Discerning with Wisdom

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Psalm 119:65–72 NKJV

65 You have dealt well with Your servant, O Lord, according to Your word. 66 Teach me good judgment and knowledge, For I believe Your commandments. 67 Before I was afflicted I went astray, But now I keep Your word. 68 You are good, and do good; Teach me Your statutes. 69 The proud have forged a lie against me, But I will keep Your precepts with my whole heart. 70 Their heart is as fat as grease, But I delight in Your law. 71 It is good for me that I have been afflicted, That I may learn Your statutes. 72 The law of Your mouth is better to me Than thousands of coins of gold and silver.

Sermon:

Good morning, Church! I want to welcome you to worship today. We are in week two of our current sermon series called Street Smart. We have been discovering all the ways that the book of Proverbs gives us instruction to live a full life in Christ. The world is not an easy place to navigate, but we have been given, in the Word God, all that we need to live smart and prudent lives.

Last week we learned the secret to developing wisdom. Rather than being foolish and making avoidable mistakes along the way, we can embrace a healthy fear of God. When we live in awe and wonder of the power and position God has before us, we are empowered to make wiser choices and repent of our mistakes. This is the beginning of wisdom. Today, we uncover a new piece of wisdom that can change our lives as well. Proverbs teaches that what we allow in is what we become.

Story:

On the jungle floors of South America can be found a tiny animal that has the ability to be lethal to humans: the South American poison dart frog. At first glance, they are beautiful creatures that present with all the colors of the rainbow, but they are brightly colored as a warning to anyone or anything that roams the jungle that they are poisonous and should be avoided at all costs. Native tribes in the heart of the Amazon have actually used these amphibians to wage war against one another. The secretion from the backs of these frogs is toxic, and when applied to an arrow point can result in death.

Scientists believe that it is the diet of the frogs that causes them to become poisonous. They eat insects, namely ants, and these ants store alkaloid molecules that get into the glands of the frogs and give them their toxicity. Oddly enough, dart frogs are also household pets. However, when kept in captivity, they lose their poisonous nature. Without consuming their natural diet, they are safe to the touch. (Consider showing pictures or videos of a dart frog. Perhaps even have one on stage.)

Much like the dart frog, we too are largely a product of what we consume. The book of Proverbs gives us a wealth of knowledge on how to live our lives well. Proverbs is one of the Old Testament books that is known as wisdom literature. It has been given to us that we might have practical instruction that would result in a life that is in line with God’s design and intent for the world.

The content of Proverbs covers many different topics and themes, and one of them has to do with being careful about what we allow into our lives.

READ Proverbs 4:23

Proverbs 4:23 ESV

23 Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life.

The author has stated many things to be true, but this statement is one that he wants to be heard “above all else.” This is an important word that is to be taken seriously as a way of protecting ourselves from danger. The writer states that we must be careful to guard our hearts.

POINT #1 – OUR HEARTS ARE THE CENTER OF WHO WE ARE

The Hebrew people understood the heart differently than we do. Often, when we hear the word heart, we think of an organ that pumps blood to our body or an image that conveys love. The Old Testament understanding of the heart comes from the Hebrew word “Lev.” The Lev was the core of every human being. All that we think, feel, say, and do originates in the heart. The author says it this way: “It is the wellspring of life.”

The things that get into us have a tendency to come out of us. Some things we consume can make us toxic. Other things we consume can make us anxious. We have been created by God to be complex beings that can express love, show compassion, and feel empathy. But when we do not safeguard our hearts, we can pollute our wells of life.

ILLUSTRATION:

Use story with Gen X friend about how I ruined movies for him.

Our hearts are easily influenced and undoubtedly shaped by whatever we welcome in. We must guard our hearts. Like a fence guards something valuable, we must put up safeguards to protect ourselves.

Your Company impacts you as well

1 Corinthians 15:33 ESV

33 Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.”

PAul was writing this to a church that had taken in much of the world.

This is very important to all of is, but also to your kids and grandkids.

You need to be praying they make good friends, this is also why you need to be very castius on how you educate your children. School isn’t what it used to be.

POINT #2 – BELIEFS INFLUENCE THOUGHTS AND THOUGHTS INFLUENCE ACTIONS

Everything we do can be traced back to a thought in our minds or a belief in our hearts. This can be a double-edged sword. If those thoughts are positive and helpful, the outflow will be actions that are loving, kind, and constructive. However, the opposite is true as well. If those thoughts and beliefs are negative and harmful, the outflow will be actions that are demoralizing, judgmental, and unsettling.

Jesus even speaks to this truth in the gospel of Luke. He is preaching and teaching about how a tree and its fruit are one and the same.

READ Luke 6:43-45

Luke 6:43–45 ESV

43 “For no good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit, 44 for each tree is known by its own fruit. For figs are not gathered from thornbushes, nor are grapes picked from a bramble bush. 45 The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.

Jesus is offering wisdom to His listeners about how to distinguish the heart of a person. You can tell what is inside someone by what kind of fruit they produce with their life. Just like an apple tree produces apples and an orange tree produces oranges, a person lives out what is true of their character. What is on the inside is what will come out.

If we find ourselves living in a manner that we would like to see changed, then the first place to start is with the things we believe to be true. Often it begins with what we believe to be true about God. Do you believe God to be an angry deity or a loving Father? Do you believe God has created every single human being on earth, or do you believe that we are all a result of a cosmic accident? Do you believe that God is in control, or do you believe the world is only chaos? The answer to these questions will show up as fruit in your life.

STORY: Share a story here about how these beliefs and thoughts are developed and the need to guard them.

The chlild is like a young tree, you must guide it, in like you must do the same with your heart (USE TREE Story from Douglas Wilson)

So how do we allow this wisdom to become street smarts? How do we make a change?

POINT #3 – IT IS GOD WHO CLEANSES OUR HEARTS

Cleaning up the wellspring, purifying our hearts, is a work that must be done in the spirit. It is a work of God to restore the core of who we are. All we need to do is call out and invite Him to come in and purify us.

In the book of Psalms, we read King David expressing this truth. In context, King David had certainly allowed many things into his heart that were not helpful, but harmful. He had committed adultery with Bathsheba, he had committed murder against her husband, and he had tried to cover it up. His actions would suggest that his character and core needed attention. King David comes to this realization and he cries out.

READ Psalm 51:10

Psalm 51:10 ESV

10 Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.

By all accounts, God answers David’s honest and vulnerable prayer. History knows him as “a man after God’s own heart.” David admits that his heart is stained. This is confession. David then asks God to make his heart right. To love God more than sin. To long for the things that are true. God desires for his people to invite Him in to do a cleansing work that only He can do. Would you be willing to pray the same prayer as King David?

The wisdom of Proverbs shows us that we are wise to be careful what we allow in, and God shows us that there is no damage done that He cannot restore. Today, I would like to invite you to pray for God’s cleansing work in your hearts. Would you pray with me?

PRAYER:

Merciful God, we have sinned against You in thought and deed. We have left things undone that should have been done and we have done things we ought not to have done. We invite You now into our lives. Nothing is off limits to You. Create in us a clean heart. Restore in us a love for You and others. Cleanse us and make us clean. Amen.

Benediction:

The Lord bless thee, and keep thee: The Lord make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace." (Numbers 6:24-26.)