Proverbs 11:28
Whoever trusts in his righteousness will fall, but the righteous will flourish like a green leaf.
[https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=proverbs+11%3A28&version=ESV]
Many men trust in their own righteousness. They say that they do good works for the poor, that they have never been rude, and that no man can hold anything they’ve done against them. These three things may be true, and many more, but the claim to self- originated righteousness remains a road to perdition.
How do we know this? Can man not be righteous? Paul says in Romans 3:10, “None is righteous.” All men sin; all men fall short of the glory of God. To hold yourself to be blameless in all things is prideful beyond measure (Romans 12:3) because all men are sinful.
In contrast, the truly righteous, those whom God has elected and redeemed, will flourish like a green leaf. They are the tree of Psalms 1, which “Yields it’s fruit in its season, and its leaf is not withered.” The image of men as trees is one common throughout the Old Testament. Ezekiel 17:23, Psalm 1, the visions of Daniel, and the parable of Jotham in Judges 9 all use this imagery. When God says that the righteous will flourish like a green leaf, He is calling upon all this imagery, upon the spreading branches of Ezekiel and the running water of Psalm 1, in order to convey the depth of His blessing upon His faithful people.
Truly we whom He has justified He will also sanctify; praise be to Him (Romans 8:30).
God bless.
Sanctuary Functional Medicine, under the direction of Dr Eric Potter, IFMCP MD, provides functional medicine services to Nashville, Middle Tennessee and beyond. We frequently treat patients from Kentucky, Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, Ohio, Indiana, and more... offering the hope of healthier more abundant lives to those with chronic illness.
