Proverbs 29:16 Crime increases when crooks are in power, but law-abiding citizens will see them fall.
I’m believing by faith that the last part of the above proverb takes place at God’s appointed time and we see the crooks, cowards, and criminals repent or fall from their tarnished ivory towers. Prov. 29:16 Crime increases when crooks are in power, but law-abiding citizens will see them fall. The righteous and honest people of this world need to experience a few wins and see that decency is still possible. The discouragement among the younger people is palpable. I can understand their reluctance to try and do anything with an honest purpose. Because what they see or what they are being shown daily through all the different communication platforms is unabashed corruption in governments, the brazen scams of crooked corporate business policies, and spiritual leaders betraying sacred trusts.
This irreverence and blatant disregard for the laws of the land and society, as well as the laws of God, has taken a toll on the hearts and psyche of a lost generation and has tired the minds of many causing the mistrust of anyone in authority. Psalm 12:1 Help, O LORD, for the godly are fast disappearing! The faithful have vanished from the earth! Yes, Lord, what has happened to the faithful men and women of the world? Have we all been blinded by the neon lights of the world that we no longer see sin for what it is? No wonder there is an epidemic of people suffering from chronic dysania. Why get up for the new day if only to find the same evil world?
This age of dysfunction is a result of trusting in the promises of man rather than the promises of God. Also, trusting in the everchanging philosophy of the day, rather than the eternal wisdom of God. According to the word of God, seven things are an abomination to the Lord and weigh heavily on mankind’s ability to function honestly. Prov. 6:17 Arrogant eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, 18 a heart that plots wicked schemes, feet eager to run to evil, 19 a lying witness who gives false testimony and one who stirs up trouble among brothers. It takes all these abominations working within those who are in leadership positions to reinforce a crooked society. It also takes the same accepted conduct within people’s hearts for everything to become corrupt.
Of course, once everything goes sideways, God gets blamed for it. Prov. 19:3 People ruin their lives by their own foolishness and then are angry at the LORD. The entitlement that people feel they are owed results in questions like, “Why did God allow that to happen to me?” “Why didn’t God warn me that I was in danger of crashing my car when I finished off that bottle of wine?” ” Why did God allow that person to become my friend who caused me to end up in prison?” The fact is, the law-breaking choices that were made with a free will, are what caused these people to end up with destroyed lives. Prov. 17:20 Crooks will not profit from their crimes, and those who plan to cause trouble will be trapped when it comes.
We are never going to fix the external problems within mankind until we… with the leading of the Holy Spirit, fix the internal problem of our own lives. The word declares that judgment starts in the church and with ourselves. 1Pet. 4:17 For it is time for judgment to begin with God’s household; and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who do not obey the gospel of God? In another scripture, Jesus makes a point to explain that we must remove the mess we are walking in before we can help others clean up their lives. Matt. 7:5 Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye. We cannot give lip service to a generation looking for real honest solutions for the troubled times they are living in. We need to live in the reality of God’s strength that is working in us to be the example people are looking for.
One of the hardest things to face in our Christian walk is when God puts His finger on a particular sin, transgression, or iniquity we have been participating in. We may have even kept ignoring the reminders that the Lord has sent to our hearts. We need to go the extra mile with God because we need His righteous transformational work in our souls. It is simple. If we do not want to end up a coward, crook, or criminal, we will have to choose God’s righteousness for our whole life. If we would face God’s judgment and respond to it now and obey His direction here on this side of eternity, we will not have to face His eternal judgment with those who hate God. We can walk in Christ’s righteousness now and become the faithful in the land. Blessings.
Good word! I like how you always bring it back to our own responsibility.
It is so important to Choose to live God’s way because when we do there is great joy to be experienced!