Wisdom For Peer Pressure Series

NOTE:

This is a manuscript, and not a transcript of this message. The actual presentation of the message differed from the manuscript through the leading of the Holy Spirit. Therefore, it is possible, and even likely that there is material in this manuscript that was not included in the live presentation and that there was additional material in the live presentation that is not included in this manuscript.

I read this week about a reporter that was interviewing a 104 year old woman. He asked her, “What is the best thing about being 104 years old?” She answered, “No peer pressure”. I suppose that is probably the best way to avoid peer pressure, isn’t it? Just outlive all your peers.

But for the rest of us who aren’t quite there yet, peer pressure is something we all have to deal with. That is true if you’re in elementary school, or junior high, or high school, or college or even an adult. As a student, you might face peer pressure to dress a certain way, or to cheat on a test, or to drink alcohol under the bleachers at a football game. As an adult, you might face peer pressure to cut corners in your job or to do something immoral or unethical in order to make some more money.

But that is really nothing new. When Solomon wrote the book of Proverbs nearly 3,000 years ago, it appears that peer pressure was a problem then, too, because it is one of the first things he is going to address in this book.

Last week we looked at the first seven verses of the book of Proverbs which ended with the verse that is essentially the theme verse for the entire book. We learned that there are two ways we can live our lives. We can live wisely by recognizing that God is God and I am not and follow His purposes, plans and ways, or we can be fools by living as if we are our own gods.

Today, we’ll pick up in verse 8 of chapter 1. That verse begins a long prologue to the book that will extend all the way to the end of chapter 9. That prologue consists of 12 separate poems that set the stage for the part of the Proverbs that most of us are familiar with - the pithy sayings about how to live wisely. This morning we’ll cover the first of those poems, which picks up where we left off this week and extends all the way to verse 19:

Proverbs 1:8–19 ESV

8 Hear, my son, your father’s instruction, and forsake not your mother’s teaching,

9 for they are a graceful garland for your head and pendants for your neck.

10 My son, if sinners entice you, do not consent.

11 If they say, “Come with us, let us lie in wait for blood; let us ambush the innocent without reason;

12 like Sheol let us swallow them alive, and whole, like those who go down to the pit;

13 we shall find all precious goods, we shall fill our houses with plunder;

14 throw in your lot among us; we will all have one purse”—

15 my son, do not walk in the way with them; hold back your foot from their paths,

16 for their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed blood.

17 For in vain is a net spread in the sight of any bird,

18 but these men lie in wait for their own blood; they set an ambush for their own lives.

19 Such are the ways of everyone who is greedy for unjust gain; it takes away the life of its possessors.

This section begins with the first of 22 appeals that Solomon will make to his son in the book of Proverbs. Likely the recipient of Solomon’s teaching was his son Rehoboam, but if that is the case, this wise instruction unfortunately fell on deaf ears based on what we know about him from the Bible. Let’s not let that happen in our lives.

Before we start digging into this passage, it’s important to note that not all peer pressure is negative. Often peer pressure can actually be a good thing when it encourages us to live according to God’s plan for our lives. In fact, I would go so far as to say that one of the important benefits of the church is that it should be a place where we can find that kind of positive peer pressure.

But as you’ve probably already figured out, the passage we’re looking at this morning deals with negative peer pressure. And here is the big idea we’re going to develop today:

I overcome peer pressure by living to please God instead of living to please people .