Timeless Wisdom: The Necessity of Wisdom | Weekend Sunday Service Josiah Smith

A message by Pastor Josiah Smith on Proverbs 1:29-33

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Transcript

Why Wisdom Is Nonnegotiable

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My desire this morning is very simple. I want you to walk away with almost a desperate sense of your need for wisdom. I want you to have such a crystal clear understanding of what will happen if you lack wisdom. We live in a world where wisdom is so essential to be able to navigate this world and this life well and as skillfully. I mean, there's just competing ideas, competing ideologies, competing beliefs, people with megaphones shouting what they believe to be true. And you have to understand what biblical wisdom is. You have to understand that in a war zone of ideas and perspectives, how to cut through all of the noise and to think biblically, to understand biblically, to have biblical knowledge and biblical wisdom. You need wisdom on how to navigate this world. So take your Bibles,

Proverbs Warns About Rejecting Wisdom

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please. I want to go to Proverbs chapter 1, 29 through 33. Now, today's sermon is going to be a little bit different. Today is going to kind of be a negative sermon, but in a positive way, if that makes any sense. Think of what we're going to do as the tour day fool. That's what we're doing. I want to show you your future when it comes to a lack of wisdom and what's going to happen to you and your life if you do not pursue true biblical wisdom that's grounded in the fear of the Lord. So to help with that, we're going to start with Proverbs chapter 1, verses 29 through 33. Now, one disclaimer: we are going to be absolutely everywhere over the Proverbs today. So if you like to jot down every reference, you will be frustrated. Uh so just full warning there, there's going to be a lot. But Proverbs 1, 29 through 33, let me read it. It says, Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the Lord. Now remember, if you were there with us last week, we talked about Proverbs 1, 1 through 7 and how the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. So now there's this contrast, there's wisdom being ignored, and there's fools who are, in fact, despising wisdom and knowledge. And that's what's being commented here in verse 29, because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the Lord, would have none of my counsel and despised all of my reproof or all of my correction. Therefore, what's going to happen to these people? What's their future? They shall eat the fruit of their way and have their fill of their own devices. Their own foolishness is going to lead them towards a very specific kind of life, a destructive life because of their lack of wisdom, their lack of knowledge, because they despise it, they reject it, and they're going to eat the fruit of their way. They're going to reap what they sow. That's what's at stake here. And they're going to have their fill of their own devices. For the simple, which is just another word for those who are foolish, are killed by their turning away. They're killed by a death of a thousand foolish cuts that are going to plague their life because of their rejection of biblical wisdom that's grounded in the fear of the Lord. The simple are killed by their turning away. And the complacency of fools, their unwillingness to pursue true biblical wisdom, destroys them, it says. But whoever listens to me, the cry of wisdom, will dwell secure and will be at ease without dread of disaster. And this is how Proverbs speaks of those who refuse to pursue biblical wisdom, actual wisdom, not life experience, not observations about patterns of the world, actual biblical wisdom that's grounded in the fear of the Lord. Those who refuse to submit to that, it says here, they're going to eat the fruit of their way,

What Biblical Wisdom Really Means

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they're going to have the fill of their own devices, they're going to be killed by turning away, and the complacency of fools is going to destroy them. Do you hear this? Do you see this? This is what we're talking about, which is, by the way, why today is a negative sermon. Because I want you to see positively what will happen in a negative way to your life. Whoever listens to me, to wisdom, will dwell secure and will be at ease. So I want to just give you one point that I want to flush out in eight different ways this morning. But point number one, or the only point, see the necessity of pursuing and gaining wisdom. I want you to feel in the depths of your soul the need for wisdom. And I want you to feel it according to the way that the Proverbs presents it. Now, as we pursue wisdom, as we understand the necessity of wisdom, we need to remember the definition of wisdom that we established last week. Wisdom is skilled living in God's created order. Wisdom is knowing how God created the world and knowing how to live in the world that God created it in the way that He intends. That's what skill is. That's what wisdom is. It's skilled living in God's created order. Now hear me on this. A lack of biblical wisdom that's grounded in the fear of the Lord can and will destroy your life in a thousand different ways. Because the complacency of fools destroys them. Living in God's ordered world without the proper skill and knowledge always leads to destruction. Whether that's temporal destruction, meaning again, death by a thousand foolish cuts, and your life is miserable because of your own foolishness, or eternally because you reject God, you reject Christ, you reject the gospel, uh, either direction, a lack of wisdom, a lack of fear of the Lord, a lack of skilled living in God's created order always leads to destruction. I want you to feel that. I want you to understand that. It's like driving the wrong way on a one-way street. You've been there, seeing all the cars coming your way, and you're thinking to yourself, how did I get here? It's like driving the wrong way on a one-way street. It's like flying a plane without any formal training. It's like uh some of you people who moved here from out of state that can't drive in the snow, right? Like you don't know what you're doing. It's scary out there on the streets. I mean, it didn't snow this last year very much, but thankfully it's it's going to lead to destruction. Now, here's where we're going to begin going all over the Proverbs. So buckle up and come with

A Fool’s Life Collapses Suddenly

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me. Uh let's turn here. Proverbs chapter 6, verses 12 through 15. Let's start with this. I want you to see how the Proverbs talks about those who lack wisdom, those who are fools. Proverbs 6, verses 12 through 15. Remember, a lack of wisdom can destroy your life in a thousand different ways. I'm here to prove that this morning. Proverbs 6, verse 12. A worthless person, a wicked man goes about with crooked speech. By the way, these are just sort of synonyms for fools, right? A worthless person, a wicked man, those who reject the fear of the Lord, goes about with crooked speech, winks with his eyes, signals with his feet, points with his finger, with perverted heart, devises evil, continually sowing discord. Here's what's going to happen. Do you see it there in verse 15? Therefore, calamity will come upon him suddenly. In a moment, he will be broken beyond healing. The person who lacks wisdom, the person who gives themself over to folly, who rejects the fear of the Lord, a wicked man, those who are perverted in their heart, devising evil, continually sowing discord, calamity will come upon him suddenly. In a moment, he will be broken beyond healing. Even Proverbs 10 21 says, The lips of the righteous feed many. That's a positive thing. But fools die for lack of sense. Fools ruin their lives and the lives of those around them because they lack sense, because they lack the fear of the Lord. Proverbs 17, 12. Let a man meet a she-bear robbed by her of her cubs, rather than a fool in his folly. It's better for you to go out there in the wilderness and to stumble upon a mother bear who's just been robbed of her cubs than to be around a fool in his this is this is what the Bible says. Then to be around a fool in his folly. Do you believe that? It's better to go into the woods and get mauled by a grizzly than to be around someone who is a fool. This is what the Bible says. Let a man meet a she bear robbed of her cubs rather than a fool in his folly. Why? Because they're destructive and they can destroy their life and your life in a thousand different ways. Without wisdom, our lives can be broken, ruined, and destroyed. And the so-called wisdom of this world, the wisdom of the age, always leads, always leads to destruction and ruin in some in some shape, form, or fashion. And I want you this morning to have wisdom that is, we can say Proverbs 1, is indestructible. The complacency of fools destroys them. But I want you to have wisdom that's indestructible because it's timeless, it's true, it's from God Himself. I want you to have wisdom that doesn't change with the shifting sands of culture. I want you to have wisdom that ultimately leads to life. Here, we're going to begin our tour de fool. Are you ready? I want you to see all of the different ways, eight ways that you can destroy your life with lacking wisdom.

Foolishness Ruins Your Reputation

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Here's the first one. It's not on the screen, so you're gonna have to stay with me. Tarnished reputation. You could have a tarnished reputation because of your unwillingness to pursue the fear of the Lord that leads to wisdom. This is what Proverbs 22:1 says. A good name, a good reputation is to be chosen rather than great riches. This is something that's valuable, that's precious, and favor is better than silver or gold. A good name is something that is precious. Now, the opposite, of course, is true because a good name is precious, and because you get a good name by following the way of the Lord and pursuing the wisdom of the Lord through the fear of the Lord, a lack of wisdom will lead you to have a poor name, a poor reputation, and you will tarnish the reputation that you have with your neighbors, with your family, with your church. A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches. Now, if you give yourself over to this, what are you going to lose? If you give yourself over to foolishness that leads to a tarnished reputation, what are you going to lose? I mean, very practically, I would say you're going to lose out on, let's say, even job opportunities. Uh, it in being a pastor, one of the things that I get asked to do frequently is to be a reference for people who are applying for jobs, who are applying for positions. And do you know what? It's not infrequent for me to fill out a reference form and say, I do not recommend this person for this job. It's not infrequent because of the reputation that I know. I look at the job description, I look at the qualifications, I look at what they're looking for, and I ask myself, can I with integrity put my name next to this person's reputation in this position, in this line of work, in this business? Can I do that with sincerity? And with those who don't have a good reputation, they lose out, at least in my book, on an opportunity because I'm not saying yes to them and I'm not recommending them to some company that's looking for a specific character-qualified individual. You lose out on opportunities. That's you even lose out on influence. No one is coming to a fool for advice unless they themselves are a fool. And in that sense, you better go to the woods and get mauled by a bear because it's it's not gonna be good. If you want to have meaningful influence, even on your children, on your spouse, on your coworkers, on your neighbors, if you want people to be encouraged by you, you gotta have biblical wisdom. And if you don't, you're gonna lose out on an opportunity to be an influence. No one's asking you for marriage advice when they're looking at your marriage and the disaster that it is, right? No one's asking how you how you parent your kids. And when they don't listen and obey and they run wild and you're not parenting them, you're gonna lose out on influence. You're gonna lose out on opportunities. I would say you would even lose out relationally. Think about just very practically. This may feel petty, but I want you to feel it down to the bottom level. You may not get invited to the next Fourth of July gathering because you're a fool and nobody wants to be around a fool. They they line up the the grizzlies before that. You're gonna you're gonna lose out on relationships, right? Because of the things that you say or the ways that you live your life or the decisions that you make that that bring harm. You're gonna lose out on that because of your reputation if you give yourself over to foolishness. You're even gonna lose out on something as practical as being recognized, being praised. The job promotion at work, it's not gonna be yours. Uh the appreciation that's expressed for character, uh, for intentionality, for uh accomplishments, it's not gonna be yours. Right? And we we don't pursue those things as an in and of themselves, but we give honor to whom honor is due. And a fool is not due honor. You're gonna lose out on that because of a reputation. So remember, this is the the tour to fool, and I want you to see it. I want you to see the future, the ghost of future past, and see what's happening if you lack wisdom. Proverbs 3, 3, and 4 says that this is what we are to give ourselves to. Let not steadfast love and faithfulness forsake you. You are, as a wise person, to bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. And in so doing, here's the result: you will find favor and good success in the sight of God and man. Did you see that? You will find favor and good success in the sight of first and foremost, God Himself, that's the most important, but also your fellow man. If you have wisdom, the steadfast love as it's defined here, and faithfulness, if you bind them around your neck, if you grow in the fear of the Lord, if you write them on the tablet of your heart, that's very Deuteronomy language, by the way. So you will find favor and good success in the sight of God and man. And the opposite is true. If you do not have steadfast love, if you are not known to be faithful, if your reputate, if your reputation precedes you in a negative way, you lose out on the favor, both in the sight of God, which is primary, but also in the sight of man. This is how later on in chapter 3, Proverbs 3:35 says, the wise will inherit honor. But fools, you know what they get? Disgrace. The wise inherit honor. They're worthy of our praise in that sense. We give honor to them, to whom honor is due, but fools get disgrace. I want you to see that if you lack biblical wisdom, you run the risk of having a tarnished reputation that leads to a lot of problems. A lack of wisdom can destroy your life in a thousand different

Foolishness Breaks Relationships

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ways. Here's the second category of foolishness in this tour that we're taking. I would say destroyed relationships. Now we've already kind of mentioned that. You're not getting the invites, no one's asking you to come over, no one's inviting you to the lake on the boat, no one wants you around. And destroyed relationships is one of the things that can happen to a fool. Proverbs 13 20 says, Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise. But the companion of fools will suffer harm. The companion of someone who is foolish, Proverbs says, will suffer harm. And if we're honest, we always like to think of ourselves as the ones who are suffering harm. We like to think of ourselves as the ones who are with the fool, who are being harmed by the fool, but we have just as much ability. If we lack wisdom, we could be the fool inflicting the harm and destroying relationships in the process. In fact, this is what Proverbs 22, 24 says: make no friendship with a man given to anger. Now, other places in Proverbs, it makes the connection that those who are angry are foolish. And so it's saying, make no friendship with a man given to anger. Nobody wants to be around an angry person. Nobody wants that. Anger is a destructive wildfire. It sets everything around it ablaze. And the in the Proverbs, in no uncertain terms, in a very pointed way, says, make no friendship with a man given to anger, nor go with the wrathful man, because the companion of fools will suffer harm. That's gonna be your reality if you reject biblical wisdom. Proverbs 20, verse 3. It is an honor for a man to keep aloof from strife or conflict, but every fool will be quarreling. This is gonna cause all kinds of problems in your relationships, in your marriage, with your kids, with your friends. It is an honor for a man to keep aloof from strife, but every fool will be quarreling. Proverbs 11:9. With his mouth, the godless man would destroy his neighbor. But by knowledge, the righteous are delivered. Do you see the relational connection here between foolishness and destructive relationships? With his mouth, the godless man would destroy his neighbor. Now I know some of you want to destroy your neighbors, but this is not something that we ought to pursue. With his mouth, the godless man destroys his neighbors, but by knowledge the righteous are delivered. So how do you destroy relationships? Well, the Proverbs say you destroy them by being given over to foolish anger. You destroy them by being careless with your words, slandering and gossiping. You destroy them by arguing and quarreling. Fools destroy relationships. Fools burn bridges. Fools make relationships strained. That's going to be your reality if you do not fear the Lord and increase in wisdom as a result. You need wisdom because a lack of wisdom can destroy your life in a thousand different ways. Here's the third

Reckless Choices Lead To Death

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way. This is perhaps the one that we think of most often poor decision making. When you think about all the decisions that you make, even on a daily basis, if you lack true biblical wisdom, your life is going to be a disaster, a train wreck. This is what the scripture says. Proverbs 14:12, perhaps a more familiar proverb for some of you. There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death. There is a way that seems right. There is a way in our own flesh, in our own wisdom, in our own knowledge that seems right. According to the Proverbs, it its end is the way to death. Now, again, think of that in two categories, temporal and eternal. There's a way where you can, your life, you can experience almost a living death in this life because of the foolishness that you give yourself to. But even more uh importantly than that, an eternal death by being separated from Christ because of your rejection of the gospel. The Bible says, a fool says in his heart, there is no God. And according to Proverbs 14, 12, there is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death. It leads to destruction. Proverbs 14, 16. One who is wise is cautious. There's thoughts and decisions, there is counting the cost, there's strategizing. The one who is wise is cautious and turns away from evil. But a fool is reckless and careless. This one I know you'll love, Proverbs 26, 11, like a dog that returns to his vomit, is a fool who repeats his folly. And that's the risk that we run. Again, when we're not growing in true biblical wisdom, skilled living in God's created order, we run the risk of being like a dog that returns to his vomit. That is disgusting. That's how we ought to feel. I don't want to be like that. A fool is like that, that just continues to make dumb decision after dumb decision because they won't listen and heed the counsel of God's word. Remember last week we talked about how do we grow in wisdom through sharpening our listening, hear, hearing the word of God, submitting to it, being humble before it. If we don't do that, we're going to be like a dog that returns to his vomit. Is a they're a fool who repeats their folly. Proverbs 12 11. Even thinking about practically work and things like that. Whoever works his land will have plenty of bread. But he who follows worthless pursuits, he who can't tell the difference between a meaningful pursuit. And a worthless pursuit, it says lacks sense. He who follows worthless pursuits lacks sense. And it'll lead you in your decision making to destroy your life in a thousand different ways. So a fool is someone who makes decisions without thinking it through or seeking counsel. A fool is someone that makes the same bad decision again and again and again and again, like a dog returning to its vomit. A fool is someone who makes decisions without any regard for how it will impact those around them. They're careless. And a fool is someone that makes decisions to pursue things that are ultimately a waste of time. They can't tell the difference. Their decisions are steeped in foolishness. And a fool makes decisions to pursue things that are ultimately a waste of time. This is a result that can come from rejecting biblical wisdom that's rooted in the fear of the Lord. Here's the next category, maybe another obvious one. You

Financial Ruin Through Bad Stewardship

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could experience financial ruin if you lack biblical sense, if you lack biblical wisdom. You could experience poverty and financial ruin as a result of being a poor steward, not submitting to God's word, and not handling what God has given you appropriately. Here's what Proverbs 15:6 says. In the house of the righteous, there is much treasure. There's a storing up, there's a plan and a purpose and a strategy. But trouble befalls the income of the wicked. Why? Because of wasteful, frivolous spending, of lacking sense to steward the income that God has given you. And that's going to lead to all kinds of problems. Proverbs 21:20. Precious treasure and oil are in a wise man's dwelling. But a foolish man devours it. A foolish man doesn't know how to handle the precious things that God has given them. A foolish man and woman doesn't know how to spend, doesn't know how to save, doesn't know how to plan appropriately with the things, the possessions and the money that God gives them, as is a foolish man just devours it. You know what I'm talking about. You've either experienced that, you are experiencing that, or you know people that have. Even Proverbs 6, 10 and 11, it talks about a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, a fool that's lazy, poverty will come upon you like a robber, and want like an armed man. There's a sense in which if you lack biblical wisdom, want, as it says in Proverbs 6:11, the desires for things or even the need for things will come upon you like an armed man. This is a desperate scenario because resources have been wasted, finances have not been stewarded, and destruction can come as a result. Proverbs 10:4, a slack hand, someone who's lazy, causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich. Proverbs 22:7, the rich rules over the poor, and the borrower is the slave of the lender. So how can you experience financial ruin by lacking biblical wisdom or good sense, prudence? Well, you could experience it by purchasing things that you can't afford and taking on debt and being a slave to the lender. Now, somewhere in Tennessee, Dave Ramsey just smiled because he he felt that coming. Purchasing things that you can't afford, taking on debt, being a slave to the lender, being lazy, a poor work ethic, not being diligent and not stewarding the resources that God has given you, not saving and not spending wisely, it'll lead you to financial ruin. And you know this. You've experienced this. When you're frivolous with your money, when you make impulse buys, when you take on debt, when you're when you're doing all of these things, you can ruin your financial life. By the way, just part of my heart, as a pastor, I've been in so many meetings with marriages where they're they're desperate. They're like the the armed robber, kind of desperate, because of their lack of stewarding what God has given. And they're in dire straits because of their foolishness and it led to financial ruin. Don't don't do that. You need wisdom. You need wisdom that's rooted in the fear of the Lord. Do you have those people in your life? Uh I know I do, that seem to always have problems with money. There's certain people in my life that I feel like I have the same conversation again and again and again. It's almost like a dog returning to its vomit. I heard that somewhere. The same conversation again and again and again. Why did you buy that? You don't have money. Well, you know, I thought, what are you doing? Like you're you're constantly in the same position, if not worse, because you do the same thing over and over and over and over again. You won't listen, you won't heed the counsel of God's word. And it can lead to something as practical as financial ruin.

Words That Stir Anger And Pain

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Here's the next category: it can lead both for yourself and for others to emotional distress. It can lead to uh for you to experience it, for you to inflict it, emotional distress. This is what I think of uh Proverbs 14, 3. By the mouth of a fool comes a rod for his back. I love how that's put. The mouth of a fool comes a rod. Yes, it's gonna harm others, but it's also gonna harm you, yourself. You can harm yourself. That's the whole thing. The mouth of a fool comes a rod for his back, but the lips of the wise will preserve them. You could lead to emotional distress as a result of your foolishness with your words. Proverbs 15, verses 1 and 2 says, A soft answer, someone that is wise and intentional and measured with their words. A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger. The tongue of the wise commands knowledge, with the mouths of fools pour out folly. Again and again and again and again. A gentle tongue, a wise tongue is a tree of life, but perverseness in it, here's the the key phrase, breaks the spirit. Foolishness, perverseness of tongue. A gentle tongue is a tree of life. It leads to flourishing and encouragement, but a perverse tongue, a foolish tongue breaks the spirit. You know those people. Every conversation, you walk away and you just feel heavy, you feel discouraged because of Proverbs 15:4. Perverseness breaks the spirit. Death and life are in the power of the tongue. You recognize that there can be even emotional distress that you feel because of your own foolish words, or that you inflict on others, or that you feel because of other foolish words. That is a reality that you can experience if you lack biblical wisdom. Here's the next category.

Why The Simple Believe Everything

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You can be easily deceived. You will lack the ability to distinguish between truth and lies. I mean, this is all over the scriptures, but we're we're just staying in the Proverbs today. You can be easily deceived. Proverbs 121 says, How long, O simple ones, will you love being simple? How long will you continue to be deceived? How long will you continue to reject biblical knowledge? How long will the scoffers delight in their scoffing and fools hate knowledge? Do you hear the the the inability or maybe the unwillingness to heed actual truth, to distinguish actual truth? How long, O simple ones, will you love being simple? How long is this going to continue? Even Proverbs 14, 15. The simple believes everything. The simple believes every decision that they make is gonna strike gold. The simple believes every financial decision, every financial investment is gonna hit big. The simple believes everything, every foolish thing. But the prudent gives thought to his steps. The prudent slows down and says, whoa, whoa, whoa, let's think about this. What are the ramifications of this? We don't want to be careless, we don't want to be given to worthless pursuits, as it says other places in Proverbs. The simple believes everything. There's an inability to distinguish. They believe everything, but the prudent gives thoughts to his steps. Even Proverbs 28, 26, whoever trusts in his own mind is a fool, but he who walks in wisdom will be delivered. Whoever trusts in his own mind, because our minds are so filled even with deception. That's why Paul says in Romans 12 that we are to be transformed by the renewal of our minds. Whoever trusts in his own mind, his own decision-making, his own wisdom is a fool. But he who walks in wisdom will be delivered. All right, here's the next category.

Prone To Sin Through Proximity

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If you lack biblical wisdom, you will be prone to sin. This is what the scripture says. If you lack true biblical wisdom, you will be prone, easily given over to sin. If you're in the Proverbs, go to Proverbs chapter 7. I want you to read this with me. Proverbs 7, verses 6 through 9. This is a famous proverb. This is a proverb of a son that's being spoken to and of by his father that is giving warnings concerning the adulterous woman, giving warnings about how he used to flee the adulterous woman. This is what we see in Proverbs 7, verse 6. So the father speaking, for at the window of my house I've looked out through my lattice, and I have seen among the simple, among those who are foolish, I have perceived among the youths a young man lacking sense, passing along the street near her corner, taking the road to her house in the twilight, in the evening, at the time of night and darkness. If you keep reading in Proverbs 7, you recognize that this young man gets ensnared by lust. And the father says, This young man, my son, lacks sense. I perceived among the simple, I perceived among the youth, a young man lacking sense. And you see what he does? This young man who knows that he's tempted by the adulterous woman, uh, adultery being personified. It says, What does he do? He passes along the street near her corner. You know how many conversations I've had with people that have a specific temptation towards sin and yet always seem to be in direct proximity to the very thing that they struggle with and are tempted by? And then they are always surprised when they give in to the temptation and they sin. Whoa, whoa, whoa! Where'd that come from? You were passing along the street near her corner. You were taking the road to her house. I mean, what did you expect? You're gonna be so prone to sin. In the twilight, in the evening, at the time of night and darkness, this young man lacks sense. He was in close proximity to the very thing that tempted him, and the very thing ultimately that his heart desired, and he just fell into it like a dog returning to his vomit again and again and again. He lacked sense. He lacked wisdom. And the same can be true for you. Those sin struggles that you have in your life. If you lack biblical wisdom, you're gonna be proverbially passing along the street near the corner of that temptation and that sin. You're gonna be on the road to the house, and you're always somehow gonna be surprised when it jumps out from the street corner and grabs you. And you want it, you desire it. In the twilight in the evening at the time of night and darkness, if you lack wisdom, you are going to be so prone to sin. That could be your reality, that will be your reality. And this is why, again and again, we are urged in the scriptures to plead to the Lord for wisdom, to go and to ask. By the way, as we talked about last week, the good news is that God will give you wisdom. If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, and he will give generously without reproach. That's what James tells us. That's what we see in the scriptures. So if we're not biblically wise, we will be more prone to sin. Here's another category, which is a bigger one.

Spiritual Drift And Final Warning

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Uh I'm just I put it as spiritual destruction. Spiritual destruction. Your Christian walk can be significantly hindered if you refuse to grow in wisdom through the fear of the Lord. Now, if you have a genuine relationship with Christ, you can't be spiritually destroyed in an ultimate sense. You have security in Christ. That's fixed. But certainly your experience, this side of heaven, can be altered. You can experience like a kind of living death in your even walk with the Lord because of your foolishness. Wisdom, as we talked about last week, begins with the fear of the Lord. Knowing the character of God, knowing who God is, and responding appropriately with reverence and trust and worship and obedience. That's the fear of the Lord. Wisdom begins with the fear of the Lord. The fool is someone who rejects wisdom because they reject ultimately the source of wisdom. That's God Himself. If you want to live a spiritually vibrant life, it's going to require wisdom. One of the ways I like to talk about that is wisdom, think about this with me, is the substance of sanctification. And what I mean by that is as you think about sanctification, kind of growing in the Lord, there are things that tangibly happen in your life. I mean, there's words for it in Galatians 5, the fruit of the Spirit. There's something that's being produced by being sanctified, being greater conformed into the image of Christ. Now, wisdom, as a part of that, is one of the substances of sanctification. It's an indicator that you're growing in the fear of the Lord because you're growing in the knowledge of Christ and his word. And if you don't do that, you will be living a spiritual life that can even, even if you genuinely are saved, lead to a kind of spiritual destruction. Wisdom begins with the fear of the Lord. The fool rejects wisdom because the fool rejects ultimately the source of wisdom, God Himself. We started with Proverbs 1, 29 through 33. Go back there if you've got your Bibles. Why do they do that? Well, because they hated knowledge. They did not choose the fear of the Lord. They did not rightly understand who God is, and they did not rightly respond with reverence, worship, trust, and obedience. Because they hated knowledge. Fools despise wisdom and instruction. They would have none of my counsel. They would not listen. They didn't have, they won't have anything to do with what I had to say. This author is saying, they would have none of my counsel. They despised all my reproof, my correction. Remember the things that we talked about last week, the the sort of essential ingredient ingredients of listening? Humility. You need humility to listen well. This is what happens when you're puffed up with pride. Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the Lord, they would have none of my counsel. They would not listen. They would not humble themselves. They despised all my correction. What's the result? They shall eat the fruit of their way. And that's the reality for you. If you despise biblical wisdom, you will inevitably eat the fruit of your way. I just gave you eight ways. I mean, there's a thousand. But I wanted you to feel that sense of, hey, my life really can be ruined from relationships to finances, parenting, marriage. I mean, all of it can be ruined if you are not pursuing wisdom that's grounded in the fear of the Lord. Therefore, they shall eat the fruit of their way, verse 31, and have their fill of their own devices. You reap what you sow, you pursue folly, you pursue the wisdom of the world. You're gonna eat the fruit of your way. You're gonna have your fill of your own devices. For the simple are killed by their turning away, when the complacency of fools destroys them. But here's the here's the the good news and all of that negative news. Whoever listens to me, the Bible says, will dwell secure and will be at ease without dread of disaster. Those are the two paths in front of you this morning. I want you to recognize that if you give yourself over to the way of the world, to foolishness, you will eat the fruit of your way, you will have the fill of your own devices. Verse 32 the simple are killed by their turning away, and the complacency of fools destroys them. But the other option is if you listen, if you grow in the fear of the Lord, whoever listens to me will dwell secure and will be at ease without dread of disaster. You need wisdom. You need biblical wisdom, not the wisdom of the world, not the wisdom of the age. You need wisdom that's grounded in the fear of the Lord. And if you lack wisdom, your life can be destroyed in a thousand different ways. Let's

Two Paths And Closing Prayer

SPEAKER_00 41:26

pray together. God, thank you for the warning that we see all throughout the Proverbs. God, this is a topic that is not without practical application. It certainly is a topic that gives us great warning, God. If we are not growing in wisdom, if we're not properly pursuing wisdom, we can see ruin come in our lives. If we're lazy, if we're careless with our words, if we're given over to anger, if we don't properly steward our money, I mean there's just so many things that can happen in our life as a result of our rejection of living in the world the way that you have told us. So, God, would you help us? Would you help us as a church to grow? Wisdom is skilled living in your created order. Would you help us with that? Would you help us to live a skillful, godly life? And as a result, would we be like the people that are talked about in Psalm 1 that are blessed, that are like trees planted by rivers of water that yield their fruit in their season? And all we do, we prosper, and our leaf does not wither. And I pray that you would help us to do that. You would help us to become that, that we would grow in wisdom as a church through the fear of the Lord, I pray. In Jesus' name, amen.