February 6, 2019

Proverbs 2:1-9

Pro 2:1

Intro

I. Our Responsibility

A. Accept it! - Receive! (1-2)

1. Hold it! “Receive my words” (1)

2. Hide it - “Hide my commandments with thee” (1)

3. Hear it - “incline thine ear unto wisdom” (2)

4. Heed it! “apply thine heart to understanding” (2)

B. Ask for it! (3) Cry

1. Asking is an act of humility

2. Asking in sincerity

3. Asking in Prayer!

C. Seek after it! (4) -

1. As Silver!

2. As hid treasure

II. Our Reward (5, 9) #

A. Understand the fear of the Lord (5) #

▪ Perspective: Understanding the fear of the Lord is important in our life.

1. Reverence - As I taught at the beginning of the series, there are two words in the Hebrew language for the English word Fear that we have in our text. Fear is not referred to as a sense of being afraid of God, but rather a reverence for God.

a) Reverence reflects morality

b) A healthy reverence of God is important, as it gives us a basis of our morality.

c) When God is striped of His throne, and authority, then who is left to determine what is right and wrong?

(1) Civil Government?

(a) Was never intended to be that…

(b) The civil government, is ultimately setup by man…

(c) Varies from country to country

(2) Church leaders?

(a) Church leaders without God, are as lost as anyone else, and become Pharisaical rulers looking to cast down men.

(3) Culture?

(a) Cultural woes vary from place to place.

(b) America… generally a time oriented country, South America… customary to show up late.

(c) Lying is considered normal, and expected in some cultures.

(d) Polygamy is considered normal in some countries.

(e) Stealing is considered normal in some places

2. Understanding the importance of Reverencing God!

B. Uncover the knowledge of God (5) #

◦ As Christians, our desire should be to know God.

1. Know God through your walk!

a) Enoch walked with God, and was not!

b) Gen 5:24 And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.

c) When you walk with someone, you get to know them….

(1) I enjoy hiking through the woods, going out, and walking… that is enjoyable for me.

2. Know God through the Word!

a) Desire to know God, and please God

b) Man has an inner desire to know God - Sacrifice babies to the gods, worship the sun, star and moons, sacrifice animals, spend large portions of time in prayer, crawling on their knees up steps… thinking they are getting closer to God!

c) Reading through the entire Bible, uncovers a knowledge of God that is not otherwise possible! In Leviticus, reading about the sacrifices, it is not particularly enjoyable… we don’t even need to offer sacrifices, however it gives us insight into the exactness, and how particular God was on details!

(1) Leviticus 10, 2 of Aaron’s sons offer strange fire before the Lord, and are smitten down…. There are lessons about the importance of doing thing’s God’s way.

C. Understand Righteousness (9) #

1. Man is sinful by nature

Jer 17:9 - The heart [is] deceitful above all [things], and desperately wicked: who can know it?

Ps 53:1-3 - [1] The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. Corrupt are they, and have done abominable iniquity: there is none that doeth good. [2] God looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, that did seek God. [3] Every one of them is gone back: they are altogether become filthy; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.

Isaiah 64:6 But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.

1. Man is wicked, in our natural state… no clarity righteousness.

2. Righteousness is as odd as living on the moon!

3. HOWEVER, with 1. Accepting, 2. Asking, and 3. Seeking the Wisdom of God, = understanding Righteousness!

4. God and the Bible reveals to us what is right and what is wrong.

a) Holiness is not about pleasing God, so much as it is about enjoying life.

b) If all holiness is to you, is a set of rules and regulations… you have it all wrong!

(1) Drinking alcohol in the Bible is a sin… Our benefit. God is not trying to limit “our fun”…

◦ No alcohol, no cirrhosis of the liver.

◦ No alcohol, no car accidents from drunk/impaired

◦ No beer, no overhang

◦ No beer, no decisions you regret!

a) The majority of the dietary laws of the Jews, was for their protection, and health! God watches out for His people!

D. Understand Judgment #

1. Judgment - The act of judging; the operation of the mind, involving comparison and discrimination, by which a knowledge of the values and relations of thins, whether of moral qualities, intellectual concepts, logical propositions, or material facts, is obtained; as, by careful judgment he avoided the peril; by a series of wrong judgments he forfeited confidence. - DECISION MAKING

2. “Don’t judge me!” - We live in a messed up world, that is constantly crying, “Don’t judge me!” “Judge not…” The Bible says so! It is amazing how people know one Bible verse, and are scholars about what is right and wrong.

3. While we are not to be critical of one another, we certainly are to encourage, edify, and help one another… that requires judgment!

E. Understand Equity #

1. Equity - Equality of rights; natural justice or right; the giving, or desiring to give, to each man his due, according to reason, and the law of God to man; fairness in determination of conflicting claims; impartiality.

2. We are to understand equity… don’t judge a book by it’s cover.

3. What you are looking at, can be very deceptive. - Treat people with equity, impartiality!

a) Not thinking more or less of people based on appearance

4. Two sides to every story

F. Understand Every good path #

1. Life is full of paths! God wants us to be on the best path of our life!

John 10:10 … I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

II. Our Rewarder (God is Able) (6-8) #

But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. (Hebrews 11:6)

A. He is Wisdom, Knowledge and Understanding (6) #

1. You can set at no greater feet for wisdom, then the very Author, and creator of the universe!

2. The one that hung the stars in space, the one that designed the tiniest capillary that allows blood to flow through it, and exchange nutrients with the cells in our body.

B. He is a Buckler (7) #

1. Buckler is simply a shield.

2. God is looking to protect your life!

C. He is a path preserver (8) #

1. There is no one I would prefer looking out for my life than God!

2. God is not limited in resources!

a) We can exhaust human resources quickly!

3. God is not limited in time!

a) I’m constantly running into a time crunch. I can do a lot of things, but I’m limited by time! God is not bound by time as we are!

4. God is not limited in ability!

a) As many things as I can do… I’m a ‘jack of all trades’ master of none.

b) I’m glad that God is a “Jack of all trades”, and masters them all!