Wisdom for the Lenten Path
Day 19: Proverbs 10 and the Call to Live as the Wise Sons and Daughters of God
The Wisdom That Shapes Life
A wise son makes a glad father,
but a foolish son is a sorrow to his mother.
Treasures gained by wickedness do not profit,
but righteousness delivers from death.
The LORD does not let the righteous go hungry,
but he thwarts the craving of the wicked.
A slack hand causes poverty,
but the hand of the diligent makes rich.
He who gathers in summer is a prudent son,
but he who sleeps in harvest is a son who brings shame.
(Proverbs 10:1–5)
Let’s consider the vast depository of wisdom found in Proverbs 10 in our subsequent days of Lenten devotionals.
The book of Proverbs is a book of wisdom divided between covenant blessings and curses. Wisdom teaches how God wants you to live in this world and how to establish the good life as God intends. Lent is a fitting season to return to this wisdom, because Lent is a season of self-examination, repentance, and renewed obedience.
It is a pity that the idea that the Bible applies to all areas of life is so neglected today. In fact, it is neglected even by Christians. The fundamental reason for claiming the Bible does not speak to all areas of life is that, for some, life is ghostly. The center of the Christian life is the spiritual center. The physical stuff is irrelevant compared to the glories of spirituality. They only exist to distract us from the life to come. After all, if the ship is sinking, why polish the brass? “This world is not my home; I am just passing through.”
But Proverbs corrects this mindset. The Hebrew Scriptures challenge the sharp distinction between the spiritual and the physical. The soul is not a ghost-like figure wandering around divorced from your body. When the Bible addresses the soul or spirit, it also addresses your body. When the Bible addresses the body, it is also addressing your spirit.
God is concerned about the spiritual. He cherishes your inner holiness. But he also teaches about wealth, poverty, food, wine, water, trees, and everything else under the sun. When God said that creation was very good, he meant it. Our goal as image-bearers is to mimic the life of God the Father, the Son, and the Spirit, who live in eternal happiness and communion.
