Pastor's Corner - May 2, 2024

Proverbs 27:14 – “He who blesses his friend with a loud voice, rising early in the morning, it will be counted a curse to him.”

In this proverb, we are faced with a man who loves and likes and wants the best for his friend. There is one problem: The man loudly utters all that before his friend has gotten out of bed! And the horrifying reality is that this exuberant blessing turns into a curse because of that. The friend would rather have gotten some rest then received that loud blessing.

There is a sober warning in this comic situation: without wisdom, even good intentions can be destructive. It is not enough to mean well. Our zeal must be “according to knowledge” (Romans 10:2). It’s good to have a warm heart, but that’s not enough: we must also have clear heads.

This is not optional for Christians, but a command from the Lord Jesus: “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves.” (Matthew 10:16).

That’s a startling combination! It is not easy to be a snake and a dove at the same time. But both are necessary. And the loud man in Proverbs would have found it easier to be harmless if he had been wise. With some more wisdom, he would have realized that it’s important to be considerate, as well as enthusiastic.

It may seem like just common sense not to wake someone up to tell them something that can wait. That loud blessing could have been spoken a little more quietly and a couple of hours later, and it would have served its purpose much better than it did. The Bible is in favor of common sense, even to the point of commanding it. If we want to be as harmless as doves, we also need to be as wise as serpents.