Tofu (Proverbs 22:24-25)

There are certain people whom we should not associate ourselves with.

"Make no friendships with a man given to anger, and with a wrathful man do not associate, lest you learn his ways and get yourself into a snare." Proverbs 22:24-25, Amplified

It is a simple concept, we will become whomever we associate ourselves with. This is inevitable. People are like tofu, taking on the flavor and characteristics of anyone and everyone around them.

A Friend for the King (Proverbs 22:11)

Purity is always the best choice for anyone to make. It seems that our society is deceiving its citizens by selling them something less than purity.

"He who loves purity and the pure in heart, and who is gracious in speech, will for the grace of his lips have the king for his friend." Proverbs 22:11, Amplified

Who wouldn't want a king for a friend? Who wouldn't want to cal the King of kings his friend? There are those who have bought into the lie that there is something bette than purity for the body and it is the freedom that one has with his own body. Do you realize that purity has never hurt a soul? Do you realize that purity will never cause one to have an STD or an unwanted pregnancy?

The lie has become so believable that people think that Christians are trying to take something away from them, some experience that they may miss out on. But in truth, purity is the true freedom that one can experience. it is the freedom to not do what everyone else is doing. When we align ourselves with purity, we take the same stance as the Lord on certain issues that seek to defile that purity and innocence. When we align ourselves with the Lord, we make Him our friend. I would much rather have the Lord on my side than Herpes.

Humanity at its Base (Proverbs 19:6-7)

It seems as though there is a theme in the book of Proverbs that focuses on the nature of man. That nature being the desire to get more of what others have and forsake those who have not.

"Many will entreat the favor of the liberal man, and everyone is a friend to him who gives gifts." Proverbs 19:6, Amplified

Every relationship needs to be symbiotic. One needs to give to the other and vice versa. But in humanity (in its natural sinful state) is about looking out for oneself and what one may get. It is true that the one who shells out the dough or gives gifts has more friends. But that friendship that he establishes is strictly on the surface. There is nothing at the heart that draws others in. Who care about the personality of a man when he can give gifts?

"All the brothers of the poor detest him; how much more do his friends go far from him! He pursues them with words, but they are gone." Proverbs 19:7, Amplified

Remember, this is speaking of humanity at its base self. A life without Jesus or God is as empty as a used candy wrapper. The sweetness is gone, therefore it is good for nothing more than the landfill. If we base our relationships on whatever anyone else can give us, then the poor man is doomed; I am doomed. If this is true, then I should have no friends. But what I do have is Jesus Christ and Him crucified as well as my friends. Though I am poor and do not have much to give others, what we do have in common is salvation.

Spongebob is a Teaching Tool? (Proverbs 19:4)

There are many different verses in the book of Proverbs that happen to deal with money. I think I have made myself perfectly clear on where I stand with money. I like money. I wish I had more of it. However, need can quickly turn to want and that desire for more can corrupt the heart.

"Wealth makes many friends, but the poor is avoided by his neighbor." Proverbs 19:4, Amplified

The concept of wealth making many friends is something that is easily understood by many different types of persons. Even children understand this concept. I remember watching a Spongebob episode where he had sold a large pearl to a jeweler. Eventually, he had so much money he was just giving it away. New faces emerged as dedicated friends. But as soon as the money ran out, the new friends were gone. But Patrick still remained.

Forgive me for using Spongebob as a teaching tool, but I felt the spirit of the episode fit so neatly within the confines of the subject of the verse. Even watching shows on E! about people who have won the lottery and the new friends they received from the new found fortune.

There is a friendship however, that goes deeper than wealth and actually finds the wealth of the soul. Jesus knows the real person of who I am. No amount of money will change that. My wife would not love me more if I had more money, nor would my children. There are friends who would not be affected by money. But I know right now I have great friends for I have nothing to give but myself.

Friends (Proverbs 18:24)

I think friendship is one of the greatest societal inventions. Without friendship, we would all be lonely.

"The man of many friends [a friend to all the world] will prove himself a bad friend, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother." Proverbs 18:24, Amplified

The Lord allows us to take things that we understand and translate them over into a relationship with Him. Take for instance friendship. Though it is a societal invention, we can consider our Savior as a friend. If it were not so, the Bible would not say.

The Amplified Version differs slightly from the New King James. If you are following along in the latter, then you would have read, "A man who has friends must himself be friendly." There is really no difference between the two translations. What the New King James is trying to say, the Amplified Version proves. Our earthly friends will always prove themselves bad friends. What I mean to say is that as human beings, we constantly fall. We are prone to sin and let down. If we are like this with our Father, how much more would we be like this with our friends. To let down our friends is inevitable, if it has not happened yet, it will happen eventually. But Jesus is that Friend who will never let us down. He is incapable of letting us down. He will not lie to us or take advantage of us. He will be there when He says He will.

I feel that the main heart of this verse is to state that if we are to place our faith into anything, let it be Jesus and not our earthly friends.

Who is My Brother? (Proverbs 17:17)

This next verse in the Proverbs has been translated two different ways. I do not like the translation of the Amplified Version, but for the sake of continuity, I will continue to use it.

"A friend loves at all times, and is born, as is a brother, for adversity." Proverbs 17:17, Amplified

In the New King James the verse reads very differently: "A friend loves at all times and a brother is born for adversity." Quite a different translation. So which is correct?

It is my belief that there are two separate entities spoken of in this verse, a friend and a brother. What the Amplified seems to do is combine the two into one single being. Do friends fight? Yes, at times they do. Do friends love? Yes, more times than not.

The two different translations I spoke of in the opening statement are these: 1) that the friend loves at all times and brothers only fight (for example sibling rivalry). & 2) that a friend loves at all times but only a brother can truly love in times of adversity.

I am more drawn to the second translation because there is a certain bond that family has that cannot be replicated through friendship. There are different kinds of love and the love within the family unit is unique in itself. A friend cannot love (it is my belief) the way that family can, or should. As a Christian I have grown by leaps and bounds for I grew up in a very dysfunctional household. Nor did I have a brother that could love in times of adversity because he could not understand how for he is terminally mentally handicapped. So who is my brother? Brotherhood can exist within the bond of strong belief systems. My church is my brotherhood. they can love me in the hard times, they can console me in the sad times. In my definition, brotherhood is raw, rough and honest; friendship not so much.

The Company We Keep (Proverbs 13:20)

It is Christmas morning. Almost one year has passed us by again. What does the Lord want us to know this morning?

"He who walks [as a companion] with wise men shall be wise, but he who associates with [self-confident] fools will [be a fool himself and] shall smart for it." Proverbs 13:20, Amplified

It is the company that we keep which defines who we are. Some say that we are a product of our environment. I believe this to be true to a point. Inevitably, we are who we are because of choices that we make. Those choices can definitely be inspired or influenced by the company that we keep.

If the company that we keep is with wise men, then the choices we make will be wiser. This is not just because we want to please the crowd around us, rather it is because of the conversation and make up of the crowd. In High School, everyone became a part of a clique. Whether you liked it or not, we were immediately stereotyped and placed into our peg or we were one of the fortunate ones who almost understood who we were and hung out with the crowd of our own choosing. That crowd influenced our way of life for the next four years. We dressed as they dressed and spoke as they spoke and did as they did because that was the crowd we were with. To surround ourselves with wise a God-fearing persons greatly influences the outcome of our day. As we get older, the stereotypes remain, but we become more self-aware and are able to better define our own beings and associate with the persons of our own choosing.

However, if that crowd be of the foolish persuasion, then we ourselves become fools and act foolishly. "For the foolish person will speak foolishness, and his heart will work iniquity; to practice ungodliness, to utter error against the Lord, to keep the hungry unsatisfied, to cause the drink of the thirsty to fail." (Isaiah 32:6, NKJV) We do have to choice of who we surround ourselves with. It can either be God fearing men and women or foolish men and women. Never forget, however, that we do have the choice. One of the greatest things that the Lord installed inside of man at his inception was free-will. We have the choice.

Merry Christmas