The Measure of a Man

 The Measure of a Man

January 12, 2025

Proverbs 11:5 (ESV) The righteousness of the blameless keeps his way straight, but the wicked falls by his own wickedness.

Proverbs 12:28 (ESV) In the path of righteousness is life, and in its pathway there is no death.

Romans 12:9-21 (ESV) Marks of the True Christian

9 Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. 10 Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another inshowing honor. 11 Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. 12 Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. 13 Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality. 14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. 16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight. 17 Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. 18 If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. 19 Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” 20 To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Things my father taught me about carpentry: Measure twice and cut once. If you mark the second board from the first, and the third from the second, etc., you will end up with longer and longer boards. So always measure with the same, original standard measuring device.

So it is with the Christian life. If you are going to live a righteous life, from time to time you need to return to the original standard to see how you measure up. That’s the only way to keep your way straight, as the Proverbs say. And the Proverbs continue to say that a straight, righteous life is the way of life. So let us measure our life once, and then twice, to see how straight we are walking.

Paul, in the twelfe chapter of Romans, lays our a concise standard for measure the Christian life. Love, honor, service, prayer, blessing, giving, harmony, peace, these are all measurable standards that you can use to check your walk. If you don’t measure up to these standards, “Straighten up!” As my father used to say. He also taught me how to plow a straight furrow by looking at a marker at the far end of the field. I would tend to look down, and to the left or right, and start to drift off of the straight line, so he would remind me to “straighten up” and keep one distant fence post in view so I could keep on line. That’s what we are doing in Romans 12. We don’t want to naval gaze and keep looking inward, but we want to keep a vision of the perfect in mind so we can head straight in that direction. Therefore, if you don’t quite measure up today, take heart, and keep you eyes on the standard in Romans 12, and begin to straighten up and head directly for the goal. A straight, righteous life will lead to life, and not death, as the write of the Proverb says. So be encouraged. It’s possible to live right if you just keep you eye on the Lord and let His Spirit guide you directly to the goal.