The Path of Wisdom - Wisdom's Path

Take your Bible turn back with me to Proverbs chapter 2. I'm sure you probably are there already Of course, I think you know we're in our third week starting off really a pretty good journey a pretty long journey in our study through Proverbs I'm calling this wisdom for Christian living. This is gonna be very practical lots of practical truth Lots of practical direction and we're going to learn a lot together. I'm excited I remind you of our first message. It was it was an introductory message But then we did get into some verses verses 1 to 7.

I called it the call To God's wisdom really that can speak to the whole book because that's what the whole book is about. It's about wisdom It's about foolish Living and we'll see those two contrasts at even tonight and then last week We covered the rest of the chapter chapter 1 and it was kind of a unique title I called it a beautiful woman cries our name and that's the beautiful voice of Wisdom and I think that that probably caught some people's attention But that's right there in the heart of what we were looking at there at the last part of chapter 1 So here we are right here at chapter 2 and tonight we'll cover the whole chapter I think we'll be able to do that Thoroughly now before we get into the verses.

I want to ask you to use your imagination with me. All right I want to get us thinking kind of in a particular direction But you know all of us are familiar with roads. We drove out here on a nice road. It's not a gravel road I'm very thankful in our country. We really do have a good road system Of course, it's a big debate in Mississippi about the roads and bridges But I think if you go to another country, you'll realize we have a good road system I remember when I was in India in 2014 We went into the countryside and we went down these things they called roads really They were more like an ATV trail, but yet we would go down those roads in a car But we have a good road system, you know We're familiar with the interstate system that enables us to get in our car and think about it We can zoom really across our country with relative ease That reminds me I remember my father-in-law telling the story about when he was young some of his brothers and They piled up in a car and they drove all the way to California from Mississippi Laurel, Mississippi Before the interstates and he said every 20 miles you stopped in a little one-horse town.

He said it took forever You know in in our town in our County, we mostly have two lane roads. Yeah, we drive on the right side of the road Do we not we drive on the left side? We're in trouble. We have speed limit signs. We have traffic lights We have stop signs. We have other signage that got us. We have lines in the road We're supposed to now. What am I trying to show you all of this directs us? Does it not and really all of this protects us it directs us and it protects us as we drive now think about it We really take those things for granted.

We don't really pay much attention to them unless they're not there or unless there's an accident now in the book of Proverbs the words path or In the word way and really both the plural and the singular are seen almost a hundred times all throughout the Proverbs We have seen that wisdom is the voice of a loving father to his son. We saw that in chapter one We'll see it again tonight in chapter two But we will also see that wisdom is a path.

It is a way you could use this word road and it would not be inaccurate and and that's what we have before us in chapter two wisdom is pictured as a path wisdom is pictured as a Way or a road really and surely the theme of wisdom being a path is seen in chapter 2 chapter 3 and chapter 4 So we'll deal with this for the next couple of weeks Wisdom being a path and I see some of you're writing that down.

I would invite you to write that down now I want to go back to our illustration Back to our roads back to our highways and such now we are given road signs We're given lines on our roads We're given laws all of which are meant to protect us and to direct us as we drive Well, that is just what we have in chapter 2 of Proverbs We have wisdom pictured as a road pictured as a path pictured as a way in the English standard version that I'm reading and teaching from the word path is used now all Along that path of life along that road or way of life There is instruction given to protect us in life and see not only did Solomon want to protect his son The Lord inspired Solomon to put these words down so that it would protect us tonight we're gonna look at what's titled the path of wisdom and That is wisdom's protection the path of wisdom Wisdom's protection now tonight we're gonna have three main truths in our outline I will give them to you as we progress along the message, but what are we looking at?

We are looking at the path of wisdom. I'm calling this wisdom's Protection now go ahead and give us our first major truth in our outline and we see before us working for wisdom now this comes out of Verses 1 to 11 this is working for Wisdom now if you look at verse 1 you will notice the same language that we saw in chapter 1 Specifically chapter 1 verse 8 look at verse 1 chapter 2 with me my son if you receive my Words now what we have here is a loving father Solomon teaching his son now There were others also that were taught as well.

These are loving words Now they're words of instruction, but they're still loving words Truthfully these words are just pregnant with true concern for a son from a loving knowledgeable father So these are not just black and white commandments. I want us to see that there's love there's care There's concern of a father for a son Now you see right before you first we're gonna look at this this call to work out of verses 1 to 4 We have a call to this work this work of wisdom.

Let's look at the first four verses My son if you receive my words and treasure up my commandments within you Making your ear a tin of the wisdom and inclining your heart to understanding Yes, if you call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding if you seek it Like silver and search for it as for hidden treasure So if you've noticed it might take a little time if you studied on your own I'm gonna give them to you in verses 1 to 4 there eight distinct commands Which are a call to work for wisdom To work for wisdom now, I'm gonna take them one by one and when I go through them, you'll see them just come off the page Notice he says in verse 1 receive my words Now this is the first step in working for wisdom just simply to receive teaching to receive Instruction we know what the opposite is that is to reject and so Solomon right away very simple He says my son receive my words receive what I say And then notice he says treasure my commands.

That's in verse 1 as well I call this the second step from receiving This this speaks to a storing up of that teaching because you see that it is valuable Now we understand this we store up for ourselves treasure We store up for ourselves money. We store up for ourselves investments or valuables deeds titles Automatically, I remembered my my dad when I was a little boy He had this this metal box and he had a coin collection It was a pretty good coin collection for a man who was a school teacher And he started that coin collection as as a young man and he would add to it and add to it and and he Treasured that thing he kept it locked away and hidden away in the house If a thief is listening there out of luck my dad keeps it under lock and key now But what am I showing you?

Those are things that he treasured and so they were treasured. They were locked away They were stored away for self-keeping. And so what does he say? Receive my words and treasure them Treasure my teaching and then he goes on notice make your ear Attentive now, this is the third step this means to to keep your ear open And it means to keep your ear open not just for a moment not just for one time or every now and then But to keep that ear attentive to keep that ear open for teaching and instruction And if the ear is not open the picture is a heart that is starved truthfully So what does he say making your ear attentive?

I automatically thought about a physical example You know you hear stories about people maybe who have surgery or our dental problems or a broken jaw And that their mouths are wired shut Well, then they have to invent a way to get nutrients into the stomach in there, right? Because if the mouth won't work, well, then food doesn't get nutrients don't get into the stomach So what is he saying here?

He is saying make your ear attentive Why so that you can receive it the ears open and it can come into the heart Well that leads us to the next one the fourth step in this work Inclining your heart to understanding if the ear is open to instruction That's not enough the horse the heart must be tuned to attain that understanding and that instruction It is not mere information But information which is which has been understood and it's hidden in the heart and ultimately fleshed out in The life I think you see a progression Receive my words treasure my commands keep your ear open to what I will teach you and then incline your heart to have Understanding of what I'm teaching you and then next he says in verse 3 call out for insight I call this the fifth step one commentator that I read called this a passionate pleading a passionate pleading I like that this pictures one who is desperate to know and Understand God's truth and teaching they want to be able to see the meaning not just the words They want to be able to understand the meaning and have insight into what's taught not just to know the words again Notice the progression receiving my words treasuring my commands Tuning that ear opening that ear being attentive Inclining that heart to have understanding and then calling out for that understanding and that insight And then the sixth step notice Raise your voice for that understanding.

This is connected with crying out This desire is not just to know that information They want to know and understand and fully grasp the meaning of what is taught And then in verse 4 seek it like silver and this six seven This seventh step is really connected with the eighth step search for it as for hidden treasure We understand what it means for someone to seek treasure a Prospector he seeks treasure like silver or gold every now and then if we watch the news We'll see these salvage divers how they seek treasure from old sunken ships and here Understanding God's truth and instruction is pictured as a hidden treasure Which must be sought after now all of this leads right here to go back to some things that I shared last week This takes time and this takes work.

This takes expense not monetary expense It takes time and work and more time and more work This reminds me of an old example my grandfather his old place that he purchased in 1941 was a part of an old plantation that had been broken up So matter of fact the portion that he bought happened to have the old home site on it The home was long since torn down, but the old sister and is there today And it was an old plantation and he would hear stories when he was a little boy of how some of those old defunct Plantation someone would find some old coins or some old treasure from those old plantations He used to tell the story of a man one time that noticed us a strange hole in a tree and he began to investigate And there was lots of old gold coins and they speculated it came from one of those old plantations He used to make the joke maybe the old plantation treasures around here.

We never found it But what do we see with that example? We are to search for understanding and knowledge We are to desire to know the meaning of God's Word and this takes time and work and experience And and see I think you understand this by now. This is not devotional reading I was reading one commentator and he blasted devotional reading He said you cannot read God's Word that low that way This is not a Bible verse that can be used in a hallmark card. This is not an open windows devotional Look, you wanted Hallmark card for a birthday card. You want to open window for a fall breeze?

I'm ready for a fall breeze, but that's not what we have here. What is Solomon saying? You better work hard This is a call to work read hear my language again read and meditate Yes memorize, but it must be internalized and see now I'm adding to that you're crying out for understanding God I've got to know what this means. I've got to understand the truth I've got to know how it applies to my life You might not be able to quote it chapter and verse but oh, you know exactly what it is And then after you internalize it and understand what it means.

Yes memorize it and Know this takes prayer and more prayer this takes wrestling with God wrestling with yourself Fighting see there's work here go back and look at those words receive treasure Turn your ear have it open incline your heart call out raise your voice Seek for it search for it like you would a Treasure this is a call to work working for wisdom Now we're still dealing with our main our first major truth working for wisdom.

Let's notice second a reward for the work We see a reward for the work verse 5 then Then you will understand and then he goes on in the language all changes all the way up to verse 11 I'll read those verses here in a few minutes when we get started now I don't know if you noticed you probably did not but in verse 1 Solomon gives a conditional clause Go back to verse 1 if you receive That's a conditional clause Solomon is simply saying and I'm gonna paraphrase him If you do the things that I call you to do if you do this work Then then certain things will happen the then starts in verse 5 So we can see that there is a reward There's a reward for those who do this work if they meet these conditions if the work is done Now for me, I kind of place an emphasis that right here on verse 5 Let me read verse 4 if you seek it like silver search for it like hidden treasures then See the transitional clause the conditional clause in that transition Then you will understand the fear of the Lord and it just continues on on down to verse 11 Now for me, I see this reward in four ways.

I See three things that God does and one accomplishment Three things that God does and one accomplishment. You'll be able to follow me fairly easy Notice God gives look at verse 6 with me for the Lord gives wisdom God gives Here we see that God gives wisdom and knowledge and understanding Notice this word gives and this phrase from his mouth for the Lord gives wisdom and from his mouth come knowledge and Understanding we see God doing a work here now question for us. How does this work take place? I know I'm zooming to our day and our time and in the New Testament era, which is when we live How does this take place?

How is a legitimate question? We have the gift of the Holy Spirit when we were born of God the Spirit comes to dwell within us We learn of the Holy Spirit back in our study through John in John 14 Starting in verse 16 all the way to verse 31 Jesus said he would give the Spirit and he comes to God and the council and the teach and there's a whole host of things That describe how the Spirit does that and one of the things he does is he guides us in the truth He teaches us and he is the one that enables us to get this understanding First Corinthians 2 9 and 10 says the Spirit Spirit Holy Spirit Searches the deep things of God so the Spirit can search out and know the meaning of these verses And we must see that the Holy Spirit performs this work in us to us and for us Now I'm gonna give you a warning and this is kind of an encouragement This is not education.

I Just want to push back from only information in our minds. This is not education But I use this language impartation God Imparts this knowledge and understanding after we work to attain it now. Here's where Bible scholars will say we have a paradox Paradox me is a seeming contradiction. Here's one that we know we talked about this I think Sunday night and our small group, you know, who wrote the Bible was it God or man? Well, the answer to that is yes God wrote it but he inspired me in the right it. So if you say Paul wrote this letter, you're correct If you say God wrote it, you're correct.

God wrote it through Paul But what I'm showing you here is we work to get this Verses 1 to 4 we roll up our sleeves. We worked for it. But yet when you see starting in verse 5 God must give it we see this all through these verses. So God gives I know I'm skipping over verse 5 I'm gonna come back to it, but look at verse 6 for God gives wisdom and out of his mouth come knowledge and Understanding so we look for God to give what we cannot get but yet we work for Then we move on. This is The second of the things that God does God stores up Look at verse 7 he stores up sound wisdom for the upright for me.

This is a great encouragement We are working to attain wisdom We are working to get that which God has to give but this verse tells us that God has an abundant supply of wisdom He has an abundant supply of wisdom stored up for us This is a lifetime of wisdom and so much more is that what the verse says he stores up sound wisdom for the upright And then at the end of verse 7 and 8, this is the third of those things that God does We see that God protects he protects the end of verse 7 He is the shield for those who walk in integrity guarding the paths of The justice of justice we see that word paths that we talked about from me This is a great encouragement of way as well now the shield it is a defensive tool This means that God and his wisdom become a protection for the life Here in verse 8 we see the language of the path here We see that God and his wisdom protect the path of the believer.

He is watching over the path He's watching over the way the direction the road of the saint of God So God gives verse 6 God stores up that treasure or that wisdom and then God protects He is our shield and he guards our path and then now we see what God accomplishes What God accomplishes we see this in verse 5 and then over in verses 9 to 11 Then you will understand the fear of the Lord Then you will find the knowledge of God see that accomplishment and then it picks up in verse 9 Then you will understand righteousness and justice verse 10 for for wisdom will come into your heart verse 11 Discretion will watch over you Here in these verses we see an accomplishment verse 5 Then you will verse 9 to 11 then you will but notice this long list of accomplishments The one who works for wisdom will gain that wisdom Knowledge and fear of God they will have an understanding of righteousness and justice verse 9 Wisdom will be in their heart and knowledge something Pleasant to the soul verse 10 discretion or sound judgment will watch over them in verse 11 So with this reward for the work notice what we have yes, it's paradoxical See the seeming contradiction of the work which we must do the hard work the diligent work but then receiving That wisdom Solomon is calling his son To this work Solomon is calling his son to this hard work for wisdom.

This is not a one-time work This is not a just one and done type thing This is a lifetime work. This is a lifestyle work Then the seeming contradiction this wisdom this understanding this knowledge is given by God to the Sun This is a work of God. So what have we looked at? This is our first major truth We see verses 1 to 11 working for wisdom.

And so what we must see an application is this when we take a step back We have the responsibility to work and we have to be on guard from from just merely reading We have to just be on guard from just merely memorizing information This is a work of seeking after a knowledge of the word Understanding it and then we should see results eventually we should see results I thought about an an example that I think many of us can relate to if You exercise you understand the term no pain no gain.

I started back running I took about a 14 year hiatus and Last summer I started back running and just trying to maintain an exercise regiment and and you know, I understand Exercise you have to work hard at it. You just have to work Discipline yourself set aside that time no pain. No gain you get out of it what you put into it That's a great illustration and that's what we have here. We have to work hard for this We pray we read we search it out.

We ask God to help us we meditate we internalize it We do whatever it takes we invent ways use an audio Bible right post it notes and put them in your car Memorize the scripture keep a pocket Bible We work hard for this and then it's the Spirit of God that does this work whereby we become that Wise individual that one with understanding You know, it's sad you've got some people over here they have spiritual education Bible knowledge, but yeah, they don't have a clue as to what it means I'll think of a gentleman that I went to church with years ago You could look at on any page of his Bible. It was marked.

He could quote chapter and verse chapter and verse He could tell you who wrote when wearing how Somehow some way it just didn't work out in his life Terrible marriage children didn't love the Lord really didn't see God in this in his life. See he had knowledge But somehow he didn't have understanding and insight and wisdom.

It just didn't work out in his life So I'll push aside from that and you know, someone can be very educated but yet still not know how it works But yet there are some people they don't have good what we would call book learning But they sure know how God's words should work out in their life So we've got to work hard for this and we see a reward and we should see that now, let's move on I want us to see our second major truth and we're looking at number two Wisdom's protection we see this in verse 12 on down to verse 19 This is wisdom's protection and you see how we will divide these verses now Here is what I see as the heart of the lesson for Solomon to me This is the heart of what Solomon is trying to communicate But before we get into the verses, let's notice the progression in Solomon's teaching so far.

He loves his son. Oh This is just not black and white teaching. He's calling his son to a hard work He's calling his son to work hard for wisdom to this lifestyle a lifelong search Discipline hard work discipline hard work then he shows him the reward of his labor God will impart wisdom and understanding and insight. He has plenty stored up and Then God will do this spiritual work in him. There is a work right here Verses 12 to 19 Solomon shows his son just how this wisdom or this work will protect him in life And this is very very practical in these verses.

We see protection from two dangers to temptation These are two areas of the young son's life where he desperately needed to be prepared Bible scholars believe that the young son had grown up. He might have been in those years Well, he will be exposed to these types of temptations so the the first temptation we see a Protection from evil men we see this protection from evil men verse 12 Delivering you from the way of evil from men of perverted speech who forsake the paths of uprightness verse 14 who rejoice in Doing evil verse 15 men whose paths are crooked Now this is a familiar warning for us who have been in chapter 1 Solomon warned his son of the gang remember we talked about last week I use the term peer pressure starting in verse 10 going on down to verse 19 of chapter 1 the evil gang the peer pressure Here in verse 12.

He says these men they have perverted speech in verse 12 of chapter 2 in verse 13 They leave the godly or the right path for the path of darkness in verse 14 He says they rejoice in doing evil and they even delight in the depth of that evil notice that in verse 14 And then in verse 15. He says their paths are crooked their paths are devious So thinking back to chapter 1 notice he warns his son of the sinful gang or the peer pressure And then here in chapter 2 He shows his son the wisdom that will protect him from that gang and that peer pressure See how it all builds so this is protection from evil men but then second he shows a he shows us a protection from the forbidden woman a Protection there is a protection from the forbidden woman.

We see this from verse 16 to 19 So you will be delivered from the forbidden woman From the adulterous with her smooth words who forsakes the companion of her youth verse 18 For her house sinks down into the depths verse 19 No one who go to her come back nor do they regain the paths of life? We have met the evil gang But now we see the forbidden or the adulterous woman for the first time Now we're gonna meet her more and more as we journey through the book as a matter of fact one of the Bible Commentators called the forbidden woman the adulterous woman.

He called her one of the main characters of the entire book now here We see her as the forbidden woman notice her behavior She starts her seduction of the young man with her speech verse 16 She moves on from her speech to forsake her own husband the marriage she had the marriage vow She had made in verse 17 and then notice what we see in verse 18 and 19 We see the description of her ways and falling to this temptation We see death in verse 18 none make it back from her ways in verse 19 And then none who followed down her path regain life in verse 19 So in summary, what have we seen here?

We must see that wisdom this work of wisdom this gift this impartation of wisdom and understanding Receiving the instruction and allowing God to work it out in the life This protects the young man from the way of the adulterous woman. This protects the young man from the evil game But we must see the way of this forbidden woman and how she works Solomon carefully details her plan of seduction.

He carefully details how the evil game works And then he masterfully shows his son the result of these these paths in life death No return to life So Solomon is a master teacher shows how they work and where their direction will go and so for us in Education we must explain The seductive schemes of the seductive woman to our sons and yes our daughters because it happens for both We must explain the the schemes of the game of the evil crowd Because if we go back we can see the progression we can see their scheming their words their attitudes and the things that they do We must see and understand what's taught here and then take it into our homes take it to our sons Take it to our daughters.

I Couldn't help but think of a young man that I minister two years ago He had everything going for him did real well in school. He did well in athletics I mean he had scholarship potential he had everything going he came from a very nice family And you know if he would have just stayed on the right path But lo and behold the wrong woman came along the wrong young girl came along and she was a picture of this adulterous woman and What did she do? Ruined his life. I mean just ruined his life and you know we can think of example after example Especially those of us who have lived a little bit longer. What am I trying to show you?

We've seen these schemes played out. We've seen these things happen And so we must understand that this wisdom offers protection I Think this might help us see that the hard work is worth it Devotional reading won't give us this protection Open windows won't help us you know the Bible verse that will fit really well in a Hallmark card That's just not gonna cut it. This is hard work. We have to do diligence here.

We have to work hard here We have to go back and apply it to our lives because we're not immune to these temptations as adults no I'll think about another illustration an adult illustration a man who was a leader in the life of the church and oh this Forbidden woman comes by with the right words and just the right temptations and what just same thing Same thing so we see wisdom's protection here wisdom's protection and Then let's move on to their third major truth and this will finish up the chapter we see wisdom's future Wisdom's future we see this in verse 20 to 22 So we've seen working for wisdom versus 1 to 11 wisdom's protection 12 to 19 and now wisdom's future verse 20 to 22 now I think it's easy to see a transition between verse 19 and 20 look back at your copy of God's Word with me Talking of the seductive woman none who go to her come back Nor do any regain the paths of life and then the transition So you will walk in the way of the good and keep the paths of the righteous There's that transition to me.

I see Solomon concluding this teaching He calls his son to work to seek after to do whatever it would take to gain this wisdom He shows him that wisdom and understanding and knowledge and discretion They are given by God to the one who searches after it then he goes on to show very practically how wisdom protects From the evil men and the forbidden woman now. He shows him the future He shows him the future so here in verses 20 to 22 We see this familiar contrast between the wise and the foolish And I will make two observations one for both.

So first we see the future of the wise The future of the wise so you verse 20 will walk in the way of the good and keep to the paths of the righteous Verse 21 for the upright will inhabit the land and those with integrity will remain in it Now notice what Solomon is saying it's just if if it's just right there If if you heed by instructions if you do this work If you will walk in this way in this good path He says you will keep to the path of the righteous if you do it and this is the opposite of verse 18 What does he say for her house sinks down to death and then starting in verse 20?

He talks about the good path the path of righteousness So there is this path. This is the one who embraces the wisdom the right living who receives those instructions This is fruitful living. This is good living. This is remaining in the land So this is the future of the wise who takes that wise path And then the future of the foolish one verse verse 22, but the wicked The wicked will be cut off from the land and the treacherous Will be rooted out of it here. The foolish one is again revealed Verse 22 is the opposite of verse 21. I think that's obvious the wicked are cut off.

They are uprooted They are destroyed and notice it's very simple here The blessed life of the one who finds wisdom who heeds the instruction who works hard and embraces the work of God And then the the curse life of the fool and the fool is not named here as a fool But this is a fool but more in summary. I want to take us back to my introduction Remember what I said Proverbs 2 is about paths.

It's about the way of life roads in life and think about it We every day drive down two lane roads and we pass people going in different directions think about it if we are going down the path of the road of wisdom and Understanding and discernment if we are going down the path of godly living then we are passing people going in the opposite direction People pursuing sin and ultimately death people rejecting instruction in the Word of God and sadly some of these people are in our family and Sadly some of these people are our friends and notice they're on the opposite path They're on the opposite path we're going one way and they're going the other way and Some of them are being warned by us Some of them are watching how we live and so for me and for you We must see that we must explain to those around us The fruit of their choices the future of what they're doing.

We must do this with our children and listen We must illustrate it. We must give them examples We must point out examples in our families and in our neighborhoods and with our friends It's sad to say we must even use people that we love as bad examples Look at where they have gone Here recently my wife was ministering to a lady not in our church because of our involvement in the community She was ministering to this particular lady and she's been a victim of drugs and alcohol and and I say victim Yes a victim but yet making these bad choices bad choice after bad choice after bad choice And my children have been watching us and seeing that and I set my daughters down and I did exactly What's in this scripture exactly what I told you?

I said no you look this is where it takes you it always ends up in the death and destruction And I illustrated it and I explained it and I tried to sear it into their minds And so I encourage you to be honest with your children as they grow up Obviously a three-year-old can't understand what a 13 year old can understand But oh, it's a warning for us The decisions we make have a future as well Now if you've paid attention I Took a little more time a little more detailed. I read the verses verses 1 to 4 a little bit more This call to the work of getting wisdom and understanding now. Why did I do that?

I did that on purpose All of this is dependent all of this work in the chapter is dependent on this work this engaging in this work this lifetime of work this responsibility this discipline think about it if we do not Get into verses 1 to 4 if we do not do this work Well this this way of life from verse 5 on it evades us We're not ready. We're not wise and understanding and we're susceptible to those traps and those temptations think about it And so what I'm trying to call you to maybe for some of you.

It is a new way of life Maybe you've never looked at Bible study like this I'm calling some of you back to a Faithful way of life a way of life that you know listen to work and to study and to get into the scripture and cry out late into the night early into the morning Do you know what it means and how it could be made real in our life not just information and? In our culture.

I'm sad to say we must shirk the microwave fast food mentality when it comes to spiritual matters We can get food quickly, but spiritual food takes time and work We must quit this hit-and-miss approach to study and hearing God's Word taught listen Just like with exercise. We can't be lazy and it takes a complete lifestyle change We have to have a complete spiritual lifestyle change This is every day Every day every week. Oh you have a bad day Monday get up and do it again Tuesday Listen this takes work.

It's got to be a lifestyle and if you take the pattern set the examples right here in verses 1 to 4 and look let me just show you if You apply verses 1 to 4 to everything that you're being taught on Sunday morning We're in the sermon on the mount the greatest sermon ever taught This is the Christian life and if you take the sermon on the mount and everything I give you and you take verses 1 to 4 from Proverbs and you do that work that will radically change your life If you take what we're learning in small groups on Sunday nights I know some of what we're teaching you already know But there's a lot more that you don't know one of the men in our small group Sunday night said, you know I just didn't see this before and if we'll take this approach verses 1 to 4 with our Sunday night small groups and our proverb study listen you will grow you will become wise you will have Understanding you will have wisdom that is fleshed out in your life and you will be able to engage in life Being protected by the Word of God the wisdom of God and understanding you will help other Christians You'll be ministering to people to your left and to your right you will just pour this into your children They will see it fleshed out in you if you take verses 1 to 4 and apply it to everything that's taught from this pulpit I'm telling you you will grow wonderfully But I want to go back to verse 1 and then we'll wrap it up What does he say my son we saw that in chapter 1 verse 18 my son Solomon is teaching his son and his son had personal responsibility Now, let me wrap this up We must first take responsibility for ourselves Don't make the mistake of jumping straight to your children without doing this work for you first We must first take responsibility for ourselves and then second we are responsible to give it our sons and our daughters no matter how old they are and don't make the mistake of taking it just for you and not giving it to your sons and your daughters and We must take this into our homes discuss it with our spouses and then be prepared to give it to our children And look, let me tell you we will see the path of wisdom We will see the path of wisdom being just that'll be our life and then wisdom's protection in Every aspect of our life.

This will just happen It will just happen