Binding and Writing

Proverbs 3:3-4 says, “Do not let kindness and truth leave you; Bind them around your neck, Write them on the tablet of your heart. 4 So you will find favor and good repute in the sight of God and man.”

This is another very popular verse that many people claim to know, but I think the first time I really thought about it was in Burundi, Africa in August of 2011. We were sitting in a Friday Night Service with the local church there in Burundi, and my friends on the trip and I each had a translator so that we could understand what the pastor was saying.

He told us about how cool kids have really nice clothes, cool chains, and they obtain whatever is popular to wear at the time. However, he said that when you really get to know them, they aren’t as beautiful as they look, for they put up a front with their clothes and hide who they really are. He said that the most beautiful pieces of clothing are kindness (or peace) and truth. We are to bind them around our neck so when people look at us they see that we are people of these virtues.

Why do we do this? Verse four says to find favor in the sight of God and man. But take a look at this verse. John 15:18 says, "If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you.” If we desire to be like Christ, then we can say that it is our goal to be so Christ devoted that they world may hate us. However, I don’t think we truly understand the difference “man” and “the world”.

This is my opinion, but I understand that I am not the only one to read the Bible. The world was cursed by having Satan rule over it (John 12:31) and He makes the world sinful. In context of John 15:18, “the world” can be considered a sinful and negative notation because it is under the rule of the devil. However, man has a choice to follow the earth, and be ruled by the devil, or follow the things of Christ. I hope this make sense like it does in my head.

Anyways, we are to be hated by the world, meaning that we are set apart from sin and all the ways of evil, but we are to be appealing to those who God has called, and those who find pleasure in the goodness of the heart. People were created to have a longing of perfection, and when we show the characteristics of our Creator, they can look and long for what we have, and they will strive to maintain it.

So, when we wear kindness and truth around our necks, we are showing people who we are; our identity. Do kindness and truth define you? Are they essence of your being? After I thought deeply about it, I got a dog tag that said “Mercy” and “Truth” (because of my NKJV), but after awhile, they broke and I no longer wear it. However, that does not mean that I can’t still be defined by those characteristics.

Strive to be kind and show the truth to everyone, be true. – Forsake All