The Bible plainly and repeatedly warns believers not to put their trust in men. In addition to this truth, men are not to trust in themselves. As today's passage shows, sometimes God allows circumstances to come into our lives in order to teach us not to trust in ourselves. If any mere mortal could stake a claim to self-trust, it would have been the apostle Paul. He was “circumcised the eighth day,” “an Hebrew of the Hebrews,” and “a Pharisee” (Philippians 3:5). In spite of this, Paul knew these attributes were not sufficient to trust for eternal life. In fact, he counted these things but dung, that he may win Christ (Philippians 3:8). If Paul understood that he could not put his trust in himself or his accomplishments, everyone else should realize that his or her ability or merits are not worthy of trust.
Proverbs 21 contrasts the substance of a wise man versus the substance of a fool. In the home of the wise man, one can find oil and desired treasures. Whenever a need arises, he is prepared to take care of it himself. This is not true of the fool. He cannot take care of himself. We do not know if the fool at some point had treasures and oil as well, but because of his wasteful spending habits, he no longer has those things. In addition to the fool no longer having his substance, he also cannot likely account for how he used those things. Maybe the fool, like far too many Christians, wasted his substance on pleasurable living (Proverbs 21:17). For whatever reason, the fool cannot hold onto the goods entrusted to him by the Lord. Society today has grown accustomed to living on borrowed money, thus spending the future today.
The Devil is both very subtle and sly. He knows that being patient in his attacks against the truth can result in his ultimate victory as he wears down the saints. One of his primary objectives involves a close alliance between the self-help theology crowd and the use of flattery. Those caught up in this type of theology overemphasize the need to develop self-confidence rather than developing a God-confidence. These power of positive thinking proponents teach their followers to think positively of themselves even if those thoughts are unwarranted. Yet, the Bible offers a completely different perspective. According to scripture, the wicked “flattereth himself in his own eyes” (Psalm 36:2) and this self-flattery is “transgression” (Psalm 36:1). On the other hand, the faithful Christian realizes that “at his very best state he is altogether vanity” (Psalm 39:5). Christians need their self-confidence replaced with a greater confidence and trust in the Lord.
The New Testament frequently incorporates minor word variations when quoting Old Testament passages. Some Bible critics have pointed to these variations suggesting that the Bible contains contradictions. However, Bible-believing students know that these variations actually provide additional light and understanding of God’s word. For example, Romans 3:13 quotes Psalm 5:9 with the variation in wording shedding light on the meaning of the word flattery. The phrase from Psalms reads “they flatter with their tongue” (Psalm 5:9). Romans modifies this Old Testament quotation by stating that “with their tongues they have used deceit” (Romans 3:13). This indicates that flattery involves the use of deceitful words; and according to 1 Thessalonians 2:5, the motive is often connected to covetousness.
The Lord frequently uses comparison and contrast to provide insight for discovering biblical definitions. For instance, our text verse contrasts the carnal with the spiritual. This truth is not limited to our text as 1 Corinthians 3:1 also sets forth this teaching and contrast. In a related study, the Bible repeatedly contrasts the spirit and flesh (Isaiah 31:3; Matthew 26:41; John 3:6; John 6:63; Galatians 5:17). By considering these truths together, we find that the Lord defined a “carnal mind” (Romans 8:7) as someone who is “in the flesh” (Romans 8:8). Based upon these verses and others, we understand the word carnal to mean that which is earthly, natural, or fleshly.
The Bible repeatedly referred to Christ's meekness during His interaction with others. Meekness implies a gentle response toward those who attack. Jesus Christ demonstrated meekness to its perfection on the cross of Calvary when He said, "Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do" (Luke 23:34). Peter emphasized this point when he said of Christ, “Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously” (1 Peter 2:23). Isaiah prophesied of Christ, “He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth” (Isaiah 53:7). The Bible says that Jesus was mocked, spit on, and struck by His accusers, yet He displayed incomprehensible meekness.
We have already learned that our joy is to be found in the Lord and this joy is a special gift from above. With this truth foundational to our study, what are some things that we can do as believers that will bring us lasting joy? Far too many people think joy surfaces once the stresses of life cease or at least begin to diminish. Yet, the Bible teaches that joy can be found only in faithfully serving the Lord. Today's verse reveals that the disciples found joy through what God had done in and through them! Considering a few more scriptural examples of joy should help to solidify our mindset concerning this subject. The Bible records great joy as the people of God willingly sacrificed to the Lord (1 Chronicles 29:17). Proverbs 21:15 reveals that “It is joy to the just to do judgment.” The book of Luke tells us that there is joy in heaven when one sinner repents (Luke 15:7). From these and other examples, we know that true joy will be found when we willingly serve the Lord God, but never in the things of this world.
Doing the right thing is always the right thing to do and yields great benefits. For instance, consider what the Bible has to say about diligence. God’s word promises that diligence brings an increase of substance (Proverbs 10:4; Proverbs 13:4; Proverbs 21:5) and promotion (Proverbs 12:24; Proverbs 22:29). In other words, as the saying goes, hard work pays off. It is not difficult to prove that these benefits manifest themselves in the lives of God’s people who are diligent. Joseph and Daniel are two great examples of those who were diligent and their diligence brought them obvious promotion. Abraham and Job are great examples of diligent men who experienced a great increase of substance. A word of caution might be appropriate here. Men are not to be diligent merely for the sake of reaping its inherent benefits, but should be diligent for the sake of the One who called them to be diligent.
Sometimes a Bible word is best defined by first establishing what the word does not mean. Biblical diligence is such a case in point. A diligent man is one who is not slothful or lazy according to Proverbs 12:24. Proverbs 10:4 bears witness to this fact by contrasting the diligent with those who are slack or careless. According to Proverbs 13:4, a diligent man is not a sluggard. Yet, the Bible also points out that the diligent are to be properly balanced by not hastily rushing through work (Proverbs 21:5). Each of these truths concerning diligence reveals that diligence involves working hard, but with great care and concern. In a world filled with those who choose either quantity or quality of work, God counsels His children to be concerned with both. This is diligence!
As the Lord’s crucifixion drew nigh, He took His disciples to Gethsemane to pray. He asked them to tarry and watch with Him as He separated from them to pray to the Father. Upon returning, He found the disciples asleep so He said to them, “Could ye not watch with me one hour?” The Lord went away two more times only to find His disciples asleep both times He returned. He had given His disciples a simple task to tarry, watch, and pray. He quickly saw that He could not depend upon them for support. It comes as no surprise that they would be scattered from Him shortly at His betrayal (Matthew 26:31, 56). These men were not strangers; they were the ones who sat at Christ’s feet for three years. Now, they could not be trusted for one hour to watch and pray.
