Impact!

Impact!

By humility and the fear of the Lord are riches, and honour, and life.

Proverbs 22:4 KJV

Once again, welcome to the book of one-line messages. The writer of most of the words of Proverbs was Solomon, who God testified of as the wisest man on earth at his time, and that there would be none like him before or after him. Till date, I am not sure that there is anyone who can compare with the details of the expenses of the king's court, his palaces, his house utensils, and the commonality of gold in his time. He testified by himself that he spared nothing his eyes desired, and of course, to keep at least 1,000 women occupied and distracted was not a mean feat. He saw and experienced both sides of God- mercy and judgement - so I believe he really was in a good position to write the words of today's extract. In that light, what would God have me know from these words? 

1. God's standard for the measure of success has nothing to do with what the world celebrates. The world itself cannot define success or riches, yet it gives an image and then as men pursue the image, the goalposts shift again. The idea of success by the world is a myth; an idea that cannot really be attained because it is not based on truth. Yet man runs, unsure of where he is headed, how to get there or even if he ever gets there. That is the reason for the insatiable hunger of man for meaning in his life, and the reason why bank account balances, high fences and deep pockets cannot replace the presence of God in a man's life. 

2. The secret to success by the Word of God is humility. It is a bit strange but then, everything that God commands does not flow according to man's expectations. How would humility push me toward the top? How would putting others first make me first? As long as my desire is to be first, and I am the one pushing myself, I am bound to fail. There is a God who reigns and rules in the affairs of men, who can create a position simply because he wants his child to be recognised. The role Joseph played in Egypt lived and died with him, because God wanted to prove a point: in and by me can your life really make an impact. Don't push yourself forward; let me do it for you. When I do it, you will last longer and make impact. If you do it by yourself, you can only rise as high as mortal men can carry you and you know that is low indeed. 

3. The fear of the Lord keeps a man healthy and sane. He does not have to dance to the ever - changing standards of men. All of life is a circle; what goes around comes around. The standards that stood firm at a time will fall away, to be replaced by something else. But when the standard you see guided by is the Word of God, you do not have to dance to man's tune. I do not have to remember what the standard was a few days ago. All I have to do is remember what God's word says and follow it. What God called sin in the Garden of Eden is still sin today; nothing has changed. That is consistency, and when a man fears this God, his life is also a study in consistency. Mistakes may be made, but it won't be God changing his mind or lowering the standard, but man striving to live up to God's standard. 

4. And when you combine humility with the fear of God, you get riches, honor and life: three things the whole world is looking for, yet can't get the right version outside of the God who owns them. Look at the three benefits: riches - the true version that is free of pain and trouble. The riches that will not stress the holder, because his heart is not distracted by them. Honour - the type that only a dependence on God can give you. Men seek to use riches to buy honour, but how can you use physical tender to buy that which cannot really be bought with money? By the world's standard, you only get honour when you are rich, so what happens when the money you have is all gone? Does that not make it clear that honour here is not the type that money can get for you, but the type that only God can give you. Life - the real kind that really never ends. If the life of Jesus is such that can never end, all who are in him also enjoy that same life. What is the use of riches if there is no life to enjoy them? 

A man's life does not consist of the abundance of the things he possesses. My life must not be defined only by what I have and hold now, but also by where I am headed. God expects me to have make impact for him both down here and also as I prepare for eternity. I am not to wait until I am in heaven before I enjoy all that God has made available for those who are his own. The life starts down here and only continues when I get to heaven. Can I say of a truth that I have all of these? It is a package deal; all are available in and through the one who loves me enough to die so I could claim them. If I do not take hold of them, it won't be his fault, but mine. His time of favour is here.