1 00:00:02,000 --> 00:00:06,080 We're reading the first chapter of Proverbs, which in the Church 2 00:00:06,080 --> 00:00:12,400 Bible is page 635635. In the Church Bible Proverbs 3 00:00:12,400 --> 00:00:20,320 chapter 1, the Proverbs of Solomon, son of David, king of 4 00:00:20,320 --> 00:00:26,560 Israel, For gaining wisdom and instruction for understanding 5 00:00:26,560 --> 00:00:31,720 words of insight for receiving instruction in prudent 6 00:00:31,720 --> 00:00:36,120 behaviour, doing what is right and just and fair. 7 00:00:37,400 --> 00:00:39,760 For giving prudence to those who are simple. 8 00:00:40,240 --> 00:00:42,960 Knowledge and discretion to the young. 9 00:00:44,640 --> 00:00:48,800 Let the wise listen and add to the learning, and let the 10 00:00:48,800 --> 00:00:51,720 discerning get guidance for understanding. 11 00:00:51,920 --> 00:00:56,640 Proverbs and parables, The sayings and riddles of the wise. 12 00:00:58,680 --> 00:01:03,480 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but 13 00:01:03,480 --> 00:01:06,520 fools despise wisdom and instruction. 14 00:01:09,320 --> 00:01:13,240 Listen, my son, to your father's instruction, and do not forsake 15 00:01:13,240 --> 00:01:17,320 your mother's teaching. They are a Garland to grace your 16 00:01:17,320 --> 00:01:20,200 head and a chain to adorn your neck. 17 00:01:22,600 --> 00:01:27,160 My son, if sinful men entice you, do not give in to them. 18 00:01:28,320 --> 00:01:31,800 If they say come along with us, let's lie in wait for innocent 19 00:01:31,800 --> 00:01:34,800 blood. Let's ambush some harmless soul. 20 00:01:35,600 --> 00:01:39,560 Let's swallow them alive like the grave and whole like those 21 00:01:39,560 --> 00:01:43,960 who go down to the pit. We'll get all sorts of valuable 22 00:01:43,960 --> 00:01:46,800 things and fill our houses with plunder. 23 00:01:47,840 --> 00:01:50,560 Cast lots with us and we will share the loot. 24 00:01:52,360 --> 00:01:58,000 My son, do not go along with them, do not set foot on their 25 00:01:58,000 --> 00:02:01,720 paths, for their feet rush into evil. 26 00:02:01,760 --> 00:02:07,960 They are swift to shed blood. How useless to spread a net 27 00:02:07,960 --> 00:02:12,440 where every bird can see it. These men lie in wait for their 28 00:02:12,440 --> 00:02:16,840 own blood. They ambush only themselves. 29 00:02:18,360 --> 00:02:21,920 Such are the paths of all who go after I'll gotten gain. 30 00:02:22,960 --> 00:02:30,000 It takes away the life of those who get it out in the open. 31 00:02:30,000 --> 00:02:33,120 Wisdom calls aloud. She raises her voice in the 32 00:02:33,120 --> 00:02:36,200 public square on top of the wall. 33 00:02:36,320 --> 00:02:41,120 She cries out at the city gate. She makes her speech. 34 00:02:43,040 --> 00:02:47,200 How long will you, who are simple, love your simple ways? 35 00:02:48,760 --> 00:02:52,320 How long will mockers delight in mockery and fools hate 36 00:02:52,320 --> 00:02:56,280 knowledge? Repent at my rebuke. 37 00:02:56,960 --> 00:02:59,440 Then I will pour out my thoughts to you. 38 00:03:00,560 --> 00:03:02,840 I will make known to you my teachings. 39 00:03:04,280 --> 00:03:08,520 But since you refuse to listen when I call, and no one pays 40 00:03:08,520 --> 00:03:13,720 attention when I stretch out my hand, since you disregard all my 41 00:03:13,720 --> 00:03:19,560 advice and do not accept my rebuke in turn, I will laugh 42 00:03:19,920 --> 00:03:24,120 when disaster strikes you. I will mock when calamity 43 00:03:24,120 --> 00:03:29,400 overtakes you, when calamity overtakes you like a storm, when 44 00:03:29,400 --> 00:03:34,520 disaster sweeps over you like a whirlwind, when distress and 45 00:03:34,520 --> 00:03:40,440 trouble overwhelm you, then you will call to me, but I will not 46 00:03:40,440 --> 00:03:44,000 answer. They will look for me, but will 47 00:03:44,000 --> 00:03:49,520 not find me, since they hated knowledge and did not choose to 48 00:03:49,520 --> 00:03:54,920 fear the Lord, since they would not accept my advice and spurn 49 00:03:54,920 --> 00:03:57,440 my rebuke. They will eat the fruit of their 50 00:03:57,440 --> 00:04:01,280 ways and be filled with the fruit of their schemes. 51 00:04:02,520 --> 00:04:06,080 For the waywardness of the simple will kill them, and the 52 00:04:06,080 --> 00:04:08,560 complacency of fools will destroy them. 53 00:04:10,160 --> 00:04:15,800 But whoever listens to me will live in safety and be at ease 54 00:04:16,399 --> 00:04:22,320 without fear of harm. So, yeah, we are going to be 55 00:04:22,320 --> 00:04:27,320 spending the next little while in this book of Proverbs from 56 00:04:27,320 --> 00:04:29,480 the Old Testament. But I want to start our time 57 00:04:29,480 --> 00:04:33,640 together this morning in the New Testament and some words of 58 00:04:33,680 --> 00:04:38,680 Jesus in Matthew's Gospel, Matthew Chapter 7 and verses 24 59 00:04:38,680 --> 00:04:40,480 to 27. You turn that up or just listen 60 00:04:40,920 --> 00:04:43,400 as I read it. This is a parable that Jesus 61 00:04:43,400 --> 00:04:47,800 told Jesus speaking to a cried on a mountain. 62 00:04:47,800 --> 00:04:51,200 He says, Therefore, everyone who hears these words of mine and 63 00:04:51,200 --> 00:04:54,720 puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house 64 00:04:54,720 --> 00:04:57,640 on the rock. The rain came down, the streams 65 00:04:57,640 --> 00:05:00,920 rose, the winds blew and beat against that house, yet it did 66 00:05:00,920 --> 00:05:04,880 not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. 67 00:05:05,800 --> 00:05:08,280 But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put 68 00:05:08,280 --> 00:05:11,400 them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house 69 00:05:11,400 --> 00:05:14,120 on sand. The rain came down, the streams 70 00:05:14,120 --> 00:05:17,880 rose, the winds blew and beat against that house and it fell 71 00:05:18,280 --> 00:05:23,920 with a great crash. It's a really vivid picture from 72 00:05:24,040 --> 00:05:26,320 Jesus here. According to this parable, 73 00:05:26,640 --> 00:05:31,680 hearing Jesus words and putting them into practice is the only 74 00:05:31,680 --> 00:05:35,600 thing that will give us a firm foundation for all the decisions 75 00:05:35,600 --> 00:05:38,360 and challenges we face in our lives. 76 00:05:38,360 --> 00:05:41,480 In a way, Jesus is giving his disciples a definition of 77 00:05:41,480 --> 00:05:44,560 wisdom. Here wisdom is hearing Jesus 78 00:05:44,560 --> 00:05:48,800 words and putting them into practice in our lives. 79 00:05:48,920 --> 00:05:51,840 And with this parable, Jesus is kind of standing in the big 80 00:05:51,840 --> 00:05:55,960 wisdom tradition of the Bible, the books of Proverbs, 81 00:05:55,960 --> 00:05:58,520 Ecclesiastes, Job in the New Testament. 82 00:05:58,520 --> 00:06:00,680 There's there's examples of wisdom in the book of James. 83 00:06:00,680 --> 00:06:04,240 Some of the Psalms in the Old Testament are wisdom psalms. 84 00:06:04,240 --> 00:06:06,200 And we want to think this morning just introducing 85 00:06:06,200 --> 00:06:07,880 ourselves to this book of Proverbs. 86 00:06:08,160 --> 00:06:12,720 What does the Bible mean by wisdom and wisdom In the Bible, 87 00:06:12,720 --> 00:06:15,400 it's not about intelligence or IQ. 88 00:06:15,600 --> 00:06:18,800 It's not about knowing lots of facts and information. 89 00:06:18,800 --> 00:06:21,720 There's a very variety of ways you could define wisdom in the 90 00:06:21,720 --> 00:06:25,640 Bible. Living well in God's world is 91 00:06:25,640 --> 00:06:28,080 one of them. Wisdom is about being able to 92 00:06:28,080 --> 00:06:32,040 live well in the world that God has made or the ability to make 93 00:06:32,040 --> 00:06:36,720 good choices in life. We all face decisions. 94 00:06:36,720 --> 00:06:40,680 Wisdom helps us respond. Or actually another way, how to 95 00:06:40,680 --> 00:06:45,760 be truly human in God's world. I want us to see that that 96 00:06:45,760 --> 00:06:48,240 wisdom in the Bible, it is deeply practical. 97 00:06:48,760 --> 00:06:52,640 It's how to live well in God's world in right relationship with 98 00:06:52,640 --> 00:06:56,800 God and in right relationship with the people around us. 99 00:06:56,800 --> 00:07:00,040 And so there's lots of different ways you can define wisdom in 100 00:07:00,040 --> 00:07:01,520 the Bible. So the definition we're going to 101 00:07:01,520 --> 00:07:04,560 try and keep coming back to in the course of this series. 102 00:07:04,560 --> 00:07:09,200 And it's this and that wisdom in the Bible is growing more like 103 00:07:09,520 --> 00:07:15,400 Jesus as we live in God's world and as we listen to God's Word. 104 00:07:15,400 --> 00:07:20,760 At its heart, biblical wisdom is about becoming more like Jesus 105 00:07:20,760 --> 00:07:23,200 in this world. A wise person is someone growing 106 00:07:23,200 --> 00:07:26,440 more like Jesus as they follow him, as they listen to his Word 107 00:07:26,640 --> 00:07:29,200 and as they put his Word into practice. 108 00:07:30,480 --> 00:07:32,880 And I think that definition of wisdom helps to see wisdom's not 109 00:07:32,880 --> 00:07:34,640 just kind of a, an optional lecture. 110 00:07:34,640 --> 00:07:36,240 There's some wise people, some foolish people. 111 00:07:36,240 --> 00:07:38,440 That's fine. Actually, Wisdom's at the heart 112 00:07:38,440 --> 00:07:42,400 of what God's saving purposes are for his people. 113 00:07:43,400 --> 00:07:46,640 The 20th century evangelist and Bible teacher John Stock, he 114 00:07:46,640 --> 00:07:49,280 used to summarise God's purposes for his people like this. 115 00:07:49,400 --> 00:07:53,080 He would write that God wants his people to become more like 116 00:07:53,200 --> 00:07:55,680 Christ. Christ likeness is the will of 117 00:07:55,680 --> 00:07:59,720 God for the people of God. That's why God keeps us around. 118 00:07:59,720 --> 00:08:01,880 That's why God lets us go through the experiences we're 119 00:08:01,880 --> 00:08:04,440 going through. He wants to make us more like 120 00:08:04,440 --> 00:08:07,360 his son Jesus. And the older I get, the more 121 00:08:07,360 --> 00:08:10,200 convinced I am that that Scott was right about that. 122 00:08:10,880 --> 00:08:13,320 And therefore wisdom in the Bible is ultimately about us 123 00:08:13,320 --> 00:08:17,480 becoming more like Jesus. Wise living brings with it 124 00:08:17,480 --> 00:08:21,080 Christ like character. The book of Proverbs we're going 125 00:08:21,080 --> 00:08:25,000 to see points us to Jesus if we read the book of Proverbs. 126 00:08:25,000 --> 00:08:27,560 If it's got nothing to do with Jesus, if it's just a set of 127 00:08:27,560 --> 00:08:31,000 techniques or life hacks that we can just apply to our lives, we 128 00:08:31,000 --> 00:08:34,320 have missed the point. Because the whole of Scripture 129 00:08:34,320 --> 00:08:38,480 is fulfilled in Jesus, and a wise person is someone who comes 130 00:08:38,480 --> 00:08:43,559 to Jesus, learns from Jesus, and grows more like Jesus. 131 00:08:44,600 --> 00:08:47,560 So the plan for this morning is just to introduce us to this 132 00:08:47,560 --> 00:08:49,920 ancient book of Proverbs. We're going to turn to it 133 00:08:49,920 --> 00:08:52,400 properly in a couple of weeks time after the church weekend at 134 00:08:52,400 --> 00:08:54,400 home. But just to give you an idea of 135 00:08:54,400 --> 00:08:57,440 the shape of the book of Proverbs just on the screen 136 00:08:57,440 --> 00:08:59,360 behind me there. So there is a clear structure to 137 00:08:59,360 --> 00:09:00,920 this book. It's a kind of a challenging 138 00:09:00,920 --> 00:09:02,120 book. It's one of these books that 139 00:09:02,400 --> 00:09:04,440 sounds a little bit random the way it's put together, but 140 00:09:04,440 --> 00:09:06,240 actually when you look at it a bit more closely, there's a real 141 00:09:06,240 --> 00:09:08,800 structure to it. So there's an introduction, 142 00:09:08,800 --> 00:09:11,720 Proverbs 11 to 9:00 we're looking at this morning, and 143 00:09:11,720 --> 00:09:13,800 that gives us the purpose of the book. 144 00:09:13,960 --> 00:09:16,760 And Solomon says from gaining wisdom and instruction. 145 00:09:16,760 --> 00:09:20,760 There's this link with King Solomon, the wisest king in the 146 00:09:20,800 --> 00:09:22,960 ancient world. And the context of the book, we 147 00:09:22,960 --> 00:09:26,840 learn is a father and mother speaking with the son that they 148 00:09:26,840 --> 00:09:32,480 love, wanting to prepare him for life in a fallen world. 149 00:09:33,520 --> 00:09:36,640 Then we get to chapters 1 to 9, this kind of longer 150 00:09:36,640 --> 00:09:39,040 introduction, because you can summarise that, is just get 151 00:09:39,040 --> 00:09:41,480 wisdom. It's like 10 speeches from a 152 00:09:41,480 --> 00:09:45,120 father to a son, and a father pleads with his son to embrace 153 00:09:45,120 --> 00:09:48,920 wisdom and listen to wisdom above anything else in this 154 00:09:48,920 --> 00:09:50,840 world. And then there's like the bulk 155 00:09:50,840 --> 00:09:53,680 of the book, chapters 10 to 30, which is all these individual, 156 00:09:53,880 --> 00:09:57,480 sort of brief, memorable, punchy proverbs and parables. 157 00:09:57,480 --> 00:10:01,760 And they're designed overtime to help us recognise what wisdom in 158 00:10:01,760 --> 00:10:06,800 this world looks like and what foolishness and a lack of wisdom 159 00:10:07,160 --> 00:10:09,560 looks like. And that covers areas like 160 00:10:09,560 --> 00:10:14,120 friendship, work, money, marriage, the words we use, 161 00:10:14,120 --> 00:10:16,160 parenting. And we're going to look at some 162 00:10:16,160 --> 00:10:18,240 of those areas together in the weeks to come. 163 00:10:18,400 --> 00:10:21,600 And then the conclusion, chapter 31, basically the conclusion is 164 00:10:21,600 --> 00:10:24,280 going to like, I want you to marry wisdom. 165 00:10:24,280 --> 00:10:26,680 It's kind of a bizarre way of putting it, but that's kind of 166 00:10:26,680 --> 00:10:28,240 what the father is saying to the son of the end there. 167 00:10:28,400 --> 00:10:31,800 The book ends with a poem celebrating the wife of noble 168 00:10:31,800 --> 00:10:35,200 character, and she is the embodiment of all that the book 169 00:10:35,200 --> 00:10:37,120 has been teaching us about wisdom. 170 00:10:37,280 --> 00:10:41,320 It's like a final plea for God's people to marry wisdom. 171 00:10:41,320 --> 00:10:44,960 Join yourselves to wisdom, commit to living lives that 172 00:10:44,960 --> 00:10:49,120 fear, and worship the Lords in the world that he's made. 173 00:10:49,120 --> 00:10:53,400 So that's the overall shape of the book of Proverbs. 174 00:10:53,400 --> 00:10:56,600 And then I guess there's the shape of this sermon series. 175 00:10:56,600 --> 00:10:58,120 The next few weeks. We're looking at this up to the 176 00:10:58,120 --> 00:11:01,320 summer holidays, so we don't plan to cover every single 177 00:11:01,320 --> 00:11:03,160 proverb in this book. You might be glad to know 178 00:11:03,160 --> 00:11:06,080 there's quite a lot of them. What we hope to do, we're 179 00:11:06,120 --> 00:11:08,440 introducing it today, the beginning of wisdom. 180 00:11:08,920 --> 00:11:10,760 Then in a couple of weeks time, we're going to look at Proverbs 181 00:11:10,760 --> 00:11:14,000 2 and 3 and Proverbs 8. So the theological heart of the 182 00:11:14,000 --> 00:11:18,360 book, how wisdom points us to Jesus and our need for God's 183 00:11:18,360 --> 00:11:19,600 grace. Then we're going to have a few 184 00:11:19,600 --> 00:11:23,000 topical sermons picking up from different Proverbs, looking at 185 00:11:23,000 --> 00:11:26,120 friendship, family, work, and then, God willing, we'll finish 186 00:11:26,560 --> 00:11:29,560 with chapters 30 and 31. Chapter 30, we meet a man called 187 00:11:29,560 --> 00:11:34,040 Agur who's a model for us of how we read Proverbs and put it into 188 00:11:34,040 --> 00:11:36,280 practice. And then that conclusion, the 189 00:11:36,280 --> 00:11:39,520 wife of noble character. And we hope we're going to say 190 00:11:40,120 --> 00:11:44,320 that the whole book of Proverbs ultimately leads us to Jesus, 191 00:11:44,320 --> 00:11:49,520 who he is, how he relates to us, and how he wants to change us 192 00:11:49,800 --> 00:11:52,600 into people who bear his image in this world. 193 00:11:52,600 --> 00:11:56,400 Wisdoms about growing more like Jesus as we love God and as we 194 00:11:56,400 --> 00:12:00,400 love our neighbor and as we love the world that God has put us 195 00:12:00,400 --> 00:12:02,560 into. So that's where we're headed the 196 00:12:02,560 --> 00:12:04,640 next few weeks. But for this morning, we're just 197 00:12:04,640 --> 00:12:06,640 going to look briefly at a chapter 1 together and pick up a 198 00:12:06,640 --> 00:12:09,760 few themes from this and how that sort of lays the foundation 199 00:12:10,280 --> 00:12:12,440 for all that follows. So let me just read verses one 200 00:12:12,440 --> 00:12:17,040 to seven for us again. So the proverbs of Solomon, son 201 00:12:17,040 --> 00:12:20,840 of David, king of Israel, for gaining wisdom and instruction 202 00:12:20,840 --> 00:12:23,600 for understanding words of insight, for receiving 203 00:12:23,600 --> 00:12:26,680 instruction in prudent behaviour, doing what is right 204 00:12:26,680 --> 00:12:29,920 and just and fair, for giving prudence to those who are 205 00:12:29,920 --> 00:12:32,360 simple. Knowledge and discretion to the 206 00:12:32,360 --> 00:12:35,080 young. Let the wise listen and add to 207 00:12:35,080 --> 00:12:37,760 their learning, and let the discerning get guidance for 208 00:12:37,760 --> 00:12:39,840 understanding. Proverbs and parables, the 209 00:12:39,840 --> 00:12:45,280 sayings and riddles of the wise. The fear of the Lord is the 210 00:12:45,280 --> 00:12:50,600 beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and 211 00:12:50,600 --> 00:12:54,240 instruction. How do those verses introduce 212 00:12:54,240 --> 00:12:57,760 this book of Proverbs to us? Well, introduce us to a very 213 00:12:57,760 --> 00:13:00,360 famous figure in biblical history is the proverbs of 214 00:13:00,360 --> 00:13:04,080 Solomon, son of David, king of Israel. 215 00:13:04,640 --> 00:13:06,800 And if you know your Old Testament at all, Solomon is 216 00:13:06,800 --> 00:13:10,040 like the the king of the golden era of ancient Israel. 217 00:13:10,040 --> 00:13:13,480 He ruled over ancient Israel at its peak, a time of peace and 218 00:13:13,480 --> 00:13:15,760 prosperity. And he's seen as the father of 219 00:13:15,760 --> 00:13:18,560 wisdom and the wisdom tradition in Israel. 220 00:13:18,640 --> 00:13:22,800 He's also known as the wisest man in the ancient world because 221 00:13:22,800 --> 00:13:25,520 early on in his reign, if you know the story, a young Solomon, 222 00:13:25,920 --> 00:13:28,640 the Lord appears to him, says what would you like me to give 223 00:13:28,640 --> 00:13:32,400 you? And Solomon asks for wisdom, and 224 00:13:32,400 --> 00:13:35,600 one Kings chapter 4 tells us some of the effects of that 225 00:13:35,600 --> 00:13:40,080 prayer on Solomon on Israel and indeed the nations around 226 00:13:40,320 --> 00:13:43,400 Israel. 1 Kings chapter 4, verse 29. 227 00:13:43,680 --> 00:13:47,280 God gave Solomon wisdom and very great insight and a breadth of 228 00:13:47,280 --> 00:13:50,280 understanding as measureless as the sand on the seashore. 229 00:13:50,440 --> 00:13:52,840 He spoke. Solomon spoke 3000. 230 00:13:52,840 --> 00:13:56,480 Proverbs and his songs numbered 1005. 231 00:13:57,960 --> 00:14:00,520 He spoke about plant life, from the cedar of Lebanon to the 232 00:14:00,520 --> 00:14:03,280 hyssop that goes out of walls. He spoke about animals and 233 00:14:03,280 --> 00:14:06,120 birds, reptiles and fish. From all nations. 234 00:14:06,120 --> 00:14:09,400 People came to listen to Solomon's wisdom, sent by all 235 00:14:09,400 --> 00:14:12,920 the kings of the world who had heard of his wisdom. 236 00:14:14,320 --> 00:14:17,240 So according to that passage, the Wisdom of Solomon was one of 237 00:14:17,240 --> 00:14:20,840 the ways God bless the nations around ancient Israel. 238 00:14:21,000 --> 00:14:24,680 Solomon shared his God-given wisdom not only with the people 239 00:14:24,680 --> 00:14:28,240 of Israel, but with a nation surrounding Israel too. 240 00:14:28,920 --> 00:14:33,480 So all the nations around Israel were blessed by God's wisdom to 241 00:14:33,480 --> 00:14:36,280 Solomon. And that's important because 242 00:14:36,520 --> 00:14:40,280 Proverbs is speaks to people of every culture and generation. 243 00:14:41,280 --> 00:14:43,640 So actually it's interesting that Solomon didn't write every 244 00:14:43,640 --> 00:14:45,880 single proverb. Some proverbs are written by 245 00:14:45,880 --> 00:14:48,600 different people, including by some non Israelites. 246 00:14:48,600 --> 00:14:52,640 So King Lemuel in the closing chapter is a non Israelite king 247 00:14:53,040 --> 00:14:55,680 quoting the words of his mother to him. 248 00:14:56,320 --> 00:14:59,280 And some proverbs have clear parallels as wisdom found across 249 00:14:59,280 --> 00:15:01,440 the ancient world. So some of them are identical to 250 00:15:01,440 --> 00:15:03,760 proverbs you'd find in ancient Egypt. 251 00:15:03,760 --> 00:15:05,280 And, and what do we make of that? 252 00:15:06,160 --> 00:15:10,000 Well, I think we believe we can see God's common grace at work 253 00:15:10,320 --> 00:15:12,120 in the book of Proverbs. Common grace. 254 00:15:12,120 --> 00:15:15,640 That's a phrase theologians use to describe how God reveals 255 00:15:15,640 --> 00:15:18,880 aspects of his character, including his wisdom to people, 256 00:15:18,880 --> 00:15:22,480 even when they don't acknowledge him, even when they don't trust 257 00:15:22,640 --> 00:15:25,200 in him. And the doctrine of common grace 258 00:15:25,200 --> 00:15:28,800 reminds us that every human being is made in the image of 259 00:15:28,800 --> 00:15:31,960 God, whether or not they accept that themselves. 260 00:15:32,080 --> 00:15:35,400 You don't have to be a believer to possess some aspects of 261 00:15:35,400 --> 00:15:38,240 wisdom in this world. We can learn aspects of wisdom 262 00:15:38,240 --> 00:15:40,960 from people all around us, whether they're Christians or 263 00:15:40,960 --> 00:15:43,480 not. And when we can't, we know that 264 00:15:43,480 --> 00:15:45,840 sort of instinctively. That's why Christians can learn 265 00:15:45,840 --> 00:15:49,120 from from podcasts, from books, from articles, from training 266 00:15:49,120 --> 00:15:51,440 courses written by people who aren't Christians. 267 00:15:51,440 --> 00:15:54,800 That's how we benefit to non Christian experts on mental 268 00:15:54,800 --> 00:15:57,360 health, physical health, education, parenting, 269 00:15:57,360 --> 00:16:00,760 relationships. God reveals aspects of his 270 00:16:00,760 --> 00:16:04,920 wisdom from a wide variety of sources and that's his common 271 00:16:04,920 --> 00:16:09,600 grace at work in this world. And we see it at work in the 272 00:16:09,600 --> 00:16:13,040 book of Proverbs. That's about Solomon. 273 00:16:13,040 --> 00:16:16,120 What about this word proverb? What does that mean? 274 00:16:17,120 --> 00:16:21,560 Well, proverb, the Hebrew word is Michelle, and it means to be 275 00:16:21,560 --> 00:16:25,840 like or sort of a comparison. So a good description of the 276 00:16:25,840 --> 00:16:27,480 book comes in Proverbs one, verse 6. 277 00:16:27,680 --> 00:16:31,240 This book, we're told, is a collection of proverbs and 278 00:16:31,240 --> 00:16:34,760 parables. So they're not just simplistic 279 00:16:34,760 --> 00:16:37,360 or moralistic things. Well, it's a randomly arranged 280 00:16:37,360 --> 00:16:40,760 set of cliches, like sort of those posters you see in 281 00:16:40,920 --> 00:16:44,080 inspirational shops, like a cat hanging, going, hang in there, 282 00:16:44,080 --> 00:16:46,560 buddy. That's not proverbs. 283 00:16:46,920 --> 00:16:50,440 It's more than that. These proverbs and parables are 284 00:16:50,440 --> 00:16:54,920 designed to provoke us, to make us think, to get under our 285 00:16:54,920 --> 00:16:57,680 skins. They're designed to surprise us, 286 00:16:57,680 --> 00:17:01,880 sometimes, catch us off guard, challenge us, and ultimately 287 00:17:01,880 --> 00:17:05,319 change us. Actually, we need to take our 288 00:17:05,319 --> 00:17:09,079 time over these proverbs. Proverbs is a deeply practical 289 00:17:09,079 --> 00:17:14,280 book and it wants to teach us wisdom for the real world we all 290 00:17:14,520 --> 00:17:16,480 live in. It's not just theoretical or 291 00:17:16,480 --> 00:17:19,400 academic. It doesn't withdraw or hide from 292 00:17:19,400 --> 00:17:21,640 life in the real world. And actually, we saw that 293 00:17:21,640 --> 00:17:25,160 towards the end of our reading in chapter 1, because we learn 294 00:17:25,160 --> 00:17:29,400 now that Wisdom comes looking for us in the marketplace. 295 00:17:30,160 --> 00:17:34,320 Listen again to verse 20 to 23. We're told out in the open. 296 00:17:34,320 --> 00:17:37,120 Wisdom calls a lie. She raises her voice in the 297 00:17:37,120 --> 00:17:38,960 public square on the top of the wall. 298 00:17:38,960 --> 00:17:41,440 She cries out at the city gate. She makes her speech. 299 00:17:41,680 --> 00:17:44,960 How long will you hear? Simple Love your simple ways. 300 00:17:45,200 --> 00:17:48,200 How long will mockers delight in mockery and fool's hate 301 00:17:48,200 --> 00:17:50,360 knowledge? Repent of my rebuke. 302 00:17:50,360 --> 00:17:52,280 Then I will pour out my thoughts to you. 303 00:17:52,600 --> 00:17:55,240 I will make known to you my teachings. 304 00:17:55,240 --> 00:17:58,280 This is a picture of wisdom we get all the way through 305 00:17:58,280 --> 00:18:00,520 Proverbs. Wisdom's often represented as a 306 00:18:00,520 --> 00:18:04,360 woman calling out to us in the marketplace. 307 00:18:05,360 --> 00:18:08,920 We're told that wisdom here comes looking for us. 308 00:18:09,640 --> 00:18:13,440 Wisdom speaks to us in the noise and confusion of daily life, 309 00:18:13,440 --> 00:18:16,440 that crowded marketplace. Picture all these different 310 00:18:16,440 --> 00:18:18,880 voices, people calling us to go here, there, everywhere. 311 00:18:19,120 --> 00:18:23,160 And wisdom is calling to us. In those moments when you see 312 00:18:23,160 --> 00:18:27,800 that the book of Proverbs, it is good news for foolish people 313 00:18:27,800 --> 00:18:31,880 like us. It's practical help for people 314 00:18:31,880 --> 00:18:35,920 like us who don't always know what to do or what the right 315 00:18:35,920 --> 00:18:40,120 thing to do is. The book takes seriously the 316 00:18:40,120 --> 00:18:42,920 challenges and confusions of this world. 317 00:18:43,120 --> 00:18:45,880 But actually, ultimately, Proverbs is a really optimistic 318 00:18:45,880 --> 00:18:50,640 book because it says to us that wisdom and life can be found as 319 00:18:50,640 --> 00:18:54,000 we slow down and listen to God's word. 320 00:18:54,840 --> 00:18:57,040 Because wisdom wants to be found. 321 00:18:57,800 --> 00:19:01,960 Wisdom wants us to hear her. Wisdom's within our grasp 322 00:19:02,320 --> 00:19:06,920 because it's a gift of God as we put our faith in Jesus. 323 00:19:08,880 --> 00:19:10,480 So just we're going to be looking at the individual 324 00:19:10,480 --> 00:19:12,520 proverbs later in the series. But I just thought this morning 325 00:19:12,520 --> 00:19:15,080 he's going to give you a couple of examples of, of what to 326 00:19:15,080 --> 00:19:18,560 expect for some of the proverbs and a flavour of how they work. 327 00:19:18,560 --> 00:19:20,120 So firstly, just a couple of random selection. 328 00:19:20,120 --> 00:19:23,600 Proverbs 27 verse 14. I, I like this one quite a lot 329 00:19:23,600 --> 00:19:25,920 actually. If anyone lightly blesses their 330 00:19:25,920 --> 00:19:29,000 neighbor early in the morning, it will be taken as a curse. 331 00:19:29,640 --> 00:19:32,080 It is a warning to the overly cheerful. 332 00:19:32,440 --> 00:19:35,480 And we all know, in fact, you know who you are and we all know 333 00:19:35,480 --> 00:19:37,640 who you are. And that's a warning. 334 00:19:38,360 --> 00:19:40,160 And again, what what's great about this proverb is it kind of 335 00:19:40,160 --> 00:19:43,120 says, actually, there are good intentions in this person. 336 00:19:43,520 --> 00:19:45,080 I bless you this morning, brother. 337 00:19:45,160 --> 00:19:46,720 Oh, please, can you just keep your voice dying? 338 00:19:48,040 --> 00:19:49,920 Actually, the intentions are good. 339 00:19:49,920 --> 00:19:54,440 But because that person doesn't understand the time of day or 340 00:19:54,440 --> 00:19:58,120 the person they're speaking to, actually the good intentions are 341 00:19:58,440 --> 00:20:01,320 unimportant. It's taken as a curse. 342 00:20:01,320 --> 00:20:04,560 And it reminds, actually, the proverbs often, I think, are 343 00:20:04,560 --> 00:20:07,200 meant to be a little bit funny because they stick in our minds. 344 00:20:07,760 --> 00:20:11,520 You can see the person earnestly blessing others and just the 345 00:20:11,520 --> 00:20:16,560 response that they get. Or Proverbs 30 versus 32 to 33. 346 00:20:16,560 --> 00:20:19,440 If you play the fool and exalt yourself, or if you plan evil, 347 00:20:19,720 --> 00:20:23,280 clap your hand over your mouth. For as churning cream produces 348 00:20:23,280 --> 00:20:28,000 butter and as twisting the nose produces blood, so stirring up 349 00:20:28,000 --> 00:20:31,760 anger produces strife has vivid imagery. 350 00:20:32,880 --> 00:20:35,200 And it's almost you'd summarize this, this proverb. 351 00:20:35,200 --> 00:20:39,760 Don't be a jerk. Don't just go out looking for 352 00:20:39,760 --> 00:20:42,880 fights. And again, the age and 353 00:20:42,880 --> 00:20:45,480 generation we live in, that's really good advice for a lot of 354 00:20:45,480 --> 00:20:47,480 us on social media and other places. 355 00:20:47,680 --> 00:20:50,280 We're kind of going out there just bullishly, arrogantly 356 00:20:50,280 --> 00:20:52,960 saying, I know what's right and I come on, come at me, prove me 357 00:20:52,960 --> 00:20:56,840 wrong. And actually the consequences 358 00:20:56,840 --> 00:20:59,920 are this churning. I cannot image twisting the nose 359 00:20:59,920 --> 00:21:03,200 produces blood. My nose bled all the time as a 360 00:21:03,200 --> 00:21:05,240 kid in primary school. That's just a vivid image to me. 361 00:21:05,720 --> 00:21:08,200 But but no, it's just stirring up anger, but just to strife. 362 00:21:08,280 --> 00:21:10,480 Just think about it. Think about what you're doing. 363 00:21:12,520 --> 00:21:18,280 And then Proverbs 13, verse 12, Hope deferred makes the heart 364 00:21:18,280 --> 00:21:22,760 sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life. 365 00:21:24,120 --> 00:21:27,760 I think it's real emotional insight into that proverb. 366 00:21:28,840 --> 00:21:30,400 Yeah. We just had the season of Easter 367 00:21:30,400 --> 00:21:32,560 and the rest of the Bible reminds us that followers of 368 00:21:32,640 --> 00:21:37,040 Jesus are people of hope. We know that Jesus is coming 369 00:21:37,040 --> 00:21:38,920 back. The new creation is coming. 370 00:21:38,920 --> 00:21:40,760 Our labour for the Lord is not in vain. 371 00:21:41,320 --> 00:21:44,840 We know that no eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has 372 00:21:44,840 --> 00:21:48,080 conceived the things God has prepared for those who love him. 373 00:21:49,040 --> 00:21:50,480 That's the hope that keeps us going. 374 00:21:50,640 --> 00:21:54,840 And yet this proverb helps us see that doesn't mean life is 375 00:21:54,840 --> 00:21:59,200 easy here and now, because that hope is deferred. 376 00:21:59,920 --> 00:22:04,200 We're not home yet, we still suffer now, and even though that 377 00:22:04,200 --> 00:22:09,320 hope will be glorious when it comes, we're not there yet, and 378 00:22:09,320 --> 00:22:12,920 so our hearts often feel sick again. 379 00:22:12,920 --> 00:22:15,480 The future is there, a long He fulfills the tree of Life. 380 00:22:15,480 --> 00:22:17,200 We looked at that in Revelation a few weeks ago. 381 00:22:17,480 --> 00:22:21,200 Being able to rest in the shade of the tree of life, but 382 00:22:21,200 --> 00:22:22,720 deferred. Hope is hard. 383 00:22:23,400 --> 00:22:26,360 And this proverb helps us remember that, prepare for that, 384 00:22:26,360 --> 00:22:28,000 and to recognize it in one another. 385 00:22:28,680 --> 00:22:30,320 I just go. I just, I know my hope's 386 00:22:30,320 --> 00:22:31,960 glorious, but it just doesn't feel like it. 387 00:22:32,280 --> 00:22:36,040 My heart just feels sick. This proverb prepares us for 388 00:22:36,040 --> 00:22:39,560 that. I hope we're going to experience 389 00:22:39,560 --> 00:22:41,480 the blessing of the book of Proverbs in the week ahead, 390 00:22:41,480 --> 00:22:43,960 weeks ahead. But just a few other words of 391 00:22:43,960 --> 00:22:46,160 introduction before we finish this morning. 392 00:22:46,160 --> 00:22:48,480 Kind of Proverbs, one of those books, you almost need to know 393 00:22:48,480 --> 00:22:51,720 how not to read it. It's a book that we kind of come 394 00:22:51,720 --> 00:22:53,840 to and can be a little bit clumsy sometimes or we 395 00:22:53,840 --> 00:22:56,920 misinterpret. So a couple of pointers on that 396 00:22:57,560 --> 00:23:00,160 proverb. Is is not a series of quick life 397 00:23:00,160 --> 00:23:02,560 hacks. I'm told that's what the kids 398 00:23:02,560 --> 00:23:05,760 say. Basically, just a little quick 399 00:23:05,760 --> 00:23:07,920 clues of how to live a happy life. 400 00:23:07,920 --> 00:23:11,120 I want to say this actually. The proverb in this book require 401 00:23:11,120 --> 00:23:16,600 us to think deeply and carefully and prayerfully to learn wisdom 402 00:23:16,840 --> 00:23:19,840 in this world. Proverbs require us to wrestle 403 00:23:19,840 --> 00:23:23,560 with them, ask questions of them, pray about them. 404 00:23:24,680 --> 00:23:27,680 They're not always as obvious as they look at first. 405 00:23:28,640 --> 00:23:32,840 So an example of that. Proverbs 26 verse 4 Do not 406 00:23:32,840 --> 00:23:35,520 answer a fool according to his folly, or you yourself will be 407 00:23:35,520 --> 00:23:39,400 just like him. That feels very clear advice. 408 00:23:40,040 --> 00:23:44,800 Proverbs 26 verse 5 Answer a fool according to his folly, or 409 00:23:44,800 --> 00:23:50,120 he will be wise in his own eyes. 2 seemingly contradictory 410 00:23:50,120 --> 00:23:53,960 proverbs and notice they're one verse after the other. 411 00:23:54,520 --> 00:23:57,000 It's not that somehow that one of them snuck in and the editor 412 00:23:57,000 --> 00:23:59,200 wasn't looking and we all know, but there's a contradiction 413 00:23:59,200 --> 00:24:01,080 here. No, they're right next to each 414 00:24:01,080 --> 00:24:03,480 other. I think what Proverbs is doing 415 00:24:03,480 --> 00:24:07,160 is saying actually doing the right thing and responding in 416 00:24:07,160 --> 00:24:10,720 the right way will change depending on the situation. 417 00:24:11,440 --> 00:24:14,240 We often want hard and fast rules, but biblical wisdom 418 00:24:14,240 --> 00:24:16,280 doesn't always give us those rules. 419 00:24:16,360 --> 00:24:18,800 We have to think who is the person in front of me? 420 00:24:18,880 --> 00:24:22,040 What is going on in their lives? What is going on in our 421 00:24:22,040 --> 00:24:24,160 relationship? And then you think, actually do 422 00:24:24,160 --> 00:24:27,520 I answer or do I not? And that that takes time. 423 00:24:27,520 --> 00:24:31,000 That takes prayer. Actually, if we think we can 424 00:24:31,000 --> 00:24:33,480 read the book of Proverbs and just learn wisdom without 425 00:24:33,480 --> 00:24:36,000 needing to depend on God, we are mistaken. 426 00:24:37,040 --> 00:24:41,640 We need to think deeply and carefully about what the 427 00:24:41,640 --> 00:24:45,640 proverbs are telling us. It's not a quick fix solution. 428 00:24:45,640 --> 00:24:47,760 It's it takes time to understand. 429 00:24:49,600 --> 00:24:53,200 I heard a speaker, Pete Dre, formerly of UCCF, put it like 430 00:24:53,200 --> 00:24:54,840 this. He said someone had said to him, 431 00:24:54,840 --> 00:24:57,440 a younger guy said, well, I guess wisdom is sort of what you 432 00:24:57,440 --> 00:24:59,800 can't learn from a YouTube tutorial. 433 00:25:01,040 --> 00:25:02,200 And let's have again, YouTube is great. 434 00:25:02,200 --> 00:25:05,840 You know, I just go like, how do I, I don't know, do this plug or 435 00:25:05,840 --> 00:25:07,360 how do I fix my boiler or anything like that. 436 00:25:07,360 --> 00:25:08,880 You quickly look at going great, I know what to do. 437 00:25:09,040 --> 00:25:12,000 But actually wisdoms went more than that. 438 00:25:12,280 --> 00:25:16,680 It's not just a high to video. It requires more of us than 439 00:25:16,680 --> 00:25:18,640 that. So not just a series of quick 440 00:25:18,640 --> 00:25:21,120 life hacks. Another really important thing 441 00:25:21,120 --> 00:25:25,960 to remember as we read this book is Proverbs is not a series of 442 00:25:25,960 --> 00:25:29,960 promises from God. And that's one of the main ways 443 00:25:29,960 --> 00:25:33,160 we can get proverbs wrong. Sometimes couple of proverbs to 444 00:25:33,160 --> 00:25:37,480 illustrate this Proverbs 10/27 the fear of the Lord adds length 445 00:25:37,600 --> 00:25:40,480 to life. But the years of the wicked are 446 00:25:40,480 --> 00:25:44,880 cut short or Proverbs 22 verse six start children off on the 447 00:25:44,880 --> 00:25:48,080 way that they should go and even when they're old they will not 448 00:25:48,080 --> 00:25:51,640 turn from it. Now those there's a huge amount 449 00:25:51,640 --> 00:25:53,680 of wisdom in both those proverbs. 450 00:25:54,520 --> 00:25:55,920 The fear of the Lord adds length to life. 451 00:25:56,360 --> 00:25:58,800 Understanding God, understanding how he's made us and the world 452 00:25:58,800 --> 00:26:01,160 we made, that actually should make us wise in how we look 453 00:26:01,160 --> 00:26:04,200 after ourselves, how we care for our bodies. 454 00:26:05,320 --> 00:26:09,200 But I see there are plenty of people who trust the Lords whose 455 00:26:09,200 --> 00:26:13,080 lives are short, who are marred by real ill health. 456 00:26:14,280 --> 00:26:19,000 So to take proverbs tend to be a promise of a long life is to 457 00:26:19,000 --> 00:26:21,920 misread it. Proverbs focus on the general 458 00:26:21,920 --> 00:26:26,080 rule, not the exceptions. We need to remember that. 459 00:26:26,240 --> 00:26:29,520 Again, Proverbs 22 an encouragement for parents to 460 00:26:29,520 --> 00:26:32,120 take time to point their children to God in his ways from 461 00:26:32,120 --> 00:26:35,360 a very young age. But again, it's not a guarantee 462 00:26:35,360 --> 00:26:38,080 that if we do that, every single child born to Christian parents 463 00:26:38,080 --> 00:26:41,080 will be a believer. There's a general rule, there's 464 00:26:41,080 --> 00:26:44,760 a wisdom principle here, but there are exceptions to that 465 00:26:44,760 --> 00:26:48,560 rule. Proverbs are never guarantees to 466 00:26:48,560 --> 00:26:51,000 us of higher lives will turn out. 467 00:26:51,120 --> 00:26:52,840 And if we need to really see that, we need to look at the 468 00:26:52,880 --> 00:26:54,680 other wisdom books in the Old Testament. 469 00:26:54,880 --> 00:26:58,200 The book of Job where a righteous man loses everything. 470 00:26:59,120 --> 00:27:02,600 The book of Ecclesiastes where a teacher just grapples with just 471 00:27:02,600 --> 00:27:06,280 what seems to be meaningless and pointless about our brief lives. 472 00:27:07,280 --> 00:27:10,120 We need to be aware that Proverbs be read alongside Job 473 00:27:10,560 --> 00:27:13,120 and Ecclesiastes. It's not a set of guarantees. 474 00:27:13,120 --> 00:27:18,520 What Proverbs does do is help us do the right thing, even when it 475 00:27:18,520 --> 00:27:20,600 doesn't result in the outcome we'd like. 476 00:27:21,600 --> 00:27:25,120 Proverbs help us respond to situations outside of our 477 00:27:25,120 --> 00:27:29,480 control, and they help us grow more like Jesus and trust God's 478 00:27:29,480 --> 00:27:33,480 goodness and sovereignty even when life is hard. 479 00:27:35,560 --> 00:27:38,160 So it's not just a series of promises from God. 480 00:27:40,160 --> 00:27:42,840 But why do we need the wisdom of Proverbs? 481 00:27:42,840 --> 00:27:45,960 Just a few points. First of all, we are all 482 00:27:45,960 --> 00:27:49,840 naturally foolish people. I'm not being rude, I'm not 483 00:27:49,840 --> 00:27:51,440 being offensive. That's just the way the Bible 484 00:27:51,960 --> 00:27:54,080 tells us. Psalms tell us Psalm 14 verse 485 00:27:54,080 --> 00:27:56,120 one. The fool says in his heart, 486 00:27:56,760 --> 00:28:00,280 there is no God. And actually, naturally 487 00:28:00,280 --> 00:28:02,840 speaking, that's all of us. We all tend to live and think 488 00:28:02,840 --> 00:28:05,080 and make decisions as if there is no God. 489 00:28:05,240 --> 00:28:07,480 We maybe gather on a church, gathered a church on a Sunday 490 00:28:07,480 --> 00:28:09,720 morning and we we remember, we sing God's praise. 491 00:28:09,720 --> 00:28:11,240 But then throughout the week, often we're thinking, well, what 492 00:28:11,240 --> 00:28:13,200 am I going to do? I don't always think what, what 493 00:28:13,200 --> 00:28:15,240 does God think about this? I'm just going to go, what do I 494 00:28:15,240 --> 00:28:18,000 need to do? The full says in his heart, 495 00:28:18,000 --> 00:28:19,800 there is no God and that's all of us. 496 00:28:19,800 --> 00:28:23,280 We need proverbs. We need God's word to open our 497 00:28:23,280 --> 00:28:25,040 eyes to the truth that God is there. 498 00:28:25,400 --> 00:28:29,760 God is living and active and present and we should fear him. 499 00:28:30,080 --> 00:28:34,160 As a result, we need the wisdom of Proverbs because our world 500 00:28:34,160 --> 00:28:38,040 demands that we listen to it and not to God. 501 00:28:38,040 --> 00:28:40,240 Throughout the book of Proverbs, there were at least two voices 502 00:28:40,240 --> 00:28:42,920 calling out to us all the time, Lady Wisdom, this 503 00:28:42,920 --> 00:28:46,920 personification of wisdom as a woman, and Lady Folly, another 504 00:28:46,920 --> 00:28:49,840 personification of, of foolishness, also a woman. 505 00:28:49,840 --> 00:28:52,480 And they're both calling out to the reader. 506 00:28:52,560 --> 00:28:55,440 Listen to me, come to me. I've I've got the secret to 507 00:28:55,440 --> 00:28:56,480 life. Come to me. 508 00:28:56,680 --> 00:28:58,480 And they kind of sound quite similar. 509 00:28:58,560 --> 00:29:02,440 Sometimes. Our world demands that we listen 510 00:29:02,440 --> 00:29:03,880 to you. And the big question throughout 511 00:29:03,880 --> 00:29:05,360 Proverbs is, who are we going to listen to? 512 00:29:05,760 --> 00:29:07,680 Which woman will we listen to? Will it be wisdom? 513 00:29:08,160 --> 00:29:11,040 Will it be folly again? We saw that in chapter 1. 514 00:29:11,040 --> 00:29:13,160 Verse 11. We've got this gang surrounding 515 00:29:13,160 --> 00:29:15,200 the young man in Proverbs chapter 1. 516 00:29:15,200 --> 00:29:17,280 Come along with us. Let's lie and wait for innocent 517 00:29:17,280 --> 00:29:19,560 blood. Let's ambush some harmless soul. 518 00:29:19,560 --> 00:29:21,360 Verse 12. Let's swallow them alive, like 519 00:29:21,360 --> 00:29:24,200 the grave and whole like those who go down to the pit. 520 00:29:24,320 --> 00:29:26,040 We'll get all sorts of valuable things. 521 00:29:26,040 --> 00:29:28,480 Fill our houses with plunder. Cast lots with us. 522 00:29:28,480 --> 00:29:31,880 We will share the loot right from the outset of the book. 523 00:29:32,040 --> 00:29:35,440 The young man that the the the speaker is speaking to, they've 524 00:29:35,480 --> 00:29:37,840 got this invitation. Do I go along with the cried? 525 00:29:38,000 --> 00:29:40,040 Do I go what they say I'm going to do? 526 00:29:40,640 --> 00:29:44,200 Or do I listen to God's word? Do I listen to my father and 527 00:29:44,200 --> 00:29:49,640 mother and put my trust in them? We need the wisdom of Proverbs 528 00:29:49,640 --> 00:29:51,880 because there's different voices shouting at us. 529 00:29:53,000 --> 00:29:55,960 Also, really simply, we've all got decisions to make every day, 530 00:29:56,200 --> 00:29:59,560 big and small and power. Proverbs is helping us to make 531 00:29:59,560 --> 00:30:04,120 good decisions. Amazingly, maybe surprisingly, 532 00:30:04,120 --> 00:30:07,240 God doesn't make your decisions for you. 533 00:30:08,720 --> 00:30:13,040 There's times I wish he did when I look at an outfit I wore years 534 00:30:13,040 --> 00:30:15,000 ago. If only God had stepped in. 535 00:30:15,000 --> 00:30:18,440 But he doesn't do that. God doesn't make our decisions 536 00:30:18,440 --> 00:30:20,080 for us, and we all have decisions to make every day. 537 00:30:20,080 --> 00:30:21,080 What? What have for dinner? 538 00:30:21,720 --> 00:30:24,840 What job do I do? Where do we live and what church 539 00:30:24,840 --> 00:30:26,360 do I join? Do I get married? 540 00:30:26,360 --> 00:30:28,680 If so, to whom? If I have children, how do I 541 00:30:28,680 --> 00:30:31,080 raise them? Now, you can see just from that 542 00:30:31,080 --> 00:30:32,720 selection, some of those questions are more important 543 00:30:32,720 --> 00:30:34,560 than others. What do I have for dinner? 544 00:30:35,240 --> 00:30:37,000 That's that's fairly unimportant. 545 00:30:37,000 --> 00:30:38,760 We're called to look after our bodies. 546 00:30:39,200 --> 00:30:42,360 So battered sausage every week is probably not great. 547 00:30:42,360 --> 00:30:44,160 Well, no, every week, sorry. That's fine. 548 00:30:44,240 --> 00:30:47,800 Every day is a problem. But actually we've got a lot of 549 00:30:47,800 --> 00:30:50,160 freedom with some of these questions. 550 00:30:50,800 --> 00:30:53,080 But some of those questions are more important than others. 551 00:30:53,840 --> 00:30:57,400 What job do I do? Which church do I join? 552 00:30:57,400 --> 00:31:00,240 Should I get married? How am I meant to love the 553 00:31:00,240 --> 00:31:04,080 people around me? And and it's not the scripture 554 00:31:04,080 --> 00:31:06,240 says nothing about those things. Scripture is really clear about 555 00:31:06,240 --> 00:31:07,440 certain things. There are limits. 556 00:31:07,440 --> 00:31:10,240 So what job should I do? Will I become a burglar? 557 00:31:10,960 --> 00:31:14,000 The answer is no, because God says do not steal. 558 00:31:15,000 --> 00:31:18,880 But but should it be a teacher or a hairdresser or an 559 00:31:18,880 --> 00:31:21,440 accountant? Actually, there's a huge amount 560 00:31:21,440 --> 00:31:23,280 of freedom. None of those things are are 561 00:31:23,280 --> 00:31:27,600 barred to us as believers and Proverbs help us help us grapple 562 00:31:27,600 --> 00:31:29,520 the questions. What does wisdom look like in 563 00:31:29,520 --> 00:31:31,040 practice? Because the fact of the matter 564 00:31:31,040 --> 00:31:34,400 is there's lots of grey areas and we struggle with that. 565 00:31:34,400 --> 00:31:37,680 So we want certainty. Proverbs says, well, learn 566 00:31:37,680 --> 00:31:43,240 wisdom, learn that your father loves you and follow him when 567 00:31:43,240 --> 00:31:47,680 you can and link with that. I think really important. 568 00:31:47,680 --> 00:31:50,920 Without wisdom, even our best intentions can cause harm. 569 00:31:50,920 --> 00:31:54,560 We're back to that guy blessing people lightly in the morning. 570 00:31:55,880 --> 00:31:58,800 Actually, we need wisdom for just about every aspect of our 571 00:31:58,800 --> 00:32:04,560 lives. So love without wisdom can just 572 00:32:04,560 --> 00:32:08,600 be a bit spongy, amorphous. Not really. 573 00:32:08,600 --> 00:32:09,560 You can't really get your hand on it. 574 00:32:09,560 --> 00:32:12,720 You actually end up can hurt the people around you if you don't 575 00:32:12,720 --> 00:32:14,000 have wisdom the way you love them. 576 00:32:14,000 --> 00:32:16,840 Courage without wisdom and you become a bully. 577 00:32:17,640 --> 00:32:21,640 Truth without wisdom and you become pride and self-righteous. 578 00:32:21,840 --> 00:32:25,760 Technology without wisdom causes more harm than good. 579 00:32:26,720 --> 00:32:29,200 I was working this week. I'm just Jeff Goldblum kept 580 00:32:29,200 --> 00:32:31,200 coming to my head in Jurassic Park. 581 00:32:31,640 --> 00:32:33,400 If you know the line, he says your scientists are so 582 00:32:33,400 --> 00:32:36,080 preoccupied whether they could do this, they didn't stop to ask 583 00:32:36,080 --> 00:32:39,480 whether they should. Cloning dinosaurs in Jurassic 584 00:32:39,480 --> 00:32:43,280 Park is a lack of wisdom. It's knowledge. 585 00:32:43,360 --> 00:32:46,160 They can do it, but it's not what they should do. 586 00:32:46,240 --> 00:32:50,520 Without wisdom, even our best intentions can cause harm. 587 00:32:50,520 --> 00:32:53,600 We want to listen to this book together. 588 00:32:54,960 --> 00:32:57,440 And so how do you learn wisdom from the book of Proverbs? 589 00:32:57,440 --> 00:33:00,720 What we're told in chapter 1 here, wisdom begins and ends 590 00:33:00,720 --> 00:33:05,000 with the fear of the Lord. Verse 7, the fear of the Lord is 591 00:33:05,000 --> 00:33:08,360 the beginning of wisdom. That's repeated in Chapter 9 as 592 00:33:08,360 --> 00:33:09,640 well. What does it mean to fear the 593 00:33:09,640 --> 00:33:12,280 Lord again? It's more it doesn't mean run 594 00:33:12,280 --> 00:33:14,680 away from Him, doesn't mean hide from Him, doesn't mean keep your 595 00:33:14,680 --> 00:33:16,720 distance from Him. The fear of the Lord means you 596 00:33:16,720 --> 00:33:22,080 worship Him as God. You thank Him for your life and 597 00:33:22,080 --> 00:33:25,520 for our lives in this world. We love Him in response to His 598 00:33:25,520 --> 00:33:28,080 love for us. We listen to Him above all other 599 00:33:28,080 --> 00:33:33,160 voices and we trust in Him with our lives and that's we're going 600 00:33:33,160 --> 00:33:34,520 to keep returning to again and again. 601 00:33:34,520 --> 00:33:36,320 What? How does wisdom lead to that 602 00:33:36,320 --> 00:33:38,720 fear of the Lord? We want to live our lives in 603 00:33:38,720 --> 00:33:41,680 right relationship with God and in right relationship with the 604 00:33:41,680 --> 00:33:45,000 people God has put in our lives. That's the greatest commandment. 605 00:33:45,000 --> 00:33:47,480 Jesus tells us, love God, love your neighbor. 606 00:33:47,480 --> 00:33:52,040 That is the heart of wisdom. We're also really encouragingly 607 00:33:52,040 --> 00:33:54,960 in this book, we're going to see wisdom is learned in loving 608 00:33:54,960 --> 00:33:58,040 relationship with God as our Father. 609 00:33:58,040 --> 00:34:02,680 There's a repeated phrase in this book, my son, my son, verse 610 00:34:02,680 --> 00:34:05,960 8, verse 10, chapter 2, verse one, it keeps coming up. 611 00:34:07,120 --> 00:34:09,080 We learn wisdom. We make wise decisions, not 612 00:34:09,080 --> 00:34:11,000 because we're trying to earn God's love. 613 00:34:12,440 --> 00:34:14,800 That's that's a false mistake. We make something like, well, if 614 00:34:14,800 --> 00:34:16,440 only I was wise, then God would love me. 615 00:34:17,360 --> 00:34:20,080 Actually, we learn wisdom and make wise decisions as people 616 00:34:20,080 --> 00:34:25,560 who are already loved by God. And you take hold of that truth. 617 00:34:25,560 --> 00:34:28,239 You realize God isn't hiding His wisdom from us. 618 00:34:29,000 --> 00:34:32,199 If we come to Him and ask Him for wisdom, He will give it to 619 00:34:32,199 --> 00:34:34,800 us. God loves to give good gifts to 620 00:34:34,800 --> 00:34:37,199 His children. We make decisions in this world 621 00:34:37,400 --> 00:34:41,880 as people who are already loved by our Father in Heaven. 622 00:34:41,880 --> 00:34:45,960 An American pastor, Jack Miller, used to put it like this. 623 00:34:45,960 --> 00:34:48,120 If you belong to Jesus, you don't walk through this world 624 00:34:48,120 --> 00:34:50,800 like an orphan, not knowing where you fit. 625 00:34:50,800 --> 00:34:54,040 You walk through this world as a dearly loved child of the King, 626 00:34:55,040 --> 00:34:57,880 and you can trust Him for what is to come. 627 00:34:59,400 --> 00:35:01,880 Wisdom's learned in loving relationship with God as our 628 00:35:01,880 --> 00:35:06,560 Father, and it's learned finally in community with God's people. 629 00:35:07,920 --> 00:35:09,920 You need to learn wisdom in community. 630 00:35:10,600 --> 00:35:15,400 Proverbs 27, verse 17. As iron sharpens iron, so one 631 00:35:15,400 --> 00:35:19,200 person sharpens another. This was a list of Proverbs 632 00:35:19,200 --> 00:35:21,640 given to the whole of ancient Israel. 633 00:35:22,080 --> 00:35:25,440 Given to the church is the thing you see again and again, the 634 00:35:25,440 --> 00:35:28,480 book of Proverbs. The foolish people in Proverbs 635 00:35:28,880 --> 00:35:32,960 walk through this world alone, and as a result they are 636 00:35:32,960 --> 00:35:36,960 vulnerable to lady folly. They are vulnerable to the 637 00:35:36,960 --> 00:35:40,920 demands of the crowd. They are vulnerable to ways of 638 00:35:40,920 --> 00:35:44,560 foolishness and harm. Wisdom is learned in the 639 00:35:44,560 --> 00:35:49,560 community of God's people, in the community of the church. 640 00:35:50,600 --> 00:35:53,120 We need to listen to the Word of God and the voice of wisdom 641 00:35:53,120 --> 00:35:55,840 together. Younger believers need to listen 642 00:35:55,840 --> 00:35:58,160 to older believers. We need the wisdom of a 643 00:35:58,160 --> 00:36:02,520 believing community around us to grow more like Jesus. 644 00:36:03,280 --> 00:36:04,960 It's my prayer that spending these weeks in the book of 645 00:36:04,960 --> 00:36:07,160 Proverbs, we will be doing that together. 646 00:36:09,000 --> 00:36:11,360 So next week is our church weekend at home. 647 00:36:11,360 --> 00:36:13,120 We're going to think about praying together. 648 00:36:13,120 --> 00:36:16,200 The week after that we'll begin looking again at Proverbs 649 00:36:16,200 --> 00:36:21,080 chapter 2 and 3. And if you want to do your own 650 00:36:21,080 --> 00:36:22,200 reading us all on the book of Proverbs. 651 00:36:22,200 --> 00:36:24,960 We actually stole the title for this book, the sermon, sorry, 652 00:36:24,960 --> 00:36:29,000 from this book Wiser with Jesus and by Zack Eswin. 653 00:36:29,000 --> 00:36:30,720 Really worth getting a hold of that. 654 00:36:31,200 --> 00:36:33,720 And in his introduction to the book, he just comes up with four 655 00:36:33,720 --> 00:36:36,720 words beginning with P that introduce us to wisdom. 656 00:36:36,720 --> 00:36:39,040 He says wisdom. Wisdom is a posture. 657 00:36:39,160 --> 00:36:41,480 We've said that it's we humble ourselves before God. 658 00:36:41,480 --> 00:36:45,240 We ask him to make us wise. Wisdom is a peace. 659 00:36:45,240 --> 00:36:47,880 It takes time. We can't rush at it. 660 00:36:47,880 --> 00:36:50,240 We need to listen. We need to Mull over these 661 00:36:50,240 --> 00:36:53,160 proverbs, chew over them, keep coming back to them. 662 00:36:53,280 --> 00:36:56,800 Wisdom's a prayer. We need God's help to learn 663 00:36:56,800 --> 00:36:59,960 wisdom. And above all, Wisdom is a 664 00:36:59,960 --> 00:37:02,520 person. In the book of Proverbs, Wisdom 665 00:37:02,520 --> 00:37:04,760 is a person, this personification, Lady Wisdom, 666 00:37:04,760 --> 00:37:08,240 someone we love and who loves us. 667 00:37:08,800 --> 00:37:13,160 And in that Lady Wisdom points us ahead to Jesus, the Son of 668 00:37:13,160 --> 00:37:17,440 God, the word made flesh, who enters our world. 669 00:37:18,840 --> 00:37:21,960 Wisdom and Jesus is all the way through the New Testament. 670 00:37:21,960 --> 00:37:24,880 Luke 11. Jesus says he is greater than 671 00:37:24,880 --> 00:37:28,600 Solomon Colossians one Paul says he wants to reclaim Christ with 672 00:37:28,600 --> 00:37:32,480 all wisdom so the people presented fully mature in 673 00:37:32,480 --> 00:37:33,720 Christ. One Corinne is 1. 674 00:37:33,960 --> 00:37:37,080 Paul says his message is Christ crucified, Christ, the power of 675 00:37:37,080 --> 00:37:44,120 God and the wisdom of God. And we're moving into a time of 676 00:37:44,120 --> 00:37:46,920 the Lord's Supper. We're moving into taking bread 677 00:37:46,920 --> 00:37:51,240 and wine to remember the saving work of Jesus on the cross. 678 00:37:51,240 --> 00:37:54,480 An amazing New Testament says where we can see the wisdom of 679 00:37:54,480 --> 00:38:01,320 God most powerfully on display is at the cross of Jesus, one 680 00:38:01,320 --> 00:38:03,440 Corinthians one. Where is the wise person? 681 00:38:03,440 --> 00:38:05,720 Where's the teacher of the law? Where's the philosopher of this 682 00:38:05,720 --> 00:38:07,400 age? Hasn't God made foolish the 683 00:38:07,400 --> 00:38:10,360 wisdom of the world? Jews demand signs, Greeks look 684 00:38:10,360 --> 00:38:14,200 for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, A stumbling block to 685 00:38:14,200 --> 00:38:17,920 Jews foolish the Gentiles. But to those whom God has called 686 00:38:17,920 --> 00:38:22,400 both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and Christ the 687 00:38:22,400 --> 00:38:25,640 wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is 688 00:38:25,640 --> 00:38:30,480 wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than 689 00:38:30,480 --> 00:38:34,160 human strength. The cross reminds us the world 690 00:38:34,160 --> 00:38:38,280 we live in, The people we are reject God and his ways. 691 00:38:38,280 --> 00:38:41,400 We're naturally foolish. We naturally live our lives as 692 00:38:41,400 --> 00:38:44,600 if there is no God, as if we ourselves are gods. 693 00:38:44,600 --> 00:38:49,200 But God sees us in our foolishness, and he Stoops down 694 00:38:49,680 --> 00:38:52,800 to save us. At the cross we see Christ 695 00:38:52,800 --> 00:38:54,440 crucified. That's the power of God 696 00:38:54,440 --> 00:38:57,200 defeating sin and death. But it's also the wisdom of God 697 00:38:57,200 --> 00:39:01,200 taking foolish people like us and opening our eyes to the God 698 00:39:01,200 --> 00:39:05,440 who made us, the God who loves us, the God who forgives us, the 699 00:39:05,440 --> 00:39:10,640 God who will never let us dine Doesn't look like Wisdom. 700 00:39:10,640 --> 00:39:14,000 The cross. There we see the wisdom of God 701 00:39:14,600 --> 00:39:19,520 and the power of God. Let me pray as we prepare to to 702 00:39:19,520 --> 00:39:25,600 move to that. Father God, we do thank you that 703 00:39:25,600 --> 00:39:29,840 in spite of our natural foolishness, in spite of the 704 00:39:29,840 --> 00:39:33,800 fact that we do not always look to you for the decisions we 705 00:39:33,800 --> 00:39:39,880 make, despite the fact we often are overwhelmed by life in this 706 00:39:39,880 --> 00:39:44,480 crowded, noisy marketplace of a world, thank you, Lord, that you 707 00:39:44,840 --> 00:39:48,920 come looking for us. That wisdom is shouting for us 708 00:39:48,920 --> 00:39:52,680 to come and listen and thank you, Lord, that we see your 709 00:39:52,680 --> 00:39:57,200 wisdom supremely displayed at the cross of Jesus where he 710 00:39:57,200 --> 00:40:01,760 suffered and died in our place, to forgive foolish people like 711 00:40:01,760 --> 00:40:06,000 us and to show us in ways we could never know otherwise, just 712 00:40:06,000 --> 00:40:09,720 who you are. Lord, Your goodness, your grace, 713 00:40:10,160 --> 00:40:15,080 your mercy, your power. We pray, Father, as we look at 714 00:40:15,080 --> 00:40:17,320 this book of Proverbs in the weeks ahead, that you would show 715 00:40:17,320 --> 00:40:20,760 us more of your character. And that by your Holy Spirit, 716 00:40:20,760 --> 00:40:24,240 you would change us more and more into men and women who bear 717 00:40:24,240 --> 00:40:27,960 the image of Jesus in this world, so that we will have joy 718 00:40:27,960 --> 00:40:32,000 in following you and so that we will proclaim you to the people 719 00:40:32,000 --> 00:40:35,240 around us. And we ask that in Jesus name 720 00:40:35,240 --> 00:40:37,760 and for his sake, Amen.