On Life at Home

in
things like these. I warn you, as
I warned you before, that those
who do such things will not inherit
the kingdom of God. It is clear in
this scripture that strife must not
be tolerated or allowed to take
root in your life if you want to
inherit the kingdom of God. That
alone should be enough for us
to put our defenses up to ensure
that this sin does not enter our
lives. God also tells us the type
of person who allows strife to be
a part of their life is fool in Proverbs
20:3 ESV. It is an honor for
a man to keep aloof from strife,
but every fool will be quarreling.
Can you imagine being called a
“fool” by God? That’s what his
word says we are when we are
contentious and fighting. He
tells to stay away from it and for
good reason too. God loves us
more than we could ever imagine.
Just look at John 3:16. And
every command that He gives
us is only to help us, never to
harm us. For I know the plans
that I have for you; declares the
LORD, ‘plans for welfare and
not for calamity to give you a
future and a hope. Jeremiah
29:11 New American Standard
Version. If you think about the
commands you give your young
children or perhaps the advice
you give your older children and
loved ones-as much as they
may not want to hear it- you tell
them the right way because you
love them. You don’t want to see
them hurt. You want to see them
prosper and if there is anything
that you can do, or anything that
you can say to help them avoid
calamity you will do it, you will
say even if you know that they
are going to get mad because
you love them. Think about how
much more our Heavenly Father
would do that for us. So when
He tells us to avoid strife-we
better listen.
Not only does God tells us the
effects of strife-being a fool and
not inheriting the kingdom of
God- but he tells us what type of
person spreads in. In Proverbs
16:28 ESV it says that A dishonest
man spreads strife… In Proverbs
28:25 ESV it says,
“A greedy man stirs up strife…”
Proverbs 15:18 says,
“A hot-tempered man stirs up
strife…”
Proverbs 17:19 says,
“Whoever loves transgression
loves strife…”
I once heard a pastor say that if
you want to know the wisdom of
God, read Proverbs. It is a book
that teaching us moral behavior
and right conduct. As you
can see all of the above verses
that tell us what type of person
engages in strife is from the book
of wisdom. It can be a harsh
reality for those of us who have
dealt with this issue but also
an inspiration for change in our
lives. Therefore, [there is] now
no condemnation (no adjudging
guilty of wrong) for those
who are in Christ Jesus, who
live [and] walk not after dictates
of the flesh, but after dictates of
the Spirit. Romans 8:1 Amplified
Version I put that verse there to
say this…acknowledging that
you struggle with this sin is not to
make anyone feel bad or guilty
but it is a call to action. Roman
3:23-24 Amplified Version says
that Since all have sinned and
are falling short of the honor
and glory [a]which God bestows
and receives.24 [All] are justified
and made upright and in right
standing with God, freely and
gratuitously by His grace (His
unmerited favor and mercy),
through the redemption which is
[provided] in Christ Jesus,… So
we have all fallen short, we all
sin, but through God’s grace and
mercy we are redeemed and
given favor. And through His
wisdom we are given the tools
to break free of the chains that