Sermon Snippets

I'm sure most of us have heard the clever, semi-profane axiom about what assuming does. While the Bible doesn't put it quite like that, it does make a strong case concerning the dangers of assuming.

Proverbs is littered with it's own axioms meant to show just how bad assuming and presuming can be. Proverbs can certainly be very deep and theological, but this is just another example of how practical and real it can get in this compilation of the sayings of Solomon.

A couple of my favorites that I'll spend some time on tomorrow are 21:2 and 20:24. There are certainly many ways we can fall into the trap of assuming in life, but these two encompass two of the most common mistakes we make. 

21:2:
A person may think their own ways are right,
    but the Lord weighs the heart.

Here we are warned about assuming we know what is best and right about ourselves. We can easily fool ourselves into thinking we are doing something for the right reasons and we can easily deceive ourselves into believing what we want is what is best in a given decision.  Unless we evaluate our thoughts, desires, and heart through the lens of Scripture, we can easily trip ourselves up.

20:24: 
A person’s steps are directed by the Lord.
    How then can anyone understand their own way?

Our thinking about the future is another common area where we can let ourselves assume too much. In William Ernest Henley's famous poem, Invictus, he defiantly concludes: 

  

It matters not how strait the gate,

      How charged with punishments the scroll,

I am the master of my fate,

      I am the captain of my soul. 

 

Proverbs begs to differ. As does James 4, which states

 

 ¹³ Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” ¹⁴ Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. ¹⁵ Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” ¹⁶ As it is, you boast in your arrogant schemes. All such boasting is evil.

We are not the master of our fates, that God's prerogative. And to assume other wise is to risk disaster, disappointment, and difficulty. We must entrust our plans to God and allow him to captain our souls.

Sermon Snippets

Hard-wired within our American culture is a fear of excessive surveillance and governmental control. From George Orwell's classic Nineteen Eighty-Four to the blockbuster Hunger Games books and movies, the fear of having to look over our shoulder because 'Big Brother' is watching is a well-used and effective narrative tool. 

For those unfamiliar with the Biblical text, it may be surprising that Scripture repeatedly brings this idea up as it describes God. Sure it may not be the same thing, but imagine you aren't overly familiar with the Bible and your only point of reference for this are the pop cultural examples. Now read these verses with those lenses:

⁷ Where shall I go from your Spirit?
    Or where shall I flee from your presence?
⁸ If I ascend to heaven, you are there!
    If I make my bed in Sheol, you are there!
⁹ If I take the wings of the morning
    and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
¹⁰ even there your hand shall lead me,
    and your right hand shall hold me.
¹¹ If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me,
    and the light about me be night,”
¹² even the darkness is not dark to you;
    the night is bright as the day,
    for darkness is as light with you.

- Psalm 139


It may be a bit alarming if you haven't grown up in church but did read Orwell's book in middle school and have immersed yourself in the dystopian society book genre.


Thankfully, God reveals this aspect of himself as a truth to be cherished not feared. A healthy respect is necessary for sure, but God's omniscience (aka, he is all-knowing) is a comforting reality when all seems lost. Proverbs 15 includes several verses which highlight this reality and encourage us with it. 


15:8-9 and 15:11 are just two of the six passages we'll look at on Sunday as we learn that we have nowhere to go and nowhere to hide when God is concerned. And that can be a good thing. A really good thing.

Sermon Snippets

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight."

Proverbs 3:5-6 belongs in a select group of Bible verses whose content is clear, practical, and fundamental to the Christian faith. 

Proverbs 1:7 teaches us that wisdom starts with fearing the Lord. Here in chapter three, we learn that the wisest among us are those trust the Lord and not themselves. 

It is completely natural to seek independence and the ability to make our own decisions. It is completely natural to rely on our own expertise and abilities to navigate the myriad of situations life throws at us. 

It is completely natural, but completely foolish. First of all, no matter how gifted we are or how well organized our plans are, it is God's will that is going to be established (19:21). His plans are the ones that work out. 

While it is not completely natural, it is completely essential that we give our plans over to God and surrender to what He wants (16:3-4). 

Pray and submit your plans, desires, and dreams to the Lord. Lean on him for the help you inevitably need. I've heard some critics say that faith is a 'crutch'. Faith in God isn't a crutch, it's a wheelchair. Our trust must be total, unreserved, and all-encompassing.

Sermon Snippets

We are starting a new sermon series in the book of Proverbs this week. Proverbs is widely known for it's poetic nuggets of wisdom. 

The wisdom of Proverbs is more than just 'book-smarts'. It's not given just so we can have a lot of head knowledge. The wisdom of Proverbs is given so we can successfully apply theology to real life.

Over and over again, the emphasis is on how to behave in real world situations. Advice is offered on friendships, family and marriage relationships, business, finances, government, poverty and wealth along with a myriad of other areas.

The foundational principle that holds it all together is found in the very first chapter. 1:7 says,

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction."

All thirty one chapters worth of counsel is couched in the context of fearing the Lord. We must have a humble respect for God and submit to His will if we want to find true wisdom and true success in life.

Wisdom is often ascribed to those with gray hairs, who have lots of experience or education. Those things often contribute to wisdom and certainly provide individuals with worldly wisdom. But godly wisdom, which leads to worldly success and heavenly blessing, is only possible when we fear the Lord and follow His ways.