4 Necessary Elements of Life God Says You Should Not Despise
Our world is topsy turvy! Sin is rampant and we honestly can’t trust what we’re told – whether it’s in the media, the messages that eminate from Hollywood, or sadly, even by many preachers today. There is only one trustworthy source, as there always has been, and that is the Word of God!
The thing is, our mind and emotions are very much influenced by what we see, hear, and experience around us. This can result in our loving what the Lord hates, and hating what the Lord loves. No one is immune.
You and I need to stick as never before to the timeless, tested, and trustworthy words of the Living God! Click To Tweet
While we are in danger of possibly abhorring people, situations, or groups based on our own preferences and tastes, let’s look at 4 Necessary Elements of Life God Says You Should Not Despise.
The Lord’s Discipline
My son, do not despise the Lord’s discipline or be weary of his reproof, for the Lord reproves him whom he loves, as a father the son in whom he delights.
Proverbs 3:11
Should the Good Lord be granting you a light and short-lived discipline, don’t despise or ignore it. At times, we can harden out hearts towards the nudges of correction and heart convictions that God sends our way. However, the more you and I discount and neglect those niggly prompts, we become desensitized to our Saviour’s holy correction and reproof.
Or, you may be enduring a heavy and long discipline from the Lord. Do not grow weary or become fainthearted, dear one. It may be such a great temptation to cut some corners or try a quick fix just to get some relief from being under the Lord’s Hand of discipline.
Whenever you go through times such as these, rest assured that His heaven-sent affliction will not weigh heavier than it need be upon you, and will not last one second longer than the time it was chosen for you to learn His lessons. Even if it lasts more than you feel you can bear, do not be disheartened or dismayed. Be encouraged that the Lord reproves you because He loves you.
Whoever ignores instruction despises himself, but he who listens to reproof gains intelligence.
Proverbs 15:32
Do not despise the Lord’s discipline.
Your Mother
Listen to your father who gave you life, and do not despise your mother when she is old.
Proverbs 23:22
The command to honour our father and mother stated in the Ten Commandments does not end when we leave home, get married, or reach a certain age. We should always revere our parents (whether they have passed away or are still alive). Even if we disagree with them or differ in opinion, we honour them because of their position as the ones whom God chose to give us life.
We, as mothers, have an inbuilt, God given desire to give our children advice. We love them so dearly and in all things great and small want them to follow the paths of righteousness and wisdom. This proverb tells us that even when our mothers are older, we should not despise their advice.
You and I may be grown women, with children of our own, but we are warned not to think that we are past being taught by our mothers. We should rather respect our mothers for having lived all these many years, and welcome the wisdom that she is still willing to pass on to us.
Consider yourself challenged, dear friend. The alternative is not pretty:
The eye that mocks a father
and scorns to obey a mother
will be picked out by the ravens of the valley
and eaten by the vultures.Proverbs 30:17
Little Ones
“See that you do not despiseone of these little ones. For I tell you that in heaven their angels always see the face of my Father who is in heaven.
Matthew 18:10
Do you complain about your children? Do you treat them harshly at times? Perhaps wish they weren’t around as much as they are? Jesus told his disciples not to despise the little ones.
Even though my husband and I have been blessed with five children, I’m not actually the kind of person who goes gaga over little ones. Once in a while, a child will come along that I think is pretty sweet, but I’m not naturally drawn to children.
This verse challenges me greatly. It tells believers not to treat children as inferior citizens, not to think of them as nuisances, and not to withhold love and respect from them. As adults, you and I must be cautious not to be a stumbling block to them but to lead them in love by example.
Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.”
Matthew 19:14
Prophecies
Do not despise prophecies, but test everything; hold fast what is good.
1 Thessalonians 5:20-21
The Greek word used here for “prophecies” is prophéteia which refers to “the gift of communicating and enforcing revealed truth.” So when God says, “Do not despise prophecies” in this verse, he’s referring to the preaching of the Word –interpreting and applying the Scriptures to our lives.
My friend, we must not despise preaching at our weekly meetings, even if the speaker doesn’t have the most dramatic and interesting voice, or if what he is preaching about seems unchallenging (ie. boring), or if we feel we’re no better off after the sermon than we were before.
In our family, when one of us feels as though we didn’t learn anything new from the sermon, we always say, “It was a good reminder.” Click To TweetHonestly, we all need to be reminded even of the basics often.
The very next verse gives us an exercise to put into practice during and after any preaching we hear. In fact, our genius God probaby put that instruction in there in our Bible just so that we wouldn’t doze off or become nonchalant about what we’re hearing. We actually need to keenly listen to the Word being preached and then “test everything”.
God takes into account that humans are sinful and may put in their own twist on His Word that He never intended to be understood from the original. Our faith in the Bible should not be blind. Every believer needs to be as discerning as the Berean Jews were in Acts 17. Paul tells us that “they received the Word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.”
You and I need to listen to the preaching of God’s Word eagerly, examining it to make sure that it lines up with what the Scriptures teach. And then, hold fast to Truth with all that is within us.
Do not despise the preaching of God’s Word.
As a believer, I am sure that your heart’s desire is to please the King of Heaven in all things. I pray that you and I will be more accutely aware of these four areas on which we can focus; humbly welcoming the Lord’s discipline, welcoming the wisdom of our mothers, loving children into His Kingdom, and embracing the preaching of His wonderful and holy Word.
Which of these four “do not despise” instructions would you like to take on as a challenge for your own life from today on, and why?
