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The proverb writer compares kind words to honey in a positive way. He is correct that kind words make those we speak to feel good in much the same way that eating something sweet does (especially something like honey). It is also true that kind words can help bring healing to injury, even actual physical injury, in much the same way that honey can help by providing energy, if eaten, or by helping prevent infection, if applied to a wound. Let us keep this in mind when we talk to those we encounter.
Rgw psalmist reminds us to look over our history and imagine what might have happened had God not been on our side. How would things have been different if God was not working to bring about good in this world? While the focus in this psalm is on the history of Israel, the message applies to all of us, both as groups and as individuals. Look back over your life and take note of the times when things could have gone much worse, when things just came together so that your path would be the best it could be, despite your bad decisions. I know that I am grateful to God for the wonderful ways in which He directed my life, even when I was not following His will for me.
While Peter and John were preaching in the Temple after healing the lame man they were confronted by some priests and other religious leaders. The religious leaders arrested them and put them on trial. There is a subtext we often overlook. The leaders expected Peter and John to be intimidated by their “betters” and were amazed when it did not work out that way. We still see this sort of behavior today where some people attempt to use their academic credentials to intimidate others into silence. Our response needs to be the same as that of Peter and John, “We cannot stop telling about everything we have seen and heard.”
When Peter and John told the other believers about how the religious leaders had ordered them to keep quiet about Jesus, the believers joined together in prayer. In the face of these threats, it is interesting to note what the believers prayer was. They did not pray for protection from those threatening them. No, they prayed for the boldness to continue preaching God’s word in the face of those threats. Do we have a similar attitude?
When King David got very old and feeble, his oldest remaining son, Adonijah, decided to make himself king. Once more we are reminded of David’s shortcomings as a father. The passage tells us that David had never disciplined Adonijah, not even by so much as demanding an explanation for his bad behavior. Adonijah convinced two of David’s key advisers to support his effort to become king. How would things have gone differently had Adonijah approached David (or had one of his advisers do so)? Rather than seeking the kingship as a gift bestowed upon him by his father, Adonijah chose to seize the throne. It turned out that David’s advisers who had not been taken into Adonijah’s confidence had sufficient foresight and power to thwart Adonijah’s plans.