The Key to a Fulfilling Life
Proverbs 1:20-33
Instructions are not always for the wise, or smart, or even reasonable.
My nine favorite instructions are as follows:
On Sears hair dryer: Do not use while sleeping.
On a bag of Fritos: You could be a winner! No purchase necessary. Details inside.
On Marks and Spencer Bread Pudding: Product will be hot after heating.
On packaging for a Rowenta iron: Do not iron clothes on body.
On Nytol Sleep Aid: Warning: May cause drowsiness.
On some brands of Christmas lights: For indoor or outdoor use only.
On a child's Superman costume: Wearing of this garment does not enable you to fly.
In a microwave oven manual: Do not use for drying pets.
On a package of almonds: May contain some nut products.
The scary thing about these warning is that there is some reason they were written.
The key to a fulfilling life in Proverbs contains some warnings and some promises. Before we begin, I want to address one thing that we must remember throughout.
Wisdom is not obtained by simple human effort alone.
I. The Desire for Wisdom.
Pro 1:20-21 Wisdom cries aloud in the street, in the markets she raises her voice; 21 at the head of the noisy streets she cries out; at the entrance of the city gates she speaks:
Proverbs will reveal to us that there are different calls from the world, the street, the market and the gates. The voices are loud and many.
There are voices calling from every direction (expound): Lust, drugs and alcohol to stop the pain, following the crowd, gain power, achieve value and significance in the eyes of others, valuing man above God (Romans 1).
Yet, He promises that if one wants wisdom, to know God's way, God's voice can be heard anywhere and every where.
II. The Resistance to Wisdom.
Pro 1:22-23 "How long, O simple ones, will you love being simple? How long will scoffers delight in their scoffing and fools hate knowledge? 23 If you turn at my reproof, behold, I will pour out my spirit to you; I will make my words known to you.
Why would one desire to remain simple? Why would one be content to be a scoffer and a fool? What joy is there in resisting wisdom? The simple, yet profound, answer is "pride".
"It is much easier for a person to remain where they are than to change. Water that does not move becomes stagnant and begins to smell. Where there is no growth there is decay. Muscles of the body – if they are not used will decline in power and in strength. Spiritual growth is to be our constant goal. Wisdom offers the opportunity to grow." Tom Shepard.
To some, being a simple scoffer and fool is preferred to ever admitting error. Pro 9:8 "Do not reprove a scoffer, or he will hate you; reprove a wise man, and he will love you." Pro 15:32 "Whoever ignores instruction despises himself, but he who listens to reproof gains intelligence."
You see, Proverbs 21:2 says, "Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the LORD weighs the heart." We justify our actions. God does not buy our justifications, but instead calls for repentance and correction.
We have to be teachable. Proverbs 12:1 says, "Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but he who hates reproof is stupid." That is why wisdom cries, "turn at my reproof, behold, I will pour out my spirit to you; I will make my words known to you."
Verse 23 reminds us that it does take effort to grow. We must turn. Turn means to repent. 2Ch 7:14 "...if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land."
III. The Results of Foolishness.
Pro 1:24-28 Because I have called and you refused to listen, have stretched out my hand and no one has heeded, 25 because you have ignored all my counsel and would have none of my reproof, 26 I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when terror strikes you, 27 when terror strikes you like a storm and your calamity comes like a whirlwind, when distress and anguish come upon you. 28 Then they will call upon me, but I will not answer; they will seek me diligently but will not find me.
First, if we are resistant to God's correction, we invite calamity. I used to believe that calamity meant comedy, at least for others. However, it means disaster, misfortune, and tragedy. But somebody is laughing.
I hate being the butt of a joke. Yet, when I resist God's correction, turn from His way and wisdom, I am the butt of a joke that goes throughout all of His creation. I hate being that.
Wisdom will laugh at our disaster. This is a way of saying there is no help from God for those who refuse to learn.
Secondly, if you resist wisdom, you invite fear. Wisdom says she will mock your terror.
When I pull away from God, and I have in the past, I wake up in the night terrified. I don't remember dreaming a nightmare. But it seemed that the darkness of the very room was filled with evil and pressing upon my fear. Those are called night terrors.
Listen to that compared to Psalms 91:5-7, "You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day, 6 nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness, nor the destruction that wastes at noonday. 7 A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you."
When I am seeking to please God in my life, I am free from night terrors. I am more free from fears in general.
Third, we have to take note that wisdom is best learned before tragedy and fear strikes. Vs. 27-28 "when terror strikes you like a storm and your calamity comes like a whirlwind, when distress and anguish come upon you. 28 Then they will call upon me, but I will not answer; they will seek me diligently but will not find me.
To me, nothing is scarier than a silent God in time of need. We have had two friends recently talking about the terror of hearing only silence from God in their lives.
Isa 55:6-7 "Seek the LORD while he may be found; call upon him while he is near; 7 let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the LORD, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.
IV. The Reward for Foolishness
Pro 1:29-32 Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the LORD, 30 would have none of my counsel and despised all my reproof, 31 therefore they shall eat the fruit of their way, and have their fill of their own devices. 32 For the simple are killed by their turning away, and the complacency of fools destroys them;
The wise father tells his children the exacting results of turning away from God's way and rejecting wisdom. What kills the simple and destroys the fools? Their very choices and actions.
First, you reap what you sow. "You eat of the fruit of your way and have your fill of your own devices." Eugene Peterson interprets this like this: "Well, you've made your bed—now lie in it; you wanted your own way—now, how do you like it?"
Pro 11:5-6,8 "The righteousness of the blameless keeps his way straight, but the wicked falls by his own wickedness. 6 The righteousness of the upright delivers them, but the treacherous are taken captive by their lust....8 The righteous is delivered from trouble, and the wicked walks into it instead."
The foolish also hurt those who are near them. Pro 11:9 "With his mouth the godless man would destroy his neighbor, but by knowledge the righteous are delivered."
I have heard people say their sin and choices hurt no one but themselves. Unfortunately, that is not taught in the Bible. Our decisions hurt those who are close to us and hurt most those who love us most. With our mouth, away from God, we will destroy those who we love.
Eventually, a fool will get sick of his life.
Ill. " Suicide is a major public health concern. Around 30,000 people die by suicide each year in the United States, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control.
"Children and young people are at risk for suicide. Year after year, suicide remains one of the top three leading causes of death for young people ages 15 to 24."
This passage says the foolish will have their fill of their own devices. This is not a statement of satisfaction, but being sick and tired of their own lives.
Two things to remember before we pass from these verses:
One, Turning away from God is deadly. "The simple are killed..... destroyed"
Second, a fool can become complacent. The blindness of foolishness can cause one not to care, to lose hope, to stop seeking God, and that is very destructive.
A teacher once asked a class what the two greatest problems of humanity were. When the students did not answer, the teacher forced the issue by calling on the class clown. "I don't know and I don't care," dismissed the student. "You are exactly right," exclaimed the teacher. "Ignorance and apathy are mankind's two greatest problems.
When you walk away from God, you will find yourself ignorant and ultimately, you will not care until it is too late.
V. The Reward for Wisdom.
Pro 1:33 "but whoever listens to me will dwell secure and will be at ease, without dread of disaster."
Verse 33 supports the above passage. Seek wisdom and live well, secure and without fear. Or, turn from God and lose your security, quality of life and live with fears.
Again, I remind you that wisdom is not obtained by sheer effort. It will begin for you if you trust in Jesus Christ.
1Co_"1:30 And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption,"
Then, as a born-again believer, you gain wisdom when you seek Him with your whole heart.
Jas_4:8,10 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded...10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.
