Sunday, March 14, 1999 This Week's Lesson:
In this week's lesson, which came from Proverbs 5:15-23, we learned about the importance of staying morally pure. To that end, we saw that always being satisfied with what we have is a good start. This passage, which followed Solomon's earlier discussion about adultery and fornication, talked about cisterns and wells, and the obvious conclusion was that the cisterns and wells represent our marriage partner. Solomon, through his analogy, was teaching that we should be intimate with our own partner only. Another conclusion was that we should only desire our own concerning everything. We should not desire our neighbor's wealth. We should not desire our neighbor's fine home. We should not desire our neighbor's good job. We should not desire anything belonging to our neighbor. Instead, we should rejoice in his or her good fortunes. In this chapter, Solomon was preaching chiefly against the sins of moral and sexual impurity, but he was also preaching against the sins of greed and selfishness. Two of the Ten Commandments also support his instructions. Exodus 20:14 says, "Thou shalt not commit adultery." And Exodus 20:17 says, "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour's."
In marriage, God's plan is one man for one woman for one lifetime. Genesis 2:21-24 says, "And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh." When the Lord has blessed a man by bringing a good woman into his life, that man should cherish her all the days of his life. Solomon wrote that her presence and her beauty should always ravish him. In Proverbs 5:20-23, he asked why anyone would be drawn to a strange woman. The idea of being intimate with someone is very serious. The idea of keeping that intimacy within the bounds of God's Word is even more serious. We should never be lax about our vows before the Lord, especially about our very sacred marriage vow. The Lord sees all. He ponders our goings, and He will bring earthly judgment upon adulterers. According to Solomon, the adulterer will die without instruction and go astray while in the very acts of unfaithfulness. Solomon was the wisest man of his time and maybe of all time. But having stumbled himself in some of these areas, he would probably be quick to remind all of us of I Corinthians 10:12 which says, "Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall."
As Christians, we should always strive to be content because the Lord is good to each of us. Rather than holding our heads down and crying the blues over our own personal trials and difficulties, we should try to find new and even more exciting ways to show our appreciation to Him. As you go through the coming week, try to remember that there are many that have this life much tougher than you.
Tom of Spotswood"He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life." (I John 5:12)
"And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart." (Jeremiah 29:13)
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