Proverbs 13:11-18

Well, good morning, good morning, good morning, good morning. It's so good to have you here this morning. This is where every day we get together. We have some coffee, we get into God's Word, and we grow in our love for the Lord together. And this year, 2021, we'll make it through all the wisdom literature. Well, this morning we're at Proverbs chapter 13, verses 11 through 18. Why don't we go ahead and have some coffee, we'll pray, and we'll get into God's Word. Let's pray. Father, we thank you so much for this day. We pray that you would bless us now. We pray that you would watch over us and that you would teach us. We pray that you would let us follow your ways in Jesus's name. Amen. All right, here we go.
Actually, before we start, one of my friends over in Winchester, Kansas, his name is Kyle Borg. He's a kind of eccentric guy, but I'm just kidding. No, he is, but he's my good friend. Anyways, I would encourage you, I'm trying to help them out with some Facebook likes. Feel free to go check out, after this video, go check out Winchester RP Church on Facebook. Give them a like, trying to help encourage them down there in Kansas. All right, here we go.
Proverbs chapter 13, verses 11 through 18. wealth gained by dishonesty will be diminished but he who gathers will labor by labor will increase hope deferred makes the heart sick but when the desire comes it is a tree of life wealth gained by dishonesty will be diminished right what is this saying don't get stuff by evil swindle your way right don't be a slimy salesman right trying to get it by dishonest gain but gather by labor right work with your hands hard and you'll have good-hearted increase.
Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but when the desire comes, it is a tree of life. Hope put off, right? I have to be careful when I tell my kids, maybe we'll do this. And I have to kind of say, no, I'm not saying that we will. I'm saying, don't put your hope there. We're probably not, but it's possible we might. But that kind of will dishearten them at times, right? Sometimes that happens when we have hope and then it's deferred and it's like, ah, it's just never gonna come. When the desire comes, it is a tree of life, but sometimes when we hope for something and it's far off and then we get it, oh, it's so exciting, like, yes, it finally happened.
Verse 13 and 14. He who despises the word will be destroyed, but he who fears the commandment will be rewarded. The law of the wise is a fountain of life to turn one away from the snares of death." Right? If you despise God's word, especially his living word, Jesus Christ, The end of that is destruction. But the law of the wise is a fountain of life. But when we come to Jesus Christ, he's the one who says, come to the well and I'll give you living water. Right? When we love God, we love his word as a fountain of life to us. It turns us away from the snares of death. God's word tells us what we've been going through is just very practical wisdom.
How to stay away from that path that leads to destruction. verse 15 and 16. Good understanding gains favor, but the way of the unfaithful is hard. Every prudent man acts with knowledge, but a fool lays open his falling. Get understanding and act upon knowledge. Go to God's word, find his will, seek after him, go and mine the depths of scripture because it will gain you favor, but the way of the unfaithful is hard. This is really true. The way of the unfaithful is hard. I've said this before and I'll say it again. Sin always over promises pleasure and always over delivers on guilt.
The way of the drunkard is a hard life. The way of a swindler is a hard life. The way of a liar is a lonely and hard life. The way of the alcoholic is a lonely and hard life. The way of the man who goes after the lust of his heart, who's never satisfied with the wife of his youth, is a hard road, a lonely and heartbroken road. Don't go down that path. Hear God's wisdom and follow his ways. But every prudent man acts with knowledge, but a fool lays open his falling.
Verse 17, a wicked messenger falls into trouble, but a faithful ambassador brings health. I mean, you do not want to be a president, prime minister, anybody who's sending out your diplomat, and they're not faithful with the message, or you send them to go do one, do thing A, and instead they decide they want to do thing B instead. You don't want to send someone with a report that says X, and they say Y instead. doesn't work in international diplomacy, it doesn't work with sending messengers, and it sure wouldn't work when God sent forth his apostles, his sent ones, to share the good news, when they brought the good news of Jesus as Christ. This is why God promises, or Jesus promises in John, that he's going to send them the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit's going to bring to mind that they could remember everything he had said, so they could be faithful messengers of the good news of Jesus Christ. We want to be found faithful messengers.
Last verse, verse 18, poverty and shame will come to him who disdains correction, but he who regards a rebuke will be honored. Do you hate correction? Do you hate being told, no, that's not the right way, this is the right way? That's actually a good thing for us to be corrected. It's not a bad thing. It's a good thing when the Lord says, hey, you've been going this way, come this way.
This morning in family worship, we were talking about sanctification and how God is renewing the whole man, right? We talked about renewing our mind and our affections and our body and our actions, everything, and that we might die continually unto sin. And we're dying to sin. Because correcting us more and more, hey son, don't go this way, hey daughter, that's the wrong way, come back here.
Poverty and shame will come to him who disdains correction, but he who regards rebuke will be honored. Are you willing to be a child sitting at the feet of God? Willing to be rebuked, willing to be corrected. It's hard, it's not comfortable. It means that we have to submit our will, bow our will to God, This is the way that leads to life. Leads to a good life.
Well, let's go ahead and pray. Father, we thank you so much for the wisdom that you've given us. We thank you for the trustworthy report of the gospel of Jesus that you've given us. Lord, we pray that we would walk in your ways, that we would follow after Jesus Christ. We pray that we would be willing to sit under correction, listen to rebuke. And Father, that we would walk after you. In Jesus' name, amen. Well may you walk today in the wisdom of Jesus Christ. May your heart be conformed more and more to His image. And I'll see you tomorrow. Bye.