Proverbs 3: 1 – 35
It’s Time For A Little Father Son Talk
1 My son, do not forget my law, but let your heart keep my commands; 2 For length of days and long life and peace they will add to you. 3 Let not mercy and truth forsake you; Bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart, 4 And so find favor and high esteem in the sight of God and man. 5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths. 7 Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the LORD and depart from evil. 8 It will be health to your flesh, and strength to your bones. 9 Honor the LORD with your possessions, and with the first fruits of all your increase; 10 So your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will overflow with new wine. 11 My son, do not despise the chastening of the LORD, nor detest His correction; 12 For whom the LORD loves He corrects, just as a father the son in whom he delights. 13 Happy is the man who finds wisdom, and the man who gains understanding; 14 For her proceeds are better than the profits of silver, and her gain than fine gold. 15 She is more precious than rubies, and all the things you may desire cannot compare with her. 16 Length of days is in her right hand, in her left hand riches and honor. 17 Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace. 18 She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her, and happy are all who retain her. 19 The LORD by wisdom founded the earth; By understanding He established the heavens; 20 By His knowledge the depths were broken up, and clouds drop down the dew. 21 My son, let them not depart from your eyes—Keep sound wisdom and discretion; 22 So they will be life to your soul and grace to your neck. 23 Then you will walk safely in your way, and your foot will not stumble. 24 When you lie down, you will not be afraid; Yes, you will lie down and your sleep will be sweet. 25 Do not be afraid of sudden terror, nor of trouble from the wicked when it comes; 26 For the LORD will be your confidence, and will keep your foot from being caught. 27 Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in the power of your hand to do so. 28 Do not say to your neighbor, “Go, and come back, and tomorrow I will give it,” When you have it with you. 29 Do not devise evil against your neighbor, for he dwells by you for safety’s sake. 30 Do not strive with a man without cause, if he has done you no harm. 31 Do not envy the oppressor, and choose none of his ways; 32 For the perverse person is an abomination to the LORD, but His secret counsel is with the upright. 33 The curse of the LORD is on the house of the wicked, but He blesses the home of the just. 34 Surely He scorns the scornful, but gives grace to the humble. 35 The wise shall inherit glory, but shame shall be the legacy of fools.
I would like to present to you a question that was recently asked of me. Suppose a Pastor or someone else important in the church fell into sin. Should all of his or her teachings or writings be thrown out or taken off from further distribution or use?
Is your answer, ‘Yes’ or more direct as ‘absolutely!’ In studying the book of Proverbs I was hit in the head by a big boulder. As you know, Solomon is credited with writing three books of the bible. The first most likely was the book of ‘Song of Songs’ which was written when he was a young man in love. Let me skip to his third book which was Ecclesiastes which was written in his old age. Looking back over his life, Solomon had to deal with the fact that he ended in my opinion as a loser. He forsook all of God’s direct orders to him and now wrote as a pity party for himself.
Solomon’s second I venture to state is the book of Proverbs which if you note from verse 1 which states,
1 My son, do not forget my law, but let your heart keep my commands
You can see as a father who was still walking in El Shaddai – Almighty God’s Ways.
Now do you see what I am seeing? Is you answer to my question still ‘yes’, get totally rid of every one of the sinners materials.
Well, let me have you consider something then. If that be the case then the book of Proverbs needs to be cut out of every one of our bibles. Look again at the life of Solomon. His prior writings are kept, not thrown out. Our Precious Holy God told him not to collect gold, horses, and women. He blatantly sinned against our Great Holy Creator in all three categories in amazing rebellion. Look with me at the book of 1 Kings chapter 11, “But King Solomon loved many foreign women, as well as the daughter of Pharaoh: women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Sidonians, and Hittites— 2 from the nations of whom the LORD had said to the children of Israel, “You shall not intermarry with them, nor they with you. Surely they will turn away your hearts after their gods.” Solomon clung to these in love. 3 And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart. 4 For it was so, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned his heart after other gods; and his heart was not loyal to the LORD his God, as was the heart of his father David. 5 For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. 6 Solomon did evil in the sight of the LORD, and did not fully follow the LORD, as did his father David. 7 Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, on the hill that is east of Jerusalem, and for Molech the abomination of the people of Ammon. 8 And he did likewise for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods. 9 So the LORD became angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned from the LORD God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice, 10 and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods; but he did not keep what the LORD had commanded. 11 Therefore the LORD said to Solomon, “Because you have done this, and have not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I have commanded you, I will surely tear the kingdom away from you and give it to your servant. 12 Nevertheless I will not do it in your days, for the sake of your father David; I will tear it out of the hand of your son. 13 However I will not tear away the whole kingdom; I will give one tribe to your son for the sake of My servant David, and for the sake of Jerusalem which I have chosen.”
Yet please notice that our Wonderful Holy Spirit God didn’t can out of the bible The Song of Songs; Proverbs, and the book of Ecclesiastes. I think many church leaders need to get on their knees right about now who have done the exact thing I asked about and seek God’s direction on what to do now.
Now, do you know who the son was that Solomon is addressing? It is Rehoboam. You see such a loving father here do we not. Now take a look at the book of Ecclesiastes and see how Solomon’s life of sin had influenced his thoughts about his son near the end of his life, “Therefore I hated life because the work that was done under the sun was distressing to me, for all is vanity and grasping for the wind. Then I hated all my labor in which I had toiled under the sun, because I must leave it to the man who will come after me.’ Gee, thanks a lot dad.
Our Awesome Holy Maker gives an awesome promise to kids if they obey their parents. In the book of Exodus chapter 20 we find in His 5th Commandment these words, “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the LORD your God is giving you.”
We see how Solomon points out this point to his son.
2 For length of days and long life and peace they will add to you.
Have you ever looked over at merry old England. Sometimes I think why doesn’t old Queen Elizabeth give up the throne and give her son prince Charles a few years to be king. What is he now by the way? He has to already be in his sixties. It looks like the crown will skip him and go to his oldest son when Elizabeth dies. So, why am I going on about this? Look at when Rehoboam finally becomes king.
“And Rehoboam the son of Solomon reigned in Judah. Rehoboam was forty-one years old when he became king. He reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city which the LORD had chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, to put His name there. His mother’s name was Naamah, an Ammonitess.”
Even though he had to wait until mid-life to make it big, our Mighty Faithful God allowed him a reign of 17 years as king. God was faithful to his word even though Rehoboam and his dad Solomon were not faithful to God.
In the book of Deuteronomy chapter 11 verse 18 we read these important directions to the Israelites from Yahweh Elohe Yisrael – The Lord God of Israel, “Therefore you shall lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul, and bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.”
Solomon advises his son to do similar.
3 Let not mercy and truth forsake you; Bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart
We see our Great Master, Lord, King, and God Jesus Christ also put forth the same message as presented in the Gospel of Matthew chapter 5, “If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you; for it is more profitable for you that one of your members perish, than for your whole body to be cast into hell.”
I know that you understand that our Holy Jehovah Maccaddeshem – The Lord our sanctifier, is not talking about literal applications. He Is talking about the matters of one’s deepest thoughts. We as sinful people however have made literal objects such as phylacteries. Once you take something like this advice from our God and turn it into literalism it turns out to be formalism and we miss the whole point our Master is teaching us.
If we do things as our El Olam – our Everlasting God instructs then you will obtain what Solomon next states,
4 And so find favor and high esteem in the sight of God and man.
You will be viewed with ‘favor’ and appreciation by our Holy God and He will also grant you favor with other human beings. In the book of Proverbs 16 verse 7 we read this, “When a man’s ways please the LORD, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.” Now this is the way we want our lives to be so blessed.
If you are a Pastor then what I am about to say probably happens to you a lot. When you are preparing for a teaching you wind up experiencing in one way or another exact thing that you are going to preach about. Let me give you an example. In doing this study I had this guy who is a real thorn in my side. I have helped him at least a dozen times and my reward for being there for him is insults and mockery. Yet he winds up when the pressure cooker hits contacting me and tying me up for hours at a time. Just yesterday, he was crying to me about his situations for endless hours. It was this verse that came to my mind as he was going over and over about his predicament.
5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.
If you are going to start to memorize any verses, please make this first on you’re to do list. In the bible our Precious Holy Spirit writes the word, ‘Selah’. It means to stop and ponder what was just written.
My response of comfort to this guy who was having problems of fear of the future incorporated this wisdom from our Holy Adoni. I told the man that our Holy Lord has never let us down and that He be there for him through this difficulty. In truth, he was experiencing real pressure but God isn’t about to walk away from being there for him. It’s time to call in more prayer warriors, not flee to the mountains – Selah.
There are many things in life which are mostly hardships or difficulties, that our Creator sends our ways that we have no idea where they originated. What are we to do? If a storm is forecasted for your area do you plan outdoor activities? No you hunker down until the storm passes. May we all understand that when the storms of life also hit us may we just hang on without trying to outrun or outthink the situation? In due time, it will pass us by. In the long run you will not get sick from all the stress.
7 Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the LORD and depart from evil. 8 It will be health to your flesh, and strength to your bones.
And now let us break away for a commercial. It’s time to take another offering or collection.
9 Honor the LORD with your possessions, and with the first fruits of all your increase; 10 So your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will overflow with new wine.
Kidding aside it is important to give some of your income for the work of God’s kingdom. Our God Is not broke. He does not need your money. In His infinite wisdom though, He allows us to invest in His work in the lives of others. You offerings pay to keep the upkeep of your church and to help pay the wages of the servants who have given their lives in the service of others. In effect you are a share holder in a portion of all that goes on in your church and in the work of missionaries. If a share of one stock sold for one thousand dollars, then if a million shares were sold on the market then the company would have plenty of funds to do well. You stock value most likely would go up. If the shares sold for one dollar you can see the significant lower operating funds available.
Our Holy Lord wants us to give generously without begrudging the amount. In effect if giving anything bothers you then do not give at all. Do you actually think our Holy God Is please with that kind of attitude? I rest my case.
A major problem in America in which you are well aware of is crime. As a police chaplain I had the opportunity to speak with the Philadelphia Police Commissioner. In one of our conversations he said something that had a major impact on my perspective of the crimes in Philadelphia. He told me that on average there are about 25,000 arrests made each year within the city. Out of all those arrested less than 2 percent actually wind up spending a night in jail. The reason being is there is no room to put the criminals. Now you’re talking homicides, armed robbery, assaults, and other major crimes in this statistic. Make sure to lock you doors at night. Wow!
So, why am I mentioning this point? Much of our problems stem from the problem of either not disciplining our kids or on the other hand as you read in the newspapers going way overboard in correcting the children. We read this from our Wonderful Holy Spirit God,
11 My son, do not despise the chastening of the LORD, nor detest His correction; 12 For whom the LORD loves He corrects, just as a father the son in whom he delights.
Please notice the statement in correcting our kids, ‘in whom he ‘delights’. Look at that word – ‘Delights’. In today’s world this doesn’t match it is an oxy-moron statement - If you delight in your child you ‘will discipline’ him or her? You got that right. Our God Is pointing out to us that if we really love your child you have to do this part of parenting. Anything less is not loving you child? This is hard for many people to accept.
One thing we need to truly understand is that you never use a close fist in correcting your child. In many cases a wooden spoon which sounds loud but does no physical harm works. A child will associate the discipline to the instrument not you. Also, you should never discipline your child when you are angry for you will issue out too strong a discipline.
Now, think of this important fact. We do not want to discipline our children. It seriously hurts us to have to do this. Now, stop and think about how our sins of rebellion and disobedience hurt our Great and Holy Father. How do you think He feels to have to discipline us? We all know that He does this to stop us from causing future harm to ourselves and others.
13 Happy is the man who finds wisdom, and the man who gains understanding; 14 For her proceeds are better than the profits of silver, and her gain than fine gold. 15 She is more precious than rubies, and all the things you may desire cannot compare with her. 16 Length of days is in her right hand, in her left hand riches and honor. 17 Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are peace. 18 She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her, and happy are all who retain her.
As I interact with people I come to believe that many do not think properly. It is like we are speaking different languages and instead of letting the other person know about our ignorance we just nod our heads as if we understand what they are talking about.
Let us all do a short quiz. You are able to judge yourselves as to whether or not you really know the answers. Okay?
What do these words mean?
1. Wisdom
2. Knowledge
3. Understanding
4. Discernment
Now, did you get all four right? If so, you win a cookie. But just for all us other folks let’s take a look at each one.
Wisdom = The ability to discern or judge what is true, right, or lasting; insight. 2. Common sense; good judgment: "It is a characteristic of wisdom not to do desperate things"
Knowledge = facts, information, and skills acquired by a person through experience or education; the theoretical or practical understanding of a subject.
Understanding = To perceive and comprehend the nature and significance of; grasp.
Discernment = The act or process of exhibiting keen insight and good judgment. The quality of being able to grasp and comprehend what is obscure.
So, if I asked one of you who scored 4 out of 4 to come up and explain to the rest of us how they all come together in harmony could you do it? Let’s see a show of hands of those who can? Well, let me take a stab at these awesome gifts of our Holy Master.
I would say that knowledge is first on the list. From everything we experience and learn we develop this attribute. We can gather a whole bunch of information but not understand what it all means. For example, I am sure that you have experienced some beautiful romantic sunsets. If you have then you have knowledge about them, right? But how does the sun set or how are all the beautiful colors made? To this question you might say, ‘I really do not understand, I just know.’ Now if you are meteorologist or someone into this particular incident you would know or understand that sunset is a result of the earth’s 24 hour rotation and that the colors are a result of the sun reflecting off of dust in the atmosphere.
Our Great and Wonderful El Shaddai – Almighty God helps us by the gift of His wisdom to put understanding and knowledge together and apply it to life situations. Just like desert is to a great meal so is discernment to the unique incidents that happen to us. Our Holy Adoni Yahweh – Father God, helps us understand something even when we do not have the previous knowledge. For example, you might be on vacation and something comes on you that something dangerous is about to happen, so you don’t know exactly what is going on yet you are able to sense something has, is, or will happen.
In the next verses we are blessed by our Holy Ghost God where He allows us to see into things before Genesis 1:1 where ‘In the beginning God Created…’
19 The LORD by wisdom founded the earth; By understanding He established the heavens; 20 By His knowledge the depths were broken up, and clouds drop down the dew.
If you are taking notes I want you to write down these three words about God. Each day I want you to take a look at these three words and think about them. These three words in a amazing way tell you how Great and Wonderful our Loving God Is. Here are the three words. God Is;
1. Omnipresent – He Is Everywhere
2. Omniscient – He Is All Knowing
3. Omnipotent – He Is All Powerful
If you take the time to consider our Magnificent Holy Blessed Trinity in just these three words, no matter what comes at you will seem trivial.
Solomon must have been thinking the same thing for this is why he pens the following encouragement for his son.
21 My son, let them not depart from your eyes—Keep sound wisdom and discretion; 22 So they will be life to your soul and grace to your neck. 23 Then you will walk safely in your way, and your foot will not stumble. 24 When you lie down, you will not be afraid; Yes, you will lie down and your sleep will be sweet. 25 Do not be afraid of sudden terror, nor of trouble from the wicked when it comes; 26 For the LORD will be your confidence, and will keep your foot from being caught.
So, let us all take up the Lord’s encouragement. Think about the Lord’s three descriptions daily and see if everything our Holy Spirit God makes real in your life.
King Solomon now is diverted to give some important truths regarding how we should behave with other people.
1. 27 Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in the power of your hand to do so. If our Holy Lord lets you see a situation in which you can help or bless someone, then do so. Remember, we are aliens just passing through this earth. If we can help someone out even in a small way it brings our king joy.
2. 28 Do not say to your neighbor, “Go, and come back, and tomorrow I will give it,” When you have it with you. We need to pay our bills and be good stewards. If someone asks you to help them out do not try an lie and tell them to check with you tomorrow. If you do not have the money then tell them so. This also applies if someone wants to borrow something from you. Anyone feeling convicted about now?
3. 29 Do not devise evil against your neighbor, for he dwells by you for safety’s sake. I think we all have living next to us a neighbor that is Satan’s relative. This one guy even broke into our house when we were at settlement and stole our downstairs toilet. He has pulled hundreds of dirty incidents against me. Many a time I wanted to go over and give him some special love, you know, lay hands on him – many time over. Yet, our Loving Savior reminds me not to. Besides it would not look good in the newspaper to read about a Pastor beating the snot out of his neighbor, now would it?
4. 30 Do not strive with a man without cause, if he has done you no harm. On the church networks there are some commercials when you see some bullies come and knock books out of a nerdy guys arm. A little up the hallway are some huge football players. One of them sees the guy picking up his books and papers and comes over to give a hand. That is quite a stirring commercial. How can anyone who has been forgiven his sins by our Sweet Savior be a bully? You are not a believer if you are doing such things.
5. 31 Do not envy the oppressor, and choose none of his ways; Do not lower yourselves to the evil ways of others. Just because it might seem that the evil person seems to always win, do not do as they do, you will not succeed.
6. 32 For the perverse person is an abomination to the LORD, but His secret counsel is with the upright. Do you know what ‘perverse’ means? It means someone who is directed away from what is right or good. It is one who obstinately persists in an error or fault. It is a person who is wrongly self-willed or stubborn. This person is marked by a disposition to oppose and contradicts all the time
7. 33 The curse of the LORD is on the house of the wicked, but He blesses the home of the just. Without you knowing it, you are a witness to all your neighbors. They will not see the police showing up at your homes each weekend. They will not see the ambulance come either from domestic abuse. In a time of difficulty your neighbors will be knocking on your door for help.
8. 34 Surely He scorns the scornful, but gives grace to the humble. Take a look at the Old Testament when you get a chance. You will see easily enough how our Holy God cannot stand whiners. There is no room for bitterness in a grateful heart. You keep complaining about everything and you will see our God do likewise to you. Knock it off and let things that you do not like just go.
9. 35 The wise shall inherit glory, but shame shall be the legacy of fools. What is a fool? In fact it is so important to know that our Lord pointed out that if you call someone a fool you risk hell fire. So, what exactly is a fool? A fool is one who has rebelled against God. You think you can be the master of your own life, then good luck to you because your outcome is shame. I’ll take the Lord’s free gift of His Precious Sacrifice and His Glory, thank you very much. Amen.
