Sunday
Morning Bible Study
April
22, 2018
Introduction
Do people see Jesus? Is the gospel
preached? Does it address the person who is: Empty, lonely, guilty, or afraid
to die? Does it speak to the broken hearted? Does it build up the church? Milk
– Meat – Manna Preach for a decision Is the church loved? Regular: 2900 words Communion:
2500 words Video=75wpm
Announce:
Bellers –
Kim and the kids are back on May 24, and we’d like their house to be ready
to go
Items needed
Kitchen table & 6 chairs
4 twin bedframes
1 king bedframe
3 floor lights
Vacuum cleaner
Coffee pot
Can opener
Silverware
Pantry items
Coordinate with
Lisa or Daniel if you want to donate any items
Also…
Money – “Beller Fund”
For 6 new mattresses
For vehicles
The book of Proverbs is all about wisdom.
Wisdom is not about knowing facts.
Wisdom is about knowing what to do with what you know.
Wisdom is knowing when to do it.
Wisdom is knowing how to do it.
Proverbs are sayings, typically short, that give wisdom and insight into
everyday things.
They are intended to help you lead a better life.
They are not absolute promises, as in “if you do x,y, then z will always
happen and your life will be perfect”.
They are general principles – that if you do them your life will be
generally better than if you didn’t do them.
I want to encourage you to have a
pencil or pen ready as we work through each chapter.
Though we will read the entire
chapter, I won’t be taking time to unpack every single proverb.
God may want to use one of the
proverbs that we simply pass over to speak to you, so be ready to mark up your
Bible or write down a verse.
It’s going to be a little like
drinking from a fire hydrant.
The Proverbs are Hebrew poetry…
Hebrew poetry is about ideas, not
sounds.
Most of these proverbs are in two
lines.
Sometimes the second line is a
parallel of the first. It expresses the same idea with different words.
Sometimes the second line is an
opposite idea, still clarifying the first, but by way of contrast.
Be careful that you don’t look at
one phrase without looking at the other.
We are now in a section of that
dates to 250 years after Solomon. King Hezekiah had a group of scholars collect
an additional group of 100 of Solomon’s proverbs.
Proverbs 29:1-22
:1 He who is often rebuked, and hardens his neck, Will suddenly
be destroyed, and that without remedy.
:1 He who is often rebuked
reproved – towkechah
– rebuke, correction, reproof, punishment, chastisement
hardens – qashah
– (Hiphil) to make difficult, make difficulty; to make severe, make
burdensome; to make hard, make stiff, make stubborn
This is the same word used to
describe people who are “stiffnecked”.
Lesson
Too Many Warnings
The description of a person being “stiffnecked” is used to describe a
person who doesn’t want to listen to others, a person who is stubborn.
Illustration
Glass Eye
There was this guy who owned a very fast motorcycle. His friends would
always tell him, that because he only had one good eye (the other being a glass
eye) that if he didn’t slow down when he rides his motorcycle, he would someday
be involved in a serious accident. But the friends’ warnings were to no avail.
One day he did get into a terrible accident out on a lonely, rarely used
stretch of highway. The driver and his passenger were both eye doctors. There
was no one around when the accident happened. So one turned to the other and
said, “He just seems to be knocked out cold.” They checked the biker over and
he seemed all right, except he had excessive damage to his eye. The driver then
said to his friend, “Why don’t we take him to our eye clinic, fix his eye, and
then put him and the motorcycle back where the accident happened. We’ll put him
near to a tree, so that no one will think that anyone else was involved in the
accident.” So they did just that. The next day, the local newspaper reported
the accident. The headline read, “Mysterious Auto Accident Involving Biker with
Two Glass Eyes.”
At some point you can only be warned so many times about a legitimate
problem before everything comes crashing down.
(Proverbs 29:1 The
Message) For people who hate discipline and only get more stubborn, There’ll come a day when life tumbles in and they break, but by then
it’ll be too late to help them.
The prophet Jeremiah recorded God’s ideas when he wrote,
(Jeremiah 11:7–8
NKJV) —7 For I earnestly exhorted your fathers in the day I brought them up
out of the land of Egypt, until this day, rising early and exhorting, saying,
“Obey My voice.” 8
Yet
they did not obey or incline their ear, but everyone followed the dictates of
his evil heart; therefore I will bring upon them all the words of this
covenant, which I commanded them to do, but which they have not
done.’ ”
It would be in Jeremiah’s lifetime that the prophesied
judgment would come and Jerusalem would be destroyed.
Because the people continued to
refuse to listen to God’s warnings, Jeremiah wrote,
(Jeremiah 19:15 NKJV) “Thus says
the Lord of hosts, the God of
Israel: ‘Behold, I will bring on this city and on all her towns all the doom
that I have pronounced against it, because they have stiffened their necks that
they might not hear My words.’ ”
The warnings we ignore might be warnings about our …
Marriage
Finances
Health
Lifestyle
Don’t ignore legitimate warnings.
The ultimate warning you don’t want to ignore is that of turning from your
sin and turning to Jesus.
(Isaiah 45:22 NKJV)
“Look
to Me, and be saved, All you ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other.
:2 When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; But when a
wicked man rules, the people groan.
:2 when a wicked man rules
I don’t like to get political.
When pastors get too political, people get polarized over the wrong things.
Illustration
A political pollster knocked on the door and a sour-faced lady answered.
“What party does your husband belong to?” he asked. The lady responded curtly,
“I sir, am the party he belongs to.”
Frankly, as Christians, Jesus ought to be the party we belong to.
I don’t want a person who doesn’t know Jesus to stop listening to the
gospel because my politics might not line up exactly with their politics.
And yet… there are times when believers need to speak up and voice their
concerns.
There’s a bill running through our State Capitol that is being pushed
through by folks who have a “wicked” agenda.
AB
2943 will make it illegal (click on the link if you want to send a message
to your representative) for a person such as myself to suggest that a person
who identifies as homosexual or transgender could or should change their sexual
orientation.
Even if the Bible says that these things are wrong.
:3 Whoever loves wisdom makes his father rejoice, But a companion of
harlots wastes his wealth.
(Proverbs 29:3 HCSB) A man who
loves wisdom brings joy to his father, but one who consorts with prostitutes
destroys his wealth.
:4 The king establishes the land by justice, But he who receives bribes
overthrows it.
(Proverbs 29:4
HCSB) By justice a king brings stability to a land, but a man who demands
“contributions” demolishes it.
:4 he who receives bribes
overthrows it
bribes – teruwmah
– contribution, offering
Lesson
Bribes
We can become jaded to think that
all politicians are corrupt.
Illustration
The Test
An older couple had a son, who was
still living with them. The parents were a little worried, because the son
couldn’t decide about his future career. So they decided to do a small test.
They put a note on the front hall
table saying that they had gone out.
Next to the note they put a
ten-dollar bill, a Bible, and a bottle of whiskey. Then they hid, pretending
they were not at home. The father told his wife, “If our son takes the money,
he will be a businessman, if he takes the Bible, he will be a pastor, but if he
takes the bottle of whiskey, I’m afraid our son will be a no-good drunkard.”
The parents hid in the nearby closet
and waited nervously. Peeping through the keyhole they saw their son arrive.
The son read the note that they had left. Then he took the ten-dollar bill,
looked at it against the light, and slid it in his pocket. After that, he took
the Bible, flipped through it, and put it under his arm. Finally, he grabbed
the bottle, opened it, and took an appreciative whiff to be assured of the
quality. Then he left for his room, carrying all three items.
The father slapped his forehead and
said: “This is worse than I could ever have imagined!” “What?!” asked the wife.
“Our son is going to be a politician!”
Regarding government officials.
If a government official requires
that you give him a bribe to do something, then real “justice” will be ignored.
His decisions will be based on the
highest bidder, not what’s right and wrong.
Relating to us
We can sometimes do the very same
thing.
Sometimes we make a choice simply
based on what we’ll get out of it, regardless of whether or not it’s the right
thing to do.
:5 A man who flatters his neighbor Spreads a net for his feet.
(Proverbs 29:5 The
Message) A flattering neighbor is up to no good; he’s
probably planning to take advantage of you.
It’s kind of nice when someone says something flattering to you.
Just keep in mind that unless you know this person real well, there’s that
possibility that they are setting you up for something you might not want to
do.
:6 By transgression an evil man is snared, But the righteous sings and
rejoices.
:6 By transgression an evil man is snared
snared – mowqesh
– bait, lure, snare
(Proverbs 29:6 NLT)
Evil
people are trapped by sin, but the righteous escape, shouting for joy.
Lesson
The Way Out
Life is much happier when you simply do what is right.
Jesus said,
(John 8:34–36 NLT) —34 Jesus
replied, “I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave of sin. 35 A slave is
not a permanent member of the family, but a son is part of the family forever. 36 So if the
Son sets you free, you are truly free.
Jesus gives us the ability to not be “trapped” by sin.
We believers still have a sin nature, but we now have the
freedom to be able to break free from sin’s grasp.
Do you believe this?
If you are a believer and you are caught in the addiction to your sin,
there is a way out.
The problem isn’t that Jesus doesn’t work, the problem is that you need to
learn the steps to take to find your way out of the dark room of your sin.
The first step starts with recognizing that by yourself,
you are powerless over you sin. You
can’t do it by yourself. You need help.
The second step is recognizing that there is a power
higher than you, that power is able to help you, and that power is named Jesus
Christ.
But wait … there’s more.
Yes, there are a few more steps.
But my point is that there is a way out.
Come to the James Gang Sunday nights.
Jesus said,
(John 8:32 NLT) And you will
know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
When you find your way out of that dark bondage of sin, there is truly
singing and rejoicing.
:7 The righteous considers the cause of the poor, But the wicked
does not understand such knowledge.
(Proverbs 29:7 The Message) The
good-hearted understand what it’s like to be poor; the hardhearted haven’t the faintest idea.
:8 Scoffers set a city aflame, But wise men turn away wrath.
aflame – puwach
– to breathe, blow; to excite, inflame
wrath – ‘aph
– nostril, nose, face; anger
:8 Scoffers set a city aflame
Some friends in New York were at a Greek restaurant where three waiters
decided to put on a show with a fried cheese dish that they flambee at
tableside.
Scoffers – latsown –
scorning; talk arrogantly; to mock, deride
There are folks who are good at speaking arrogantly and stirring up trouble
whether it’s political, social, moral, or religious.
(Proverbs 29:8 The Message) A gang of
cynics can upset a whole city; a group of
sages can calm everyone down.
(Proverbs 29:8
HCSB) Mockers inflame a city, but the wise turn away anger.
Just keep in mind when they hold rallies in town, and even if you agree
with some of their opinions, the “scoffer” is not the “wise” person in the
picture.
They just set things on fire.
:9 If a wise man contends with a foolish man, Whether the fool
rages or laughs, there is no peace.
(Proverbs 29:9 NLT) If a wise
person takes a fool to court, there will be ranting and ridicule but no
satisfaction.
This is almost a follow up on the
previous verse.
I wonder if sometimes it isn’t
better to just walk away.
:10 The bloodthirsty hate the blameless, But the upright seek his
well-being.
(Proverbs 29:10 The Message) Murderers
hate honest people; moral
folks encourage them.
:11 A fool vents all his feelings, But a wise man holds them back.
:11 A fool vents all his feelings
Lesson
Self-control
(Proverbs 29:11 The
Message) A fool lets it all hang out; a sage quietly mulls it over.
Some people wear their emotions on their sleeves. You always know what
they’re “feeling”.
Perhaps there is some wisdom in being able to have a little bit of
self-control when it comes to our feelings.
Illustration
A seaman meets a pirate in a Starbucks, and talk turns to their adventures
on the sea. The seaman notes that the pirate has a peg-leg, a hook, and an eye
patch. The seaman asks “So, how did you end up with the peg-leg?” The pirate
replies “We were in a storm at sea, and I was swept overboard into a school of
sharks. Just as me men were pulling me out, a shark bit me leg off” “Wow!” said
the seaman. “What about your hook”? “Well...”, replied the pirate, “We were
boarding an enemy ship and were battling the other sailors with swords. One of
the enemy cut me hand off.” “Incredible!” remarked the seaman. “How did you get
the eyepatch”? “A seagull dropping fell into me eye”, replied the pirate. “You
lost your eye to a seagull dropping?” the sailor asked incredulously.
“Well...”, said the pirate, “...it was me first day with the hook.”
If you don’t learn self-control, you can hurt yourself.
:12 If a ruler pays attention to lies, All his servants become
wicked.
:12 If a ruler pays attention to
lies
(Proverbs 29:12 NLT) If a ruler
pays attention to liars, all his advisers will be wicked.
In other words, if a ruler takes
the advice of liars, then those closest to him will see it and feel like they
have nothing to lose by lying to him.
I wonder if this doesn’t touch on
the idea of “fake news”?
As long as you and I aren’t doing
our homework and screening what it is we’re paying attention to, we give the
folks who put out the “fake news” a reason to keep deceiving.
:13 The poor man and the oppressor have this in common: The Lord gives light to the eyes of both.
:13 The poor man and the oppressor
There is a sense in which all of mankind are children of God. He made all of us. He gave light to all of us.
The question is, what are you going to do with the light God has given to
you?
Are you going to abuse others, or take care of them?
:14 The king who judges the poor with truth, His throne will be established
forever.
(Proverbs 29:14 The Message) Leadership
gains authority and respect when the
voiceless poor are treated fairly.
The poor are those who can’t stick
up for themselves. They can’t influence you with gifts. They can’t hire
expensive lawyers.
Good leaders are those who take
care of those who can’t defend themselves.
:15 The rod and rebuke give wisdom, But a child left to himself
brings shame to his mother.
:15 The rod and rebuke give wisdom
rebuke – towkechah –
rebuke, correction
rod – shebet – rod, staff,
branch.
One explains “why”, the other causes an “ouch”
It doesn’t have to be a physical
spanking, but something that gets the child’s attention that you are serious
about your words.
Good discipline of children involves both instruction (rebuke) and
consequences (the rod).
Each kid is different when it comes to the “rod”.
Some kids respond to a careful spanking.
Others respond to a time out.
Others to removal of privileges.
You are the parent have to figure out what works with your
kid.
When a child isn’t disciplined, they’ve been left “to himself”. Kids don’t
raise themselves. Parents raise kids.
After divorce, when children are
being raised in two different households, this is difficult. Each household
might have different standards, and guess which one the child will prefer? The
easier one.
You have to work overtime as
parents to be raising your kids in a unified fashion.
:16 When the wicked are multiplied, transgression increases; But the
righteous will see their fall.
are multiplied – rabah
– be or become great, be or become many, be or become much, be or become
numerous
It might be talking about there
being more wicked people. It makes more sense though when you think of wicked
people gaining power and becoming “great”.
In the end, God wins.
:17 Correct your son, and he will give you rest; Yes, he will give delight
to your soul.
:17 Correct your son, and he will give you rest
correct – yacar
– to chasten, discipline, instruct, admonish
rest – nuwach
– (Hiph) to cause to rest, give rest to, make quiet
delight – ma‘adan
– dainty (food), delight
(Proverbs 29:17 The
Message) Discipline your children; you’ll be glad you did— they’ll turn
out delightful to live with.
One of the reasons we might not discipline our children is because the
trouble of it all wears us down.
Your child gets angry at you.
You don’t like the idea they are angry at you.
When a child gets the idea that their temper tantrum or rebellion is going
to control you, they won’t give up.
You have to look past the trouble of discipline and look towards the goal.
Disciplined kids are indeed a great delight.
:18 Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint; But
happy is he who keeps the law.
:18 Where there is no revelation
The Old KJV here is:
(Proverbs 29:18 AV)
Where
there is no vision, the people perish…
Over the years lots has been said about the important of “vision”.
Some will use this verse and talk about how important it is for leaders to
have a “vision” or idea of where their ministry or company is going.
If the people being led aren’t aware of the leader’s “vision”, then things
don’t go well.
I think there’s a lot of truth to those ideas, but I’m not
sure that’s what this verse is talking about.
revelation – chazown –
vision; night vision; oracle, prophecy
The word is about God speaking through a prophet.
It’s not the leader’s vision the people need, but God’s Word.
Don’t forget the principles of Hebrew poetry we’ve talked about – comparing
and contrasting ideas. Compare the first
line to the second line.
“Revelation” is compared or explained by “the law”.
In other words, when people aren’t guided by God’s Word (revelation, law),
then they start to wander.
It’s important that we learn to lead our lives according to what God says,
and not by what we think is right.
We might need “visionary” leaders, but we need God’s Word even more.
cast off restraint – para‘–
(Niphal) to be let loose, be loosened of restraint (not the idea of perishing
by going to hell)
:19 A servant will not be corrected by mere words; For though he
understands, he will not respond.
:19 A servant will not be corrected by mere words
Today we don’t have “servants” anymore in the technical sense, we have
bosses and employees.
(Proverbs 29:19 The
Message) It takes more than talk to keep workers in line; mere words
go in one ear and out the other.
As a boss, there are times you have to back up your words with action, consequences,
just like you do with children.
When all a boss does is threaten his employees, but never follows through,
then the threats get louder and louder, employees still don’t pay attention,
and everyone is miserable.
:20 Do you see a man hasty in his words? There is more hope for a
fool than for him.
:20 a man hasty in his words
This is a parallel idea to vs. 11 –
(Proverbs 29:11 The Message) A fool
lets it all hang out; a sage
quietly mulls it over.
Learn to hold your words back a bit.
At least for a few seconds.
Once you’ve said something, you can’t get it back.
Illustration
The Gossiper
A woman repeated a bit of gossip
about a neighbor. Within a few days the whole community knew the story. The
person it concerned was deeply hurt and offended. Later the woman responsible
for spreading the rumor learned that it was completely untrue. She was very
sorry and went to a wise old sage to find out what she could do to repair the
damage. “Go to the marketplace,” he said, “and purchase a chicken, and have it
killed. Then on your way home, pluck its feathers and drop them one by one
along the road.” Although surprised by this advice, the woman did what she was
told. The next day the wise man said, “Now go and collect all those feathers
you dropped yesterday and bring them back to me.” The woman followed the same
road, but to her dismay, the wind had blown the feathers all away. After
searching for hours, she returned with only three in her hand. “You see,” said
the old sage, “it’s easy to drop them, but it’s impossible to get them back. So
it is with gossip. It doesn’t take much to spread a rumor, but once you do, you
can never completely undo the wrong.”
Author Unknown,
Submitted by Helen Hazinski from Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul
Copyright 1997 by
Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen and Kimberly Kirberger
:21 He who pampers his servant from childhood Will have him as a son in the
end.
pampers – panaq
– (Piel) to indulge, pamper, bring up, treat delicately
have him as a son – manown
– grief, progeny, thankless one; meaning uncertain
from – nuwn
– continue, to increase, propagate
:21 He who pampers his servant
Again, the “servant” is an employee.
The translation “as a son” is a little off.
It is translating an obscure word that is only used once in the entire Old
Testament. That word comes from a word that means “to increase”.
The HCSB handles it this way:
(Proverbs 29:21
HCSB) A slave pampered from his youth will become arrogant later on.
I like what Eugene Peterson does with it here:
(Proverbs 29:21 The
Message) If you let people treat you like a doormat, you’ll be
quite forgotten in the end.
Be cautious about how you treat your employees. You may want to be known as the “nice boss”,
but going too far can create problems.
:22 An angry man stirs up strife, And a furious man abounds in
transgression.
:22 An angry man stirs up strife
Lesson
Anger management
The phrase “furious man” could be literally translated, “Lord of rage”
furious – chemah
– heat, rage, hot displeasure, indignation, anger
man – ba’al
– owner, husband, lord
(Proverbs 29:22
NLT) An angry person starts fights; a hot-tempered person commits all
kinds of sin.
Those of us with anger problems can tell ourselves that it’s really not all
that bad.
In fact, maybe at times it’s kind of cute.
In reality, our anger does much damage.
We can tell ourselves that we are angry with “righteous anger”, but that’s
a pretty difficult thing to do if you’re not God.
James wrote,
(James
1:20 NKJV) for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God.
Last week Deb and I saw the “Paul the Apostle” movie.
It’s what you’d call an historical fiction movie.
Much of the main outline of the movie is based on actual
historical events, but the plot details and dialogue are imagined of what life
was like for Paul in his final days.
I liked that it set the tone for our Thursday evening
study in 2Timothy, which was written during those days of Paul.
In this next clip, the church is beginning to suffer heavy
persecution in Rome while Paul himself is in prison. In the video clip, some
want to revolt and kill their Roman oppressors.
Luke speaks up (Luke is the guy that looks like Jesus…)
Video: Paul the Apostle –
Love is the only way
Yet later, when Luke himself is in Paul’s prison cell, Luke
begins to doubt this “love” thing.
Video: Paul the Apostle– Write It
Down
Instead of getting better at getting angry, we ought to get better at
learning to love like Jesus.