Rich, Rude & Foolish
September 25, 2011 Evening Service
Immanuel Baptist Church, Wagoner, OK
Rick Boyne
Message Point: We should always treat others with kindness and respect.
Focus Passage: I Samuel 25:1-13
Supplemental Passage: Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. (Philippians 2:3-4 NASB)
Introduction: Seatbelts can be a hassle. Some people just don’t want to be bothered even when the law requires them to buckle up. According to the Associated Press, a New Zealander named Ivan Segedin took it to an extreme.
The police ticketed him 32 times over five years for failing to use his seat belt. Even though this was costing him big money, Segedin refused to buckle up. Finally, instead of obeying the law, the man decided to rely on deception. He made a fake seat belt that would hang over his shoulder and make it appear that he was wearing a seat belt when he was not.
His trick worked for a while. Then, he had a head-on collision. He was thrown forward onto the steering wheel and killed.
Discussing the accident, the coroner described the fake seat belt: "Though his car was fitted with seat belts, an extra belt with a long strap had been knotted above the seat belt on the driver’s side, providing a belt to simply sit over the driver’s shoulder."
[Source: Craig Brian Larson, "Fake seat belt to fool police causes death of New Zealand driver," The Associated Press (2-22-08) From a sermon by Stephen Collins, "A Deadly Game")
I. Worldly Rich
a. Nabal was blessed with riches, but not grace or wisdom
b. Being wealthy doesn’t make you better than others
c. Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries which are coming upon you. Your riches have rotted and your garments have become moth-eaten. Your gold and your silver have rusted; and their rust will be a witness against you and will consume your flesh like fire. It is in the last days that you have stored up your treasure! Behold, the pay of the laborers who mowed your fields, and which has been withheld by you, cries out against you; and the outcry of those who did the harvesting has reached the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth. You have lived luxuriously on the earth and led a life of wanton pleasure; you have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter. You have condemned and put to death the righteous man; he does not resist you. (James 5:1-6 NASB)
II. Arrogantly Contempt
a. Nabal treated David with cruel words and wouldn’t give his men a portion for protecting his shepherds.
b. Being wealthy is no excuse to treat others roughly.
c. No one who has a haughty look and an arrogant heart will I endure. (Psalms 101:5b NASB)
III. Spiritually Dead
a. Nabal didn’t know his rudeness would mean his death
b. These are the men who are hidden reefs in your love feasts when they feast with you without fear, caring for themselves; clouds without water, carried along by winds; autumn trees without fruit, doubly dead, uprooted; wild waves of the sea, casting up their own shame like foam; wandering stars, for whom the black darkness has been reserved forever. (Jude 1:12-13 NASB)
Invitation: Who are you treating roughly? To whom are you less than kind? Confess and repent. Ask forgiveness and seek reconciliation.
