Pondering Proverbs – Leadership (5)

 

 

“The hand of the diligent will rule, but the slack hand will be put to forced labor.” Proverbs 12:24.

 

What does this mean? Do we see this consistently working out in life? Here is, perhaps, a verse that we would like to skip over when thinking about leadership and authority, but alas it does have the word “rule” in it; it tells us that the diligent will rule – so we ought to engage with this verse in our series on leadership in Proverbs.

 

Do we always see the diligent ruling? Do we always see the faithful and hard-working being recognized? Do we ever see slackers getting promoted and receiving positive recognition that they don’t deserve? Do we see people in positions of authority who are lazy and don’t work?

 

Well, of course we see these things, we live in an unjust world, in a world that isn’t truthful and fair – but we also live in a world that is ultimately under the authority of God and which is being judged by God, and which will in ultimate fulness be judged by God.

 

An element of our growth in Jesus Christ is learning to live in ultimate realities, or as Paul wrote, living by not looking at the things that are seen, which are temporal, but rather at the things which are unseen, which are eternal (2 Cor. 4:18). We see this orientation toward the unseen and its ultimate outworking in Hebrews Chapter 11, as indeed throughout Scripture. This is not to deny the suffering, injustice, and pain of the present world, but it is also to place these things in their ultimate perspective (see Romans 8:18 in its context) and to place them most especially and assuredly in the hands of our kind and loving heavenly Father and dear Lord Jesus.

 

When we know the Bible holistically, in an integrated fashion in Christ, proclaiming Jesus Christ, then our understanding of life develops in Christ and we gain some measure of clarity when we see injustices around us. More importantly, our vision of God increases and our trust in Him grows deeper – for seeing Him and knowing Him and trusting in His essence and character (if we may use that word) is the core of life.

 

“Theodicy” is a word that refers to how God works out His judgement and justice both in this world and beyond. When we have a Biblical framework for our theodicy we will still have unanswered questions and many things, I think, will still be mysteries to us – but we will have a framework in Christ through which to view justice and equity – and their counterparts – and we won’t have to reinvent the wheel every time we have questions about why the wicked seem to have their way and why the innocent and righteous suffer or are otherwise in difficulties.

 

So many professing Christians reinvent wheels of understanding over and over again because we are not grounded in the Bible holistically, we are not grounded in the Person of God – in His essence and attributes as He reveals Himself in and through the Bible. Our lives lack firm foundations in Jesus Christ. We want quick and easy answers to difficult questions – we will not sit still and learn at the feet of the Master and allow Him to develop His image within us, we will not submit ourselves to Him. We would rather complain than trust and worship Him.

 

Not every diligent hand will rule in this life, and not every slack hand will be seemingly held accountable in this life.

 

Many Psalms struggle with questions of theodicy. Where is God in the midst of wickedness and injustice? Why do the wicked seem to have everything? Why do the innocent suffer? Will no one help the oppressed? Is our faithfulness to God a waste?

 

I have long loved Psalm 73, with its raw honesty – a hallmark of the Psalms – and its sudden realization that, “I was senseless and ignorant; I was like a beast before You” (Ps. 73:22), and of course its conclusion, “But as for me, the nearness of God is my good; I have made the Lord Yahweh my refuge, that I may tell of all Your works.”

 

Of course, Psalm 37 is the “go to” Psalm on theodicy, beginning with, “Do not fret because of evildoers, be not envious toward the wrongdoers,” and concluding with, “But the salvation of the righteous is from Yahweh; He is their strength in time of trouble. Yahweh helps them and delivers them; He delivers them from the wicked and saves them, because they take refuge in Him.”

 

Note that both Psalm 37 and Psalm 73 focus on God as our refuge – what can we learn from this?

 

Joseph and Daniel provide examples of those with diligent hands ruling, but their lives were not without sorrow and conflict and they both patiently endured, making God their refuge.

 

In our Lord Jesus we see exaltation after crucifixion, (Phil. 2:5 – 11), and we are called to have the same attitude in ourselves that Jesus displayed (Phil. 2:5).

 

It is not unusual to see injustice and inequity in the workplace, and when we work in such environments it is important to keep Colossians 3:22 – 25 in mind. We are to be sincere in all we do, not simply putting on an outward show. We are to fear God, and we are to do our work heartily as unto the Lord rather than as unto men. And here we have theodicy, for in Col. 3:24 Paul writes, “…knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve.” Our God can lift us up above the injustices around us, putting us in a place, in Christ, where we can be a blessing to others – even in the midst of inequity and unfairness and moral and ethical poison.

 

And so when we read a verse such as Proverbs 12:24, though we may not see the fulness of its outworking right now, we can be assured that ultimately we will witness its fulfillment – for as Paul writes, “…the saints will judge the world…Do you not know that we will judge angels?” (1 Cor. 6:2 – 3).

 

Ultimately, the hand of the diligent in Christ will indeed rule.