One Nation Under...?

“One Nation Under ...?”

July 3, 2011 FBC Chester, IL Dr. Fogerson, Speaker

Introduction:

A Ask not what your country can do for you, but you can do for your country; We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal and are endowed by the their Creator with certain inalienable rights that among them are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness; I am not a crook; No new taxes.

1 We love sound bits. (Short quips of information, advice or instruction. They are easy to remember, retell)

a They are small nuggets of truth and that is exactly what the book of Proverbs is.

aa 31 chapters of divine sound bites.

bb We are going to focus on Proverbs 14.34, but I want to unlock & unpack some teaching first.

b The Rosetta Stone, or Key that unlocks our understanding of Proverbs is found in 1.7, “The fear of the Lord is beginning of knowledge; but fools despise wisdom & instruction.”

aa The fool is not mentally deficiant, he/she just believes they can have knowledge, wisdom, & instruction outside of God!

bb This key is amplified in 9.10, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” (Fear of the Lord is referred to some 18 x’s in Proverbs alone)

cc “We have nothing to fear, but fear itself”: We know “fear” isn’t one of our favorite words!

dd We cast out the Spirit of Fear, not been given a spirit of “fear”

c In the Old Testament “fear” can describe dread (Deut. 1.29), trembling, dread that paralyzes action, terrified (Jonah 1.10), standing in awe (1 Kings 3.28), or having reverence (Lev. 19.3).

aa It is a paralyzing and compelling fear that draws us forward.

bb Dichotomy. We don’t want to leave, move.

d We love Him so much we will humbly bend ourselves to His what He says.

aa His discipline is so bitter and His love is so sweet we just want to please Him.

bb The danger of our weakness, temptations makes us watchful and fearful.

2 It is not the fear I have of the dark, falling prey to the Mo-Mo Monster, Boggy Creek Monster, Sasquatch.

a Carry enough flashlights & weaponry in the woods I look like Optimus Prime coming through the woods.

b The fear we are to have of the Lord is not that fear.

3 Wednesday night after church, the boys & went out to do some bowfishing, armed w/ a n 8 D Maglight, two small bows w/ fishing arrows attached. (Fishing from a metal bridge on the backside of Turkey Bluff, popular place for kids to drive & run the back roads.)

a Every 15 minutes or so a car would come flying by and we’d hug the rail.

b After we’d been there about an hour a group of about 7 cars comes through and the last is shooting Roman Candles out of the passenger side window.

aa As they come around the corner I flash my light @ them, they see me and shoot their last ball of fire in another direction, “Sorry.”

bb My boys asked the parade of adolescents and told them of the dangers of gravel roads.

cc Why? Did you do that, dad? Did you shoot fireworks from your car? Did you get in trouble? Not yet. Will we do that, too?

c I had a fear of having to call my ol’man to come out to the country pull my sorry tail out of the ditch or a muddy field.

aa My dad would hurt me.

bb I didn’t want to hurt my dad (Disappoint, let him down, embarrass him, hurt his feelings, bring him shame.)

cc “I can’t hurt my parents.” There’s not a parent on the planet who would agree you, kid.

4 If we “fear the Lord” . . .

a We acknowledge Him as Creator and we’re the creatures.

aa He is the Father and we are the children.

bb He is the Master and we are the servants.

b If we fear the Lord we will respect God for who He is ...

aa Listen to what He says.

bb Obey His Word, knowing our disobedience displeases Him, breaks fellowship and invites correction, discipline.

cc Prov.13.13, “The one who despises the word will be in debt to it, But the one who fears the commandment will be rewarded.”

c The way we treat the Bible is the way we treat God.

aa Leave it in the car, on the counter, backseat, under bills/mail.

bb Just a thought!

B The key to understanding Proverbs is “fearing” the Lord is the starting point from gaining an intimate knowledge of Him.

1 If we do not “fear” Him . . . it doesn’t matter who is in the White House, controls the Senate/house, sitting on the Supreme Court, in charge of the FED.