The Wages We Can't Earn - Day 203 Month 7-21 Week 29-7
Today's Reading (Bible in 1 year)
1 Samuel 25:39-26:25, Proverbs 10:13-25, Ezekiel 9, Acts 28:11-31
The Wages We Can't Earn
“The wages of the righteous is life, the income of the wicked, punishment. He is on the path of life who heeds instruction, but he who ignores reproof (correction) goes astray” (Proverbs 10:16,17).
As I read Proverbs today, these verses caught my attention. They stood out because they relate righteousness and wickedness to wages. As employees, regardless of the kind of work we do, we are paid by our employers for our labour. According to these proverbs, if righteousness is our employer, our payment is life, but if wickedness is our employer, our payment is punishment.
In the simplest terms, we can see that when we stay out of trouble and obey the laws of our land, we enjoy freedom and are able to live life more fully.
If we consistently break the law, we pay fines, and in more serious cases people may end up in prison, where freedom is restricted until their sentence has been served. Although rehabilitation does not always succeed, punishment can sometimes cause people to change direction, leave destructive behaviour behind, and rediscover freedom.
In the mid 1990s, I took a short holiday to visit my sister in New Brunswick. I had a comfortable car and occasionally drove it a little faster than I should have. On my way home to Toronto, I came upon a group of cars travelling much more slowly than I expected on Highway 401, and I found it frustrating. I sped past them and pulled back into the driving lane, only to notice bright red and blue lights in my rear view mirror. An unmarked police car had been travelling with that group of vehicles, waiting for exactly that opportunity.
The officer clocked me at 136 kilometres per hour in a 100 kilometre per hour zone. To say the fine was expensive would be an understatement. Money was tight at the time, and paying it was painful. Still, I learned my lesson. I am not one of those drivers who frustrates everyone else by driving too slowly, but I will never again be fined for driving that far over the speed limit. I was rehabilitated.
Human laws can correct our behaviour, but Solomon is pointing to something deeper than good citizenship. If we obey God's commands, and more specifically love God with all our heart, soul, and mind, and love our neighbour as ourselves, we find life. By loving God, we also live transformed lives through Jesus, whose death and resurrection offer eternal life in His kingdom. Our wages become life, both now and forever.
On the other hand, if we reject God's ways, ignore the Holy Spirit, and turn away from the saving work of Jesus, we receive a very different reward and drift away from the life we have been offered. Yet throughout our lives there are opportunities to receive God's kingdom. A Jesus follower may cross our path, or we may sense the quiet and persistent pull of the Holy Spirit and find ourselves ready to listen. We can still respond to the correction God offers.
My own experience came through the calling of the Holy Spirit. I was sitting on my bunk in the stillness of the early evening. It felt as though Jesus had sat down beside me. Through the Holy Spirit's call that day, I heard the question, "Will you accept my offer or reject it?" I accepted. Though I could never earn payment for the offer I accepted, Jesus had already done the work and offered me the life that He secured. Those wages are life and life everlasting.
Have a great day!
Steve
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