Proverbs 23 verse 4 says, labor not to be rich, cease from thine own wisdom. The problem with men is that most are wicked and fully committed to their wickedness, while many of the rest of them are good in their own eyes and wise in their own conceits. It's up to you and I to figure out where we fit in all that. At least that's how the Bible tells it. And that's what I've seen as I approach six decades on the planet. Some men spend their lives to be wealthy and they never enjoy life along the way. Their wives become distant and they're disconnected from their own children or vice versa. And let alone Christian friends, family, fellow believers in the local church. Relationships go out the window. We should labor in a legit manner to pay our bills, but don't labor for the sake of simply amassing wealth, and don't labor to be rich at the expense of your relationship with the Lord or with your loved ones. But some men just won't listen. That's why we see this proverb, and others like it, exhorting and admonishing men to labor not to be rich, cease from thine own wisdom. But so many men ignore such warnings, and God knew that. And that's why this same confrontational wisdom is repeated. Proverbs 28, 11 says, the rich man is wise in his own conceit, but the poor that hath understanding searcheth him out. And in other books of the Bible, like Isaiah 5, 21, where the prophet warns with the words, woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes and prudent in their own sight. God knows that men are stiff necked and rebellious in their sinful nature. Only a born-again spirit-filled Christian can really avoid that condition. So while some of us might say, okay, I've got that covered. I'm not neglecting the Lord or my loved ones or other priorities for the sake of just making money that I could never actually ever need. The fact is God knows who he's dealing with, and he puts little rebukes like these throughout the Bible as we read through his word. Like Proverbs 26, 12, seest thou a man wise in his own conceit? There is more hope of a fool than of him. And of course, we are blessed in this day and age with the complete Bible of 66 books in our own language. And if you're reading a King James Bible, it's in perfect uncorrupted form. But before the printing press, complete Bibles were a rare commodity. And that also made church attendance much more valuable. People would memorize more scripture in those days. They would treasure the reading and teaching and preaching of God's word, like we rarely see people doing today. And one of the most widely memorized texts was one in which the words of Jesus spell out the wisdom of our Proverbs so well. Again, our Proverbs says, labor not to be rich, cease from thine own wisdom. And Jesus would say these important words, which teach that same principle with such clarity. Matthew 6.33, but seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you. After all, it's not just the words in red that are the words of Jesus, but every word of God proceeds from the Father and was given by inspiration of God through the Spirit of Christ, who is the Holy Ghost. So heed God's word. Cease from your own opinion, whatever that opinion is, whenever that opinion is not in line with God's word. Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you. Labor not to be rich. Cease from thine own wisdom. I hope I don't have to argue with anybody about the fact that we're better off living by God's wisdom instead of our own.