Reflecting the Image (by Carla Sunberg)

Scripture Prov. 21:13 If you close your ear to the cry of the poor,     you will cry out and not be heard. Observation The poor have always been among us and they are crying out. Jesus reminded us that he was present in the one who needed to be clothed, fed and visited while in prison. Wisdom reminds us that we are to listen to what the poor are saying. We are to hear their cries for help and we are to respond for the day will arise when we need help. If we do not respond and hear what the poor are saying, no one will listen when we too are in need of assistance. Application Walking through the streets of a large city it’s amazing all that the eye can see. It’s much different from getting in the car and simply driving from place to place, a bit insulated from the needs of those around you. While walking in the city one begins to see the needs of the poor on a different level. There are the homeless living out in the city square, crying out for help and justice. ...

Scripture Prov. 18:1        An unfriendly man pursues selfish ends;         he defies all sound judgment. (NIV) 1     The one who lives alone is self-indulgent,         showing contempt for all who have sound judgment.  (NRSV) Observation It’s interesting how these two translations try to express the same truth. The NIV refers to the person being “unfriendly” and the NRSV as the “one who lives alone.”  Ultimately both translations point to the fact that the person is selfish, either pursuing “selfish ends” or is “self-indulgent.” This means that the person has chosen to live in this particular way, without participating in the life of the community. We were created to be in community. That’s why wisdom says that this individual “defies all sound judgment.” or  shows contempt “for all who have sound judgment.” In other words, those who live together within a community are th...

Scripture 23     Doing wrong is like sport to a fool,         but wise conduct is pleasure to a person of understanding. Observation It’s easy to get caught up in foolish behavior. Sometimes that foolish act can be followed by a rush of adrenaline and so the next foolish act is intentionally planned. It becomes a game and the fool derives pleasure from deceitful and sinful behavior. The addiction is physical and so foolishness becomes a sport played to provide the thrill. On the other hand the person of wisdom receives pleasure by their restraint both in the present and the future. The wise person doesn’t have to deal with the negative consequences of foolish behavior. Wise conduct comes from an understanding of the big picture and doesn’t live in the thrill of the moment. Application Many of us have encountered the friend or loved one who has become caught in the sport of foolishness. When continued the game leads to destruc...

Scripture: Romans 8:37 But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Observation: Paul had just listed a number of items through which Christ-followers might pass. They included tribulation, distress, persecution, famine, nakedness, peril and sword. None of these sound pleasant in any way, shape or form. Andy yet, Paul encouraged the believers to understand that all of these were worth conquering. The goal of the believer is to know Christ and his love. This love is worth the conquering. If we are unwilling to endure hardships we will not know the love of Christ. At the same time, none of the hardships of life are large enough to separate us from Christ's love. ...

Scripture Prov. 3:5        Trust in the LORD with all your heart,         and do not rely on your own insight. 6     In all your ways acknowledge him,         and he will make straight your paths. Observation Wisdom reminds us of the need to lean. We become weary and need to lean in some direction and the temptation is to lean upon our own wisdom, learning, knowledge and insight. This is the wrong way to lean. We are to be dependent on the LORD and trusting and leaning are both words that represent that physical experience of support which we are to experience in our relationship to God. Trust in the LORD. Lean on the LORD. In acknowledging our need for him, he will direct us in the pathways of life. Application These two verses are ones that many Christians have memorized and heard throughout their lives. At the same time I’m afraid that we may not truly live by these words. The imager...

Scripture Rom. 6:1   What then are we to say? Should we continue in sin in order that grace may abound?  2 By no means! How can we who died to sin go on living in it? Observation For Paul the idea of sinning and living in Christ were two incompatible concepts. Once someone is baptized and united with Christ they are living in the newness and grace of that life. It automatically raises the question of sin. Origen tell us, “it is clear that someone who has died to sin cannot remain a sinner.” That’s because the kingdom loyalties have shifted. “To sin is to live to sin, and not to sin is to live to God. Therefore, when the grace of God through Christ and through faith came upon us, we began by the spiritual rebirth of baptism to live to God, and we died to sin, which is the devil. This is what dying to sin means: to be set free from sin and to become a servant of God. Therefore, having died to sin, let us not go back to our earlier evils, lest by living once again to sin and...

Scripture 2Chr. 8:11   Solomon brought Pharaoh’s daughter from the city of David to the house that he had built for her, for he said, “My wife shall not live in the house of King David of Israel, for the places to which the ark of the LORD has come are holy.” Observation Solomon had a problem with women. He married far too many wives and married outside of Israel. This sin is especially difficult to accept for he marries Pharoah’s daughter. This means that he developed ties back to Egypt, the very place from which God had freed his people. This man of wisdom — Solomon — proved to be very foolish when it came to his own personal relationships. At the same time he realized that there was something improper about this relationship. He saw that the places where God resided were holy and there was something “unholy” about an Egyptian woman in the midst of God’s dwelling. Trying to make himself look better he built a separate house for her to keep her away from God’s holy presence. ...