January 29

Jan 29 - Today from Proverbs 29 we look at verse 1
"A man who remains stiff-necked after many rebukes will suddenly be destroyed - without remedy."

You know, we all face 'suddenlys' in life. Out of the blue we experience some kind of trauma that leaves us reeling; an accident, a health issue, loss of a loved one, loss of employment, etc. They come so unexpectedly. But, there are some 'suddenlys' that should have been anticipated - because they were prefaced by cautionary warnings. People tend to be stiff-necked when their interests are self-serving. God created man to serve God and to serve his fellow man - in the very best sense of the term 'serve'. It is God's nature to serve, and we were created in His image. Sin perverted that image and made man self-serving. We can see the similarity between this proverb and that of 28:18 where it says; "He whose ways are perverse will suddenly fall." Another 'suddenly'.
"Don't drink and drive." -Hey, I can handle it okay.
"WARNING: Smoking cigarettes can cause cancer." -Hey, we're all going to die of something anyway.
You've probably heard all of the stiff-necked excuses just as I have. In fact, before I met Jesus, I used to give them. People tend to ignore clear warnings every day - and people die because of it every day. But this proverb goes even deeper. This 'suddenly' speaks of destruction without remedy. Now, that's scary! When I face the suddenlys of life, I want to have the confidence that the outcome is in my Savior's hand. How can I have that confidence if I have been ignoring HIS rebukes? Ecclesiastes 7:5 says; "It is better to heed a wise man's rebuke than to listen to the song of fools." We must stop thinking of a rebuke as something repulsive. When a rebuke comes from a friend, it is a loving word of correction. Let us open our hearts to the sweet rebuke of the Spirit of Christ when he speaks to us concerning harmful and perverted self-serving ways.
A stubborn and perverse person never regrets the end while in the process. The regrets only come at the end - when it's too late. And the end comes so suddenly! Wisdom constantly looks to the end while processing the now. This is best done in the constant light of the scriptures, which are PROFITABLE for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness (2 Timothy 3:16).