Considering Proverbs 2:1-8

My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee;

² So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding;

³ Yea, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding;

⁴ If thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures;

⁵ Then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God.

⁶ For the Lord giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.

⁷ He layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous: he is a buckler to them that walk uprightly.

⁸ He keepeth the paths of judgment, and preserveth the way of his saints.

What are the commandments for a Christian? Here are some scriptures that come to mind:

John 15:12-17

¹² This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.

¹³ Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.

¹⁴ Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.

¹⁵ Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you.

¹⁶ Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.

¹⁷ These things I command you, that ye love one another.

Matthew 22: 36-40

³⁶ Master, which is the great commandment in the law?

³⁷ Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.

³⁸ This is the first and great commandment.

³⁹ And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

⁴⁰ On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.

John 14:15-20

¹⁵ If ye love me, keep my commandments.

¹⁶ And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;

¹⁷ Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.

¹⁸ I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.

¹⁹ Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more; but ye see me: because I live, ye shall live also.

²⁰ At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.

For a Christian, the commandments we follow are few, but they are anything but simple. Jesus instructs us to love God and to love others—and not just when it’s easy. It can be difficult to love God and others as we should, and very often we don’t really know how.

We need to let the wisdom of God sink down into our heart and apply the teachings of Jesus to our lives. Every day we are met with choices and challenges. If we seek the wisdom of the Lord and call out to Him, He will show us the way. We will learn how to navigate difficult situations uprightly, even in a wicked, cruel, and deceptive world. That is a great treasure!

I think about what Jesus said regarding the kingdom of heaven: “the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls: who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.” (Matthew 13:45-46)

The commandments of God that show the way in a dark world are more valuable than any earthly treasure.

That is important to know when dealing with earthly poverty or overabundance. Sometimes the “deceitfulness of riches” clouds our vision, and we forget to walk in the love of Jesus. If we are greedy or envious of the wealth of others, that is not good. If we are unthankful for our prosperity, in whatever measure we are given, that is not good. If we are fearful of poverty to the point that we do not trust in Jesus, that is not good.

Matthew 6:24-34

²⁴ No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.

²⁵ Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?

²⁶ Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?

²⁷ Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?

²⁸ And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin:

²⁹ And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.

³⁰ Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?

³¹ Therefore take no thought, saying, What shall we eat? or, What shall we drink? or, Wherewithal shall we be clothed?

³² (For after all these things do the Gentiles seek:) for your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things.

³³ But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

³⁴ Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.

If we put Jesus first and seek to learn His ways, then He will take care of our needs. He will provide us with the necessities of this life—and most importantly—He will continue to work on our hearts so that we can keep the commandments of God.

Jesus also provides us with protection from the enemy. He gives us the most powerful weapon and shield of all: His word. By His word the world was made. By His word man lives and dies. We do not need to be afraid.

Luke 21:12-15

¹² But before all these, they shall lay their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues, and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my name’s sake.

¹³ And it shall turn to you for a testimony.

¹⁴ Settle it therefore in your hearts, not to meditate before what ye shall answer:

¹⁵ For I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able to gainsay nor resist.

We should strive to have greater and greater have faith in these things:

Jesus made a way for us when He died on the cross and rose again. Through Him, we have wise judgement and He will preserve us in the ways of His righteousness—the ways of love towards God, Christian brothers and sisters, and even our enemies. Jesus will provide everything we need, so we trust in Him. This includes knowledge for handling difficult situations and strength, basic necessities like food and shelter, and even the best weapon that exists: the word of God!

I have a lot to think about today. How can I love Jesus better? How can I love Christians better? How can I love enemies better with hopes of turning them to Jesus? Do I have faith that Jesus will provide for my needs instead of allowing the “deceitfulness of riches” to cloud the way? Do I have faith that Jesus will give me wise words to speak when needed? If I walked in these things better, I might find that “peace that surpasses all understanding.” How wonderful!