Proverbs 25:1-7/Luke 14:1-11 - Approaching the King
Notes
Transcript
Intro
Intro
Two months ago, the world witnessed the coronation of King Charles
The ceremony took so long to plan.
Look at the setting
Royalty
It’s the decor was not just gold plated.
It was gold.
Look at the clothes
The garments of the priests
Those were real rubies
The gold and red
The Crown
The crown is made up of gold, silver, and platinum
Listen to their national anthem
“God, Save the King.”
Reverence filled the room
The room had the weight of history
It was bone-chilling for those in the room.
They honored the new king, as they ushered in his reign!
You have been in the book of Proverbs, and Proverbs has a lot to say to Wisdom.
Proverbs references the wisdom of righteous kings and the foolishness of wicked kings often.
Here, we’re going to look at the example of a righteous king.
Proverbs 25:1–7 (ESV)
1 These also are proverbs of Solomon which the men of Hezekiah king of Judah copied. 2 It is the glory of God to conceal things, but the glory of kings is to search things out. 3 As the heavens for height, and the earth for depth, so the heart of kings is unsearchable. 4 Take away the dross from the silver, and the smith has material for a vessel; 5 take away the wicked from the presence of the king, and his throne will be established in righteousness. 6 Do not put yourself forward in the king’s presence or stand in the place of the great, 7 for it is better to be told, “Come up here,” than to be put lower in the presence of a noble.
Solomon gives us practical wisdom that leads us toward humility.
He opens this section with a comparison/contrast between God and the kings of the earth.
The glory of God is to conceal things.
God is omniscient—All knowing
There is nothing that God doesn’t know about.
He knows every inch of the universe.
He sustains the universe by the word of His power!
There is nothing that escapes His knowledge.
He is above all others.
The glory of kings is to search things out.
Kings are not naval-gazers
Kings don’t sit around and ponder nothing.
When matters of the state are brought before them, they examine them.
When enemies arise, kings will study their opponents and learn the best tactics to defend his people.
Wise kings grow in their knowledge of how to better serve their kingdom.
What Solomon is doing here is painting a picture of the splendor of God and godly kings.
Proverbs 25:3 “3 As the heavens for height, and the earth for depth, so the heart of kings is unsearchable.”
Kings that follow God and walk in wisdom are well-studied, noble, mighty men worthy of honor.
They walk in dignity and respect.
They are able to stand strong when adversity comes
They lead with vigor and confidence.
4 Take away the dross from the silver, and the smith has material for a vessel; 5 take away the wicked from the presence of the king, and his throne will be established in righteousness.
Dross is something that is worthless.
The silver would have an imperfection in it, so it would be put into a crucible cup and placed into a fire, so that the silver would melt and the impurities be burned away.
After getting rid of the worthless bits, the silver can be made into something spectacular.
Wicked people are the dross of a nation. They corrupt good leaders and in doing so, drag the rest of the people with them.
Solomon is saying, “Take that away and you’ve got a solid throne.”
If the king abandons the wicked and shows his hatred toward evil, his kingdom will be founded on understanding, sound counsel, righteousness, and might.
If the king reforms his influence, he will reform his entire kingdom.
There is a note in that for the church.
Many churches find themselves in places of rocky soil, being choked out by weeds.
There are influences within the church, that if the power were removed from them the church would flourish for the Kingdom.
This is a note for Christians.
We claim to follow Jesus, but the people that have the most influence over us lead us farther away from the Jesus we find in the Bible.
God will honor the rule of kings who establish their throne in righteousness
They should be followed!
Solomon points to what our response should be in light of a king who walks according to the Word
Proverbs 25:6–7 (ESV)
6 Do not put yourself forward in the king’s presence or stand in the place of the great, 7 for it is better to be told, “Come up here,” than to be put lower in the presence of a noble.
If you seek to exalt yourself, you’re going to get knocked to the bottom of the guest list.
Jesus brings this passage to life as He goes to a dinner party at the house of the ruler of the Pharisees
Luke 14:1-11.
The Pharisees were watching Jesus carefully (v. 2)
They didn’t trust Jesus because of all the ruckus He was creating with His teachings/miracles
They chose the Stage carefully
The house of the senior leader of the synagogue
They had the home-field advantage to trap Jesus
This table is filled with the religious elite
They chose the schedule carefully
It was on a Sabbath
Jesus has reportedly violated the Sabbath on three occasions prior to this
They chose the setup carefully
There was a man with terminal illness there called “dropsy”
Medical term for the excessive gathering of fluid in any tissue of the body
This guy’s torso was swollen due to the retention of bodily fluid, which likely would lead to organ failure
The Pharisees were using this man to bait Jesus in
The problem is, Jesus is really good making shady dinner parties awkward.
Jesus notices that this guy is being used.
Jesus knows it the Sabbath and they’re watching Him behind their hypocritical smiles
The Pharisees start a lot of conflict on their day of rest.
Man, religious hypocrisy is stubborn.
He’s not seeking the approval of anyone there.
Not trying to fit in, to schmooze, or shape His message around the Pharisee’s liking.
He asks them a yes/no question and they table falls silent.
They’re trapped in a no-win situation
If they answer yes, then they can’t complain if He heals someone.
If they answer no, then they look incompassionate in front of the man suffering.
Wide-eye’d, eyebrows raised.
He knows that if the well being of an animal is compromised, the Pharisees would spring to action.
What about this poor guy?
Jesus exposes the religious hypocrisy of these religious leaders.
So what’s Jesus do? Heal’s him right in front of them, almost begging them to say something. (v. 4-5)
Totally outs their rigid code of moralism, that cared for reputation more than human dignity.
This party is becoming an absolute disaster.
Jesus has now asked 2 questions and no one has said a word.
You’ve got the guy slurping his soup in the corner.
Things are so stinking awkward now.
Jesus then points out the seating arrangements (v.7)
Where they sat reveals how important they felt.
Jesus is about to teach us an example profitable for our own tables when were in the company of friends
They were seeking the glory of men
They wanted to be seen as important.
“Y’all sat as close to the head of the table as you could.”
Little nugget of wisdom for you.
When you go to a wedding, don’t sit in the Bride’s chair.
Don’t sit in the highest place as if you deserve to be there.
Even in the common actions of our lives like where we sit, Jesus’s eye is always on us.
He marks what we do, not only at our gatherings, but even around our own dinner tables.
He sees the reflection of our hearts!
The hearts of those at this dinner party are filled with pride and self-importance.
They’ve totally forgot Proverbs 25:6-7 “6 Do not put yourself forward in the king’s presence or stand in the place of the great, 7 for it is better to be told, “Come up here,” than to be put lower in the presence of a noble.”
Seeking honor finds humiliation
Seeking honor finds humiliation
Seeking humility finds honor.
Seeking humility finds honor.
Jesus doesn’t teach us to take the lower seat so that we can expect to be upgraded
Jesus doesn’t do fake humility
Jesus hates when pride pretends to be humble.
We take the lower seat because we deserve the lower seat.
How can Jesus call us to this?
Christ is our example of humility.
Jesus is the King worth following!
Jesus is the King who establishes His throne in righteousness!
What do I mean by this?
Philippians 2:3-4 “3 Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. 4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.”
Doesn’t this sound an awful lot like, “Don’t put yourself forward in the kings presence or stand in the place of the great” (Prov. 25:6)?
Selfish-ambition and conceit have no room in the Kingdom of God, in the church, in the life of the Christian.
So what are we to do, Paul?
Philippians 2:5-8 “5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”
Jesus stepped out of glory, out of splendor, out of the places of honor to become a servant!
Greek word: Doulos - slave!
Jesus came to be a slave for us!
He did not empty Himself of His divinity, He was fully God
He emptied Himself of the privileges of a King.
He emptied Himself of the status of Royalty
We did not look at Him with reverence or awe while He was with us
We looked at Him with indifferent disgust.
He humbled Himself beyond our foolishness and became obedient to God’s divine plan of redemption—His death on the cross.
When Jesus came, He didn’t take the places of honor at the head of the table.
When Jesus came, He took the cross.
Why?!
Concl.
To seal your and my forgiveness through His blood.
Jesus took the cross so that you can be invited up into His table.
If you think you deserve your spot at Jesus’s table in heaven, you’ll be removed.
When you finally recognize your deserved place was on the cross and not even a seat at the table, Jesus welcomes you to the table.
When you approach Jesus in humility crying, “Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner!”
Jesus is the host that comes to you and says, “Friend, move up higher” (v. 10).
Perhaps your next step today is to recognize that you don’t deserve the spot at Jesus’s table.
Your sinful brokenness has kept you from recognizing your place.
Come to Jesus and tell Him, “Lord, save me! I don’t want to be the wicked taken away from the presence of the King. I want to be with you!
Friend, recognize that Jesus loved you and took your lower seat, the cross, so that you can have eternal life and sit at the table of God.
