Okay, But Now What?

Scripture Reading: Proverbs 14:12

There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.

Do you know this verse? I mean, does it sound familiar or have you memorized it? Even if you don’t know the address, if you have been around church for a while, you are familiar with the words.

It is true.

We can go down a path that seems right to us when in fact it leads us to death.

Death here doesn’t mean the end of our physical life, although that can be one of the outcomes. It means destruction more broadly. It means that we can make decisions and go in directions that seem to be the right thing, but they end up bad for us.

So, the question becomes, if this is true, and it is, what am I to do? If I can’t trust my decision-making ability, won’t I be frozen in place, unable to make any forward progress? Does it mean that we should assume every instinct is wrong and we should therefore follow the wisdom of George Costanza and do the opposite?

Reading this verse in light of the whole of Scripture, this is not what it is aiming at. A better way to look at this is to see that it is warning us against things like the common worldly wisdom of “follow your heart,” or “do what you are passionate about.”

To avoid going down roads that lead to death, we should develop godly wisdom. One of the best ways to do that is to regularly read and study God’s word. Hide the word of God in your heart so that you won’t sin against Him. Then, do what Jesus said and put your priorities in the right order. “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness…” Finally, pray. Ask God for His guidance and leading. He is a good Shepherd and will lead us in the right way.

That’s not an exhaustive list, but it is a good start to avoiding the ways of death.