Image: "Stark Reality," 2020, Severna Park, Md
Proverbs 11:4 Riches do not profit in the day of wrath, But righteousness delivers from death.
Proverbs 11:10 When it goes well with the righteous, the city rejoices; And when the wicked perish, there is jubilation.
Proverbs 11:14 Where there is no counsel, the people fall; But in the multitude of counselors there is safety.
Proverbs 11:25 The generous soul will be made rich, And he who waters will also be watered himself.
Proverbs 11:30 The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, And he who wins souls is wise.
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"Don't even go there! I don't buy all that 'God-talk'. I live in the 'real world' and I don't have time for mind games."
I doubt any sincere Christian who has earnestly sought to speak of their faith to others has failed to hear words like the above at some point. Paul tells us that the Gospel of Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ of God, is "foolishness" to ears of people who have no grounding in faith. And, to tell you the truth, it's no wonder! Step back for a moment and think how strange the teachings of God are! Let's just look at the verses above and consider them in this light.
"Riches do not profit in the day of wrath, but righteousness delivers from death." I can only speak of my own 3/4 century of experience in American culture but as far as I can tell, the prevailing reality is that "riches DO profit." As a matter of fact Americans pretty much define success in terms of accumulated wealth. We abhor the idea of "doing without" as my mother used to call it when we didn't have money to get something. So, when the Gospel is brought to a typical, unchurched American, the mere idea that "righteousness" takes precedence over "riches/money" will cause him or her to look at your funny.
But that's because it is foreign to the average American to think that he/she has any "day of wrath" to worry about. The average American assumes that he/she is OK... that they really aren't all that bad... if there IS a God, then of course they will be welcomed by Him and if there IS NOT a God, then they haven't lost anything. This is a very rational way of thinking in their minds... but it is deadly. We Christians must remember that we have to shake people up sometime before what we say can make sense. Nothing is more surprising to the average American than someone who takes the idea of an Angry God ( Heb 10:30-31)seriously... sometimes we have to build on that.
Well, what about Proverbs 11:10 - When it goes well with the righteous, the city rejoices; And when the wicked perish, there is jubilation. Now, talk about strange! This Proverb ties the prosperity & happiness of "the city", the community/social order, to the welcome presence of righteousness. It says that God, in some manner, promotes the welfare of a people who generally honor His law and who hold in high regard those who sincerely love God's law from the heart. They will positively encourage good and righteous ethical behavior and they will punish, even to death, the practice of wickedness. In a nation that is governed by ruthless politicians and whose economy is dominated by huge businesses that get rich off exploitation of the people who buy their products, this sounds stupid.
God says differently. God says that His blessings on a social order is promoted when His people who sincerely exhibit and encourage righteousness are held in respect (Gen. 12:3). For this to be true there must be an all powerful God Who actually is concerned with the history of individuals and nations. This can be a tough sell to hard-nosed men and women who live in a dog-eat-dog competitive world. But it is true... and we must not only proclaim it, we must believe it and demonstrate it in our lives.
And then there is Proverbs 11:30 "The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, And he who wins souls is wise."
The single largest conceptual barrier I have encountered in talking to non-Christians is that there is some OTHER kind of life possible to them than the one they know. Yet what this verse and many others teach, is that such is very much the case. The "fruit" of the righteous becomes a means by which people taste of a "tree of life." Much could be said about this but there is no space. Let's just focus on this: When a righteous person is used by God to "win souls", those who have been won discover that this new life becomes not only possible but real.... and they taste it and see that it is good!
Only someone who has entered into the new life can really testify to this truth. It is, on the whole, opaque to those who have not been born again. However the "fruit of the righteous" is the living witness of this new life. The person who has it lives it and they are recognizably "different" than other people. So they become like a "tree of life" planted in the garden of the community. Those in whom the Spirit is working will be drawn to them by the witness of their new life and, at some point, an opportunity will arise and God will use that person for an eternally valuable work.
These are just a few elementary examples of how the Christian message sounds so foolish to pagan ears... there really is no middle ground between us and them.... there is nothing we have in common other than the fact we can say that we once were like them. What we are called to do is to believe and live the gospel, to hunger for righteousness and to bear fruit to that righteousness. God will fill in the blanks.
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