An open rebuke is better than hidden love! Wounds from a sincere friend are better than many kisses from an enemy.. Proverbs 27:5-6 NLT When I was about 9 or so I was playing soccer (football to most of the world) with my neighbor. We had an argument about what the out-of-bounds markers were. It … Continue reading –>
The Enemy as Friend Read Proverbs 26:17–23. On the lines below, summarize what is being said. Proverbs, again, gets into the power of words, this time dealing with the harm caused by slander and quarreling. Those who slander your enemy before your face, to make you think they’re on your side, are really like charcoal: … Continue reading –>
“Do not exalt yourself in the presence of the king, and do not stand in the place of the great.” Proverbs 25:6 This lesson fits one of my favorite Bible characters perfectly! Not because he was guilty of deceit or of being a sluggard. To the contrary, he was the model of transparency, humility and diligence. … Continue reading –>
[Thought questions for Behind the Mask March 3, 1015] 1. Introduction. Can people exalt themselves? Isn’t the approval of the other people needed for exaltation to happen? But what about Satan? Did he win a heavenly election? And don’t all of us, at times anyway, wish we could have more honor than life deals us? Stay tuned to see what … Continue reading –>
The Friend as Enemy If we are more disappointed by our friends than by our enemies, it is because we expect good from our friends and evil from our enemies. It doesn’t always work out that way, though, does it? That’s why Proverbs warns us that sometimes a friend behaves like an enemy, and an … Continue reading –>
Key Thought : Moral situations that humans face do not change over the years. The book of Proverbs is an ethical textbook that fits our situations today. [Lesson plan for Behind the Mask March 2, 2015] 1. Have a volunteer read Proverbs 25:2-7. a. Ask class members to share a thought on what the most important … Continue reading –>
The Sluggard The sluggard buries his hand in the dish; he is too lazy to bring it back to his mouth (Prov. 26:15, NIV). Just as students who spend more time and energy preparing to cheat on an exam than studying for it, it is ironic that lazy people work hard to find excuses for … Continue reading –>
The Fool as Wise Though not a recent fabrication, (especially in the Western world) the idea has taken hold in recent years that argues for the relative nature of truth. That is, what is true for one person, or one culture, might not be true for another. While on one level this is always correct … Continue reading –>
The Mystery of God Life is full of mysteries. Physicist David Deutsch wrote that everyday events are stupendously complex when expressed in terms of fundamental physics. If you fill a kettle with water and switch it on, all the supercomputers on Earth working for the age of the universe could not solve the equations that … Continue reading –>
Read for This Week’s Study: Prov. 25:2-3; Prov. 26:11-12; 1 Cor. 1:20-21; Prov. 26:13–16; Prov. 27:5-6. Memory Verse: Do not exalt yourself in the presence of the king, and do not stand in the place of the great (Proverbs 25:6, NKJV). Behind the dazzling serpent, who utters sweet words and who seems so concerned with Eve’s happiness, … Continue reading –>
