December 13

Dec 13 – Today from Proverbs13 we look at verse 21
"Misfortune pursues the sinner, but prosperity is the reward of the righteous." (NIV)
"Evil pursueth sinners; but to the righteous , good shall be repaid." (KJV)

It is curious that the two translations we use today equate misfortune and evil. Our post-modern culture readily acknowledges misfortune, but rejects the thought of evil. They are, in fact, interchangeable when evil does not refer to a characteristic or an entity. In the original Hebrew the term is translated from a word that simply means bad. Upon closer examination, the root of the word means to spoil by breaking to pieces. It is to see something with great potential, made good for nothing. That is why Satan is evil. That is why fallen man is evil. That is why misfortune is so heartbreaking. That is why a couple of our American Presidents declared dictator-led and oppressive regimes to be evil. Things with great potential, made good for nothing. It is a sad and most undesirable condition.
"Misfortune pursues the sinner." This is a spiritual truth. A sinner may find ways to maneuver and dodge and put off being overtaken – but misfortune is a tenacious pursuer. One little slip, one relaxed moment, one miscalculation, and the sinner is doomed to receive his just payment. He is not a victim. He earned his misfortune. "The wages of sin is death," writes Paul in Romans 6:23. A wage is indeed something earned. Sinners may look like they are prospering. Sinners may at times even feel that they are prospering. But if they are not already, they had better be watching over their shoulder. There is something tireless and dreadful that is pursuing them, and they will never have the strength or ability to escape it. Its final blow is indeed death – eternal separation from God and His grace. There is no ‘hell on earth’ that can begin to compare with this death. But even before that final blow, misfortune can hit time and time again. Why anyone would want to live life with misfortune in pursuit is beyond me . . . or is it? I once lived that way. The deception of the temporal pleasures of life and the notion that I was an exception to the rule kept me merrily running ahead of misfortune, thinking that sooner or later I would win. According to Romans 6:23, I had already lost. It was only a matter of time.
Thank God, there is a second part to Romans 6:23. "But the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." It is the only escape. I earned death, but could never earn life. It had to be a gift – something not earned, or even deserved. It is found only in Christ Jesus, the One who purchased the gift with His own life. The potential God created in me that sin made good for nothing (evil) was restored in Christ (righteousness). He is my righteousness. He has restored value and purpose to our lives. And as we continually pursue that purpose, He will prosper us. That means He will provide all we need to fulfill His purpose in and through us. When we give of His love and grace to others, in any form, He replenishes us. We will never run out as long as we follow His lead. He gives and gives and gives again. The reward of the righteous is not the goal of the righteous, it is the well of resources from which the righteous bestow God’s blessing. Whenever we give in His Name, He repays that we might give again.