"There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death."
Proverbs 14:12 & 16:25 (NKJV)
In his play "The Merchant Of Venice", Shakespeare used the phrase "All That Glitters Is Not Gold". While he was not the first or the last to use that phrase many people know it because of him. What Shakespeare and others were saying with this phrase was that just because something looks good does not mean that it is good. One example of this is something that is commonly known as "Fool's Gold", which looks like gold but is actually the mineral pyrite. Appearances can be deceiving and while something may look good, or look like gold, is it actually not and quite possibly something very bad.
Proverbs 14:12 and 16:25 both say the same thing, a way can seem right but it leads to death. We think of death as an ending but usually when the Bible talks about death it means separation. There are things that may look good to us but they will separate us from God and His plan for our life. With relationships, our job, the choices we make, and the decisions we face, sometimes things look good, and they may even make sense to us, but it is a completely wrong thing to do or get involved in. If we choose the wrong things we will miss out on God's best and the blessed life He wants us to have.
We need a way to be able to discern the good and the bad, to know what is right, and which way to go in life. God has given us the help we need through the leading of the Holy Spirit; He will always help us to see the difference between what is really good and what just looks good. We can learn to recognize the direction of the Holy Spirit by spending time reading the Bible, the Holy Spirit guided men to write it, and by talking to God in prayer and listening for the direction of the Holy Spirit. We can expect the Holy Spirit to help us in life, to see what is really good and what only looks good.
Proverbs 14:12 & 16:25 (NKJV)
In his play "The Merchant Of Venice", Shakespeare used the phrase "All That Glitters Is Not Gold". While he was not the first or the last to use that phrase many people know it because of him. What Shakespeare and others were saying with this phrase was that just because something looks good does not mean that it is good. One example of this is something that is commonly known as "Fool's Gold", which looks like gold but is actually the mineral pyrite. Appearances can be deceiving and while something may look good, or look like gold, is it actually not and quite possibly something very bad.
Proverbs 14:12 and 16:25 both say the same thing, a way can seem right but it leads to death. We think of death as an ending but usually when the Bible talks about death it means separation. There are things that may look good to us but they will separate us from God and His plan for our life. With relationships, our job, the choices we make, and the decisions we face, sometimes things look good, and they may even make sense to us, but it is a completely wrong thing to do or get involved in. If we choose the wrong things we will miss out on God's best and the blessed life He wants us to have.
We need a way to be able to discern the good and the bad, to know what is right, and which way to go in life. God has given us the help we need through the leading of the Holy Spirit; He will always help us to see the difference between what is really good and what just looks good. We can learn to recognize the direction of the Holy Spirit by spending time reading the Bible, the Holy Spirit guided men to write it, and by talking to God in prayer and listening for the direction of the Holy Spirit. We can expect the Holy Spirit to help us in life, to see what is really good and what only looks good.
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