On the hill in the very middle of camp on the Bill Rice Ranch there is a place where the John R Rice Auditorium and a large dining hall sit, but seventy years ago when my grandparents went to the property that is now Bill Rice Ranch, that hill was a cedar thicket so dense that you could not see fifty feet in front of you. My grandfather had a vision, a dream of where things should be, and he drew out basic plans for the campground on a napkin or some such thing. Do you have vision? Where do you see yourself in ten years? What are your goals? What is your plan? What is your ambition and vision? If I may, you may be ambitious, but you are not a prophet.
Proverbs 29:18 says, “Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.” Notice there is a parallel between vision and law. “Where there is no vision, the people perish.” Literally it means the people are unrestrained. In contrast it says, “He that keepeth the law, happy is he.” So, how are law and vision parallel?
Well, in I Samuel 3 the Bible speaks of the child Samuel and it says, “The word of the LORD was precious in those days; there was no open vision.” So, God’s Word was not given through an open vision to a prophet. Oftentimes in the Old Testament a prophet was called a seer. The Bible is not talking here about what you see; it is talking about what God sees. It is not talking about your vision; it is talking about God’s vision and God’s law, His Word as it is called in I Samuel 3.
Judges 21:25 says of those crazy days, “In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes,” So, the proverb is not talking about the need for you to have greater vision or greater ambition. It is talking about all of us having vision and guidance from God. Where there is no vision from God, the people perish, but he that keeps the law, God’s truth, is happy. The point here is not my vision, but God’s vision.
Let God’s Word be your guide. Why? First, God knows more than you can see. The Bible is talking about God’s vision. So, faith is living beyond what you can see to what God knows. How much does God know? Everything. How much do you know? Not much. You do not need to know everything if you know God, and if you know God, you will have the ambition that you should have, the vision or guidance that you should have. God knows more than you see, so let God’s Word be your guide.
Second, God guides when you follow. “He that keepeth the law, happy is he.” He that guards the law, or pays attention to the law, God’s Word, is happy. The Bible says that God’s Word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path. So, you need to guard what God has told you and not be overly concerned about your own feelings, what you think and feel. There are some things we seek God’s guidance about that we really already know. It is God’s will for us to be saved. It is God’s will for those who have trusted Christ to follow Him in believer’s baptism. It is God’s will for us to keep our lives pure and to be thankful. These are things we know to be God’s plan, purpose, and guidance for us.
So, God guides when you follow. We say, “God, if You will guide, then I will follow.” God says, “No, you follow and I will be sure to guide.” We say, “God, explain it to me and I will obey.” God says, “No, you be willing to obey and then you will understand everything.” So, God guides when you follow.
Third, God blesses when you listen. Where there is no vision, the people are unrestrained, they perish, but in contrast, he who keeps the law is happy. The people here may be a tribe, nation, church, or a group of people, and you can’t control everyone else. The second part of the verse is singular, “He that keepeth the law, happy is he.” That is the person who is blessed. God guides when you follow, and God blesses when you listen. Happy is he. It is personal. Does God want the country, your city, your church, and your family to be revived? Yes, but I know it is God’s will for me to revived. James 4:8 says, “Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you.” If you are not revived, that is not God’s fault. It is not God’s will for me to be less than animated by what God wants.
So, I think vision is good. Having ambition, if it is surrendered to God, may be a good thing. Nothing is done by sitting around. But God’s Word should be our guide. Today, let God and God’s Word be your guide.