Do You Know How Rich You Are?
Paul wrote to the church in Ephesus telling them that he was giving thanks for them and praying for them. He said "I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation so that you may know him better." Eph 1:17. It is the Spirit of wisdom that will enable us to know the Lord better. Our reading today in Proverbs 8 is of wisdom calling for us to listen. i believe this particular chapter is a description of the Lord Jesus as the embodiment of all wisdom. Wisdom is described as partaking in creation, as the craftsman at the side of the Lord.
Prov. 8:18-19 says "With me are riches and honor, enduring wealth and prosperity. My fruit is better than fine gold; what I yield surpasses choice silver." What are the riches that surpass gold and silver? It's the wonderful future he has promised to those he called and the rich and glorious inheritance he has given to his people. Eph. 1:18 NLT. The Message Bible calls this "the utter extravagance of his work in us who trust him."
Paul desired for the Ephesians to know the Lord better so that they could grasp this. That's the same way we will be able to understand the utter extravagance the Lord has showered on us. Getting to know someone takes spending time with them, learning to know their likes and dislikes, communing with them. I didn't know my husband as well when we first started dating as I did after 50 years of marriage. It was in the years of living with him that I learned to know what pleased him, the kind of food he liked and didn't like and to understand the creativity he had. We had been married 15 years before I found out what "crumbly potatoes" were that he asked for, like the ones they serve in Holland. (You pour the water off them after they are boiled, and then shake the pan so the potatoes crumble!!) A simple thing, but I had to go where he had been raised to find that out.
We get to know the Lord more in the same way; spending time with him, talking with him, reading his letter to us. The more we know him the more we will understand how much he loves us and how he desires to shower us with his riches. We will learn what the "crumbly potatoes" are that he desires from us. We have to go where he is, into his presence, to learn the intimate things he wants to share with us.
The riches he longs to share with us aren't just for the future, they are for us to incorporate into our every day lives. The wisdom described in Proverbs 8 is sorely needed in this world. Instruction is as good as sliver, knowledge is as gold and wisdom is more precious than rubies. (Verses 10-11) What kind of world would we have if we all made these choices.
For myself, the longer I live the more I realize I need wisdom, I need knowledge and I need instruction from the Lord. Thankfully the Lord has an abundant supply of all three. I can go to him, dip my hand into his treasure chest and bring out a handful of jewels.
1 comment:
I like that...learn what God's "crumbly potatoes" are. Good blog, Naomi!
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