Good morning my dear friends. I ran across this quote and thought I would share it with you.
"Talent is God -given, be humble. Fame is man-given, be thankful, Conceit is self-given, be careful."
John Wooden
Thursday 3/23
Prov. 29:9 "If a wise man contends (takes to court) with a foolish man, Whether the fool rages or laughs, there is no peace."
The primary thought isn't focused on the wise person, but rather on the foolish one. The primary instruction is that to appeal, contend, or even argue with a fool is useless, futile, will be of no benefit, is a waste of time.
You may be asking, Why, did the author say that?
Solomon gave these answers in other locations:
Prov. 20:3 "Avoiding a fight is a mark of honor; only fools insist on quarreling."
Prov. 15:5 "Only a fool despises a parents discipline; whoever learns from correction is wise."
In other words the fool not only places no value on instruction, he also despises it, nor has time for it.
You may say, What is the outcome? Well it is actually two pronged:
To contend with the fool results in either rage or ridicule (laughter), and regardless of the outcome it will
bring no correction. (peace) In other words, after great persuasion skills, or even humor, you might
wonder, "What did I fail to do properly?" Was it my attitude, my demeanor, my words. The answer rings
back, No, he is just foolish in his responses.
Kind of like the statement; "Don't bother me with the facts, my mind is made up."
This thinking is kind of like the crowd at Jesus' ruling, Their response was "Crucify Him, We'll not have this man rule over us."
What had Jesus done that was so cruel that they wanted to have him killed?
Let's compare the Roman rule with Jesus:
Jesus: Think for a minute, He had healed thousands of people, fed thousands, reasoned with them
many times, communicated with them God's love for them, performed many miracles before
them that brought benefit to them. Promised kind caring leadership & protection.
Rome: They had defeated their army, killing many innocent Jewish political leaders, forced them to
leave their homeland, taxed them into poverty, been unjust in their dealings, killed any person
who attempted for any reason to be heard, laid down laws that were without mercy, or
consideration.
Well does this conduct ring a bell? If you were a person led by reason who would you have chosen to follow?
So Go With God He is the same reasoned, wise leader who desires peace & hope for all of us.
Yes all that believe in him should strive to love as he does. As talking with a fool boy I wish I could control myself to just walk away. This is hard especially when it deals with not believing in Jesus.