Category: Wisdom

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The Straight and Narrow Road

There lay a straight and narrow road ahead of me. The pavement is unadorned; it is littered with debris. All around me are dead shrubbery, not a single hint of green. I can see other paths far off in the distance. Those paths are beautiful and awe-striking. Many walk those roads, despite the fact that I’ve seen and foretold of the doom at their destination. Their roads are downhill, and very easy to tread on. My path ascends uphill, creating much difficulty. Yet, while weary, I press on because I see a great light, and golden gates in the clouds. There, a crowned man beckons all to come, and flee the path of immorality and death. Few obey, but those who reach Him are richly rewarded. Though I grow tiresome, and many fall away from the straight and narrow road, I continue on, strengthened through the call of the crowned man. When I reach the top, I am greeted by the crowned man in scarlet robes. He says to me “Well done, my good and faithful servant, in whom I am well pleased.” I rejoice greatly with all those who came before me. Here, we spend all of eternity praising our Master for saving us from everlasting torment.
Logan Flagler
10-23-24
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What do we seek?

22 For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, 24 but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), 1 Co 1:22–25.

  • 1 Co 1:18 | For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
  • Mt 12:38 | Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered him, saying, “Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you.”
  • Ga 5:11 | But if I, brothers, still preach circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been removed.
  • Lk 2:34 | And Simeon blessed them and said to Mary his mother, “Behold, this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is opposed
  • 1 Co 1:30 | And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption,
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The four primary characters in Proverbs.

There are four primary characters in Proverbs: the wise, the fool, the simple, and the scoffer. The wise embrace God’s covenant. Fools, on the other hand, are opposed to God, yet they are not beyond hope. The simple are those who remain uncommitted to either wisdom or folly, and because of that they are easily misled. Scoffers are proud and arrogant and scorn God’s ways. Other voices in the book include Lady Wisdom and Lady Folly, each of whom personifies the characteristics of her name, and the Woman of Excellence, with whom the book concludes.

Lydia Brownback, Proverbs, A 12-Week Study, ed. J. I. Packer, Dane C. Ortlund, and Lane T. Dennis, Knowing the Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2014), 7–8.

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Officer Involved Shooting

Our local police responded to a parking lot full of people.  From police footage, it appears that most of the people were homeless.  One police officer approached the group and was attacked and bitten by a dog.  It appeared to me that the dog was on a leash at the time.   The officer was walking off the attack when he came back into view of the dog again, which was now off-leash.    Another officer approached the dog’s owner yelling at her to control her dog.  Her attempt was feeble, at best.  He promised her that he would shoot the dog if she didn’t gain control of it.  She didn’t and the dog attacked again and was shot four times for its efforts.

In most circumstances, I would feel sorry for the stupid dog and its owner; but, people don’t realize the impact that has on the officer.  As an animal control officer, I could have taken the dog without killing it.  That’s what we do.  But, I don’t expect a police officer to handle the situation as I would have.  Police officers are trained to think with their guns when they are in danger.  So, given the circumstances, it was a righteous shooting. Although, a Taser would have been my first choice.

Before you start thinking that I’m all full of myself, keep in mind that most animal control officers don’t carry guns.  So shooting a dog isn’t an option.  If we are experienced animal control officers, we get out of our vehicles with a ketch-pole and leash in our hands.  The prospect of getting bitten doesn’t worry us as it does police officers.  Of course, we also get more experience facing down a face full of doggie teeth.

I recall using pepper spray on a Rottweiler once.  The owners complained to the police about my use of pepper spray and when the police sergeant came out to talk to the dog’s owners, the dog attacked him.  He came just short of shooting the dog.  Once the sergeant calmed down, he told me not to worry about the complaint.  I was a little embarrassed that I stepped out of the vehicle without my ketch-pole.  After all of these years, I still feel bad about using the pepper spray.

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Taking God’s Name In Vain.

When we become Christians, we belong to God.  He has placed an invisible brand across our foreheads, taking possession of His flock.  He has placed His name on us.  It is not enough to declare who we are, God expects us to show it.  When we don’t act like one of His children, we blemish His name; thus taking His name in vain.

I pray that we let our light shine; and that we wear His name well upon us.

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God is with us.

Just a small sampling of God’s promise to be with us:

Genesis 26:3
3 Sojourn in this land, and I will be with you and will bless you, for to you and to your offspring I will give all these lands, and I will establish the oath that I swore to Abraham your father.

Numbers 14:9
9 Only do not rebel against the LORD. And do not fear the people of the land, for they are bread for us. Their protection is removed from them, and the LORD is with us; do not fear them.”

Psalm 27:1
1  The LORD is my light and my salvation;
whom shall I fear?
The LORD is the stronghold of my life;
of whom shall I be afraid?

Psalm 56:4
4  In God, whose word I praise,
in God I trust; I shall not be afraid.
What can flesh do to me?

Psalm 118:6
6  The LORD is on my side; I will not fear.
What can man do to me?

Psalm 129:2
2  “Greatly have they afflicted me from my youth,
yet they have not prevailed against me.

Proverbs 20:22
22  Do not say, “I will repay evil”;
wait for the LORD, and he will deliver you.

Isaiah 43:2
2  When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you;
when you walk through fire you shall not be burned,
and the flame shall not consume you.

Jeremiah 1:6
6 Then I said, “Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, I do not know how to speak, for I am only a youth.”

Jeremiah 1:8
8  Do not be afraid of them,
for I am with you to deliver you,
declares the LORD.”

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Ge 26:3–Je 1:8.

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Women of the Bible

I’ve always been impressed by the faith women shown in the Bible. Their quickness of the spirit left the men around them in the dust, especially the women who appeared around Jesus.  Although men carried the faith around the world, women seemed to be the first to be sensitive to the Spirit.  Thank you Lord for the women that you place into our lives.

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Proverbs 2

When you become acquainted with the Bible, you find scriptures that draw you in.  Proverbs does that to me.  I find myself repeatedly returning to the words there.  Thanks to the Logos App, I can engage in my own personal Bible study.  I opted to use the Logos App instead of enrolling in Theological Studies at a university.  Several things drove me in this direction: cost, the worry that colleges now have lost the root of knowledge, and I wanted a self-directed approach to study.  I wanted to test the promises of Proverbs 2 to gain my knowledge.

My study today was understanding the people in that chapter.  I was delighted to see that “a woman” was listed as a person of interest.  On a lark, I hovered my cursor over the word, “woman” and found that a woman was defined as “an adult female.”  The nice thing about the Bible is that it has been steadfast throughout the centuries; not given to woke nonsense.

As I see it, wokeness formed because people had become so distant from God.  The further that they moved away from Him, the more they lost knowledge of Him.  And lost wisdom.

I was watching a YouTube video of a school board meeting in Chicago in which a parent was complaining that their daughter was forced to disrobe in front of a transgender woman ( a guy with a penis who claims to be a woman (I just wanted to be clear on the issue)).  When I said, “forced,” I mean that several women employees walked the girl back into the locker room and stood with her as she was forced to disrobed.

In the board meeting, attendees booed the parent for complaining.  I was flabbergasted as to how far we as a society have fallen away from God.  One of the speakers told the parent, “Don’t bring your white God in here.”  I could hear the flames of Hell heating up.  It is not too late to come back to Him.

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Old Man’s Dreams

Last night, I dreamt that a storm was coming and that the Lord’s children prayed that the storm waters would be blessed by God and become the Holy Water that washes upon the face of the earth to cast out evil that is in and upon it. The air would become pure and you could breath in the holiness of the moment.

I woke to find a fine layer of snow upon the ground and I pondered the dream.

Both the Old Testament and the New Testament promised to give old men dreams:

Joel 2:28 says, “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and daughters shall prophesy, and your old men shall dream dreams and your young men shall see visions.” Luke reminds us of this in Acts 2:17 when he writes, “And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams.”

But for the mater of interpretations, Genesis 40:5 says, “They said to him, ‘We have had dreams, and there is no one to interpret them.’ And Joseph said to them ‘Do not interpretations belong to God? Please tell them to me..” And yet, in 1 Corinthians 14:28 says, “But if there is no one to interpret, let each of them keep silent in church and speak to himself and to God.” And yet, the memory of the dream remains.

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Will You Be Sleeping?

Jesus Foretells Destruction of the Temple
13 And as he came out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Look, Teacher, what wonderful stones and what wonderful buildings!” 2 And Jesus said to him, “Do you see these great buildings? There will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.”

Signs of the End of the Age
3 And as he sat on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter and James and John and Andrew asked him privately, 4 “Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign when all these things are about to be accomplished?” 5 And Jesus began to say to them, “See that no one leads you astray. 6 Many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am he!’ and they will lead many astray. 7 And when you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. This must take place, but the end is not yet. 8 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. These are but the beginning of the birth pains.
9 “But be on your guard. For they will deliver you over to councils, and you will be beaten in synagogues, and you will stand before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them. 10 And the gospel must first be proclaimed to all nations. 11 And when they bring you to trial and deliver you over, do not be anxious beforehand what you are to say, but say whatever is given you in that hour, for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit. 12 And brother will deliver brother over to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death. 13 And you will be hated by all for my name’s sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.

The Abomination of Desolation
14 “But when you see the abomination of desolation standing where he ought not to be (let the reader understand), then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 15 Let the one who is on the housetop not go down, nor enter his house, to take anything out, 16 and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak. 17 And alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! 18 Pray that it may not happen in winter. 19 For in those days there will be such tribulation as has not been from the beginning of the creation that God created until now, and never will be. 20 And if the Lord had not cut short the days, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect, whom he chose, he shortened the days. 21 And then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘Look, there he is!’ do not believe it. 22 For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform signs and wonders, to lead astray, if possible, the elect. 23 But be on guard; I have told you all things beforehand.

The Coming of the Son of Man
24 “But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, 25 and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. 26 And then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. 27 And then he will send out the angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.

The Lesson of the Fig Tree
28 “From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. 29 So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that he is near, at the very gates. 30 Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place. 31 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.

No One Knows That Day or Hour
32 “But concerning that day or that hour, no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 33 Be on guard, keep awake. For you do not know when the time will come. 34 It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his servants in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to stay awake. 35 Therefore stay awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or in the morning— 36 lest he come suddenly and find you asleep. 37 And what I say to you I say to all: Stay awake.”

The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Mk 13:1–37.

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