PROVERBS 242007 Teaching by Jerry B Simmons

Teaching Transcript: Proverbs 24

You are listening to FerventWord, an online Bible study ministry with teachings and tools to help you grow deeper in your relationship with God. The following message was taught by Jerry Simmons in 2007. We're

We're in Proverbs chapter 24 this evening, and as we've been studying through the book of Proverbs, we've been remarking and noticing that the majority of them are written by Solomon. The majority of the book was written by Solomon, the son of David, who is the second king of Israel, or third king, rather, of Israel. And he had asked God for wisdom, and God granted him that request and made him the most wise man upon the face of the earth.

Now, the portion that we're studying this evening, the portion that we studied last week and the end part of chapter 22 as well, were not written by Solomon necessarily. These are under the category of the sayings of the wise. And so in addition to Solomon, there was other wise men in the nation of Israel that God had blessed with wisdom and given great insight into his ways, his

His principles for living. And that is what we are reading here this evening in chapter 24. It's the sayings of the wise, those who are having wisdom and wisdom

understanding, insight into the way that God has designed life. Now, we've been talking about wisdom and that is wisdom is not about being smart or having great intelligence, but wisdom is really how well you receive from God and are obedient to his word, to his commands, because he gives us instructions. He gives us his principles so that we might enjoy the blessed life that he desires for every one of us. The

These sayings of the wise are great insight then into those principles, into those instructions so that we might be blessed in our life.

These Proverbs, as we're looking in chapter 24, constructed a little bit differently than we've been used to with the Proverbs of Solomon. Instead of the one liner type of Proverbs that Solomon wrote, the compare and contrast that we've been used to. These Proverbs are several lines or several verses, and they're more like general statements of.

of truth rather than witty one-liners like we've been meditating on in the past. And so there's great insight here, a little bit different, but wonderful things for us to meditate on. And so before we get into the word this evening, let's begin in prayer.

Heavenly Father, we do come before you this evening with open hearts, God. We're here not because of the ritual, Lord, not because that's what we're supposed to do as Christians, Lord, but Lord, truly we're here because we need to hear from you. Lord, we need your touch this evening. We need to understand your instructions and your principles for living.

God, we are desperate without you. God, we're lost completely without you. And we need you to speak to our hearts, to lead us and guide us. Lord, we need you to comfort us and encourage us. We need you to strengthen us. Lord, fortify us that we might be able to continue on in the faith that you've called us to.

God, we ask that you would continue to reveal to us your love, that you would set our eyes and our focus not on this life, but the things of eternity, Lord, the things of heaven where you are seated. We ask, Lord, that you would consume our hearts this evening, Lord, that you would speak to us powerfully through your word. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. We start chapter 24, of course, verses 1 and 2. It says this,

He starts out,

And encourages us not to be envious of evil men, nor to desire to be with them. Now on the surface, at first glance, we might ask, well, who would be envious of evil men? Who would desire to be with evil men?

But understand that this is not necessarily talking about being envious of their evilness, being envious of how evil they are, but possibly being envious of what they have, even though they are evil, wanting to be with those who are evil, not because of their evilness, but because of perhaps their status or their popularity or their possessions or being numbered in that group for importance sake.

We are told that we need to look past what seems to be an advantage, what seems to be a benefit that they have and recognize them for what they are. If someone's heart devises violence, they are evil.

If someone's heart is bent on violence or violent activity or thinking about and considering and planning and plotting violence, the Bible says they are evil. Do not envy them nor desire to

To be with them. And there's great examples of that. If you'll just turn on the news. Or look in a newspaper. There's great examples of that all around us. Of people whose hearts devise evil. There was a story that came out.

Yesterday and today, you might have heard it, might have seen it. About three girls who have been charged now with assault after beating up a 13-year-old girl. They were all high school-aged girls, and they beat up this other girl in front of a school, but someone videotaped it and put it online. And so a lot of the kids at the school were looking at it and laughing and enjoying it, and the teachers found out, and so they were able to check it out.

Turned it into the police and now these girls are being charged with assault as a result. But it's just this horrible thing and yet notice what happens. There are these girls that are involved. There's all these people who want to check it out and think that it's interesting and cool or funny. And it's specifically against what the scripture is saying. Those who devise evil.

Those who plan and plot violence, their hearts are evil. Don't envy them. Don't desire to be with them. It's very common for us to do. The truth is troublemakers are usually the popular people. Isn't that true? I mean, how many in your school were troublemakers? And they were the ones everybody knew. They were the cool ones. They were the ones that everybody wanted to be around and be alike.

He says their hearts devise violence, their lips talk of troublemaking. Wisdom says don't desire to be with them. We're to place God's standards before everything else, to carefully choose who we look up to, who we hang around, who we desire to be like. It would be good for us to consider who we desire to be with. It would be good for us to consider who do we envy.

Which athletes are the ones that we are looking towards or the musicians or the actors or the co-workers and so on and so forth? The scripture says, don't attach yourself to anyone who devises violence and talks of troublemaking. Verses three and four. Through wisdom, a house is built and by understanding it is established. By knowledge, the rooms are filled with all precious and pleasant riches.

Here he goes on to the next subject in dealing with the building of a house. Now, we're given three things that relate to this house. Wisdom, understanding, and knowledge.

Wisdom, understanding and knowledge. We've been looking at them in great detail all throughout the book of Proverbs because it's what Proverbs is all about. The wisdom, understanding and knowledge of God. All three work together and are related to one another. And all three come from the Lord. Proverbs chapter 2 verse 6 tells us that it's the Lord who gives wisdom. From his mouth come knowledge and understanding.

And so what the author of Proverbs here is telling us is that wisdom, understanding and knowledge are necessary for building the house. And all of those things come from God. Or in other words, what you really need to be established in this life is a relationship with God. That's what's most important. That's what builds the house. That's what establishes it. That's what fills it with all precious and pleasant riches.

Now, that's why we always go back to the same definition of wisdom, because, again, wisdom is not about how smart or intelligent you are. It's how well you receive and obey God's instructions. If you want your house to be built, if you want it to be established, if you want it to be filled with precious and pleasant riches, then

Then get close to God and walk in the principles that he gives. If you want your marriage to be blessed and if you want to experience the life the way that God has designed it, then be obedient to him. Get wisdom, knowledge and understanding from relationship with him. Now, of course, you can try to do it on your own. You can build your own house and you can fill it with all kinds of things.

But if you do not do it God's way, you will find that it's all counterfeit and it will not last. The house will not be established because it's established through wisdom, knowledge and understanding. Verses five and six. A wise man is strong. Yes, a man of knowledge increases strength. For by wise counsel, you will wage your own war. And in a multitude of counselors, there is safety.

Here he says that a wise man is strong. Now, the important thing about the way that we're defining wisdom is that anybody can be wise. Since it's not about how smart or intelligent you are, it doesn't depend on your IQ or your education.

Anybody has the potential to be wise because it's how well you receive and obey God's instructions. It's how well you take this word of God and apply it to your life. And anyone...

At virtually any age can do that and become wise. Anyone who wants to increase strength is able to, is what the author here is telling us. Are you facing a struggle and want victory through that? Are you dealing with a situation and you feel weak or perhaps you're easily swayed by people? Do you feel like you're going to buckle under the pressure?

Here he says you can increase strength by being wise, by spending time in God's word and being obedient to it. Remember the parable that Jesus told in Matthew chapter seven. We refer to it a lot. Matthew seven, 24 through 27. The parable of the wise man.

And the foolish man or the wise builder and the foolish builder, the wise man built his house upon the rock. The storms came, the rains came and it stood. But the foolish man built his house upon the sand. And as a result, when the storms came and the floods came, the house was destroyed and it was wiped away. And Jesus said the difference between the two is the wise man heard the word of God and did it, applied it to his life.

And so his house was built upon the rock. And so even in the midst of adversity, even in the time of difficulty, he stood strong. But the one who heard the word of God, who was there on Wednesday evening and heard the message, the one who read through the scriptures, but did not allow it to change their life, did not allow it to impact the way they lived. They built their house upon the sand. And because they did not apply God's word, their house was destroyed.

If you remember, a few weeks ago now, back in December, we came back from Okinawa and we shared about a woman. In fact, George is the one who shared about her. Her name is Naoko. And Naoko was a woman who, she was a Japanese new believer. She still is. But she was a fairly new believer when we were there and

She had called up Joanna and asked her if we could come over because she had, as a part of their culture, as a part of their custom, she had an idol in her home. It was part of their marriage ceremony that they would receive this altar that they would offer incense up to, to pray to their gods in order to bless their marriage. And so she...

knew that it was an idol and she knew she wanted to get rid of it, but she felt, I don't have the strength. I'm not able to do it. I know that I need to. I know that it's what God would instruct me to do in his word, but I don't have the strength. And so she asked for help for us to come and help her. And so we came and we helped her dispose of it. Joanna shared about her as well when she was down a couple of weeks ago when she shared

And she shared about how after that, then the enemy really began to attack. And her husband has decided, I don't want to be married to you any longer. He's an American. He didn't care about the idol, but he just decided, I don't like this happiness that you have, this this Christian thing that you're doing. And so he split and left her alone. And that was right before the Reese's came here.

She was a new believer. She has no Christian background. We helped her get rid of this idol. Then her husband left her. Then Joanna, who was ministering to her, moved, not moved, but came to the States for several weeks. And here she is facing difficult times.

And Joanna was somewhat concerned. What's going to happen to her while she's there? Well, the wonderful thing is that a wise man is strong. And yes, a man of knowledge increases strength. Because I got an email from Joanna today. Just please allow me to read a little bit to you. It should bring rejoicing to your heart. She says this, Naoko told me that for New Year's,

She hung around her house and just prayed and sought after God. She was seeking what God wanted her to read in the Bible, but didn't know where. A paper fell out of her Bible like a tract, and on the paper was a scripture. She said she read it, and it really ministered to her, and so she asked me to read it with her. So she tells me the name of the book in Japanese. I have no clue what she's talking about, but then she tells me in English it was the book of Jeremiah.

And Joanna has in parentheses here, I'm thinking it's not the Jeremiah scripture, the one you probably are all thinking about and know right now. She's thinking she wouldn't know that one. She has no Christian background. But lo and behold, she reads to her Jeremiah 29, 11, where God says, I know the thoughts I have for you. Thoughts of peace, thoughts of good and not of evil.

And then so she goes on to say that for two days she read and prayed and sought God and that the scriptures that we gave her when we were there, she kept going back to to be strengthened in.

She read all of Genesis over those two days for the first time in her life. She rented a DVD of the Bible that corresponded with how the Bible was written in the beginning. So she would read the scripture, then watch the segment on the DVD, then read the next portion. And she said that God just comforted her so much. And she has so much peace with all that is going on. This is a woman who has no background in church, no background in the Bible and not long spiritual training.

The portion in Jeremiah 29, verses 12 through 14, goes on to say that when we seek with all our heart, we find God. He hears us and he sees us. I showed her yesterday how God is the same, that God speaks not only to me, she puts the old Christian, but also to those that are just beginning. The Holy Spirit was revealing himself to her. God is directing her. She's understanding his word. And in the midst of total chaos in her home, God is leading and teaching her.

And so here's this new believer in Jesus Christ. She's not a Christian that's been around for a while. She didn't have a Christian upbringing. She doesn't come from a culture that just almost inherently understands Christianity like the American culture. It's completely opposite to what she's been raised in. And yet in the midst of this calamity and total chaos of her life, she's strong. She increases in strength.

Because she's adhering to the word of God. She's listening. She's receiving. She's being built up in it. She increases her strength. She's becoming strong at a time of great weakness through her relationship with God, through the word of God. If you want to be strong, you need to get into the word of God. You need to spend time with him in his word.

If you don't spend time with God and his word daily, it's no wonder that you lose the battle against sin. If you don't spend time with God and his word daily, it's no wonder that you're weak and not able to do what you know you need to do. The word of God is what nourishes us and strengthens us as we develop our relationship with him. It's like Psalm 1. You know that somewhere it relates the righteous to a tree planted by the rivers of water.

But the righteous, it says, is the one who delights in the law of the Lord. And in his law, he meditates day and night. It's when the word of God becomes a central part of our life, where it dominates our thoughts, where it's something that we meditate on continually, day after day, regularly, day in and day out. And then we are planted like a tree. We're established. We're solid. We're fruitful. It bears fruit in its season.

Whose leaf will not wither and whatever he does shall prosper. If you delight in the law of God, if you delight in the word of God and meditate in it day and night, you will be like a tree. Planted, rooted, grounded, strong and fruitful.

The wise man is strong. Yes, a man of knowledge increases strength. And then in verse 6 he says, For by wise counsel you will wage your own war, and in a multitude of counselors there is safety. Wage war by wise counsel, by the word of God. Others who will share with you the word of God are wise counsel. Those who will share with you the ideas of man or their own opinions, that's not wise counsel.

Wise counsel is others who will encourage you and strengthen you in the word of God.

In a multitude of counselors, he says, there is safety. And I like that. The multitude of counselors. And so include in your multitude of counselors, Jeremiah, David, Paul, Peter, Matthew, Mark, Moses, Isaiah, and the list goes on and on. Immerse yourself in the word of God and find strength for your life. Find safety for your life. Verse 7 says,

Wisdom is too lofty for a fool. He does not open his mouth in the gate. Now, a fool is the opposite of someone who is wise. If a wise person is not wise because of how smart they are, a fool is not how fool because of how stupid they are. A fool is one who will not receive instruction as opposed to the wise who is obedient and receives from the word of God. The fool is the one who refuses instruction.

To receive refuses to be instructed, refuses to put into practice what God has instructed. A fool cannot receive wisdom because he will not receive instruction.

Now, when it talks about he will not open his mouth in the gate, his mouth in the gate, the gate is the place of the city in those times where the elders would gather together. And so there they would have their elder meetings. They would have their business discussions. They would have their political debates. They would have all of the things that the elders would be involved in, including judgment, worship.

When there was a case that needed to be tried, when they were needing witnesses, they would take it to the gate of the city where the elders were and they would there judge the case. And so the idea here is that the fool has nothing to say in the midst of those who are wise, of those who are elders of the city.

It's either when the elders are gathered together, the fool cannot understand. And so he doesn't doesn't speak because he doesn't know what they're talking about. It's too far above him or he can't understand it. Just like a unbeliever cannot understand the things of God, the word of God, as Paul says, because they're spiritual things and not carnal. Or it could be referring to the fool is not able to speak when he's brought for judgment. When

When he's found out, when he's caught up and he comes to judgment, he has nothing to say. Now, I particularly think it's referring to the latter, that at the time of judgment, he will have nothing to say because there's lots of fools that speak foolishly, even though they have nothing to say. But there will be a time of judgment when they will not speak foolishly.

except when they bow their knee to confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. There's nothing else to say except to confess, yes, he is Lord, and I should have been obedient to him. Verses 8 and 9. He who plots to do evil will be called a schemer. The devising of foolishness is sin, and the scoffer is an abomination to men. Now, I found this interesting because it's not just sin that is sin.

But here he also describes to us or shares with us that the planning of sin is sin. The devising of foolishness is sin. God is not just concerned about what you actually carry out and do, but he's also concerned, just as concerned, in fact, with what you think and plan in your heart. He's concerned about what goes through and the plans that you make, what takes place within you.

If you remember Jesus, he went through this in Matthew chapter 5. He touched on a couple areas in verse 21 of Matthew 5. He talks about anger. You've heard it said, you shall not murder. But I say to you, if you've hated your brother in your heart, you've committed murder. Because the issue is not the final act or the carrying out of that. But the issue really begins in the heart where the planning and scheming and plotting takes place. The devising of foolishness.

He went on in verse 27. You've heard it said in the days of old that you shall not commit adultery. But Jesus says, I tell you, whoever has looked upon a woman lustfully has committed adultery in his heart because the issue is not the final act, although that is sinful. But the sin begins in devising a foolishness and the contemplation within the heart. Now, sometimes the guy will say, you know, I can look, I just can't touch. Well, that's true. You can look, but it's still sinful.

It's a sinful act. It's just as committing the act. Verse 10, if you faint in the day of adversity, your strength is small. I like this proverb. If you faint in the day of adversity, your strength is small. I think it's very powerful and challenging. This word faint means to be slack or lazy, to be feeble or weak.

And it's with it that you give yourself slack. It carries with it the idea of you give yourself or you grant to yourself a little bit of slack or laziness. You kind of relieve yourself and say it's okay to be a little bit lazy or to compromise in this area. You know, we're always so quick to excuse ourselves.

We convince ourselves as we look back to things that we've been involved in that, you know, we could not keep on going. We could not stay strong. We could not finish well because it was just too difficult. It was too hard. There was too much to overcome. But in reality, what we learn here from the word of God, that it's not because adversity is too strong, but it's that our strength is too small.

You see, I say I fell into sin because the temptation was too strong. Or I walked away from God because it was too hard. Or I gave in and did what I knew was wrong because I would have been fired otherwise. Or I had to do this. And we have all of our excuses because the situation is too great. We like to be the victim.

Because then, you know, it's like we're helpless. What else could we do? It's impossible. And so I had to give in to my sinful nature. I had to compromise. We compromise. We get slack and lazy. We shrink back in adversity, not because the adversity is great, but because we are weak. So then how do we become strong so that we do not faint in adversity, so that we do not allow ourself that slack and begin to compromise in areas that God has spoken to us?

Well, we've already talked about spending time in the word and how that's an important part. It's an essential part of becoming strong because a man of knowledge increases in strength as we spend time in God. It increases our strength. But another element to increasing strength is what we talked about on Sunday. And that is that of prayer.

Remember Jesus again in the Garden of Gethsemane. He's telling Peter, watch and pray. Matthew 26, 41. Watch and pray lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is what? It's weak. It's weak. Something that's very crucial for your strength, for my strength, is prayer.

He's telling Peter, look, your flesh is weak, so you need to be in prayer. You're going to faint in the day of adversity, not because the adversity is so great. A little girl is going to ask you, hey, weren't you with Jesus? And what happened? He caved. Yeah, no, I wasn't. Are you sure? I thought you were. No, I wasn't. Come on. You have a Galilean accent. You were with Jesus. And he begins to curse and swear. And I wasn't with him. I never knew him.

The adversity wasn't great. Although, of course, we could argue that it was. But in reality, it's a simple question. A statement of, yes, I know him. I was with him. We're not. In the same way, you and I. We're willing. We do. We love God. We want to walk with God. But there's those situations where it's just the adversity is too strong. The problem too difficult. The temptation too great.

But the reality is, it's just we haven't been faithful in the word. We haven't been in prayer. We haven't increased strength. And so we're too weak for the adversity. When you spend time in the word of God and in prayer, you're nourishing your spirit, making it stronger so that you can walk in obedience to God, even in the midst of adversity. Verses 11 and 12.

Deliver those who are drawn toward death and hold back those stumbling to the slaughter. If you say, surely we did not know this, does not he who weighs the hearts consider it? He who keeps your soul, does he not know it? And will he not render to each man according to his deeds? This is another powerful exhortation from the book of Proverbs.

In fact, it's quite heavy as we consider it and meditate on it. It reminds me of God's message to Ezekiel in Ezekiel chapter 33. If you remember there, God is speaking to Ezekiel and he calls him and he says, listen, Ezekiel, I'm setting you up as a watchman here to be a watchman for the nation of Israel. And when I give a word to you to warn the nation of Israel, you are to take it and to deliver it to those who I instruct you.

But he tells Ezekiel, but there's a responsibility that goes along with this. And that is that if you do not warn the people that I instructed you to warn and they come and the event takes place, their blood will be upon your head. You'll be responsible for their death. You'll be responsible because you didn't give them the warning that I instructed you to give them. But he goes on to say, but if you do warn them.

And they are saved and then great. But if you warn them and they don't take heed, well, then their blood is on their own head. You're not responsible. You're only responsible for delivering the message. And if you don't deliver the message, then you're responsible for their blood.

Here he says, deliver those who are drawn toward death and hold back the stumbling to the slaughter. If you say, surely we did not know this, does not he who weighs the hearts consider it? He who keeps your soul, does he not know it? And will he not render to each man according to his deeds?

Think about the words of the Apostle Paul. 2 Corinthians 5, verses 10 and 11. Verse 10 says of 2 Corinthians 5, We must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body according to what he has done, good or bad. Just like here in Proverbs 24, 12. He will render to each according to his deeds. Verse 11 of 2 Corinthians 5, Knowing therefore the terror of the Lord, we persuade men...

But we are well known to God and I trust we are also well known in your consciences. Here's what Paul is saying in 2 Corinthians 5. We are going to stand before the judgment seat of Christ. We're going to give an account for what we've done with our life. What we've done in our activities, with our time. What we've done, whether good or bad. And so he says, therefore...

Knowing the terror of the Lord, knowing that I have to stand before God and give an account for my life, how it was lived and what I did with what he gave to me. We persuade men. That's our primary objective, Paul says. That's our focus. Sharing the gospel message, sharing and convincing others that Jesus Christ is Lord, that he died on the cross for their sins.

Since we know that we will stand before God, since we know we'll have to give an account, since he will render to each according to his deeds, we do our best to deliver them from death. We have a responsibility to share the gospel message with a lost and dying world. The world is drawn towards death. It's stumbling along to the slaughter.

And we cannot say, oh, I didn't know I was supposed to share. I didn't know I was supposed to reach out. I didn't know I was supposed to be a witness for Jesus Christ. He says, don't you know that the God who holds your soul, he knows you through and through. He knows what you know. He knows what you're responsible for. And you need to know that you will stand before him and give an account.

Of how you lived the life he gave you. Of what you used or what you did with the resources he gave. Of how you ministered to the lost. Of how you reached out. Of how you were a witness of him. We can't stand before him with the excuse, I didn't know you wanted me to share the gospel. Oh no, we're all called to preach the gospel and make disciples. Again, we talked about that on Sunday, Colossians 4, 5 says,

Walk in wisdom towards those who are outside, redeeming the time. Take advantage of every timely opportunity, of every timely moment. Share the gospel. Use what God has given to you for his glory, because you will give an account and you will have no excuse. Verses 13 and 14. My son, eat honey because it is good, and the honeycomb which is sweet to your taste.

So shall the knowledge of wisdom be to your soul. If you have found it, there is a prospect and your hope will not be cut off. Here we have a good comparison that we can relate to. You know how you respond to your favorite dessert? You know something delicious? You know what it does to your taste buds and how it makes you drool a little bit? You know, you have to wipe it with a napkin and just getting excited about something sweet that's coming up.

He says that's how wisdom affects your soul. Just as you enjoy your favorite dessert, just as you enjoy something sweet, he says your soul enjoys wisdom in the same way. The reality is what your soul is thirsting for is wisdom.

And it's found in a relationship with God. So the point is, draw closer to him and it will be satisfying to your soul. And the great thing about this dessert is that it will not run out. He says, your hope will not be cut off. Wisdom, it's sweet for your soul now, but it will also be sweet for your soul for the rest of eternity. That's why Paul says in the New Testament, hey,

Bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things in this life and in the life to come. Relationship with God is what you are thirsting for. It's what you need. It's what you long for the most. And we always try to fill it with other things. But

When we fill our life with a relationship with God, oh, it's sweet to our soul. It's refreshing. It's exactly what we need. And it's not just momentary. Our hope will not be cut off. We have a hope of eternity, of sweetness with the Lord. Verses 15 and 16.

Do not lie in wait, O wicked man, against the dwelling of the righteous. Do not plunder his resting place. For a righteous man may fall seven times and rise again, but the wicked shall fall by calamity. Here's a warning to the wicked. Hey, wicked, don't lie in wait for the righteous. Don't try to trap them. Don't try to cause them to stumble. Don't try to plunder his resting place.

Because the righteous have a far greater hope and they have God on their side. So even if you, a wicked person, cause them to stumble, even up to seven times, they will rise again. And even in death, the righteous will rise again. So if you're lying in wait for the righteous, it's a lost cause. You cannot destroy them because they have a hope of eternity. They have a hope and a God that you can't even touch. You can't come close to you.

That's why Jesus told us not to fear a man who could just kill the body, but to fear God who could kill the body and cast the soul into eternal punishment. The wicked are not like the righteous, though. The righteous can fall seven times and rise again, but the wicked shall fall by calamity. They can be destroyed and will be destroyed. So don't lie in wait for the righteous. Become righteous.

Through the righteousness of Jesus Christ. So that you have hope of eternity. Verses 17 and 18. Do not rejoice when your enemy falls. And do not let your heart be glad when he stumbles. Lest the Lord see it. And it displease him. And he turn away his wrath from him.

Have you ever had someone in your life who really bugged you? I mean, just really got under your skin and irritated you? Maybe someone who picked on you or gave you a hard time. Someone at work, possibly, who always tried to undermine you, make you look bad. Maybe you're dealing with someone like that right now. Understand that the law still stands. You reap what you sow.

So those people who are treating you wrongly, they'll get what's coming to them. They will reap what they sow. However, when they do reap what they sow, the author of Proverbs here is saying, we need to be careful about our attitudes. We need to be careful. Do not rejoice when your enemy falls. Do not let your heart be glad when he stumbles. We're not to rejoice. We're not to be excited at the judgment time.

Now, it's difficult because we want vengeance. We want revenge. We want justice. And so our hearts are quick to rejoice. We find great pleasure in their demise. But God doesn't want us to be that way because he is not treating them that way. He's not dealing with them that way. Remember, the scriptures tell us that God is merciful. He doesn't deal with us according to our sins.

He will if we reject Jesus Christ and at the judgment day, all will be accounted for and all will be made right. But in the meantime, they're just reaping what they've sown. And God's desire, God's heart is not for them to be judged and not for them to be afflicted with pain, but for them to repent and be saved. He loves them. And so don't let your heart rejoice at their affliction when they reap what they've sown.

Remember the principle that Jesus taught, to love our enemies, or to love our neighbor as ourself. And so if you don't enjoy that affliction, then don't rejoice when they experience it. God tells us that he takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked. Ezekiel chapter 33 verse 11. And so neither should we. At their affliction, at their death, at their judgment, our heart should be for their eternal well-being.

and not our temporary relief or feeling of vengeance or justice. Verses 19 and 20. I just love the first part of verse 19. Do not fret because of evildoers. Do not fret.

Because of those around you in your life, those on the news and the world who are evildoers. This word fret means to heat oneself and vexation or to be greatly troubled by it. God's saying, look, don't get all worked up and worried about evildoers.

Understand that there is a future for them. Justice will be done. God will take care of it. He wins in the end. Nothing will go unnoticed. It will all be accounted for. But the only reason there is opportunity to fret is because God is patient. See, God's patient in allowing them to continue.

And that's why there's opportunity for us to fret. But he's patient and allows them to continue because he wants none or none to perish, but all to come to repentance. And so don't worry about he he's not out of control or it's not out of his control. He is in control. He can squash him at any moment. He can take care of the situation. He sees it. He knows about it. Don't get all worked up. Don't get all upset about evildoers.

Don't fret over evildoers in your life or in this world. God is being patient that they might come to repentance. Whether they do or not, that's between them and the Lord. But know that if they do not, they have no hope. They have no future. Their lamp will be put out. So don't fret over them. You don't need to be caught up heating yourself up in vexation.

Because God will take care of them. Do not envy them. Do not fret over them. Verses 21 and 22. My son, fear the Lord and the king. Do not associate with those given to change. For their calamity will rise suddenly. And who knows the ruin those two can bring.

He says, my son, fear the Lord and the king. That's who you're to fear. That's who your allegiance is to be to. And don't associate with those who are given to change. Now, those who are given to change are the ones who are never satisfied under authority. But they're always working against whoever's in authority. That's why some translations translate instead of saying those who are given to change, they say those who are rebellious.

Our role is to be submissive to authority that is over us. First, the Lord, he says, my son, fear the Lord. We're to fear the Lord and be completely submitted to him, obedient to him, his instructions, his commands, his commands.

direction in our life. But also, he says, and the king don't just fear the Lord, but also fear the king. And that is the government, the governing authorities, the authorities who are in your life. God says, fear me first, but also fear them were to be completely submitted to the authorities in our life.

Be it the government, be it whatever type of authority in your workplace or in your school or in your home, you're to be obedient to authority in your life. Check out Romans chapter 13, verses 1 through 7, if you doubt it. Check out 1 Peter chapter 2, verses 13 through 17. It tells us, the scriptures teach us, we are to be submitted. All authority is given by God, Jesus said. And so we're to be submitted to that authority.

Fearing God first and then fearing the king. Now, one thing I'm finding interesting as we study through the Proverbs is how many times God tells us to stay away from certain types of people. Here we're told not to associate, not to hang out and have fellowship with those who are given to change, those who are rebellious. We're told in other places not to be around the quick-tempered or the angry people.

Proverbs 22, 24. We're told not to desire to be with evil men. We saw that at the beginning of this chapter, chapter 24, verse 1. He says, fear God, fear the king, and don't hang out. Don't associate with those who are given to change. Be careful who you hang around with. Proverbs 12, verse 26 tells us that the righteous should choose his friends carefully for the way of the wicked leads them astray.

Over and over throughout the scriptures, we're told, watch out who you spend time with. Be careful who you associate with. In this particular instance, he says their calamity will rise suddenly. They're going to be judged. They're going to be receiving the reaping of what they've sowed and rebellion against authority. And so don't associate with them and include yourself in the calamity that will befall them. Verses 23 through 26 says,

These things also belong to the wise. It is not good to show partiality in judgment. He who says to the wicked, you are righteous. Him the people will curse. Nations will abhor him. But those who rebuke the wicked will have delight and a good blessing will come upon them. He who gives a right answer kisses the lips. Just a moment ago in the preceding verses, 21 and 22, we were taught about obedience to authority.

But here the author is dealing with some of you who have authority. Again, be it in the workplace or in the home, at a school, in the church, wherever. Some of you have authority. Some of you have other people that you're responsible for. And so here he says, look, if you have authority, if you are one who is required to judge or you've been given judgment,

You need to know that it's not good to show partiality in judgment. That when making decisions, when responding to situations, it's your responsibility to do what is fair and right. It's your responsibility to determine the truth. It's your responsibility to hear both sides and judge accurately and rightly. Proverbs 18, verse 17 says,

Tells us that the first one to plead his cause seems right until his neighbor comes and examines him. Yeah, the one-sided approach is not very effective at determining what is right. At determining right judgment. It's good at partiality, but not in fair and righteous judgment. Proverbs 18, verse 13. He who answers a matter before he hears it, it is folly and shame to him.

And so for those of you who have authority, for those of you who have been given judgment, understand it's your responsibility to judge rightly, to do what's right. Not to say to the wicked that you're righteous, but to rebuke the wicked. If you rebuke the wicked, you'll have delight and a good blessing will come upon you. But if you say to the wicked, you are righteous, if you acquit the wicked, your authority will be abhorred.

If you do what's right, you'll be blessed. And so use the authority that God has given you to do what is right. Verse 27, prepare your outside work, make it fit for yourself in the field and afterward build your house. Now, this is an interesting proverb to me. I think it's one that I'll meditate on for a while. And I think God has further things to instruct me in and share with my heart.

He says, prepare your outside work, make it fit for yourself in the field and afterward build your house. The basic idea here is that if you focus on building your house first, you will not have anything to sustain you. Going back to their time, you move to a land and if you build a house, it would take some time.

And so let's say you spend a year building your house. Well, then the next year, what do you do for provision? How do you provide for yourself and your family? You've got this great house now, this wonderful, beautiful house, but you didn't plow, you didn't plant. So you have no crop, no provision. And so you end up losing everything because you're

Now you're not able to provide for yourself. You're not able to provide for your family. And so the house, the land, everything has got to be taken care of or given away or sold or selling yourself to slavery as was common in those days. And so in the end, you lose everything because you built this house but had no provision for anything ongoing or to continue on past that. But if you prepare first your livelihood...

So you go to a place and you don't build your house, but you live in what you must and you plow and plant, you prepare the field. Then you are able to build your house and you will have provision for yourself because you've planted, you've sown, you've made arrangements for provision that you may continue. And so now not only do you get to build your house, but you get the fruit of your labor in the field.

And so there's much wisdom in this problem. I think we could apply it to many areas. Specifically, I was thinking in regards to debt. You know, in regards to debt, don't be so anxious to fill your house, to obtain your house, to decorate your house or to get the house that you dream so that you strap yourself into debt and then have no provision. Or you're trying to catch up to your debt with the provision that you have.

First, wisdom says, provide for yourself, establish your provision, and then as God blesses, then build your house. Now, of course, not necessarily saying that a Christian cannot have debt, but that we should not race into a debt which we will struggle to pay. Think about it first. Plan ahead. Provide for yourself and establish your provision, and then build.

Fill the house, then build the house and take care of those things that you desire to do. Establish your livelihood first and then work on establishing the home that you desire. Verses 28 and 29. Do not be a witness against your neighbor without cause. For would you deceive with your lips? Do not say I will do to him just as he has done to me. I will render to the man according to his work.

Two things here that were given that were not to do to our neighbor. Number one, do not be a witness without cause. And number two, do not seek to get even. To be a witness without cause is to testify against them, even though they didn't do anything. So, in other words, do not accuse people of things they did not do. It's deception and it's wrong. So if you don't know, if you weren't a witness, if you didn't see it,

Don't accuse them of it. But then the second thing is to try to not try or to not seek to get even. And I think that's something we're prone to a lot. I will do to him just as he has done to me. Here the author of Proverbs says, don't do that. That's not what God has desired for your life. Seeking vengeance or seeking to repay them for what they've done to you. Don't seek to get even.

Don't seek to make right the wrongs that they have done. Leviticus chapter 19 verse 18, God tells us there, So don't take vengeance. Don't even hold the grudge, God says.

Don't keep the accounts out of balance. Okay, it's there. I know they did this. I'm just waiting for them to get paid back for what they did to me. Don't hold the grudge. Instead, love them as you love yourself, God tells us in Leviticus 19.18. Final portion we look at this evening, verses 30-34.

The author here says,

so shall your poverty come like a prowler and your need like an armed man. So he walks by the field of the lazy person. The lazy person, he says, is one who doesn't have understanding. And he sees that it's overgrown with thorns. It's broken down, fallen apart. And he determines, you know, if you're lazy, a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest. And before you know it,

All that you built and all that you had, your wealth, your goods, comes to ruin. It's destroyed by laziness or a lack of diligence. And of course, we can see that it's true. But as we close this evening, as we finish off, I just want to remind you that it's true spiritually as well. It's not just a physical principle. Let me ask you, are you a lazy Christian? Are you lazy in your spiritual walk?

Is it an area where you're lax in? And it's kind of a theme that we've been hitting upon this evening. The need for us to continue diligently in our Christian walk, drawing close to God through daily reading and meditating upon his word, through spending time in prayer. There's such a need for us to be diligent because if we are lazy in our Christian walk, if we're lazy spiritually,

Our life will become overgrown with thorns. Remember the thorns of Jesus' parable of the sower? Choked out the seed, choked out the word of God. Its surface is covered with nettles, he said. Its stone wall is broken down. The defenses are gone. As lazy Christians, we become defenseless. A little sleep, a little slumber, a little relaxation.

spiritually a little walking away from god a little slacking off in our spiritual walk he says poverty comes like a prowler a prowler is one who is there ready to pounce seeking the weak seeking one to destroy seeking whom he may devour sound familiar first peter 5a beware watch out take heed

Your adversary, the devil, walks about like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. Sometimes we forget that Christianity, to walk with God, it's more than a religious exercise. It's more than being here on a Wednesday or a Sunday. It's a war. There truly is an eternity. There truly is spiritual battle that's taking place for your soul, for my soul. And if I'm not engaged in the battle,

if I'm not drawing close to God, if I'm not pushing forward in my relationship with Him, spending time with Him, being obedient to Him, then I'm walking away. I'm leaving myself out in the open, vulnerable for attack, but ready pray for the prowler seeking whom he may devour. Because lazy Christianity leads to bankrupt Christianity. And so may I challenge you this evening, don't sleep.

Be awake. Be alert. Be on your guard. Be in the word of God. Be in close relationship with God. Serving him with great passion. Because if you faint in the day of adversity, it's not because the adversity was too great, but because you had small strength. Because you did not spend time with the Lord. Because you did not have relationship with God. But it doesn't have to be the case. He who has knowledge increases strength. Jesus told Peter,

Pray. Watch and pray. Because the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. Let's not take our Christian life for granted. It doesn't matter how long we've walked with the Lord. We need to draw close to him. We need to walk ever, ever, ever closer to him. In intimacy, in love, in the word, in prayer, in fellowship. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, Lord, what a challenge you give to us in your word. Not to be lax, but to be

Luke warm in our faith, but to be on fire. God, I think that some of us would say, Lord, we've been lukewarm. Lord, we've been lax and we've experienced the adversity. Counted ourselves as the victim and excused ourselves. Lord, we've fallen prey to the traps of the enemy. And the result is we find ourselves here bankrupt in our Christianity without strength, without the love and joy that you promised us.

without the fire that we once had. And so, God, I pray for those who that is their heart, that is their cry. And I thank you, God, that you don't desire to condemn us. Lord, you don't desire to beat us down for our failure, for our lax attitude, for our laziness. But, Lord, you desire at this time to renew us, to refresh us. Lord, as Peter told the people in Acts chapter 3 that

They should repent and be converted. That times of refreshing would come from you. Lord, I pray for those who have found themselves bankrupt spiritually. Who have found themselves in a religion instead of a relationship. Lord, help them to repent and be converted. Lord, and as they turn their hearts towards you and give those things over to you. Lord, bring times of refreshing by your spirit. God, I pray for all of us. That we would remain strong in you.

not lazy, not slack in our walk, not compromising in those areas that you've spoken to our hearts, but, Lord, that we would draw ever closer to you. We would press forward in our Christian walk. We would meditate in your word day and night that we might become like a tree planted by the rivers of living water. Lord, that we would be nourished, that we would be fruitful, that we would not wither, but would continue on in strength. Especially, Lord, as we see these last days, Lord,

As we see the urgency, the need for people to come to know you. Lord, draw us close to you. And we pray that you would use us to reach out and minister to the loss that you place in our lives. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. We pray you have been blessed by this Bible teaching. The power of God to change a life is found in the daily reading of his word. Visit ferventword.com to find more teachings and Bible study resources.