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Speaker 2: Life Audio Thank you for listening to Your Nightly Scripture,
Speaker 2: a calming, scripture-centered devotional podcast designed to help you end
Speaker 2: each day with God's word in your mind and on
Speaker 2: your heart. Right after this short word from our sponsors,
Speaker 2: we'll reflect on tonight's scripture, Proverbs 28. Tonight's scripture reflection
Speaker 2: is written by Greg Grandchamp and read by Leah Gerard.
Speaker 2: Proverbs 28. The wicked flee, though no one pursues, but
Speaker 2: the righteous are as bold as a lion. When a
Speaker 2: country is rebellious, it has many rulers, but a ruler
Speaker 2: with discernment and knowledge maintains order. A ruler who oppresses
Speaker 2: the poor is like a driving rain that leaves no crops.
Speaker 2: Those who forsake instruction praise the wicked, but those who
Speaker 2: heed it resist them. Evildoers do not understand what is right,
Speaker 2: but those who seek the Lord understand it fully. Better
Speaker 2: the poor whose walk is blameless than the rich whose
Speaker 2: ways are perverse. A discerning son heeds instruction, but a
Speaker 2: companion of gluttons disgraces his father. Whoever increases wealth by
Speaker 2: taking interest or profit from the poor will amasses it
Speaker 2: for another who will be kind to the poor. If
Speaker 2: anyone turns a deaf ear to my instruction, even their
Speaker 2: prayers are detestable. Whoever leads the upright along an evil
Speaker 2: path will fall into their own trap, but the blameless
Speaker 2: will receive a good inheritance. The rich are wise in
Speaker 2: their own eyes. One who is poor and discerning sees
Speaker 2: how deluded they are. When the righteous triumph, there is
Speaker 2: great elation, but when the wicked rise to power, people
Speaker 2: go into hiding. Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper,
Speaker 2: but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy.
Speaker 2: Blessed is the one who always trembles before God, but
Speaker 2: whoever hardens their heart falls into trouble, like a roaring
Speaker 2: lion or a charging bear is a wicked ruler over
Speaker 2: a helpless people. A tyrannical ruler practices extortion, but one
Speaker 2: who hates ill-gotten gain will enjoy a long reign. Anyone
Speaker 2: tormented by the guilt of murder will seek refuge in
Speaker 2: the grave, let no one hold them back. The one
Speaker 2: whose walk is blameless is kept safe, but the one
Speaker 2: whose ways are perverse... will fall into the pit. Those
Speaker 2: who work their land will have abundant food but those
Speaker 2: who chase fantasies will have their fill of poverty. A
Speaker 2: faithful person will be richly blessed but one eager to
Speaker 2: get rich will not go unpunished. To show partiality is
Speaker 2: not good yet a person will do wrong for a
Speaker 2: piece of bread. The stingy are eager to get rich
Speaker 2: and are unaware that poverty awaits them. Whoever rebukes a
Speaker 2: person will, in the end, gain favor rather than one
Speaker 2: who has a flattering tongue. Whoever robs their father or
Speaker 2: mother and says, it's not wrong, is partner to one
Speaker 2: who destroys. The greedy stir up conflict, but those who
Speaker 2: trust in the Lord will prosper. Those who trust in
Speaker 2: themselves are fools. but those who walk in wisdom are
Speaker 2: kept safe. Those who give to the poor will lack nothing,
Speaker 2: but those who close their eyes to them receive many curses.
Speaker 2: When the wicked rise to power, people go into hiding,
Speaker 2: but when the wicked perish, the righteous thrive. Jesus found
Speaker 2: it important to warn us about temptations. We're bombarded every
Speaker 2: day with messages and images that tantalize and provoke us.
Speaker 2: Sexual and material lusts and the pride of life can
Speaker 2: be strong forces. Jesus told Peter in Matthew 26, 41
Speaker 2: to watch and pray that you may not enter into temptations.
Speaker 2: Even in the Lord's Prayer, we're taught to pray about temptation.
Speaker 2: Yet despite our very best efforts, every one of us
Speaker 2: experiences temptation. Let's face it, if Jesus could be tempted,
Speaker 2: we certainly know we can and will be. But what
Speaker 2: happens when we are? Certainly some temptations are much stronger.
Speaker 2: and more difficult to resist than others, but what about
Speaker 2: those times we are leaning into them, ready to give in?
Speaker 2: When the evil one attacks, we respond by following Jesus' example.
Speaker 2: Psalm 119.11 tells us, I have hidden your word in
Speaker 2: my heart that I might not sin against you. While
Speaker 2: we may not memorize scripture word for word, we know
Speaker 2: in our hearts what it tells us. We know what
Speaker 2: we can lean into because his word is buried in
Speaker 2: our hearts. Armed with his spirit and the truth of
Speaker 2: his word, we are equipped to handle whatever temptations may
Speaker 2: come our way. Paul promises that no matter what trials
Speaker 2: and temptations may come our way, God will never allow
Speaker 2: us to be tempted beyond what we can bear, and
Speaker 2: He will always provide a way out. See 1 Corinthians 10.13.
Speaker 2: Proverbs 28 tells us the importance of integrity and of
Speaker 2: righteousness when we resist temptation. And it warns that those
Speaker 2: who are wicked will face consequences. It teaches us to
Speaker 2: seek wisdom from the Lord and guidance to help us
Speaker 2: travel through what will assuredly come our way. When we
Speaker 2: find ourselves overwhelmed by temptation, we can turn to God
Speaker 2: in prayer, and He will be there for us because
Speaker 2: He is faithful. Amazing Grace's daily devotional recently stated that
Speaker 2: sin is makes us stupid. Victory over the power of
Speaker 2: sin will come only as we lean on the strength
Speaker 2: and wisdom of Christ. Oh God, I know you are
Speaker 2: always there for me. I know you see the temptations
Speaker 2: I'm facing. Remove this temptation from me, Lord. But if
Speaker 2: you do not, please let your spirit Do His work
Speaker 2: in me and help see me through it. Amen. How
Speaker 2: did tonight's scripture speak to you? Share your thoughts in
Speaker 2: the Your Nightly Scripture Forum discussion. Thank you for listening
Speaker 2: to Your Nightly Scripture. Tonight's scripture was read From the
Speaker 2: New International Version by Biblica, all rights reserved. If tonight's
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Speaker 2: Audio and Salem Media. Thank you, and we'll see you
Speaker 2: tomorrow night. Thank you.