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This proverb is self-evident, but we rarely apply it to ourselves. If we are constantly seeking immediate gratification without putting out a lot of effort, we never get most of what we desire. On the other hand, if we work diligently for future goals, we end up with much more than we expected.
This psalm reminds me that time and again throughout history, various groups have allied themselves against God’s people. These groups usually have interests that are threatened by the other groups with which they ally, yet they join against the people of God. The reason they do this is because their very self-image is threatened by the existence of people faithful to God. Despite their seeming overwhelming power, they are destroyed before they can bring it to bear against those faithful to God. They will learn that there is only one God and He is supreme over all of the earth.
The story of the rich man and Lazarus was part of the sermon at Church on Sunday. The pastor said that he did not think it was a parable because Lazarus is named and in most parables the characters are not named. On the other hand, I think it is a parable at least partly because it comes at the end of a series of ever more complex parables. I believe that a factor in why the pastor believes it is not a parable is because it provides completion to his understanding of the after-life (while I have a different understanding of the after-life, our differences on that issue are not important because they have no impact on our understanding of how one should live in this life).
I believe that there are two key messages here. The first being that those who live well on this earth and do not faithfully serve God will suffer in the after-life. —Aside:How do we know that the rich man did not faithfully serve God? Because Lazarus laid at his gate and suffered. If the rich man was serving God, he would have cared for Lazarus.— The second message was that if we are not convinced to faithfully serve God by the testimony of Scripture and those living faithfully among us, we will not be convinced by someone returning from the dead nor will we be convinced by any other sort of miracles. If you truly, genuinely want proof that the God of the Bible exists and is the Creator of this world, start living your life as if the Bible is true. Of course, in order to do that, you will need to read it for yourself, not take someone else’s word for what it says. If you do that, I promise you that you will soon have all the proof you need that God is real.
The key element to the story of the Israelites interaction with the Gibeonites is in verse 14: “The Israelites sampled their provisions but did not inquire of the Lord.” In other words, they used their own judgment about the Gibeonites rather than praying about the situation and seeking guidance from God. They were not wrong for sampling the provisions of the Gibeonites and factoring that into their decision. Their mistake was in not seeking God’s guidance. All too often we make similar mistakes in this life. Yes, we are too use the wisdom and intelligence which God has given us, but we should also seek His guidance in making our decisions.