Self or God ?

Proverbs 3:3-4

Let Love (1st Corinthians 13) and Faithfulness (Hebrews 11) never leave you. Bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart.Then you will win favor and good name in the sight of God and man.

Good Morning and Shalom:

Have you ever stop to really read the Proverbs? Ever really examine them? We read many passages in the bible and all the stories, however, the proverbs are like  gold and silver of wealth to us spiritually. 

A friend of mine, Joeseph , lives in Texas now, taught me a very long time ago, to read a proverb a day. Although we should read  the bible in entirety, but a proverb a day is usually like that extra vitamin needed for our spiritual instruction. I have always remembered that and have continued to do it for years.

What is the most interesting fact of the proverbs, is that all of God's intructions  and wisdoms in all the books of the bible are either quoted from the proverbs and or used in some way, shape or form from, this book.

This morning today is February 3rd, 2017, and I woke up to read and pray. So today part of my reading is Proverbs 3. 

This chapter alone brings so much wisdom and knowledge its hard to even write a short blog about it. The verse I picked today is the one seen above. 

In these verses God gives us a veiw and instruction of how to win HIS favor and a Good name in HIS sight and while we do that, it also brings us the same with man.

But what is this LOVE and FAITHFULNESS that is spoken here?It says to take these two things and bind them around your neck and write them on your heart. What is it and how do you do such a thing?

Lets examine binding something around your neck and writing them on your heart first before we go further. 

In life today we see all kinds of things around our necks. We see scarves, necklaces, tattoos, chains, and lanyards etc... and the like.  Why do we do these things to our necks? In todays society we are obviously saying to ourselves and others this is what we want to look like , how we feel and I am displaying these things in this way today so I can look good, feel better and this is who I am here, now  and for today.

A scarf around your neck can keep you warm in the winter or covered up from something you dont want to display. A chain or necklace can be displayed and look good but give off a sense of feeling and taste of who you are and what you like and what you are like. A tattoo gives off many things and shows many pictures. Ive seen names tattooed on the neck mostly however I have also seen many pictures tattooed that gives off some type of matter of fact picture that captures the eyes of a person, usually shocks you and gives off a feeling of warning in some way.

So we see that something around the neck makes a statement , and gives us a sign,  a warning sometimes, or can bring us in and entice us. But for the most part it is making sometype of statment to us, on our inside, how we feel and how do we want to make others feel. 

So what about the writing on the tablet of your heart that is also stated. This is interesting because, no one can see what is on your heart. What is on your heart, is inside you and the only way something inside you can be seen, must be displayed in some way.  So how do we do this? How do we write these things and write them on your heart? Well lets look on how we see things of today and society do it already. We see posters , pictures , movies, books , radio shows, videos , shirts ,  demonstrations in todays society all the time. People are standing up for many things today. People have stood up for the election of President Obama, President Trump, protests for Black lives and immigrants. We see all kinds of things in todays society that is shaking up everything in greater levels and is effecting each one us today some how and some way.

How does these things do such things? They are able too becuase in some way your heart is involved. Your heart is feeling sometype of pain , anger, hurt, bitter, gladness , joy, etc., to be able to allow such things affect you. You buy shirts , you read the articles and listen to the programs and videos. You encompass yourself in and around these things all the time and the are being allowed to be written on your heart which effects you from the inside . But nothing on the inside can be seen unless you allow it to be displayed. 

So we as a people write these influences of todays society on our hearts in the bus loads. Many disturbing things are happening today. We are being shocked in alarming numbers , just when we think we cannot be shocked any further. We are seeing Hate being regarded as good things. We are seeing Good and Godly biblical teachings being regarded as hate. We are seeing what is called homosexuality and perveted immoral lifetsyles being called love and what what is defined under God's biblical veiw of what love and marriage is being called old school or demoralizing to women.

So lets look at what Love is really defined biblically. In 1st Corinthians chapter 13 Love is truly defined here. It is called the love chapter. Its been used in movies , and probably quoted in many failed marriages. But what is it really? Is it a feeling or really a standard to live by? 

Love is quoted as being pateint and kind, without envy, doesn't boast, its not rude, proud, nor self seeking. Doesnt delight in evil, rejoices with truth. It protects, trusts, always hopes and perserveres and most importantly, never fails. 

Hmm, interesting, for so many calling for love to win out in todays society it doesn't meet this standard of definition.  But God has defined His love for us so we can understand what pure Love is and what to strive for. What we can set our sights on . What the Goal of love is. How to push foward in its likeness. We are not seeing that in todays soceity. We are not seeing that in in our Government, or these so called movements that states they are about LOVE. Many Church buildings and Pastors are not standing firm to this either. They are being swayed by todays society and compromise this true meaning of Love. God defines Love also to not delight in evil. How does GOD define evil? Church leaders are tiptoeing around this subject and allowing evil into their manifesto. Evil is what is not of God. It is that simple. One has to read the bible in simple terms to understand these things. The true LOVE of GOD is being changed and rededfined by man. However , GOD has not changed. 

You see in this definition of Love it is built of the Characteristics of what is the fruit of the spirit is.  The fruit of the spirit is defined in Galations Chapter 5. Fruit of the spirit states that their is no limit to it, that you can have this in so much abundance, there is no limit or no end to it in GODS eyes or understanding. It produces a harvest of so much greater things, GOD approves of it in the here and now and also translates to us eternally. 

Lastly, the scripture talks about faithfulness. What is it? Its defined in Hebrews Chapter 11 as being sure of what is hoped for and being certain of what we do not see. Without faith , it is impossible to please God. Anyone who comes to GOD must beleive that GOD exists and Gods rewards those who earnestly seek him.

In todays society we see all kinds of faith in something , we see faith in our jobs, our bills , our cars , our bank accounts , our savings, our schooling, our ideas, our workout routines, our diets and the list can go on and on?

What happens to you when these things fail? When your car doesnt start, or you have been given bad news that you need surgery? What happens to you when your bank account has been hacked and your money has been stolen by a forged credit card and you cant pay your bills? 

We know one specific detail, that if we do certain things traditionally and or religously then we have built ourselves up on those things. Whatever those things are we hope in them, in faith, that they will never fail us. If they do fail us, we have built up a plan B for it so we can continue on in the like manner. What happens then, if all the plans we have built ourselves up on are knocked down by one simple thing ? Ususally somthing like Cancer can change us immediatley. Everything we have just now built ourselves on is redirected to handle something like Cancer or HIV. All the education , money, and workout cannot change soemthing like that. No protest or government regulation can make these things go away. 

What is your faith in today? Is it in soemthing that won't be with you eternally? You see God has given us the Keys to success eternally. However, its built up simply. We are to simply to Love and seek it in GODLY terms in FAITH that GOD exists and not mans. To stand on this GODLY LOVE and GODLY FAITH and BIND them around our necks as stated. Display them always in every circumstance and standing firm of these things. Love is not a feeling but a stance. A position. Having FAITH in GOD , in these things , even if we dont see them but knowing HE is there and GOD will reward us for it. Standing firm to GODs understanding of these things,  in HIS terms and not man's. this will produce the fruit of the HOLLY SPIRIT and in the end we will find favor with GOD and man. The only protest we will stand firm in , is not changing what we believe in in our hearts and actions and never compromising those things. As a follower of Christ , if you think this has to do with yelling and shouting , you need to read your bible again. If you think that a politician or a leader has all the right answers , you need to read your bible again. If your looking to be raptured without putting in the work, I'm sure you will be left behind. 

I am in constant evaluation of these things in my life. We are given promises, yes, but work on our part must be put forth for these things to manifest in us and through us. To follow Christ is not part time , it is a way of life, and life is not easy. Its not a bowl of cherries. 

If man is always willing to pay more for purity of Gold and silver . Pure  of honey, water, extracts, virgin olive oil, silk, diamonds, breeds of animals, oxygen, power etc., How much more do we as people need to work for our purity in Gods sight. Its simple isnt it to follow Christ? To follow his path? Yes it is , but it is hard . Not to do drugs or get drunk . To steal or lie. Its hard to keep to our word now a days . To say something and mean it when the scriptures states let your yes be yes and your no be no. Its hard to abstain from sexual impurities . Lusts of the eyes, movies  with nudity and profane language. Books that put forth ungodly images in our minds.

Yes Christ Paid for our sins. That doesnot give us a ticket to continue to sin over and over again willingly, knowingly and without our self examination before a pure and just GOD. So God makes his intruction simple . To Bind HIS LOVE and HIS FAITH around your neck and write it on your heart moment byt moment and YOU will find favor in GOD and in man. How do you do that? You do it by surrounding yourself in GOD's word and prayer. Engulfing yourself in it so it gaurds your heart and your mind. That your display will be of these things of God and not of man. Self examining yourself in all you do, read, see, say and display to God and in God. Amen!

Servant to Yeshua Hamoshiach

Jay Isaac Grebin