Good morning! This is Pastor Jerry Ingalls from New Castle First Baptist Church and today is Tuesday, October 31.

 

Throughout the book of Proverbs, Solomon highlights the importance of the fear of the Lord, which is a reverence or awe of God that prioritizes Him above all. The wise person lives her life according to the fear of the Lord. As we see in the Ten Commandments, this principle is prioritized as the first commandment, “You shall have no other gods before Me” (Exodus 20:3). This teaching was brought into the New Testament by Jesus, in Matthew 6:33, “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” Paul described it as the preeminence of God, stating of Jesus in Colossians 1:17, “He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.”

 

Solomon taught his students in Proverbs 21:30-31, “There is no wisdom and no understanding and no counsel against the Lord. The horse is prepared for the day of battle, but victory belongs to the Lord.” In other words, no human argument can stand against God, and no resource of creation can achieve the upper hand over Him. While there are battle fields raging throughout the creation, there is a battle within your mind and heart vying for the loyalty of your soul. The victory over sin and evil is found in Christ alone. He is the way of victory; trust Him by living according to His Word. This is the firm foundation for you to walk in the victory of God. This is the way to win the battlefield of the mind, as Paul commanded in 2 Corinthians 10:5, “We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ.” God is to be first in all things, and not to put God in His rightful place is to be foolish or prideful.