Obey, Love, and Trust

            Proverbs 3:1-6 says, “My child, do not forget my teaching but let your heart keep my commandments; For length of days and years of life and peace they will add to you. Do not let kindness and truth leave you; Bind them around your neck, Write them on the tablet of your heart. So you will find favor and good repute in the sight of God and man. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.” We’re continuing with a message of wisdom from Solomon where he explains three critical things: 1) The Importance of Obedience. 2) The Importance of Love. 3) The Importance of Trust.

This first one is more in tune with children obeying their parents which if they do so, the chances of them having a longer life physically is better. Some people say that it is a promise from God Himself that if we obey them we will have a longer life. However, Solomon says the “length of days and years of life they will add to you.” We all know we cannot literally add more years to a person’s life. That is beyond our control. What Solomon is saying here is that if you obey them, listen to them, and learn from their experiences, you could live longer because you chose to learn what hurts you and what helps you. It does not mean that we are promised tomorrow. It’s the same situation in Ephesians 6:1-3. Obeying our parents in the Lord and honoring them in the Lord is right, but Paul says as a result of this, “that you may live long on the earth.” We are not promised to live long but there is a better chance we can if learn and listen.

The second and third points kind of run together. Kindness and truth and trust comes from the love that is in your heart. These three things are a result of love. Kindness and truth are mentioned here in a specific way. “Do not let them leave you; Bind them around your neck; Write them on the tablet of your heart.” The neck is an extremely critical part of the human body. Injuries to this area can cause some serious issues, and sometimes death. What I want us to think about is its location. It is between the heart and the mouth. In another manner of speaking, we need to expectorate words of kindness and truth. The words we speak tell a lot about who we are and if these kinds of words are not on the forefront of what we want to say then we need to re-evaluate some things about ourselves. When we speak these things, trust is built. When we speak things that the Lord has taught us, we are showing that we trust in His wisdom and understanding.

-Mark Talbert-