June 12: Diligence is an important part of our essential nature. It was corrupted by the fall, but it reflects God's own nature (John 5:17) to want to know new things, to assume logical, orderly construction and components to things, and to try to increase order and usefulness. We make ourselves more useful to God when we know our own limits, are able to have a good grasp of the resources available to us , and can subdue and resource them to do helpful, useful things. If it is judging in the bad sense to observe the "field of the slothful" (Proverbs 24) and to "take instruction" then much of the Bible's wisdom literature is vain. It's possible to raise fruitless questions and provoke controversy to gain advantage by manipulation, and it's also possible to be apathetic and passive and fall prey to temptation as a result. Instead, a key part of trusting that God exists and rewards those who diligently seek Him (Heb. 11:6) is to live as if diligence, order and reflection consistently benefits us all.
2 Samuel 11-12: Is it being hinted that David’s passivity is how the solicitation to evil was presented to him? He was at home rather than at war with his men, and he “sends” people to do his bidding. Even after the event, he has to be told by Joab to come get involved in the war against Ammon. ("IDLENESS, n. A model farm where the devil experiments with seeds of new sins and promotes the growth of staple vices."
Ambrose Bierce, The Cynic's Dictionary (1906); republished as The Devil's Dictionary (1911).)
Psalm 111: What is true science? Knowledge about the works of God sought out by those who have pleasure in them, who understand His wisdom, power and graciousness.
Romans 14: How are we to strike the proper balance between Romans 14’s warning not to judge God’s servant as if he were ours and 1 Corinthians 6’s exhortation to the wise to judge between brethren as those who will one day judge angels? There’s a lot of context in both passages to help: in the 1 Corinthians 6 passage, we’re talking about the church members suing one another in courts of law before the heathen. In Romans 14, it’s specifically about clean and unclean foods and holy days.
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