Will You Influence Wisely?

Estes explains, with reference to the choice we have between life and death, that how we use our influence is a question of wisdom. This blog post is an edited extract from The Message of Wisdom, one of IVP's June 2020 Releases.

Choosing life means committing to obey the Lord, who is the giver of life. This principle was true for Israel as they prepared to enter into their inheritance in the land of Canaan, but it is also true for all people at every time. No response from Israel to the challenge of Moses is given in the text of Deuteronomy, but the Old Testament narrative goes on to trace the sad history of the subsequent defection and disobedience of the nation. This was the tragic pattern throughout the period of the judges as the people of Israel repeatedly abandoned the Lord, and it became the predominant downward trajectory during the period of the monarchy. Eventually the Israelites’ disobedience to the Lord caused them to be defeated and dispersed from the Promised Land as they were led into captivity, the northern kingdom of Israel by Assyria and the southern kingdom of Judah by Babylon.

For a people with such a high calling, their poor choices brought them exceedingly low. As we read the Bible's message of wisdom today in the twenty-first century, we also have to decide whether we will choose the Lord’s path of life taught in Proverbs, in Deuteronomy and in many other passages throughout the Bible, or if we will choose the path of death.

Choosing God’s path of life requires obedience and loyalty to him, and it leads to his blessing. Choosing the path of death entails disobedience to the Lord, and it results in his judgment. For us, as for the Israelites, there is a momentous decision before us, and the choice we make will make all the difference. No individual and no nation, no matter how powerful and prosperous, can evade the judgment of the sovereign Lord when they fail to choose his path of obedience and life.

As a loving Father, the Lord’s desire is to bless his people, but his blessing is conditioned on our obedience to him. Human parents know well how sometimes their good plans and intentions are thwarted by the failure of their children to behave well and to respond positively to them. When that occurs, parents in sadness have to substitute discipline in place of what could have been a delightful family experience. Similarly, the Lord desires to lavish upon us his good gifts (cf. Jas 1:17), but when we refuse to listen to him he must discipline us, because that is what a truly loving parent does, as the sage states in Proverbs 3:11–12 (cf. Heb. 12:5–6):

My son, do not despise the Lord’s discipline,
and do not resent his rebuke,
because the Lord disciplines those he loves,
as a father the son he delights in. 

Just as the choice that the generation of Moses made had consequences for their descendants, so other people will be affected by the choice we make for or against the Lord. For so many reasons, we must be careful to follow his way, because many people will be either helped or harmed by what we choose to do.

Each of our lives is like a pebble tossed into a pond. When the pebble touches the water, ripples begin to spread across the surface. In the same way, a life lived for God inevitably touches other people for good, first family, then friends, and eventually more casual acquaintances. On the other hand, a life that rejects God will adversely influence others whom it touches. We all have a measure of influence on others through the choices we make for life or for death. The only question is how our influence will affect others around us. Will our lives direct them towards God’s blessing, or will they lead them away from it? God desires that his people inherit his blessing so that they can be a channel of his blessing to others, but all of that depends upon our obedience to him.

It is vital that we too choose life today.

If this brief reflection has inspired you, you might like to order your own copy of The Message of Wisdom, or perhaps one of the resources recommended below.