Proverbs 22:22-23 — Wise Saying #2

READ THIS: Proverbs 22:22-23, Wise Saying #2

22 Do not exploit the poor because they are poor and do not crush the needy in court, 23 for the Lord will take up their case and will exact life for life.

WHAT’S THIS MEAN, ANYWAY?

Sometimes it's kind of tempting to do something just because we can. When we know there won't be consequences, we are way more likely to do something that we normally wouldn't. 

Think about a little kid and the absolute buffest, scariest man in the world. Say both of them are eating a plate of candy and they both stand up to go do something really quick. I would totally be tempted to go over to the little kid's plate and take a piece of candy. But, I wouldn't DREAM of taking the candy off the big, scary dude's plate. The difference is that if the little kid finds out, there's not much that the kid can do to hurt me. 

These verses are kind of telling us that that little kid is actually the son of the big scary dude. And the dude cares if his kid gets picked on.

Think about the person who it is the EASIEST to take advantage of. It could be a little sibling, an oblivious boss/parent, a tiny kid at school, anyone. Now imagine that God is standing right there next to that person...ALL the time.

It suddenly doesn't feel okay to take advantage of that person...it's just hard to remember sometimes because we don't actually see God standing there, but, truthfully, God sees everything! So for those times that we have taken advantage of someone, it is important for us to go to God and to say sorry...the worst thing to do is to move on like it never happened. Either you have to talk to God now about it, or you'll have to talk to Him later...

THINK ABOUT IT:

1. Who is that person you thought of earlier who was/is easy to take advantage of? Why is it easy for you to do that? ("Take advantage of" is a phrase that means you treat someone else unfairly/unkindly because you know he/she won't stop you)

2. Do you believe that God actually takes note of all the bad things that happen? What about all the good things? Do you think He reacts more to the bad things or the good things? Is this a trick question? 
 
TRY THIS:

Try to talk to God about a time when you took advantage of someone else. Maybe you didn't take them to court...but maybe you stole a pencil or took some of their work. Ask God for forgiveness!

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