, Kyla Mould.
- Pray for Sheryl Grunwald as she serves with Kidzana Children’s Ministry.