Tuesday, June 4, 2024
Keep off the path of the wicked; don’t proceed on the way of evil ones. Avoid it; don’t travel on it. Turn away from it and pass it by. For they can’t sleep unless they have done what is evil; they are robbed of sleep unless they make someone stumble. They eat the bread of wickedness and drink the wine of violence. The path of the righteous is like the light of dawn, shining brighter and brighter until midday. But the way of the wicked is like the darkest gloom; they don’t know what makes them stumble. Proverbs 4:14-19
Two Paths
Read Proverbs 4:14-19. What is Solomon’s warning concerning the wicked? How is the way of the righteous different? What is the outcome of the way of the wicked?
Solomon gives very clear advice to us about the wicked and their path. He starts off by saying that we should never even start on the path of the wicked. He knew how the wicked hooked those who set foot on the path, making it almost impossible to get off the path unscathed. He says it over and over again - Keep off the path of the wicked; don’t proceed on the way of evil ones. Avoid it; don’t travel on it. Turn away from it and pass it by…
Some may believe that they can control how far they go down the path of the wicked, but they underestimate the strength of the snare. The best choice is to stay far away and never get on the path to begin with. The message here is urgent and clear. Every step you take on the path of the wicked makes it more difficult to get off. They are not committed to the Lord; they are committed to sin and evil. Solomon says they cannot even sleep unless they have done evil. They would give up everything to do their evil – sleep, money, etc. Unless they draw others down the path with them they cannot rest. Sin and wickedness are the sustenance they thrive on and they are bondservants of the devil.
A path is a well-traveled road, proving consistent, intentional choices. Just as there are two choices, there are two paths we must always choose from. Like the two choices, these two paths will either take us closer to God or further away – life or death. For the believer there will always be a choice. God gives us free will which is the ability to make our own choices; to think and reason for ourselves. As Jesus followers we need to filter everything we do through God, his word, prayer, and what we know to be glorifying to him. We will be faced with the choice forever – to do what brings life, or brings us closer to God, or to do what brings death, or takes us further away from him. Sometimes it will be clear which one is which but other times it will be harder. There may not be a wrong choice, just good and better. But in the end, we need to make our decisions based on what we want our lives to be like. Do we want to walk The Jesus Way, living a life that glorifies him and brings us life? Or do we want to take the risk and choose the path of the evil? A risk not worth taking. To be drawn in further and ensnared is not a worthy cause to make such a decision, a decision that leads to death.
The way of the righteous is the path we want to take as Jesus followers. The path of the righteous is like the light of dawn, shining brighter and brighter until midday. Solomon uses the metaphor of “light” shining to describe Jesus followers. The more we grow in our relationship with him, the brighter we shine. Just as we get brighter as we grow towards God, the wicked become increasingly dark as they continue on their path. Their way is darkness and will only ever grow darker as it leads away from Jesus and towards death.
We will always be faced with the choice of what path to choose, and the choice of what path to take is the choice of life or death. Just as the two choices we spoke of yesterday, the path of the righteous will always lead us to Jesus, or life. The path of the wicked will always lead us away from Jesus and to death and destruction. If you are resolved to always choose the path that leads to life, prepare yourself because the lure of the wicked will always be taunting. But when we abide in him, filling our lives with his word and growing in our relationship him, we will not be tempted to leave the path of light and life for the path of wickedness and death.
Who has God placed in your life to help you stay on the right path? Do you have an accountability partner?
How are you sharing that inheritance with the next generation? We have to pass on our faith and the decision making tools so that they can be vigilant and make those decisions on their own.
