The Well-Ordered Life

INTRODUCTION

At times life can be complicated and confusing.

There are so many choices in life, and to make things more complicated, not everything in life is black and white; there can be a lot of gray when it comes time to make various choices.

How would you like to start 2022 right?

Today we start a new year off with a new series!

My prayer is this new series will help you have the tools to get the new year off to a good start!

The new series is based on some of the passages from the book of Proverbs.

The book of Proverbs is a collection of wise sayings from (primarily) King Solomon.

This seven-week series will look at the multiple gems of wisdom and themes found in the book and consider practical areas of our life where God's wisdom can shape and change how we live.

Today we will begin our journey on the subject of having a well-ordered life.

One of the significant stressors of life is living a life with no anchor and no purpose.

When we lack these things, life can become a chaotic mess.

Today in our opening message of this seven-part series, we will look at how we can live a well-ordered life.

We will not be dealing with the issue of the person who has a messy room and is never on time for anything, but rather, we will dig a little deeper to see how we can live life with the correct priorities.

When you live a well-ordered life, many of what we would call the gray areas of life all suddenly show themselves in vivid colors, making what used to be complicated and confusing choices much easier to make.

Is life one of constant stress, or do peace and contentment mark your life?

If your life is utter chaos and loaded with stress, possessing a well-ordered life will bring inner peace and contentment.

Let's start our journey into the book of Proverbs by looking at three characteristics of a well-ordered life.

Proverbs 3:1–2 (CSB)

1 My son, don’t forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commands; 2 for they will bring you many days, a full life, and well-being.

SERMON

I. A well-ordered life is anchored to God's Word.

This passage is the third of ten instruction poems in Proverbs 1–9.

True to form, the poem begins with the cut-and-dried admonition, "My son, do not forget my teaching."

What follows are exhortations designed to encourage the learner to grow in "trust in the Lord" (v. 5) and establish a good reputation "in the sight of God and man" (v. 4).

The context of this passage is one of a father passing out wisdom to his son.

The father tells the son not to forget what the father taught him.

Before we dig any deeper, this is a reminder to parents of their job.

Parents are not called to be their child's" buddy, but rather, their job is to teach them how to live.

A parent's child's" call is to give their child something to anchor to in life, and that anchor is God's Word.

When you examine this passage in its context, the teaching the father is imparting to his son, that he reminds his son to never forget, is teaching about God.

A parent's job is to give (and to show) their child a biblical foundation upon which they can build their life.

Imparting instruction is to be done in such a way that the child will keep the commands of God taught in their heart!

For my child to keep the instructions in their heart, they need to see me live out the instructions.

Do you want to confuse a child or an adult you are seeking to lead and teach?

The easy way to do that is to not only live out your faith but only proclaim it.

That will confuse people, and it will cause not only your children to not take you seriously, but those around you also will not take you seriously either.

Proverbs 3 reminds us of the importance of remembering and keeping.

We remember God's commandments, and then we act on that remembrance.

Keeping God's commandments is a matter of life and death.

We might say, "It's too hard!" or "I'm too busy to follow God," but doing so would be like a lifeguard who remembers all the techniques to save someone from drowning but doesn't act on that knowledge when the opportunity presents itself.

Remember and keep God's commandments, and peace will come to you.

Keeping God's commands not only means remembering them but also putting them into practice.

Why do we need to anchor our lives on God's Word?

Proverbs 3:2 (CSB)

2 for they will bring you many days, a full life, and well-being.

This promise does not mean we are shielded from some disease or the foolish choices of others, but rather, following God's Word and will help keep us from doing the dumb things that can prematurely end one's life.

We will also have a full life, in other words, that our life will not be wasted and full of regret.

Our life will be full of meaning and purpose because we know and understand why we are here and what our life is all about.

We will not waste our entire lives trying to figure out the meaning of life.

We are also told our life will be full of well-being.

That phrase is the Hebrew word SHALOM, which refers to peace, prosperity, wholeness, health, and completeness of life!

Many did not have the privilege of being raised in a Christian home.

For those in that spot, we have a lot of catching up to do.

If we do not anchor our lives on the Word of God, what are we building our lives upon?

Matthew 7:24–27 (CSB)

24 “Therefore, everyone who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The rain fell, the rivers rose, and the winds blew and pounded that house. Yet it didn’t collapse, because its foundation was on the rock. 26 But everyone who hears these words of mine and doesn’t act on them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 The rain fell, the rivers rose, the winds blew and pounded that house, and it collapsed. It collapsed with a great crash.”

What do you want?

Crash and burn or peace and contentment?

Let's look at Proverbs 30:7-8!

Proverbs 30:7–8 (CSB)

7 Two things I ask of you; don’t deny them to me before I die: 8 Keep falsehood and deceitful words far from me. Give me neither poverty nor wealth; feed me with the food I need.

II. A well-ordered life is held together by strong character.

One of the results of keeping God's commands is this exercise will build strong character.

Look at the verses again.

Proverbs 30:7–8 (CSB)

7 Two things I ask of you; don’t deny them to me before I die: 8 Keep falsehood and deceitful words far from me. Give me neither poverty nor wealth; feed me with the food I need.

The Wisdom Literature, Vol. 2: Commentary on Proverbs (Chapter 30: Proverbs 30)

The two requests are (1) that he may be kept free of falsehood and lies, and (2) that he may be spared the temptations of being either rich or poor.

The first of these is a request that God will aid him in the inward purity of life, “For the removal from him of all forms of falsehood, hollowness and hypocrisy”; and, secondly, that God will spare him the temptations identified with two extreme conditions of life, namely, poverty and riches.

When our lives are anchored and built upon God's Word, our character, the inner self should become strong as we become more Christ-like each day.

A well-ordered life can be found in determining the right priorities and putting those first in your life.

Character includes having the strength to keep the main thing the main thing.

Possessing a strong character allows one to make the difficult choices that are sometimes required to make God a priority and to keep Him first in one's life.

What is most important to you right now, and how is that reflected in how you spend your time and money?

Proverbs 30:7–8 shows us wise understanding when it comes to our possessions and the potential monopoly they can claim on our life.

The Proverb writer here asks two things of God: to surround the author with truth (v. 7) and to provide only what is needed (v. 8).

The Proverb writer is praying to God that He will honor these requests from him before he dies or before it is too late.

This prayer is similar to Jesus' model prayer in Matthew 6:9-13.

Both ask for God's protection from temptation; both ask for basic needs to be met, and both are concerned with upholding God's honor.

Isn't that what strong character should be about, giving honor to our Lord and Savior by the choices we make and by how we live life?

Look again at verse 8: "Feed me with the food I need."

The Hebrew word for food is usually translated as "bread" (Strong's Concordance, s.v. "H3899, lechem," https://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=H3899&t=KJV).

Jesus is our daily bread.

In an encounter with the living Jesus, we get a foretaste of complete contentment.

Jesus is all we need, and if we have Him, we have more than enough.

He has turned our poverty into riches; Jesus has redeemed our time.

In Him, we have found the one thing in this life that matters.

When it comes to priorities in this life, have you put Jesus first?

Let's look at verses 8-9.

Proverbs 30:8–9 (CSB)

8 Keep falsehood and deceitful words far from me. Give me neither poverty nor wealth; feed me with the food I need. 9 Otherwise, I might have too much and deny you, saying, “Who is the Lord?” or I might have nothing and steal, profaning the name of my God.

III. A well-ordered life maintains a proper perspective on life.

Notice the last part of verse 8 where the Proverb writer asks God for neither poverty nor wealth, simply provide me with what I need.

Verse 9 explains why the Proverb writer is praying this prayer.

He wants to keep a proper perspective on life.

Look at verse 9 again.

Proverbs 30:9 (CSB)

9 Otherwise, I might have too much and deny you, saying, “Who is the Lord?” or I might have nothing and steal, profaning the name of my God.

When our life is filled with our possessions or our pursuit of material gain, it becomes a little crowded for Jesus.

We buy large houses to fill with things.

We post our possessions on Instagram (#blessed).

We have to own the newest and latest gadget.

Where is Jesus in the midst of this life?

When life is too easy or too hard, we can forget God.

When life is too impoverished, we can become so focused on our basic needs that we forget God.

When we have too much, we can do the same.

A well-ordered life requires us to keep a proper perspective on life.

In the book of Ecclesiastes, Solomon lost his way.

He had so much that he left and questioned his first love, God.

Eventually, he finds his way back to God at the end of the book.

Jesus tells a parable in the gospel of Luke that speaks on the subject of perspective.

Luke 12:16–21 (CSB)

16 Then he told them a parable: “A rich man’s land was very productive. 17 He thought to himself, ‘What should I do, since I don’t have anywhere to store my crops? 18 I will do this,’ he said. ‘I’ll tear down my barns and build bigger ones and store all my grain and my goods there. 19 Then I’ll say to myself, “You have many goods stored up for many years. Take it easy; eat, drink, and enjoy yourself.” ’ 20 “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life is demanded of you. And the things you have prepared—whose will they be?’ 21 “That’s how it is with the one who stores up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”

Our perspective on life should be that God is first, and everything else falls in line behind Him.

Matthew 6:33 (CSB)

33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you.

CONCLUSION

What kind of life are you experiencing?

Chaos and stress or peace and contentment?

Neither one of these scenarios happens by happenstance; they result from either a well-ordered life or one that is not.

If you live under constant duress, chaos and stress, maybe it is time for a change?

Our challenge for life today is to put Jesus first in your life, to make room for Jesus.

This may not be easy; it will require changes in your life; it may require changes in relationships, friendships, where you go, and how you see life.

As much as people say they do not like drama, they never change the drama.

They never clear out the things and people who bring chaos and drama.

How about committing to change in 2022.

How about considering Jesus or getting serious about Jesus!