The Simplest Summation Of All

"Wealthy people always finding more friends,

but the poor lose all theirs."

Proverbs 19:4

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The Simplest Summation Of All

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READ Proverbs 19: 1-29

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SITUATION Solomon contrasted foolishness with wisdom, wealth and poverty, and falsehood with truth.

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OBSERVATION Keep the highest standards for God in your thoughts and actions.

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INSPIRATION Jesus summarized the Christian life in the simplest summation of all. "Just as you want men to do to you, you also do to them likewise" (Luke 6:3). This we call the Golden-Rule--the law of gold, a gold more precious than diamonds and rubies. Any child can recite the Golden Rule, but to make it an active part of daily living is no mean feat.

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...Our response to petty criticism is often to retaliate in kind, instead of in kindness. This is where the Golden Rule touches life. Here is where Jesus spoke of not returning evil for evil. Doing to others what we want others to do to us is simply a matter of kindness. It involves being thoughtful and considerate. But it is more than mere politeness. It is doing what is right. It is doing what pleases God.

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Righteousness means right living. It means treating people right. It means living with personal integrity. A righteous person is one whom we can trust. His integrity is consistent. It is not for sale. A righteous person is moral with out being moralistic. He is pious without being pietistic. He has a sense of concern for other people's feelings. He wants to treat people right because he has the over-arching desire to please a loving God. (From Pleasing God by R.C. Sproul)

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APPLICATION Do you give more than you take in your family, at church, and with friends? Do you look at any of these people who "owe you" rather than you "owing them"? Put their needs ahead of your own. Practice the principles of Proverbs 19 with each of them.

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EXPLORATION Obeying God's Principles --Matthew 7:24-27; 1 Corinthians 2:14-16; James 1:22-25; 1 Peter 1: 13-16.

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The Devotional Bible - Experiencing the Heart of Jesus; Max Lucado General Editor, New Century Version, Thomas Nelson Publishers