May 2

May 2 - Today from Proverbs 2 we look at verses 12-14
"Wisdom will save you from the ways of wicked men, from men whose ways are perverse, who leave the straight paths to walk in dark ways, who delight in doing wrong and rejoice in the perverseness of evil."

A message to God’s church.
This passage does not say "Wisdom will save you from men of wicked ways." Rather, it says "Wisdom will save you from the ways of wicked men." There is a huge difference. The phrase is not a promise that people of wisdom will likely never suffer harm from wicked men. It is a warning not to quit the pursuit of wisdom lest you get caught up in the ways of wicked men.
The root word for evil in the Hebrew language means to spoil or to make good for nothing, thus we see a degenerative pattern in the lives of the wicked. Man was born in sin, but he was not born wicked. He becomes increasingly wicked through the choices he makes. Those who pursue wisdom make choices in life according to how life was meant to be lived. Because God is the author of life, only He can reveal the true purpose of life. This is why Solomon states very early on that "the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge" (Pr. 1:7). All other pursuits of knowledge are either extremely limited, or are altogether perverse.
We know from the ethos of God's Word that the criteria of Satan's activity on this earth is to corrupt man. Corruption has the very same meaning as the Hebrew for evil - to spoil, to make good for nothing. Left on his own, man will quickly degenerate to evil. The criteria for God's activity on this earth is to redeem man, and restore him to his original place of glory and goodness - life the way God meant it to be. Man can achieve temporary redeeming values by adapting the moral values revealed by conscience and history (natural law), and particularly through His revealed law, the Holy Scriptures. This is the pursuit of wisdom. But, hidden in the Holy Scriptures of the Old Testament was a great and wondrous mystery - the marvelous plan of God's eternal redemption through Christ Jesus. In John 5:46 Jesus tells the experts in the law, "If you believed Moses (a reference to the books of the law), you would believe me, for he wrote about me."
From today's passage we can see that the evil men in this world are deceived. Sin plunged the world into a blinding darkness. This darkness separates man from God and His truth. I am convinced that all through life God offers man avenues of light to follow (natural law, natural revelation, common grace, etc.). The more man chooses light, the more wisdom he attains. Many who have been exposed to this light chose instead to stay in darkness. John the Baptist said it this way in John 3:19, "This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil." As a result, they became increasingly corrupt through their choices.
God's desire and purpose is that one day all men may see the eternal light of the gospel (the mission of the church). When the church ceases to spread the gospel through proclamation and example, it has in effect become evil (good for nothing). It has abandoned God’s purpose.
Church beware. Even as believers, we can be deceived into turning away from the light and enter onto a path of darkness. Sin is subtle, but even in its subtlety, it is deadly. If we will pursue wisdom (the light of the scriptures, illuminated by the Holy Spirit) we will turn away from those areas (repent), and will once again glorify God by fulfilling His purpose. The individual members of a church body may be saved and heaven-bound, but the corporate church can find itself in deep trouble for the lack of pursuing wisdom.