WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.200 But we are in Proverbs chapter 23. 00:00:04.080 --> 00:00:05.360 Please turn with me there. 00:00:08.439 --> 00:00:12.900 Normally I would both read the whole passage in the beginning and then preach on it. 00:00:12.939 --> 00:00:19.400 But today I'm just going to read as I preach so that we can save some of the time. 00:00:20.740 --> 00:00:21.500 Let me pray. 00:00:21.500 --> 00:00:32.579 Heavenly Father, we do want to focus this morning on the one thing that is necessary. 00:00:34.200 --> 00:00:35.679 Let us sit at your feet. 00:00:36.439 --> 00:00:37.460 To listen to your word. 00:00:41.460 --> 00:00:45.060 Regardless of what distractions we face this morning. 00:00:45.780 --> 00:00:47.700 Regardless of what is going on in our lives. 00:00:48.039 --> 00:00:50.320 Regardless of what is going on in the outside world. 00:00:52.420 --> 00:00:56.439 The most important thing for us is to be beholden to you. 00:00:57.579 --> 00:01:00.179 To come to you in humility and submission. 00:01:01.179 --> 00:01:03.480 To hear from you and to follow and obey you. 00:01:04.560 --> 00:01:06.400 So please God, teach us to do that this morning. 00:01:07.340 --> 00:01:08.659 In Jesus' name we pray. 00:01:12.539 --> 00:01:17.920 Proverbs chapter 23 verse 15 going to chapter 24 verse 22. 00:01:17.920 --> 00:01:23.359 Nobody in this world sins. 00:01:24.980 --> 00:01:26.359 Sins out of duty. 00:01:27.560 --> 00:01:30.540 We sin because sin tastes sweet to us. 00:01:31.219 --> 00:01:32.620 Because it's pleasurable. 00:01:33.500 --> 00:01:34.799 Because we love sin. 00:01:36.079 --> 00:01:38.320 And though it is but poison in our mouths, 00:01:38.599 --> 00:01:42.260 we love its taste and are loath to spit it out. 00:01:42.260 --> 00:01:49.200 And the proper antidote to this sin is to develop a taste for something even sweeter. 00:01:50.420 --> 00:01:52.320 And that's what our passage this morning is about. 00:01:52.400 --> 00:01:55.480 It helps us to cultivate those spiritual taste buds. 00:01:56.160 --> 00:02:02.200 And the recurring theme of this passage is that we are to hope in the future guaranteed by our Lord. 00:02:02.200 --> 00:02:05.400 So that we do not envy evildoers in the present. 00:02:06.520 --> 00:02:09.400 Verses 15 to 35 of chapter 23 speak of, 00:02:10.640 --> 00:02:13.539 tells us not to be envious of the pleasures of evildoers. 00:02:14.020 --> 00:02:18.159 And then chapter 24 tells us not to be envious of the successes of evildoers. 00:02:19.280 --> 00:02:22.719 First, let's look at chapter 23 verses 15 to 19. 00:02:22.920 --> 00:02:23.039 It says, 00:02:23.039 --> 00:02:48.719 The word heart, as you may have noticed, 00:02:48.719 --> 00:02:54.939 this is repeated five times in this passage to emphasize the importance of inner reorientation. 00:02:56.080 --> 00:02:59.180 Outward behavioral modification is insufficient. 00:03:00.800 --> 00:03:05.759 The following verses will warn us against becoming drunkards, gluttons, or adulterers. 00:03:06.259 --> 00:03:09.560 But God's not merely after behavior modification. 00:03:10.360 --> 00:03:14.000 He's after a transformation, a reorientation of the heart. 00:03:14.500 --> 00:03:17.960 Because when our idolatrous hearts are not reoriented toward God, 00:03:17.960 --> 00:03:21.360 it will switch from one idol to another. 00:03:21.760 --> 00:03:23.740 It will never lead to true freedom. 00:03:25.140 --> 00:03:28.900 An alcoholic can replace his compulsive drinking with compulsive gambling. 00:03:29.760 --> 00:03:33.460 A glutton can replace his compulsive eating with compulsive exercising 00:03:33.460 --> 00:03:35.819 and an idolatry of health and or beauty. 00:03:36.760 --> 00:03:41.200 A philanderer can replace his compulsive lust with compulsive working 00:03:41.200 --> 00:03:44.080 and an idolatry of money or success. 00:03:44.080 --> 00:03:48.200 Deliverance from sinful vices and evil spirits, 00:03:48.260 --> 00:03:52.840 if not followed by the Holy Spirit's possession of a person's heart through faith in Jesus, 00:03:53.500 --> 00:03:55.300 leads to even greater bondage. 00:03:56.760 --> 00:03:59.680 And this reorientation of the heart begins with the fear of the Lord. 00:03:59.980 --> 00:04:01.700 It says in verses 17 to 18, 00:04:01.699 --> 00:04:15.359 In order to guard our hearts against sin, we need the fear of the Lord, 00:04:15.979 --> 00:04:19.579 which is a faith that takes God at His word, 00:04:19.899 --> 00:04:25.939 believing that what God says is true and good and living in accordance with it. 00:04:25.939 --> 00:04:29.079 And then starting in verse 20, 00:04:29.439 --> 00:04:34.560 the author provides specific examples of the company of evildoers that we should avoid. 00:04:35.160 --> 00:04:36.899 It says in verses 20 to 21, 00:04:37.860 --> 00:04:40.839 Be not among drunkards or among gluttonous eaters of meat, 00:04:41.040 --> 00:04:43.439 for the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty, 00:04:43.639 --> 00:04:45.959 and slumber will clothe them with rags. 00:04:46.980 --> 00:04:49.959 Gluttonous eaters of meat is a translation of the phrase, 00:04:50.079 --> 00:04:51.839 those who make light of meat. 00:04:51.839 --> 00:04:55.239 Meat was not as readily available in the ancient world, 00:04:55.979 --> 00:05:00.459 and some people, nonetheless, even back then, made light of meat. 00:05:00.879 --> 00:05:03.359 They consumed meat in inordinate amounts, 00:05:04.060 --> 00:05:06.959 making it seem like it's nothing precious, nothing costly, 00:05:07.639 --> 00:05:09.379 like it was something cheap or common. 00:05:10.359 --> 00:05:13.639 So that phrase can be applied to all kinds of gluttony. 00:05:14.699 --> 00:05:18.259 Drunkard is an old-fashioned word that literally means wine addict. 00:05:18.259 --> 00:05:22.120 Nowadays, people refer to use the term alcoholic, 00:05:22.639 --> 00:05:25.680 and this change in terms is not insignificant. 00:05:26.740 --> 00:05:32.939 The word drunkard preserves the sense of the addict's personal responsibility and culpability. 00:05:33.939 --> 00:05:38.719 Whereas the word alcoholic nowadays implies that the cause of the addiction 00:05:38.719 --> 00:05:40.860 is the person's genetic makeup, 00:05:41.560 --> 00:05:43.959 or his addictive personality, perhaps. 00:05:43.959 --> 00:05:52.779 It subtly moves drunkenness from the category of sin to the category of sickness, a disease. 00:05:53.959 --> 00:05:56.959 However, in Scripture's numerous descriptions of drunkards, 00:05:57.079 --> 00:06:00.399 from Noah and Lot to Nabal and Elah, 00:06:01.019 --> 00:06:04.379 drunkenness, which is the prototype of all addictions in Scripture, 00:06:04.759 --> 00:06:06.659 is never described as a sickness. 00:06:07.179 --> 00:06:09.240 It is always described as a sin. 00:06:09.240 --> 00:06:12.600 Some people think that they are being more compassionate 00:06:12.600 --> 00:06:15.160 by describing alcoholism as a disease, 00:06:15.579 --> 00:06:20.000 but it actually denies people the dignity of human responsibility. 00:06:21.540 --> 00:06:23.259 Of course, addiction is real, 00:06:23.699 --> 00:06:28.019 and the drunkard's self-control decreases the longer he continues in that sin, 00:06:28.100 --> 00:06:30.240 as we'll see vividly later on in this passage. 00:06:30.800 --> 00:06:35.139 And of course, some people are more predisposed toward certain addictions than others, 00:06:35.139 --> 00:06:42.360 but being predisposed to something is not the same thing as being predetermined by something. 00:06:43.620 --> 00:06:47.199 Drunkenness is not something that just happens to people, 00:06:47.379 --> 00:06:49.659 like a virus that invades our bodies. 00:06:50.560 --> 00:06:52.120 It's something that people choose 00:06:52.120 --> 00:06:55.879 because they feel that there are worthwhile payoffs, 00:06:56.919 --> 00:06:59.459 however fleeting and however costly it may be. 00:06:59.459 --> 00:07:04.019 Some people drink to forget their troubles, their loneliness. 00:07:04.959 --> 00:07:06.819 Some drink to numb their pain. 00:07:07.779 --> 00:07:11.500 Some drink as a way of punishing someone that they're angry at or bitter toward. 00:07:12.139 --> 00:07:13.359 Some drink to fit in. 00:07:14.199 --> 00:07:16.339 Some drink to hide their insecurities, 00:07:16.459 --> 00:07:18.539 to feel bolder and less self-conscious. 00:07:19.719 --> 00:07:24.179 But everyone chooses to get drunk for its perceived benefits. 00:07:24.180 --> 00:07:30.040 And it's because the drunkard and glutton are responsible for their overindulgence 00:07:30.040 --> 00:07:32.540 that verse 21 motivates us to avoid that 00:07:32.540 --> 00:07:35.519 by telling us about the unpleasant outcomes of both. 00:07:36.900 --> 00:07:37.160 It says, 00:07:37.300 --> 00:07:39.620 For the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty, 00:07:40.019 --> 00:07:42.340 and slumber will clothe them with rags. 00:07:43.240 --> 00:07:46.560 Drunkenness and gluttony both lead to poverty for two reasons. 00:07:47.060 --> 00:07:49.920 One, as it says in Proverbs 21, verse 17, 00:07:49.920 --> 00:07:52.439 Whoever loves pleasure will be a poor man. 00:07:52.439 --> 00:07:55.579 He who loves wine and oil will not be rich. 00:07:56.639 --> 00:07:58.759 Affording such pleasures costs money. 00:08:00.199 --> 00:08:02.699 Beer and wine cost a lot of money. 00:08:03.540 --> 00:08:04.800 So does eating a lot of meat. 00:08:06.060 --> 00:08:09.060 Two, as the second half of verse 21 says, 00:08:09.159 --> 00:08:11.120 Slumber will clothe them with rags. 00:08:11.939 --> 00:08:15.259 Drunkenness causes what we colloquially call booze snooze. 00:08:16.579 --> 00:08:19.339 Gluttony causes what we colloquially call food coma. 00:08:19.339 --> 00:08:24.799 Both foster idleness, which then leads to poverty. 00:08:25.879 --> 00:08:27.079 For this reason we are commanded, 00:08:27.259 --> 00:08:31.179 Be not among drunkards or among the gluttonous eaters of meat. 00:08:31.620 --> 00:08:33.299 We are to avoid their company, 00:08:33.500 --> 00:08:36.980 because as 1 Corinthians 15, 32-34 tells us, 00:08:37.539 --> 00:08:39.600 Bad company ruins good morals. 00:08:40.779 --> 00:08:43.120 Wake up from your drunken stupor, as is right, 00:08:43.579 --> 00:08:44.839 and do not go on sinning. 00:08:44.840 --> 00:08:49.220 The wise person does not test his resolve, his willpower, 00:08:49.540 --> 00:08:52.000 by putting himself in the company of drunkards and gluttons 00:08:52.000 --> 00:08:55.639 to see if he could resist the temptation and the peer pressure. 00:08:56.360 --> 00:08:58.940 The wise person avoids their company altogether. 00:08:59.980 --> 00:09:04.399 This doesn't mean that we should refuse drunkards and gluttons 00:09:04.399 --> 00:09:06.500 who come seeking to join our company. 00:09:07.180 --> 00:09:09.920 Nor does it mean that we should avoid sinners like a plague 00:09:09.919 --> 00:09:13.199 and never serve them or share the good news of Jesus Christ with them. 00:09:14.279 --> 00:09:18.259 Jesus was, in fact, accused of being a glutton and a drunkard. 00:09:18.599 --> 00:09:20.599 Jesus says in Matthew 11, 18, 00:09:21.599 --> 00:09:23.799 For John came neither eating nor drinking, 00:09:23.979 --> 00:09:25.439 and they say he has a demon. 00:09:25.979 --> 00:09:27.899 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, 00:09:28.019 --> 00:09:28.579 and they say, 00:09:28.679 --> 00:09:30.779 Look at him, a glutton and a drunkard, 00:09:31.059 --> 00:09:33.059 a friend of tax collectors and sinners. 00:09:33.579 --> 00:09:35.959 Yet wisdom is justified by her deeds. 00:09:35.960 --> 00:09:39.220 But it's important to make some crucial distinctions. 00:09:40.000 --> 00:09:42.820 First, Jesus is labeled here as a glutton and a drunkard, 00:09:42.940 --> 00:09:44.600 a friend of tax collectors and sinners. 00:09:45.220 --> 00:09:48.080 But this was not a moniker that Jesus took upon himself. 00:09:48.700 --> 00:09:52.360 Rather, it was an insult that his detractors labeled him with. 00:09:53.480 --> 00:09:56.200 And Jesus did not accept their claim wholesale. 00:09:56.860 --> 00:09:57.780 He qualifies it. 00:09:57.840 --> 00:09:58.040 He says, 00:09:58.139 --> 00:10:00.740 Yet wisdom is justified by her deeds. 00:10:01.420 --> 00:10:03.440 Jesus was the paragon of wisdom, 00:10:03.440 --> 00:10:07.480 and he believed that he would be justified by his deeds, 00:10:07.600 --> 00:10:09.780 proven righteous by his deeds. 00:10:10.520 --> 00:10:12.500 Second, sinners were drawn to Jesus 00:10:12.500 --> 00:10:16.300 because he preached a message of repentance and forgiveness for all. 00:10:16.980 --> 00:10:19.140 And as Jesus says in John 6, 37, 00:10:19.280 --> 00:10:22.540 He never cast out anyone that came to him. 00:10:23.440 --> 00:10:26.140 In this sense, Jesus was a friend of sinners. 00:10:27.180 --> 00:10:30.640 But Jesus was in no way a friend of sin. 00:10:30.639 --> 00:10:35.019 Jesus received sinners who were sorry for their sins 00:10:35.019 --> 00:10:36.799 and open to hearing the gospel. 00:10:37.720 --> 00:10:41.360 He never winked at sin or made light of sin. 00:10:42.100 --> 00:10:47.879 We never in Scripture see Jesus in drunken revelry or gluttony. 00:10:48.840 --> 00:10:52.539 The charge that Jesus was a glutton and a drunkard was in fact false. 00:10:52.539 --> 00:10:57.579 So there is no contradiction between Jesus' example and Proverbs 23. 00:10:58.199 --> 00:11:00.240 Jesus will not turn a blind eye to sin, 00:11:00.759 --> 00:11:04.000 but if you're willing to turn from your sins and turn toward him, 00:11:04.679 --> 00:11:07.360 he will in no wise turn away from you. 00:11:07.860 --> 00:11:10.199 He will never turn his back on you. 00:11:10.740 --> 00:11:15.659 No matter how deeply entangled you are in sin, drunkenness, gluttony, lust, 00:11:15.740 --> 00:11:16.539 whatever it may be, 00:11:16.539 --> 00:11:20.860 Jesus can save you and he can help you. 00:11:22.379 --> 00:11:26.179 Instead of squandering our wealth in funding our insatiable appetites, 00:11:26.240 --> 00:11:28.039 we should focus on buying something else. 00:11:28.620 --> 00:11:31.240 It says in chapter 23, verses 22 to 25, 00:11:31.459 --> 00:11:34.120 Listen to your father who gave you life 00:11:34.120 --> 00:11:37.339 and do not despise your mother when she is old. 00:11:38.079 --> 00:11:40.699 Buy truth and do not sell it. 00:11:41.219 --> 00:11:43.679 Buy wisdom, instruction, and understanding. 00:11:43.679 --> 00:11:46.579 The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice. 00:11:46.779 --> 00:11:49.279 He who fathers a wise son will be glad in him. 00:11:50.579 --> 00:11:52.979 Now earlier in Proverbs chapter 4, 00:11:53.099 --> 00:11:55.379 we were told to go all in on wisdom. 00:11:56.559 --> 00:12:00.299 We're always advised by people not to put all our eggs in one basket. 00:12:01.239 --> 00:12:04.019 But the wisdom of God is the one basket 00:12:04.019 --> 00:12:06.179 where we should put all of our eggs. 00:12:07.299 --> 00:12:10.659 Whatever it may cost us, we are to buy wisdom. 00:12:10.659 --> 00:12:14.639 The irony, of course, is that wisdom is offered to us freely. 00:12:15.799 --> 00:12:19.039 But the sage uses the metaphor of buying wisdom 00:12:19.039 --> 00:12:21.519 in order to convey its true worth, 00:12:21.939 --> 00:12:24.939 to tell us what a precious commodity it is. 00:12:25.699 --> 00:12:28.699 It is exceedingly precious and we should seek to buy wisdom 00:12:28.699 --> 00:12:30.659 and we should never pawn it off. 00:12:32.120 --> 00:12:33.360 Verse 26 says, 00:12:33.439 --> 00:12:35.079 My son, give me your heart 00:12:35.079 --> 00:12:37.299 and let your eyes observe my ways. 00:12:37.299 --> 00:12:40.740 The mention of the heart and the eyes is repeated in verse 33 00:12:40.740 --> 00:12:43.459 in the warning about alcohol and lust. 00:12:43.939 --> 00:12:44.259 It says, 00:12:44.479 --> 00:12:46.339 Your eyes will see strange things 00:12:46.339 --> 00:12:48.659 and your heart utter perverse things. 00:12:49.439 --> 00:12:50.620 The connection is this. 00:12:50.699 --> 00:12:53.299 In order to avoid lust and alcohol's 00:12:54.099 --> 00:12:57.139 hostile takeover of your eyes and your heart, 00:12:58.019 --> 00:13:00.379 you are to commit your heart and your eyes 00:13:00.379 --> 00:13:03.439 to the instruction and example of God's wisdom. 00:13:03.779 --> 00:13:05.459 That is the only solution. 00:13:05.460 --> 00:13:08.000 And in the rest of this chapter, 00:13:08.120 --> 00:13:09.500 the author brings together 00:13:09.500 --> 00:13:11.160 the temptation of the adulteress 00:13:11.160 --> 00:13:12.860 and the temptation of wine 00:13:12.860 --> 00:13:15.540 in order to compare their seductive powers. 00:13:16.980 --> 00:13:18.400 He says in verse 27, 00:13:18.540 --> 00:13:20.360 For a prostitute is a deep pit, 00:13:20.700 --> 00:13:22.379 an adulteress is a narrow well. 00:13:24.080 --> 00:13:26.680 Now, this refers to a trapper's pit, 00:13:26.800 --> 00:13:27.500 a deep pit, 00:13:27.860 --> 00:13:29.800 a pit that is too deep to get out of 00:13:29.800 --> 00:13:31.060 once you fall into it. 00:13:31.879 --> 00:13:34.040 There might be a double meaning here as well 00:13:34.039 --> 00:13:37.639 because the deep pit is parallel to a narrow well. 00:13:38.259 --> 00:13:40.939 And the word pit is used in Scripture sometimes 00:13:40.939 --> 00:13:42.259 to refer to gorges. 00:13:43.500 --> 00:13:46.120 And notably in Jeremiah chapter 2 verse 6, 00:13:46.299 --> 00:13:49.399 that same word is used to refer to the dry gorges, 00:13:50.480 --> 00:13:52.919 a land of deserts and pits, 00:13:53.379 --> 00:13:56.000 a land of drought and deep darkness. 00:13:56.000 --> 00:14:00.379 So then the prostitute is like a dry gorge 00:14:00.379 --> 00:14:04.539 that you climb down into hopes of finding refreshing water, 00:14:04.960 --> 00:14:08.179 only to find that there is no water there at all. 00:14:09.820 --> 00:14:12.279 The fool enters into a prostitute 00:14:12.279 --> 00:14:14.120 in hope of finding satisfaction, 00:14:14.600 --> 00:14:17.240 but in the end he finds nothing at all. 00:14:18.039 --> 00:14:20.220 Likewise, an adulteress is a narrow well. 00:14:20.960 --> 00:14:23.279 A well is a common metaphor for sex. 00:14:23.279 --> 00:14:26.259 As Proverbs chapter 5 verse 15 taught the young man 00:14:26.259 --> 00:14:27.779 to be satisfied with his wife, 00:14:27.899 --> 00:14:28.179 saying, 00:14:28.740 --> 00:14:30.659 Drink water from your own cistern, 00:14:30.799 --> 00:14:32.980 flowing water from your own well. 00:14:34.179 --> 00:14:37.259 However, if he foolishly seeks satisfaction 00:14:37.259 --> 00:14:38.579 from another woman, 00:14:40.639 --> 00:14:41.539 an adulteress, 00:14:41.799 --> 00:14:43.379 he will be frustrated to discover 00:14:43.379 --> 00:14:45.439 that she is a narrow well. 00:14:46.319 --> 00:14:49.539 A narrow well is hard to draw water from. 00:14:49.539 --> 00:14:52.819 It has restricted access. 00:14:53.639 --> 00:14:55.599 Your bucket can get stuck in it. 00:14:56.319 --> 00:14:58.480 This imagery has so many helpful applications 00:14:58.480 --> 00:15:00.659 in fighting lust. 00:15:01.419 --> 00:15:04.339 Though this verse is speaking specifically of adultery, 00:15:04.599 --> 00:15:07.559 transgressing the sacred and exclusive boundaries of marriage 00:15:07.559 --> 00:15:09.539 and having sexual relations with other people, 00:15:09.659 --> 00:15:10.939 that's what adultery is, 00:15:10.940 --> 00:15:14.420 but Jesus expanded this in Matthew 5 verse 28 00:15:14.420 --> 00:15:17.900 to include even a lustful glance at someone, 00:15:18.680 --> 00:15:21.160 that that is tantamount to adultery in one's heart. 00:15:21.920 --> 00:15:24.280 So then we can apply this to all forms of lust, 00:15:24.360 --> 00:15:26.820 including fornication, pornography, 00:15:27.420 --> 00:15:29.900 and all other forms of illicit affections. 00:15:29.899 --> 00:15:34.220 The fool that thinks the thrill of having sex 00:15:34.220 --> 00:15:36.220 with a forbidden man or a woman 00:15:36.220 --> 00:15:38.120 will be more satisfying 00:15:38.120 --> 00:15:40.939 than sex with a faithful spouse 00:15:40.939 --> 00:15:43.000 who knows you inside and out 00:15:43.000 --> 00:15:46.740 and yet loves you like he or she loves nobody else 00:15:46.740 --> 00:15:47.759 in the entire world. 00:15:48.439 --> 00:15:49.799 That's foolishness. 00:15:50.120 --> 00:15:50.699 It's baloney. 00:15:52.679 --> 00:15:55.620 Adultery is only as satisfying 00:15:55.620 --> 00:15:57.639 as a dry gorge and a narrow well 00:15:57.639 --> 00:16:00.019 that you can get no water out of. 00:16:00.960 --> 00:16:03.919 You will increasingly lose your capacity for love 00:16:03.919 --> 00:16:06.779 and your thirst will only increase. 00:16:08.100 --> 00:16:10.939 The fool thinks that he can enjoy a fleeting encounter 00:16:10.939 --> 00:16:13.919 in secret and never suffer the consequences. 00:16:14.580 --> 00:16:16.699 He thinks that he can get in and get out quickly, 00:16:17.319 --> 00:16:19.559 but he will find that such lustful ventures 00:16:19.559 --> 00:16:23.259 are like a deep pit and a narrow well that traps him. 00:16:24.159 --> 00:16:26.899 Once he goes in, he cannot come out. 00:16:27.639 --> 00:16:29.960 And the unpleasant consequences will follow him 00:16:29.960 --> 00:16:30.960 for the rest of his life. 00:16:32.259 --> 00:16:34.019 The adulteress, it says in verse 28, 00:16:34.100 --> 00:16:35.019 is like a robber 00:16:35.019 --> 00:16:39.500 and increases the traitors among mankind. 00:16:41.919 --> 00:16:44.419 Similarly, wine has an enticing beginning, 00:16:44.600 --> 00:16:45.480 but a bitter end. 00:16:45.960 --> 00:16:47.460 It says in 31 to 32, 00:16:47.460 --> 00:16:49.580 Do not look at wine when it is red, 00:16:49.840 --> 00:16:52.679 when it sparkles in the cup and goes down smoothly. 00:16:53.340 --> 00:16:55.059 In the end, it bites like a serpent 00:16:55.059 --> 00:16:56.620 and stings like an adder. 00:16:56.620 --> 00:16:59.740 Wine is like a seductive adulteress, 00:16:59.940 --> 00:17:01.940 and we must be wary of its charm. 00:17:02.500 --> 00:17:04.259 In the end, it bites like a serpent. 00:17:04.400 --> 00:17:06.000 The serpent slithers along smoothly. 00:17:06.799 --> 00:17:08.519 It glides on the ground, 00:17:08.700 --> 00:17:09.480 unnoticed, 00:17:10.059 --> 00:17:11.380 until it bites you 00:17:11.380 --> 00:17:13.460 and injects its venom. 00:17:15.420 --> 00:17:17.339 Verses 29 to 30 say this, 00:17:17.339 --> 00:17:18.599 Who has woe? 00:17:18.659 --> 00:17:19.519 Who has sorrow? 00:17:20.000 --> 00:17:20.859 Who has strife? 00:17:20.939 --> 00:17:21.720 Who has complaining? 00:17:22.119 --> 00:17:23.639 Who has wounds without cause? 00:17:23.720 --> 00:17:24.899 Who has redness of eyes? 00:17:25.559 --> 00:17:27.519 Those who tarry long over wine. 00:17:28.059 --> 00:17:30.240 Those who go to try mixed wine. 00:17:31.000 --> 00:17:33.439 The word tarry long has the same Hebrew root 00:17:33.439 --> 00:17:35.619 as the word end in verse 32. 00:17:35.619 --> 00:17:36.659 So then, 00:17:36.739 --> 00:17:38.579 those who tarry long over wine 00:17:38.579 --> 00:17:41.739 will become a victim to its poisonous end. 00:17:42.779 --> 00:17:44.199 Those who try mixed wine, 00:17:44.279 --> 00:17:45.259 mixing it with spices 00:17:45.259 --> 00:17:47.239 and other alcohol types of drinks 00:17:47.239 --> 00:17:49.119 to make it more tasty and potent, 00:17:49.539 --> 00:17:51.859 will have woe, sorrow, strife, 00:17:51.979 --> 00:17:53.159 complaining, redness, 00:17:53.500 --> 00:17:54.579 or dullness of eyes. 00:17:54.579 --> 00:17:58.639 Now, the exhortation of verse 30 is this, 00:17:59.279 --> 00:18:01.139 Make your encounters with alcohol 00:18:01.139 --> 00:18:03.159 short and sweet. 00:18:04.460 --> 00:18:06.639 Don't tarry long over wine. 00:18:08.279 --> 00:18:10.500 Enjoy it as God's blessing if you wish, 00:18:11.079 --> 00:18:14.199 but don't let your heart be entranced by it. 00:18:15.099 --> 00:18:18.359 As soon as you start to feel its seductive charm, 00:18:18.899 --> 00:18:19.799 when it is red, 00:18:19.879 --> 00:18:21.379 when it sparkles in the cup 00:18:21.379 --> 00:18:22.720 and goes down smoothly, 00:18:22.720 --> 00:18:25.140 see it for what it is, 00:18:25.660 --> 00:18:26.539 a seductress, 00:18:27.180 --> 00:18:27.880 a serpent, 00:18:29.039 --> 00:18:30.059 seeking your doom 00:18:30.059 --> 00:18:31.980 and flee from it. 00:18:33.299 --> 00:18:35.120 Because the consequences are not pretty 00:18:35.120 --> 00:18:36.740 for those who tarry long over wine 00:18:36.740 --> 00:18:39.339 and there's a vivid graphic description of this 00:18:39.339 --> 00:18:41.200 in verses 33-35. 00:18:41.640 --> 00:18:44.059 Your eyes will see strange things 00:18:44.059 --> 00:18:46.400 and your heart utter perverse things. 00:18:46.799 --> 00:18:48.259 You will be like one who lies down 00:18:48.259 --> 00:18:49.200 in the midst of the sea, 00:18:49.319 --> 00:18:51.559 like one who lies on the top of a mast. 00:18:51.559 --> 00:18:53.359 They struck me, you will say, 00:18:53.419 --> 00:18:54.339 but I was not hurt. 00:18:54.579 --> 00:18:56.440 They beat me, but I did not feel it. 00:18:56.819 --> 00:18:57.859 When shall I awake? 00:18:57.980 --> 00:18:59.700 I must have another drink. 00:19:04.399 --> 00:19:06.460 After speaking of the dangers of wine 00:19:06.460 --> 00:19:07.460 in the third person, 00:19:07.579 --> 00:19:09.599 the Father now used the second person pronoun 00:19:09.599 --> 00:19:11.819 to make sure that we understand 00:19:11.819 --> 00:19:14.339 that these dangers are real to us. 00:19:14.339 --> 00:19:17.459 your eyes will see strange things. 00:19:17.459 --> 00:19:19.240 Your heart utter perverse things. 00:19:19.379 --> 00:19:20.759 You will be like this person. 00:19:21.299 --> 00:19:23.659 Don't ever think that you're the exception to the rule. 00:19:25.079 --> 00:19:27.059 That it's those other people who lack self-control 00:19:27.059 --> 00:19:29.039 who will be taken by wine like this. 00:19:29.779 --> 00:19:32.179 Don't ever think that it will never happen to you. 00:19:32.259 --> 00:19:34.699 It will if you linger long over wine. 00:19:35.519 --> 00:19:38.879 The top of the mast is the most unstable part of the ship. 00:19:38.880 --> 00:19:43.200 The person who sleeps on it in the midst of the sea 00:19:43.200 --> 00:19:46.320 is an apt picture of the staggered drunkard, 00:19:46.880 --> 00:19:48.480 rocking to and fro, 00:19:48.940 --> 00:19:51.020 completely oblivious to the peril 00:19:51.020 --> 00:19:52.500 that is about to overtake him. 00:19:53.340 --> 00:19:54.840 He gets beat up by others, 00:19:55.040 --> 00:19:57.300 but his senses are too dull to feel it. 00:19:57.700 --> 00:20:00.020 And yet he is full of boasts and blusters. 00:20:00.540 --> 00:20:03.280 And all he can think of is where he can get his next fix. 00:20:03.279 --> 00:20:05.599 They struck me, but I was not hurt. 00:20:05.680 --> 00:20:07.059 They beat me, but I did not feel it. 00:20:07.119 --> 00:20:08.099 When shall I awake? 00:20:08.399 --> 00:20:10.059 I must have another drink. 00:20:10.960 --> 00:20:14.000 It's such a sad but realistic picture of drunkenness. 00:20:15.899 --> 00:20:18.480 Instead of being beguiled by the adulteress 00:20:18.480 --> 00:20:20.279 or wine or meat, 00:20:20.660 --> 00:20:23.740 we have to hope in the future guaranteed by our Lord 00:20:23.740 --> 00:20:26.559 so that we do not end the evildoers in the present. 00:20:28.660 --> 00:20:29.940 After telling us this 00:20:29.940 --> 00:20:32.279 to avoid the pleasures of evildoers, 00:20:32.279 --> 00:20:34.660 chapter 24 tells us not to be envious 00:20:34.660 --> 00:20:36.379 of the successes of evildoers. 00:20:37.099 --> 00:20:39.059 Once again, it starts with the refrain, 00:20:39.619 --> 00:20:40.259 verse 1, 00:20:40.399 --> 00:20:42.639 Be not envious of evil men, 00:20:43.160 --> 00:20:44.940 nor desire to be with them, 00:20:45.399 --> 00:20:47.160 for their hearts devise violence 00:20:47.160 --> 00:20:48.639 and their lips talk of trouble. 00:20:49.879 --> 00:20:52.240 The wicked devise violence 00:20:52.240 --> 00:20:53.660 and plot trouble 00:20:53.660 --> 00:20:56.299 because they want to enrich themselves, 00:20:56.759 --> 00:20:59.019 prosper themselves at the expense of their community, 00:20:59.160 --> 00:21:00.099 at the expense of others. 00:21:00.099 --> 00:21:02.279 And we can be tempted to join them 00:21:02.279 --> 00:21:04.939 because in this sinful, topsy-turvy world, 00:21:05.539 --> 00:21:06.819 they are sometimes, the wicked, 00:21:06.959 --> 00:21:08.079 are wildly successful. 00:21:08.980 --> 00:21:10.679 They do violence to others 00:21:10.679 --> 00:21:12.459 and cause trouble to others. 00:21:12.460 --> 00:21:16.620 And they seem to be getting away with it 00:21:16.620 --> 00:21:17.740 and doing well for themselves. 00:21:18.740 --> 00:21:21.000 But verses 3 to 4 remind us, 00:21:21.680 --> 00:21:23.460 By wisdom a house is built, 00:21:23.779 --> 00:21:25.880 and by understanding it is established. 00:21:26.340 --> 00:21:28.120 By knowledge the rooms are filled 00:21:28.120 --> 00:21:29.940 with all precious and pleasant riches. 00:21:30.519 --> 00:21:33.420 This is the right way to accumulate wealth. 00:21:33.840 --> 00:21:36.000 Not by violence and schemes, 00:21:36.240 --> 00:21:39.500 but by wisdom, understanding, and knowledge. 00:21:39.500 --> 00:21:42.099 A house built any other way 00:21:42.099 --> 00:21:43.900 is but a house built on sand 00:21:43.900 --> 00:21:45.859 that will collapse in due time. 00:21:47.319 --> 00:21:49.480 Though it might seem like the wicked are powerful, 00:21:49.819 --> 00:21:51.799 though it might seem like they are triumphing, 00:21:51.880 --> 00:21:53.960 verses 5 to 6 teach us this. 00:21:54.460 --> 00:21:56.339 A wise man is full of strength, 00:21:56.460 --> 00:21:58.539 and a man of knowledge enhances his might. 00:21:58.940 --> 00:22:01.579 For by wise guidance you can wage your war, 00:22:01.660 --> 00:22:03.940 and in abundance of counselors there is victory. 00:22:03.940 --> 00:22:08.400 Verse 5 speaks of the strength that you need for victory. 00:22:08.900 --> 00:22:11.559 Verse 6 speaks of the strategy that you need for victory. 00:22:12.039 --> 00:22:14.580 And it is wisdom of God that supplies both. 00:22:17.340 --> 00:22:18.779 It's metaphorical, of course, 00:22:18.860 --> 00:22:20.360 not referring to literal warfare, 00:22:21.039 --> 00:22:22.640 but it's those who live in accordance 00:22:22.640 --> 00:22:23.740 with the wisdom of God 00:22:23.740 --> 00:22:26.820 who will ultimately be victorious and be vindicated. 00:22:27.940 --> 00:22:31.120 In contrast to the fool who schemes to do violence 00:22:31.120 --> 00:22:32.700 and cause trouble for his community, 00:22:32.700 --> 00:22:35.140 the wise person rescues 00:22:35.140 --> 00:22:37.480 those who are beset by the fool's wicked schemes. 00:22:38.160 --> 00:22:39.700 It says in verses 10 to 12, 00:22:40.200 --> 00:22:42.059 if you faint in the day of adversity, 00:22:42.220 --> 00:22:43.740 your strength is small. 00:22:44.500 --> 00:22:46.799 Rescue those who are being taken away to death. 00:22:47.420 --> 00:22:49.720 Hold back those who are stumbling to the slaughter. 00:22:50.340 --> 00:22:51.019 If you say, 00:22:51.160 --> 00:22:52.840 behold, we did not know this, 00:22:53.420 --> 00:22:55.840 does not he who weighs the heart perceive it? 00:22:56.279 --> 00:22:59.360 Does not he who keeps watch over your soul know it? 00:22:59.740 --> 00:23:02.420 And will he not repay man according to his work? 00:23:03.700 --> 00:23:07.539 Since verse 5 told us that a wise man is full of strength, 00:23:08.200 --> 00:23:11.759 this person who faints in the day of adversity, 00:23:12.000 --> 00:23:12.920 whose strength is small, 00:23:12.980 --> 00:23:14.140 is not a wise person. 00:23:15.019 --> 00:23:17.000 The wise person does not shrink 00:23:17.000 --> 00:23:18.680 in the face of adversity and trouble. 00:23:19.360 --> 00:23:21.880 His wisdom is proven by his integrity, 00:23:22.319 --> 00:23:23.160 his perseverance, 00:23:23.160 --> 00:23:26.480 and his resourcefulness in times of trouble. 00:23:26.480 --> 00:23:30.140 And this refers to many kinds of trouble. 00:23:30.240 --> 00:23:31.120 That's why it's general, 00:23:31.279 --> 00:23:32.059 intentionally general. 00:23:32.779 --> 00:23:33.759 And in such situations, 00:23:33.880 --> 00:23:35.720 the wise person rescues 00:23:35.720 --> 00:23:37.120 those who are in trouble 00:23:37.120 --> 00:23:39.480 and does not feign ignorance, 00:23:40.200 --> 00:23:40.599 saying, 00:23:40.819 --> 00:23:42.059 behold, we didn't know this. 00:23:42.539 --> 00:23:43.960 I didn't know this person was in trouble. 00:23:44.460 --> 00:23:46.200 I didn't know this was happening in the world. 00:23:46.200 --> 00:23:48.960 It says, 00:23:49.200 --> 00:23:49.620 behold, 00:23:49.819 --> 00:23:51.460 God who weighs the heart, 00:23:52.000 --> 00:23:53.460 who sees right through 00:23:53.460 --> 00:23:55.340 our lives, 00:23:55.759 --> 00:23:56.819 will see such 00:23:56.819 --> 00:23:58.299 pathetic excuses 00:23:58.299 --> 00:23:59.160 for what they are 00:23:59.160 --> 00:24:00.700 and repay each person 00:24:00.700 --> 00:24:01.779 according to his deeds. 00:24:01.779 --> 00:24:04.339 So the wise person 00:24:04.339 --> 00:24:05.420 should come to the aid 00:24:05.420 --> 00:24:06.859 of those who fall prey 00:24:06.859 --> 00:24:08.039 to the schemes of the wicked. 00:24:08.700 --> 00:24:09.500 And he himself 00:24:09.500 --> 00:24:10.440 need not fear 00:24:10.440 --> 00:24:11.639 the hospitality of the wicked. 00:24:12.420 --> 00:24:14.099 It says in verses 15 to 16, 00:24:14.240 --> 00:24:15.139 Lie not in wait 00:24:15.139 --> 00:24:16.000 as a wicked man 00:24:16.000 --> 00:24:17.399 against the dwelling of the righteous. 00:24:17.940 --> 00:24:19.480 Do no violence to his home, 00:24:19.759 --> 00:24:21.039 for the righteous falls 00:24:21.039 --> 00:24:22.980 seven times and rises again, 00:24:22.980 --> 00:24:24.420 but the wicked stumble 00:24:24.420 --> 00:24:26.019 in times of calamity. 00:24:27.359 --> 00:24:27.859 Interestingly, 00:24:28.059 --> 00:24:29.740 the word righteous is singular, 00:24:29.899 --> 00:24:31.480 but the word wicked is plural. 00:24:31.779 --> 00:24:33.240 As if to contrast 00:24:33.240 --> 00:24:34.879 the lone righteous person 00:24:34.879 --> 00:24:35.899 amidst a multitude 00:24:35.899 --> 00:24:36.799 of the wicked. 00:24:37.980 --> 00:24:39.259 You might feel alone 00:24:39.259 --> 00:24:40.180 in this world 00:24:40.180 --> 00:24:41.139 in your righteousness. 00:24:41.980 --> 00:24:43.420 You might feel outnumbered 00:24:43.420 --> 00:24:44.779 in your fidelity to God. 00:24:45.599 --> 00:24:47.039 Yet you need not fear 00:24:47.039 --> 00:24:47.960 because it says 00:24:47.960 --> 00:24:49.119 the righteous fall 00:24:49.119 --> 00:24:50.160 seven times 00:24:50.160 --> 00:24:51.440 a number of perfection, 00:24:51.440 --> 00:24:52.319 meaning you can fall 00:24:52.319 --> 00:24:53.119 every time. 00:24:53.480 --> 00:24:54.720 You will rise again. 00:24:55.379 --> 00:24:56.619 But the wicked stumble 00:24:56.619 --> 00:24:58.700 in the times of calamity. 00:24:59.480 --> 00:25:01.160 Because it's the Lord's 00:25:01.160 --> 00:25:01.920 perfect justice 00:25:01.920 --> 00:25:03.100 that prevails in the end. 00:25:04.420 --> 00:25:05.300 But when that ruin 00:25:05.300 --> 00:25:06.880 finally comes to the wicked, 00:25:07.500 --> 00:25:08.880 we should not gloat over them. 00:25:09.759 --> 00:25:11.440 It says in verses 17 to 18, 00:25:11.560 --> 00:25:12.259 Do not rejoice 00:25:12.259 --> 00:25:13.360 when your enemy falls, 00:25:13.700 --> 00:25:14.620 and let not your heart 00:25:14.620 --> 00:25:15.940 be glad when he stumbles, 00:25:16.120 --> 00:25:17.100 lest the Lord see it 00:25:17.100 --> 00:25:17.960 and be displeased, 00:25:18.360 --> 00:25:19.140 and turn away 00:25:19.140 --> 00:25:20.340 his anger from him. 00:25:21.519 --> 00:25:22.880 Our God, the Lord, 00:25:22.940 --> 00:25:24.480 is even more repulsed 00:25:24.480 --> 00:25:26.100 by those who vindictively 00:25:26.100 --> 00:25:27.259 and self-righteously 00:25:27.259 --> 00:25:28.440 gloat over the fall 00:25:28.440 --> 00:25:28.920 of the wicked 00:25:28.920 --> 00:25:30.320 than by the wicked 00:25:30.320 --> 00:25:31.759 who fell in the first place. 00:25:32.460 --> 00:25:33.700 So that our gloating 00:25:33.700 --> 00:25:34.860 over the ruin of the wicked 00:25:34.860 --> 00:25:36.120 might make God relent 00:25:36.120 --> 00:25:37.019 from the disaster 00:25:37.019 --> 00:25:37.960 that he has wrought. 00:25:39.059 --> 00:25:40.080 So we are never 00:25:40.080 --> 00:25:41.680 to stoop to the same level 00:25:41.680 --> 00:25:42.440 of wickedness, 00:25:42.799 --> 00:25:44.120 of the prideful selfishness 00:25:44.120 --> 00:25:45.160 that characterizes the wicked, 00:25:45.620 --> 00:25:46.559 and we should be humble 00:25:46.559 --> 00:25:47.380 instead of gloating 00:25:47.380 --> 00:25:47.940 over the wicked. 00:25:50.279 --> 00:25:51.400 And all of this, 00:25:51.539 --> 00:25:52.640 overcoming our appetite 00:25:52.640 --> 00:25:53.259 for sin, 00:25:53.320 --> 00:25:54.279 as I said in the beginning, 00:25:54.279 --> 00:25:56.200 requires developing 00:25:56.200 --> 00:25:57.119 an appetite 00:25:57.119 --> 00:25:58.019 for the Lord 00:25:58.019 --> 00:25:58.879 and His wisdom. 00:25:59.779 --> 00:26:01.559 It says in verses 13 to 14, 00:26:01.660 --> 00:26:03.139 My son, eat honey 00:26:03.139 --> 00:26:03.940 for it is good, 00:26:04.480 --> 00:26:05.299 and the drippings 00:26:05.299 --> 00:26:06.160 of the honeycomb 00:26:06.160 --> 00:26:07.599 are sweet to your taste. 00:26:08.180 --> 00:26:09.299 Know that wisdom 00:26:09.299 --> 00:26:11.079 is such to your soul. 00:26:11.599 --> 00:26:12.440 If you find it, 00:26:12.500 --> 00:26:13.460 there will be a future, 00:26:13.819 --> 00:26:14.500 and your hope 00:26:14.500 --> 00:26:15.899 will not be cut off. 00:26:16.720 --> 00:26:17.940 The word soul 00:26:17.940 --> 00:26:18.599 in Hebrews 00:26:18.599 --> 00:26:19.619 is the same word 00:26:19.619 --> 00:26:20.639 for the Hebrew word 00:26:20.639 --> 00:26:21.259 for appetite. 00:26:22.099 --> 00:26:22.940 So there's a neat 00:26:22.940 --> 00:26:23.720 wordplay here. 00:26:23.720 --> 00:26:25.519 Wisdom is to our soul, 00:26:26.180 --> 00:26:26.799 while honey 00:26:26.799 --> 00:26:28.240 is to our appetite. 00:26:30.000 --> 00:26:31.100 The wisdom of God 00:26:31.100 --> 00:26:31.400 is, 00:26:32.380 --> 00:26:33.980 sometimes it's seen this way, 00:26:34.079 --> 00:26:34.940 but this is not true. 00:26:35.019 --> 00:26:35.860 The wisdom of God 00:26:35.860 --> 00:26:37.779 is not a bitter pill, 00:26:38.180 --> 00:26:39.140 a bitter medicine 00:26:39.140 --> 00:26:40.339 that needs a spoonful 00:26:40.339 --> 00:26:40.819 of sugar 00:26:40.819 --> 00:26:41.759 to make it go down. 00:26:42.360 --> 00:26:43.059 It is not. 00:26:44.059 --> 00:26:45.700 It is sweet itself 00:26:45.700 --> 00:26:46.440 like honey, 00:26:47.220 --> 00:26:48.539 which also has 00:26:48.539 --> 00:26:49.440 medicinal properties. 00:26:50.360 --> 00:26:51.160 Have you tasted 00:26:51.160 --> 00:26:52.079 the sweetness 00:26:52.079 --> 00:26:53.319 of God's wisdom? 00:26:53.720 --> 00:26:55.620 Is the word of God, 00:26:55.700 --> 00:26:57.039 the teachings of God's ways, 00:26:57.180 --> 00:26:58.420 delightful to you? 00:26:59.720 --> 00:27:01.360 Or do you obey God 00:27:01.360 --> 00:27:02.240 begrudgingly, 00:27:02.940 --> 00:27:03.519 reluctantly? 00:27:05.259 --> 00:27:06.940 There's only one way 00:27:06.940 --> 00:27:07.660 to develop 00:27:07.660 --> 00:27:09.380 your soul's palette 00:27:09.380 --> 00:27:10.539 for the wisdom of God, 00:27:10.839 --> 00:27:11.299 and that is 00:27:11.299 --> 00:27:12.420 the heart transformation 00:27:12.420 --> 00:27:14.660 that Jesus brings about 00:27:14.660 --> 00:27:15.660 by the Holy Spirit. 00:27:15.660 --> 00:27:16.660 heart. 00:27:16.660 --> 00:27:18.019 The word heart 00:27:18.019 --> 00:27:18.620 is repeated 00:27:18.620 --> 00:27:19.860 no less than nine times 00:27:19.860 --> 00:27:20.600 in this passage 00:27:20.600 --> 00:27:22.759 because it is the driver's seat 00:27:22.759 --> 00:27:24.340 of our lives. 00:27:25.259 --> 00:27:26.000 God had promised 00:27:26.000 --> 00:27:27.180 in Ezekiel 36 00:27:27.180 --> 00:27:28.400 that I will give you 00:27:28.400 --> 00:27:29.600 a new heart 00:27:29.600 --> 00:27:31.400 and a new spirit 00:27:31.400 --> 00:27:32.480 I will put within you, 00:27:32.660 --> 00:27:33.700 and I will remove 00:27:33.700 --> 00:27:34.580 the heart of stone 00:27:34.580 --> 00:27:35.340 from your flesh 00:27:35.340 --> 00:27:35.900 and give you 00:27:35.900 --> 00:27:37.320 a heart of flesh. 00:27:38.040 --> 00:27:39.040 And this promise 00:27:39.040 --> 00:27:40.040 was fulfilled 00:27:40.040 --> 00:27:40.880 in the person 00:27:40.880 --> 00:27:41.880 and work 00:27:41.880 --> 00:27:42.940 of Jesus Christ. 00:27:42.940 --> 00:27:45.120 As it says in Romans 2, 00:27:45.220 --> 00:27:46.539 it is by repenting, 00:27:46.860 --> 00:27:48.080 turning from our sins, 00:27:48.220 --> 00:27:49.620 renouncing our selfish ways, 00:27:49.880 --> 00:27:51.039 and turning toward Jesus 00:27:51.039 --> 00:27:51.519 in faith. 00:27:51.580 --> 00:27:52.680 It is by doing that 00:27:52.680 --> 00:27:54.259 that we receive 00:27:54.259 --> 00:27:55.340 the circumcision 00:27:55.340 --> 00:27:56.000 of the heart. 00:27:58.180 --> 00:27:59.360 That's chapter 24, 00:27:59.480 --> 00:28:00.059 verse 15 00:28:00.059 --> 00:28:01.039 of our book says 00:28:01.039 --> 00:28:01.680 in Proverbs, 00:28:01.860 --> 00:28:02.980 wicked men lie 00:28:02.980 --> 00:28:04.340 in wait to do violence, 00:28:04.640 --> 00:28:05.660 and that is indeed 00:28:05.660 --> 00:28:06.680 what they did 00:28:06.680 --> 00:28:08.039 to Jesus, 00:28:08.220 --> 00:28:08.960 the righteous one. 00:28:09.980 --> 00:28:11.080 They ambushed Him 00:28:11.080 --> 00:28:11.980 in the cover of night, 00:28:11.980 --> 00:28:14.220 and falsely accused Him, 00:28:14.880 --> 00:28:15.660 bringing about 00:28:15.660 --> 00:28:17.220 His wrongful death 00:28:17.220 --> 00:28:17.900 on the cross. 00:28:19.200 --> 00:28:21.200 But as verse 16 says, 00:28:21.259 --> 00:28:22.279 the righteous fall 00:28:22.279 --> 00:28:23.180 seven times 00:28:23.180 --> 00:28:25.440 and rises again. 00:28:26.440 --> 00:28:27.440 On the third day, 00:28:27.519 --> 00:28:29.660 Jesus rose from the dead 00:28:29.660 --> 00:28:30.960 victoriously, 00:28:31.160 --> 00:28:32.360 and it is His death 00:28:32.360 --> 00:28:33.120 and resurrection 00:28:33.120 --> 00:28:35.000 that become the means, 00:28:35.120 --> 00:28:35.740 the basis 00:28:35.740 --> 00:28:37.079 for our rescue 00:28:37.079 --> 00:28:38.160 from sin and death. 00:28:38.940 --> 00:28:40.339 We all, like sheep, 00:28:40.400 --> 00:28:41.299 had gone astray, 00:28:41.299 --> 00:28:42.279 each of us 00:28:42.279 --> 00:28:42.639 has turned 00:28:42.639 --> 00:28:43.539 to our own way. 00:28:44.019 --> 00:28:44.440 We were headed 00:28:44.440 --> 00:28:45.220 to the slaughter 00:28:45.220 --> 00:28:46.819 because of our own 00:28:46.819 --> 00:28:48.440 insatiable appetite 00:28:48.440 --> 00:28:49.159 for sin. 00:28:50.279 --> 00:28:50.859 But Jesus, 00:28:51.079 --> 00:28:52.240 who was the wise man 00:28:52.240 --> 00:28:53.159 full of strength, 00:28:53.279 --> 00:28:54.119 did not faint 00:28:54.119 --> 00:28:55.180 in the day of adversity, 00:28:55.619 --> 00:28:57.119 and He rescued us 00:28:57.119 --> 00:28:57.700 who were being 00:28:57.700 --> 00:28:59.339 taken away to death. 00:28:59.740 --> 00:29:00.519 That's how Jesus 00:29:00.519 --> 00:29:01.940 fulfills this passage. 00:29:02.359 --> 00:29:03.119 We were stumbling 00:29:03.119 --> 00:29:03.799 to the slaughter, 00:29:03.940 --> 00:29:04.480 but Jesus, 00:29:04.680 --> 00:29:05.460 on the cross, 00:29:05.799 --> 00:29:06.899 takes our place. 00:29:07.759 --> 00:29:08.440 He went 00:29:08.440 --> 00:29:09.700 to the slaughtering house 00:29:09.700 --> 00:29:11.600 that we were destined 00:29:11.600 --> 00:29:12.920 for because of our sins 00:29:12.920 --> 00:29:14.360 so that He might 00:29:14.360 --> 00:29:15.360 pay the penalty 00:29:15.360 --> 00:29:15.940 for sin 00:29:15.940 --> 00:29:17.080 that we owed, 00:29:17.500 --> 00:29:18.460 that we might be free, 00:29:19.320 --> 00:29:20.660 that we might live 00:29:20.660 --> 00:29:21.380 forever, 00:29:22.100 --> 00:29:23.220 that we might have 00:29:23.220 --> 00:29:24.860 resurrection life. 00:29:26.940 --> 00:29:27.980 And apart from this 00:29:27.980 --> 00:29:28.500 new heart 00:29:28.500 --> 00:29:29.080 and that new life 00:29:29.080 --> 00:29:30.019 given by the Spirit 00:29:30.019 --> 00:29:30.420 of God 00:29:30.420 --> 00:29:31.000 through Jesus, 00:29:31.799 --> 00:29:33.220 we cannot acquire 00:29:33.220 --> 00:29:34.519 the appetite 00:29:34.519 --> 00:29:35.140 for the wisdom 00:29:35.140 --> 00:29:35.600 of God. 00:29:37.280 --> 00:29:38.380 So if you have not 00:29:38.380 --> 00:29:39.140 yet pledged 00:29:39.140 --> 00:29:40.080 allegiance to Jesus, 00:29:40.860 --> 00:29:41.880 if you are still 00:29:41.880 --> 00:29:42.780 living for yourself 00:29:42.780 --> 00:29:43.620 and not for God, 00:29:43.860 --> 00:29:44.840 you need to renounce 00:29:44.840 --> 00:29:45.800 your selfish 00:29:45.800 --> 00:29:46.720 and sinful ways 00:29:46.720 --> 00:29:48.420 and turn toward Him. 00:29:48.580 --> 00:29:49.740 That's your only hope 00:29:49.740 --> 00:29:50.540 for overcoming 00:29:50.540 --> 00:29:51.700 gluttony, 00:29:52.360 --> 00:29:52.940 drunkenness, 00:29:53.080 --> 00:29:53.400 lust, 00:29:53.800 --> 00:29:54.620 all other sins. 00:29:56.460 --> 00:29:57.380 And as those 00:29:57.380 --> 00:29:58.220 who have put our faith 00:29:58.220 --> 00:29:59.100 in Jesus Christ, 00:30:00.540 --> 00:30:01.700 as those who have been 00:30:01.700 --> 00:30:02.140 born again 00:30:02.140 --> 00:30:03.180 by the Spirit of God, 00:30:03.520 --> 00:30:05.060 we are to fix our eyes 00:30:05.059 --> 00:30:06.059 and set our hope 00:30:06.059 --> 00:30:07.339 on that future 00:30:07.339 --> 00:30:08.879 guaranteed by our Lord Jesus. 00:30:09.460 --> 00:30:10.480 That's the key 00:30:10.480 --> 00:30:11.839 to our discipline 00:30:11.839 --> 00:30:12.700 and self-control 00:30:12.700 --> 00:30:13.419 in this life. 00:30:14.279 --> 00:30:15.200 Twice in this passage, 00:30:15.339 --> 00:30:16.079 chapter 23, 00:30:16.240 --> 00:30:16.819 verse 18, 00:30:16.960 --> 00:30:17.679 chapter 24, 00:30:17.779 --> 00:30:18.419 verse 14, 00:30:18.759 --> 00:30:19.639 we are assured 00:30:19.639 --> 00:30:20.419 that the righteous 00:30:20.419 --> 00:30:21.879 has a future 00:30:21.879 --> 00:30:23.579 and that our hope 00:30:23.579 --> 00:30:25.359 will not be cut off. 00:30:26.259 --> 00:30:27.099 In contrast, 00:30:27.319 --> 00:30:28.019 chapter 24, 00:30:28.139 --> 00:30:28.859 verse 20 says 00:30:28.859 --> 00:30:29.700 that the evil man 00:30:29.700 --> 00:30:30.639 has no future. 00:30:31.319 --> 00:30:32.299 The lamp of the wicked 00:30:32.299 --> 00:30:33.259 will be put out. 00:30:33.259 --> 00:30:35.759 It's when we keep 00:30:35.759 --> 00:30:37.140 this future in view 00:30:37.140 --> 00:30:39.980 that we never envy 00:30:39.980 --> 00:30:40.420 the wicked 00:30:40.420 --> 00:30:42.819 because envy of sinners 00:30:42.819 --> 00:30:43.799 stems from 00:30:43.799 --> 00:30:44.599 an unhealthy 00:30:44.599 --> 00:30:45.660 preoccupation 00:30:45.660 --> 00:30:46.700 with our own 00:30:46.700 --> 00:30:47.799 present circumstances. 00:30:48.940 --> 00:30:50.619 It's that discontentment 00:30:50.619 --> 00:30:52.200 looking at our own lives 00:30:52.200 --> 00:30:53.599 that makes us look around 00:30:53.599 --> 00:30:54.359 with longing 00:30:54.359 --> 00:30:55.660 at evildoers. 00:30:56.619 --> 00:30:57.740 The solution 00:30:57.740 --> 00:30:59.400 is to look up 00:30:59.400 --> 00:30:59.960 toward God 00:30:59.960 --> 00:31:00.500 with the fear 00:31:00.500 --> 00:31:00.940 of the Lord 00:31:00.940 --> 00:31:02.100 and to look ahead 00:31:02.100 --> 00:31:02.840 into the future 00:31:02.840 --> 00:31:03.740 that God guarantees 00:31:03.740 --> 00:31:04.519 for us. 00:31:06.400 --> 00:31:07.620 Instead of wallowing 00:31:07.620 --> 00:31:08.779 in the difficulties, 00:31:09.400 --> 00:31:10.440 the dearth of today, 00:31:10.880 --> 00:31:11.940 we are to set our hope 00:31:11.940 --> 00:31:12.600 on the future 00:31:12.600 --> 00:31:13.880 that God guarantees 00:31:13.880 --> 00:31:14.900 to us. 00:31:15.779 --> 00:31:16.539 That's why it says 00:31:16.539 --> 00:31:17.720 in 1 Peter 1, 00:31:17.860 --> 00:31:18.539 verse 13, 00:31:19.039 --> 00:31:19.259 therefore, 00:31:19.440 --> 00:31:20.460 preparing your mind 00:31:20.460 --> 00:31:20.960 for action 00:31:20.960 --> 00:31:22.320 and being sober-minded, 00:31:22.920 --> 00:31:24.140 set your hope 00:31:24.140 --> 00:31:25.380 fully on the grace 00:31:25.380 --> 00:31:26.320 that will be brought 00:31:26.320 --> 00:31:26.779 to you 00:31:26.779 --> 00:31:27.799 at the revelation 00:31:27.799 --> 00:31:28.779 of Jesus Christ. 00:31:28.779 --> 00:31:31.200 what inspires 00:31:31.200 --> 00:31:32.379 holy living 00:31:32.379 --> 00:31:33.099 in us 00:31:33.099 --> 00:31:34.180 is hope, 00:31:34.379 --> 00:31:35.460 unwavering hope 00:31:35.460 --> 00:31:37.579 in that future grace, 00:31:38.019 --> 00:31:38.519 the grace 00:31:38.519 --> 00:31:39.539 that we will receive 00:31:39.539 --> 00:31:40.819 when Jesus returns, 00:31:41.259 --> 00:31:42.599 when all of God's promises 00:31:42.599 --> 00:31:43.480 will be fulfilled. 00:31:44.920 --> 00:31:45.839 This is what 00:31:45.839 --> 00:31:46.899 elite athletes 00:31:46.899 --> 00:31:47.859 throughout the world do. 00:31:49.539 --> 00:31:50.639 They enter into 00:31:50.639 --> 00:31:51.480 a strict diet 00:31:51.480 --> 00:31:52.720 and exercise regimen 00:31:52.720 --> 00:31:54.099 because for them, 00:31:54.639 --> 00:31:55.619 the indulgences 00:31:55.619 --> 00:31:56.819 that they forego 00:31:56.819 --> 00:31:58.139 are outweighed 00:31:58.139 --> 00:31:59.179 by the glory 00:31:59.179 --> 00:32:00.119 that awaits them 00:32:00.119 --> 00:32:00.619 in the winning 00:32:00.619 --> 00:32:01.460 of trophies 00:32:01.460 --> 00:32:02.200 and medals. 00:32:03.480 --> 00:32:03.960 Likewise, 00:32:04.279 --> 00:32:05.119 keeping our eyes 00:32:05.119 --> 00:32:06.079 on the prize 00:32:06.079 --> 00:32:07.559 is the key 00:32:07.559 --> 00:32:08.819 to self-control. 00:32:09.839 --> 00:32:10.500 As Paul writes 00:32:10.500 --> 00:32:11.579 in 1 Corinthians 9, 00:32:11.659 --> 00:32:12.700 24-27, 00:32:13.159 --> 00:32:13.980 do you not know 00:32:13.980 --> 00:32:15.159 that in all race, 00:32:15.240 --> 00:32:15.720 in a race, 00:32:15.799 --> 00:32:16.779 all the runners run, 00:32:17.240 --> 00:32:18.399 but only one 00:32:18.399 --> 00:32:19.379 receives the prize. 00:32:19.879 --> 00:32:20.579 So run 00:32:20.579 --> 00:32:22.240 that you may obtain it. 00:32:22.659 --> 00:32:23.539 Every athlete 00:32:23.539 --> 00:32:24.960 exercises self-control 00:32:24.960 --> 00:32:25.839 in all things. 00:32:25.839 --> 00:32:26.799 They do it 00:32:26.799 --> 00:32:27.379 to receive 00:32:27.379 --> 00:32:28.740 a perishable wreath, 00:32:29.299 --> 00:32:29.859 but we, 00:32:30.659 --> 00:32:31.779 an imperishable. 00:32:32.519 --> 00:32:33.559 So I do not run 00:32:33.559 --> 00:32:34.119 aimlessly. 00:32:34.859 --> 00:32:35.759 I do not box 00:32:35.759 --> 00:32:36.859 as one beating the air, 00:32:37.220 --> 00:32:38.720 but I discipline my body 00:32:38.720 --> 00:32:40.000 and keep it under control 00:32:40.000 --> 00:32:40.919 lest after preaching 00:32:40.919 --> 00:32:41.359 to others 00:32:41.359 --> 00:32:42.000 I myself 00:32:42.000 --> 00:32:43.619 should be disqualified. 00:32:44.559 --> 00:32:45.459 The key 00:32:45.459 --> 00:32:46.480 to self-control, 00:32:47.419 --> 00:32:48.480 the key to obedience, 00:32:49.079 --> 00:32:50.339 is keeping our eyes 00:32:50.339 --> 00:32:51.679 on the eternal prize 00:32:51.679 --> 00:32:52.259 that we have 00:32:52.259 --> 00:32:53.079 in Jesus Christ. 00:32:54.139 --> 00:32:55.299 So brothers and sisters, 00:32:55.299 --> 00:32:57.279 let's fix our eyes 00:32:57.279 --> 00:32:57.960 on our Savior 00:32:57.960 --> 00:32:59.980 and pay no heed 00:32:59.980 --> 00:33:01.159 to the pleasures 00:33:01.159 --> 00:33:02.440 and the successes 00:33:02.440 --> 00:33:03.819 of evildoers. 00:33:06.079 --> 00:33:07.019 Let's take a moment 00:33:07.019 --> 00:33:07.960 to reflect on this, 00:33:08.119 --> 00:33:09.359 what God is calling you to, 00:33:09.460 --> 00:33:10.680 what action He's calling you to, 00:33:10.960 --> 00:33:11.639 what change 00:33:11.639 --> 00:33:12.619 in your attitude 00:33:12.619 --> 00:33:13.819 that He's calling you to. 00:33:14.419 --> 00:33:15.899 And after a few moments, 00:33:15.980 --> 00:33:16.819 we're going to respond 00:33:16.819 --> 00:33:17.659 together as a church 00:33:17.659 --> 00:33:18.099 by praying. 00:33:18.099 --> 00:33:19.599 and then we'll be doing this, 00:33:19.599 --> 00:33:19.679 we'll be doing this holy 00:33:19.679 --> 00:33:20.399 with him. 00:33:20.399 --> 00:33:24.579 Toülstand, 00:33:25.139 --> 00:33:25.219 what somebody has 00:33:25.219 --> 00:33:35.359 With DEFIC