context of a parent giving instructions to a child

Transcription

1 September 20, 2015 Temple Baptist Church, Jamestown, ND TITLE: TIME FOR A HEARING TEST, Proverbs 1:1-33 (Real Life #1) I haven t had one in decades. We would go to a quiet room, put on a set of headphones and raise a finger as we heard beeps of varying pitch and volume. It was a hearing test. Do they still do these in schools? My ears survived old tractor cabs, farm equipment and the vacuum pump in our dairy barn. My hearing even survived the bad speakers and AM radio of my car. I m still amazed to learn the actual lyrics of the pop and rock songs of my youth. I had no idea. But MY hearing is just fine. Did you just say something? Today we begin a series of messages from the first nine chapters of Proverbs. These first chapters are written from the context of a parent giving instructions to a child. Solomon wrote and collected these sayings as a practical guide for life. One commentator summarizes Proverbs this way: By this book, one can learn the principles that determine success or failure in the major arenas of human activity, including business, personal relationships, family life, and community life. 1 The first seven verses of Proverbs serve as a general introduction for the book. Let s read them. Read Proverbs 1:1-7. This collection of sayings, parables and riddles is designed so that the one instructed LEARNS (Emphasis here. It s a process.) to act with wisdom, not for the purpose of pride, but for success in every area of life. Wisdom is understood as practical, involving common sense and how to cope with daily problems, including developing practical skills. Wisdom is intellectual, leading to knowledge and understanding. Wisdom is moral and involves self-discipline. Verse 3 mentions doing what is right and just and fair. Wisdom addresses the mysteries of life (cf. Garrett, Proverbs, etc.). The key or theme is verse seven. The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline. Proverbs 1:7 The ESV translates this last word as instruction. This theme verse is repeated in various forms throughout the book. Solomon says, Those who reverentially submit to the LORD, will find what they need to live life fully, successfully, wisely. But there are those who will reject this teaching. They are fools. So what does all this have to do with a hearing test? Following these first seven verses are two practical teaching segments, both which emphasize the need to listen. Note that verse 8 begins with the call to listen (hear) as does the last verse (33). Teaching lesson #1. 1 Garrett, D. A. (1993). Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of songs (Vol. 14, p. 67). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.

2 Will you listen to your parents or your peers? Read Proverbs 1:8-19. The contrast is between the instructions of Dad and Mom and the enticements (vs. 10) of others, others who do not follow the ways of the LORD. Instead, they bend the rules. They urge different counsel. They go by different paths. They set traps for others into which they themselves fall. Their names appear each week in the Saturday edition of the Jamestown Sun or in the public notice section. Some of us have had our names in the Saturday paper. The truth is that all of us would appear on page one, as well as headline TV and radio news, were all our secret sins and thoughts known. Jesus says the problem stems from the heart. That s where sin starts. So what is the sin here? Buying the line that others have more wisdom than the parents God gave us. Will we live in such a way as to bring honor on ourselves or shame? Parents or peers? The outcome of the gang, of the others, is theft and violence, taking things not ours, even at the expense of the life of others. Who would do such a thing? No one wakes up one morning and decides to be a criminal. No one just decides one day, I want to destroy my own life. That s right. It happens over time. A little here, a little there. Solomon says it starts (vs. 19) with greed, with dwelling on what others have. Surely there is a way to easy money. Surely there is a way to more enjoyment. There is, say others. Try this. Take a look at this. Come with us. We ll teach you. Verse 10 counsels, Do not go in. Verse 15 says, Do not go along (walk). Do not set foot on their paths. The contrast is listening to parents or going places we shouldn t go with people whose intentions are not for the best, for our best. Some things, once seen, once tried, once learned, are very heard to leave. Those things are like cockleburs or other weeds stuck to our socks and shoelaces. They are hard to forget or to say, Stop! We become controlled by these forces. Parents, for about ten or so years you will enter a time when your stock goes down in the eyes of your children. When children reach adolescence, dad and mom don t speak with the same authority. Don t give up. An amazing thing happens about the time those same children reach twenty-five. We parents suddenly become smarter. Parents, we influence our sons and daughters for both good and ill. Harry Chapin laments in his famous song, And as I hung up the phone it occurred to me, he d grown up just like me. My boy was just like me. Parenting is a tough job, but we can do it. Be honest and appropriate. Let s share what we have learned, including from our mistakes.

3 Teens, it is necessary that we learn to follow our own moral compass, to make our own decisions, but here is a key point: Neuroscientists show that our brains are still developing. They do not mature until about the age... of twenty-five. Show of hands from those over twenty-five. How many of us did things in our teens and early twenties that we wish we had done differently (or not done at all)? Maybe we were Saturday morning all stars. Did we go against the counsel of our parents? Parents or peers? Will you listen to those who have invested in you since before you were born... or will you reject their words and training for that of others? Kids, students, youth, college students, Proverbs is primarily for you. It s your book. Yes, we old folks can also read it and learn a few things, but you are the reason it is written and in the Bible. Going for the easy life will lead to regret. Some years ago Garrett Tyson shared an excellent message on this text. The key is verse 19. It starts with the little compromises. The consequences may not come for some time, but they will come. Will you listen to your parents or your peers? Teaching lesson two. Will you listen to the call of wisdom or reject (and then regret) it? One way to read Proverbs is as a series of case studies or teaching lessons. Solomon moves from the contrast of listening to parents (vs. 8) or peers to listening to the voice of wisdom (vs. 33). Read Proverbs 1: These verses are arranged poetically with the first and last verses paralleling each other. Verses parallel verse 33; verse 22 corresponds to verse 32, verse 23 links with verse 31, verses with verses The central point of this section is in verses 26-28, the outcome of rejecting wisdom. Wisdom is portrayed as a woman who calls to us to stop and learn. Note that we aren t born with wisdom. Wisdom doesn t favor one over another, but available to all. Wisdom comes from life learning. That includes from our mistakes. Verses 23, 25 and 30 mention rebuke, i.e. correction when we ve done wrong. Someone has said the most expensive lessons are the ones we never learn. In other words the question is not IF we make mistakes. The question is if we are LEARNING from them. Our parents have made mistakes (and, yes, continue to make them). Will we listen to what they have learned so that we can avoid some of the pain they have experienced? Will we listen as wisdom calls to us or will we reject wisdom, only to call out in regret years later? According to verses where do we find wisdom? (Audience. Wisdom calls to us!) Pride and stubbornness (vs. 30), mocking (vs. 22), refusing to be taught (vss. 22, 30), complacency (vs. 32), all contribute to an attitude that says, You aren t going to

4 teach me anything. Wisdom replies, Very well, then you are inviting the judgment, the calamity, the disaster, the distress and trouble that naturally come. Later in the book we read, He who sows wickedness reaps trouble. Proverbs 22:8a Paul uses this imagery in his letter to the Galatians, the letter from which Pastor Gordon Stork spoke last week when he reminded us that the source of our boast is Christ alone. Just before that section Paul writes this warning and encouragement. Do not be deceived. God cannot be mocked. For since a man sows, he will also reap. Because the one who sows to the flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction. But if he sows unto the Spirit, from the Spirit he will reap eternal life. Galatians 6:7-8 In this context Paul takes the general principle of sowing and reaping, applying it to our relationships in the family of God. In Proverbs the principle is the same: our listening or rejection to the instruction of our parents and openness to wisdom in general have consequences. Conclusion. Our culture asks us to listen to a lot of things. Talk shows and quasi news stations call for us to listen. Political candidates call for our attention. Let s tune them down to listen differently. Will we listen to our parents or our peers? Will we listen to the call of wisdom or reject it? Two lessons. Two questions. Parents, perhaps you have some regrets. Again, don t give up! Others may be thinking: Pastor, my parents resemble more the fool than they do following God s instructions. Ironically, even the wisest man in the whole world, Solomon, did not follow his own counsel... nor did his children. If we recognize the foolishness of our parents, we can also recognize the invitation to wisdom, found in relationship with God. You may be one who is living in regret for past or present unwise actions. Today you can make a choice to learn from your mistakes and choose wisdom. In his final words to the people of Israel before his death, a people whom he led forty years and who would be entering the land of promise, Moses says, Listen up, Israel, the LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commands I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them... tie them... write them. Deuteronomy 6:4-9 In other words, let s begin by listening to God. I invite you to respond as God s Spirit directs you. Please use the Next Steps. I also encourage you to learn the weekly Bible verse. The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, but fools despise wisdom and discipline. Proverbs 1:7 Today our mission is to begin to listen, to walk, to talk. Will we listen to the One Who desires to be our Heavenly Father? Will we listen to His words? (Pray)

5 NEXT STEPS. Read Proverbs 1 twice and review the outline again before responding. What are the evidences and benefits of wisdom (vss. 2-6)? Share with another what you are learning from Proverbs. Share some wisdom you have learned from your parents. Have you experienced some consequences from not following their instruction? The honor and security from following it (vs. 8, 33)? Read Deuteronomy 6:4-9 together. What more do we learn about listening? Recite Proverbs 1:7 from memory and pray for each other.