First, thanks for your patience. I have been traveling quite a bit.
God loves you. He wants the best for you. Remember that.
Proverbs is all about you living life to the max for His glory. I’m excited about today’s lesson.
Here are the notes and slides.
#32Chapters
Last week…
Chapter 3 was a simple call to trust. Trust God will ALL (100%) of your heart.
This week’s main point.
Trust God will ALL (100%) of your heart. Always use protection.
Chapter Outline
The 27 verses of chapter three are broken into 3 sections.
- A father’s advice
- A choice between paths
- Protecting your heart
A Father’s Wisdom
We are four chapters in now and Solomon is still pleading with us to embrace or better yet to surrender to wisdom.
Solomon as he addresses us places us in the position of son. We are sons. We are family members. This is a birthright. The wisest, richest father is not leaving us gold or silver or power…he declares wisdom to be more important.
How does he get to this? Why has he now moved to making so personal a plea? Simple: his father. David did the same thing with him. David lived such a broken, human life. Adultry. Murder. Deception. War.
After a life of the pain that comes from compromise David plead with his son to choose a better path. He was broken so he knew what brokenness felt like. He knew that path much to well.
It’s no wonder the enemy has worked so hard to destroy the image of fathers. If fathers are have no credibility, if fathers aren’t looked up to, if fathers don’t have the ability to speak into their children’s lives then fathers cant leave wisdom as a birthright.
If your father doesn’t have your respect then these words, this example has no impact or relevance.
Here Solomon reveals from his life and the benefit of watching his father’s tortured reign that the most important acquisition is wisdom. No matter what it cost you to get it you will benefit more than you ever pay. Wisdom must be THE priority.
Are you willing to do whatever it takes to find and deploy wisdom in your life?
The Path Of The Wicked
We’re back to those paths. Here as a wise father Solomon tells us, his long distance sons exactly what to look for in people who are detrimental to your life and survival.
Let’s take another look.
The wicked do wickedness. They look for ways to do wickedness and violence. I don’t think this is limited to physical acts of violence. Jesus clearly taught that murder is as much a state of mind as an act.
How does Dad tell us to deal with this? Run, Forest run! He doesn’t give instructions in confrontation. He says (a) don’t go near the path (b) if you see it turn around and get the hell out of there.
How many times have you been burned trying to manage your sin? How many times have you been burned thinking you could find the good in someone who is fundamentally bad?
Don’t go near these kinds of people. Their path will lead you away from wisdom and away from God.
The Path Of Righteousness
By contrast Solomon is telling us how to identify a better path. How do you tell the better path? Light. Not just the presence of light but growing light.
How often have you stumbled because you were on a dark path? What is the lighted path you’ve been avoiding?
Darkness is the sign that the path is wrong. If you have to do it in the dark, if you have to hide you’re on the wrong path.
Protect Your Heart
At the end of this chapter, this fatherly appeal, Solomon urges us to keep our hearts, that’s where your life, your being, your essence comes from.
Why so much passion in the pleading? I think it’s because both David and Solomon live portions of their lives with unprotected hearts and experienced the devastation of living with exposed unprotected hearts. Your heart is hidden by your rib cage for a reason.
When your heart is clogged and doesn’t flow you die.
Solomon gives us 6 instructions to protect our hearts
- Eliminate gossip and deception.
- Stop looking for flaws and imperfections.
- Think about consequences then align your actions with what’s good.
- When the right thing is known, do it without hestiation.
- Don’t waiver.
- Don’t place your foot on the evil path.
The Conclusion
Trust God will ALL (100%) of your heart.
The Challenge
Try simply following the clear direction he gives you from his word.
Grow. Help others grow. Be Encouraged.
Wisdom House Publishing
2012 Hallerin Hilton Hill
#32chapters 