September 15

Nov 15 – Today from Proverbs 15 we look at verse 17
"Better a meal of vegetables where there is love than a fattened calf with hatred."

Once again the Teacher sets forth a lesson on values. Values asks the question, "What is most important?" In relation to today’s proverb, the Teacher asks, "What is most important, that which satisfies the stomach, or that which satisfies God?" When framed in this context, we quickly answer the obvious. "That which satisfies God, of course." But when framed in the more subtle context set forth in the proverb, the practical choice becomes more difficult. More often than not, the student does not equate the two comparisons in every-day living. We are often willing to sacrifice a little of our integrity in order to satisfy a desire of the flesh. It’s called compromise – one of Satan’s most effective tools.
Our values are not so much found in the declarations we make as they are in the actions we take. "You shall know them by their fruits," Jesus says in Matthew 7:16. Values are defined by actions taken through decisions made. The choice the Teacher offers in today’s proverb is between a plate of greens and a plate of veal cutlet. The Hebrew word interpreted as vegetables here is very narrow in definition. The KJV interprets it as herbs, which is much more definitive than the broader context of vegetables. The meal offered is a plate of greens, enough to sustain life. But it certainly lacks the culinary delight provided by a choice cut of roasted veal. There is no moral value involved in simply choosing between the two. The moral value enters in the circumstances surrounding the meals being presented. When it involves a choice of placing the needs of another first (love), or satisfying my own desires at the cost of meeting the need of my personal neighbor (hatred), I am confronted with a moral choice. Why is it better to choose to deny the desires of my appetite in order to live well with my neighbor? Because my neighbor’s well-being is more important than my stomach.
Values are choices one makes, not desires one experiences. The values of the righteous are to be based on the moral code of God’s Word. God’s Word became incarnate in the person of Jesus Christ. Jesus lived out this principle to the most extreme conclusion when He left the glory of His position at the Father’s right hand and came to befriend and restore us by becoming a servant. A servant obedient to the Father – even unto death. His values are unmistakable. His decisions were consistently enacted on the basis of those values. His life continues to bear fruit in accordance with those decisions. I am a benefactor who will be eternally grateful that He chose to deny Himself in order that I might benefit. What love is this, that the Son of God would die for me? My choices now determine whether I ‘dine’ in the presence of His love – no matter what the serving, or whether I will compromise and choose a more delectable serving – no matter whether He is there or not. The choice lies in the object of importance – His presence or the menu being offered. It’s a matter of values.