INSTRUCTED HEARTS ARE BLESSED (3)

“Take firm hold of INSTRUCTION, do not let her go; keep her, for she is YOUR LIFE” – Proverbs 4:13

INSTRUCTED HEARTS are BLESSED with Preservation, Promotion, and Longevity in Life: “Take firm hold of INSTRUCTION, do not let her go; keep her, for she is YOUR LIFE” (Pro.4:13). God is saying to each of us His children: “INSTRUCTION is YOUR LIFE”! Everything we know we had to learn. All that we need to know we must learn. Everything right and true that we learn must be kept securely. Our lives depend on being corrected from error and taught truth. Wisdom speaks in Proverbs 8:32-36, “Now therefore, listen to me, my children, for BLESSED are those who keep my ways. HEAR INSTRUCTION and be wise, and do not disdain it. BLESSED is the man who listens to me, watching daily at my gates, waiting at the posts of my doors. For whoever finds me finds LIFE, and obtains favour from the Lord.”

Whoever loves and retains instruction to obey it will be blessed: “For the commandment is a lamp, and the law is a light; reproofs of instruction are the way of LIFE” (Pro.6:23). Whoever ignores or rejects instruction will be cursed: “He who disdains instruction despises his own soul, but he who heeds rebuke gets understanding” (Pro.15:32). The wicked hate instruction and cast God’s words behind them (Psa.50:17). We should be more desirous of keeping wisdom and instruction than anything else: “Receive my INSTRUCTION, and not silver, and knowledge rather than choice gold; for wisdom is better than rubies, and all the things one may desire cannot be compared with her” (Pro.8:10). Proverbs 23:23 also says, “Buy the truth, and do not sell it, also wisdom and INSTRUCTION and understanding.”

We cannot know anything without being taught; hence we must humble ourselves to God, parents, pastors, and teachers. A wise man craves instruction to become wiser (Pro.1:5); “Give INSTRUCTION to a wise man, and he will be still wiser; teach a just man, and he will increase in learning” (Pro.9:9). Receiving Instruction is lifelong not occasional: “Listen to wise counsel and RECEIVE INSTRUCTION, that you may be wise in your latter days” (Pro. 19:20). It’s stupid to despise instruction: “Whoever loves INSTRUCTION loves knowledge, but he who hates correction is stupid” (Pro.12:1). Fools despise instruction to their shame and ruin: “Poverty and shame will come to him who disdains correction, but he who regards a rebuke will be honoured” (Pro.13:18). Instructions will only benefit those who retain them.

Instruction is our Lifeline! We must grab it and never let go! A person who is drowning at sea will promptly obey the instructions of a sailor in a rescue boat, because the consequences of not obeying could be certain death. While hopefully we may never face drowning at sea, practically everyone will face challenges in the sea of life, from the stormy threats of a foolish and sinful world. Only by keeping instruction would we survive life’s storms. God instructsus by parents, pastors, mentors, and His Word. It’s time to grab hold of His instructions, to save our lives: “She is a tree of LIFE to those who take hold of her, and happy are all who retain her” (Pro.3:18).  Proverbs 3:22 assures further: “So they will be LIFE to your soul and grace to your neck” (Pro.3:22). Far beyond the capacity of money, wisdom gives Life (Ecc.7:12).

Instructed hearts are preserved and protected: “Do not forsake her, and she will preserve you; love her, and she will keep you” (v.6).

Instructed hearts experience promotion: “Exalt her, and she will promote you; she will bring you honor, when you embrace her” (v.8).

Instructed hearts enjoy healthy longevity: “Hear, my son, and receive my sayings, and the years of your life will be many” (v.10).

We must cultivate the habits of hearing, listening, learning, and grabbing instruction with understanding, and not let it slip away. These require attention, submission, retention, and application. The instruction of wisdom is what will save us from dilemmas and dangers of life. Instructed hearts belong to those who lay hold of and build their lives on God’s Word – on the Rock rather than on sand (Mt.7:24-27).