The reading today is Proverbs chapter 10, and we'll be reading the first five verses.
The Proverbs of Solomon.
A wise son makes a glad father, but a foolish son is a sorrow to his mother.
Treasures gained by wickedness do not profit, but righteousness delivers from death.
The Lord does not let the righteous go hungry, but he thwarts the craving of the wicked.
A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich.
He who gathers in summer is a prudent son, but he who sleeps in harvest is a son who brings shame.
Father, we thank you for this privilege to come before you and call you our Father.
And because of how we relate to you, we have a vision in life and in future.
May you help us as we read and think about your words from Proverbs 10, that we might indeed be wise.
Thank you, Lord. We pray in Jesus' name. Amen.
So the title of the sermon is The Relational Basis of a Rational Life.
Sorry, it's quite a long title.
I just want us to remember relational and rational.
I mean, we don't need to be rational.
We can live anyhow we like.
But if you want to have a rational life, usually it means that we need to relate to someone.
Someone who is wiser or someone who cares for us and about to kill us.
I believe that many children who are here this morning, if their parents allow them to stay home and watch leg flats,
they might choose to stay home until coming here.
But because your parents told you and wanted you to come, so you came.
You may not know why you need to come Sunday by Sunday.
But your parents know and they've gone through it and they know that it's good for you in the future.
Yet we naturally choose to do things or spend time on things that give us most pleasure.
But it may not be the best for us in times to come.
And it takes efforts.
If you want to do something that is not pressurable, like cleaning up your bedroom, it takes a lot of effort.
But it's a good habit.
And then that would help children as they mature into adults to have good habits to live a rational life.
So today from this Proverbs, we would consider about how a person has a rational life.
A life that is with meaning, with hope, with achievement, a sense of achievement as well.
Before I go into the verses, I would like to share with you the story of Ji Ping.
Ji Ping is a man in Malaysia.
I first met him about eight years ago.
But I just tell you that he died two months ago.
So he was about my age.
I met him when I went to the church that he was attending.
I was preaching there.
And after the service, I noted that he was sitting by himself.
And that's why I approached him and started talking to him.
And finally, he was single.
And it was not common to have a single older man in a church in Malaysia.
Either they don't come to church at all if they're single, or they would have come with their wives.
And he told me that he became a Christian just a few years ago
in a Christian rehabilitation center for drug addicts.
He became addicted to drugs in his teenage years.
And for the next 30 years, his life became irrational.
He lived only for drugs.
And he was willing to do anything just to get drugs.
And he sold drugs so that he can get money.
He also borrowed money from loan sharks.
Loan sharks are those people who lend you money,
but charge you a lot of interest for you to repay.
And when you can repay those loans,
those loan sharks will go to his parents or his family to get money from them.
And so, and then he also,
Ziping was in and out of jail for selling drugs and other crimes.
So finally, or eventually his parents disowned him.
He was just kicked out of the house.
And he needed to find places to live.
So he lived either in jails, in prisons, or in a rehab center.
And he'd gone through rehabilitation again and again.
But he just couldn't get out of this drug habit.
One day, in one of the centers run by Christians,
he heard the gospel and he understood it.
And suddenly, he just was free from this drug habit.
And he saw somehow something change him.
And he started working for that same rehab center for a few years.
And at the same time, he learned and studied from the Bible.
And I'm amazed that he studied well.
Even though he didn't have much education,
when I talked to him,
he understood the gospel very well,
better than many people that I talked with in Malaysia.
Even though he only got a few years of learning.
However, he came to that church because eventually,
he couldn't relate too well with some people in the rehab center.
And he left.
And he went to a small village.
It's a, lived by a lot of Chinese.
And it's a village full of idols.
I've been there before.
Everywhere you can see idols in that village.
He could be the only Christian there.
He rented a small house.
And he sold stationeries and snacks to students,
especially primary students who, after school,
who dropped by his place.
And he had a Sunday school or Bible class
for those students as well.
And then he was in the church.
He helped out in the adult Bible study group.
And he led the adult Bible study group too.
He would be the least educated person in that church.
But he was the keenest one to have the Bible study.
So every time I went to that church,
I would spend some time with him.
But when we, when the last year, in February,
that was the last time before COVID hit,
he didn't attend Sunday service.
I found that he was sick.
And by February this year, that's two months ago,
Leigh's brother told us that he passed away.
He passed away with liver disease.
He would have got hepatitis C from the use of drug.
And that eventually killed him.
And he died quite miserably.
Unfortunately, because of COVID restriction,
people from the church couldn't visit him.
Leigh's brother actually broke the law
driving to his place.
On his last day, he went there.
He was already very, I mean,
nobody cared for him for a few days.
So the brother sent him to a place to care,
but he died the same night.
But at least Leigh's brother was there
just in time before he died.
It's quite sad in a way,
but also quite a joyful thing,
seeing the mercy of God working in this man's life.
He would have died at least 10 years before that
if he did not change,
if he kept, I mean,
if he kept on using drugs
and not eating regularly,
no fixed place of staying.
But do you think
Ji Ping's life became easier or harder
when he lived, he changed,
he lived a new life?
Do you think it became easier or harder?
In a way,
it could be easier for him to keep using drugs
as numb himself and die off.
You don't need to worry anything else.
That's how he used to live.
And now that he's drug free,
he needs to live a new life.
So he needs to think about how he get money,
how he support himself,
his family didn't want to get him back,
and how he starts to relate to people.
As I said, he was sitting by himself in the church.
So it's not easy.
When you are in your 40s,
suddenly you want to get back to the society.
Even in the church,
it's not easy for him to persist on that.
So he will have struggles within himself as well
about temptations and other things
that he never needed to worry about
in his old life.
So it was amazing that he became a Christian,
but it was even more amazing
for him to persevere in his real life
instead of going back to his drug habit
and trying to make a living for himself
and serve in the church
while he copes with his illness
and his loneliness.
I pray that none of the young people here
will end up like Ji Ping in his former life.
Ji Ping's life became irrational
when he had a strong craving for drugs.
He sacrificed his education,
his youth,
his relationship with his parents,
his friends,
just for the transient pleasure of having drugs.
The problem with craving is that
even though there were times
when Ji Ping regretted his lifestyle,
he got no home,
he got no hope.
But it was too difficult for him to get out of it.
That's how he knew how to live.
And he don't know what else to do.
Why did Ji Ping become addicted to drugs
in his teenage years?
It was because he wanted to please his friends
and to please himself
instead of pleasing his parents.
If he had listened to his parents,
he would not have lost his youth to drugs.
Proverbs 10 starts with the contrast
between a wise and a foolish son.
A wise son is one who knows
that he is not as wise as his parents.
He learns from his parents
and tries to understand his parents' concerns.
A foolish son is one who thinks
that he is wiser than his parents.
He pays no regard to the advice of his parents.
So in verse 1, we read,
A wise son makes a glad father,
but a foolish son
is a sorrow to his mother.
So the first question about these words,
I suppose, is to,
why only about sons?
Sorry, in your bulletin,
the heading is a bit different.
So A should be,
why only about sons?
What about daughters?
Don't daughters need to do the same thing as well?
Yes, they do.
But wise sons?
For three reasons.
One, ultimately,
Proverbs talks about the perfect relationship
between Jesus the Son
and God the Father.
So that is one of the reasons.
Secondly,
it is through Jesus' sonship with God
that we relate to God.
So, in God's sight,
we are all sons in one way
because we relate to him as our father
through his son,
the Lord Jesus Christ.
So that is why sonship.
Three,
sonship also implies
more about privilege and responsibility,
not about gender.
So it does not matter
if you are a male or female,
if you are a son or a child of this family,
you are loved and cared for.
At the same time,
you are expected to respect
and listen to your parents.
That is the implication of a sonship.
Second question is,
why should we care about pleasing our parents?
So as we read verse 1 and verse 5 in particular,
we have a sense that a son is wise
when he aims to please his parents
and bring honor to them.
How does this apply to us
in the Western culture
in which we mostly live to please ourselves?
And how does this apply to those
in the Eastern culture
in which becoming a Christian
can be considered as dishonoring to the family?
So even in both cultures,
there's difficulty in accepting
this implication of pleasing our parents.
But then we read in the Old Testament
in the fifth commandment,
God said,
honor your father and your mother
that your days may be long in the land
that the Lord your God is giving you.
So this is the only commandment
that can be promised result.
If we do that,
something else will happen to our life.
So why,
that we can consider,
why is this important to honor our parents?
I think in God's economy,
in God's plan,
the family units are God's design,
that design building blocks
of a society and a nation.
Stable families
build a stable nation.
And if we don't listen,
or if all the children
just do their own things,
families are not stable,
then we would not live
in a stable society
or a stable nation.
And how a person treats his parents
reveals his character.
A son who dishonors his parents
is not likely to relate
to other people well.
So that, again,
will set up the society,
how stable it is.
If we don't relate
to our parents well,
or we don't,
if we dishonor our parents,
then it's not likely
that we will respect other people.
And number three,
parents have more experience in life
than their children.
That's because they're older,
for the fact that.
So their views are usually wiser.
These are some of the reasons
I can think of
why God told us
to honor our parents.
Obviously,
God is our father.
If we don't honor our parents,
it's unlikely
that we will honor God
as our heavenly father.
However,
the commandment
to honor parents
was given
in the context
of the first commandment,
that is to worship God alone.
So that is in the context.
It's not only
just honoring your parents,
anyhow.
God is still
in the first place.
But most of what we do
to honor our parents
would also honor God
at the same time.
It is rare
that we need to choose
between honoring God
or honoring parents.
So there are two questions.
Why only about sons?
Why should we care
about pleasing our parents?
The third question
is about Jiping.
Could Jiping have avoided
getting into drugs
just from these verses?
Jiping and I
came from a similar
family background.
We were both teenagers
in Malaysia
in the 70s.
We both grew up
in non-Christian families.
I could have easily
got involved
with drugs
like Jiping did
or other young men,
young children did.
What was holding me back
from trying out drugs?
I think one of the most
important factors
was my fear
of bringing shame
to my parents.
The name of the family
is most important
in Eastern culture.
When I was growing up,
whenever I went
to friends' houses,
the first thing
their parents
wanted to know
was who my parents were.
So this is us,
whose child it is.
every time
as I got this exposure,
then I realized
that my parents'
name is very important
for me as well,
for my standing.
And so if I shame
my parents,
that means I bring shame
on myself.
And so
because of that,
I learned to
listen to my parents
and not to do things
that would
bring shame
to them.
But I will add here
that while honoring
parents is important,
if parents make this
the only important thing,
they would forfeit
many other good things
in the relationship
with their children.
Why did Jiping's family
not accepting him back
to their foe
when he was no longer
addicted to drugs?
It was partly because
of the pain and dishonor
he brought them
in the past.
It was also because
he became a Christian.
To many Chinese families,
especially at that time,
to have a son
becoming a Christian
was almost as shameful
as him becoming
a drug addict.
Because Jiping's parents
took their honor
to be the most important
thing in life,
they forfeited the blessing
of having their son back.
When I became a Christian,
I did not tell my parents
because I was doing
something that would
bring shame to my family.
I could imagine
people in town
would start talking
if so-and-so's child
has become a Christian.
But I was thankful
that after becoming
a Christian,
not long after,
I left town
and went to another city
to study.
So that was the only time
when I needed to choose
whether to honor God
or honor my parents.
But that was
the only issue.
However,
I learned to love
my parents a lot more
after becoming
a Christian
with the love of God
that has been poured
into my heart
that made
a big difference
and such you could
nearly understood
by God's grace.
So a wise son
makes the glad father.
A wise son
is one who
treasures his relationship
with his parents.
Such a person
is not easily
led astray
by others.
Okay,
we're going to
verse 2.
Treasures gained
by wickedness
do not profit,
but righteousness
delivers from death.
We're talking about
profitable
and unprofitable
treasures.
What was
Ji-Pin's treasure
before he became
a Christian?
He treasured
the pleasure
that he could
derive from drugs.
To gain his treasure,
Ji-Pin disobeyed
his parents.
He committed crimes.
He ignored
medical advice.
He suppressed
his own conscience.
A wicked heart
obeys only
his own desires
and reject
advice from others
and from God.
A wicked heart
does not know
how to relate
to others properly.
He knows only
how to make use
of others.
Ji-Pin's treasure
did not profit
him much.
His drug habit
caused him
his relationship
with parents
and family.
He caused him
his education.
He caused him
his health.
His treasure
became his slave master.
It was through
God's grace
that he was free
to live again.
In his new life,
Ji-Pin began
to learn to relate
to others
and to God
in a new way.
In the past,
he was thinking
how to use others
to get what he wanted.
Now he began
to serve others.
Ji-Pin was given
a life
that overflows
to others.
Through the righteousness
of Jesus,
though Ji-Pin
is now dead,
we know that
he's still alive
in Christ.
So,
righteousness
delivers
from death.
Verse 3,
the Lord
does not let
the righteous
go hungry,
but he told
the craving
of the wicked.
We're talking
about hunger
and craving
in these words.
What is the difference
between hunger
and craving?
Hunger implies
a desire
that can be satisfied
and is constructive.
In the scriptures,
hunger also implies
the desire
for meaning,
for love,
for glory.
Craving implies
a desire
that cannot be satisfied
and is destructive.
It is often
associated
with the desire
of worldly pleasure.
Hunger for food
is a constructive thing.
Our body
needs food
to survive.
Craving for food
is a destructive thing.
Too much food
eventually
destroys our body.
We crave
for something
when we think
that we will not
be happy
unless we get
this thing.
and God
will not
let anyone
get real happiness
through things.
Matthew 5,
6 says,
Blessed are those
who hunger
and thirst
for righteousness,
for they shall
be satisfied.
When we hunger
to be right
with God,
we shall be satisfied
and we will find
real happiness.
It was God's mercy
that he did not
let J.P.
in craving
for drugs
to enslave him
forever.
When J.P.
J.P.
eyes were opened
to see Jesus Christ,
he could let go
of his craving
for drugs
because he now
had hunger
for something
far greater
in Christ.
When he had
the proper
relationship
with God,
his life
also changed
from being irrational
to one that
was rational.
Verse 4,
A slack hand
causes poverty,
but the hand
of the delusion
makes rich.
In this verse,
we are considered
enjoying
and enduring.
Why do I choose
enjoying
and enduring
for this verse?
Because laziness
or stagnant
does not usually
mean doing nothing.
Laziness
means doing
only things
which are easy
and enjoyable.
J.P.
was trying hard.
He was actually
quite hard working.
He was trying hard
to get more drugs
all the time.
A child can be
very dedicated
in playing
electronic games,
but that is not
diligence.
Diligence implies
a willingness
to do things
which are difficult.
We are only
willing to endure
because either
we have a greater
goal in mind
or because we
have been obedient
to our parents.
When we are young,
we may not understand
why we need
to spend time
learning difficult
lessons.
If we relate
to our parents
properly,
we will trust
and obey
their instructions.
Many patients
or younger patients
who come to see me
because they
never learned
to tackle
difficult matters
since young,
they now rely
on drugs
or social welfare
to cope with life.
They are poor
not only
in terms of
monetary income,
but they are also
poor because
they cannot
appreciate much
deeper beauty,
truth,
and generosity
in life
because since young,
they have never
learned to
handle problems
by themselves.
Their parents
did everything
for them
and they treat
their parents
like their servants
who are there
to fulfill
their wishes.
So when they grow up,
they do not know
how to solve
their own problems,
not to mention
knowing how to
help other people
to solve their problems.
Ji-Ping could
have kept
using drugs
to cope with life,
but God changed him.
In his 40s,
he began to earn
a living for himself
and began to serve.
Did Ji-Ping
become rich?
Yes, he did.
Anyone who is
willing to serve
other people
are rich.
I hope that there
are more rich people
in the church,
people who can
cheerfully give
themselves
for the good
of others.
And for the glory
of God.
Verse 5,
He who gathers
in summer
is a prudent son,
but he who
sleeps in harvest
is a son
who brings
shame.
For these words,
we think about
summer and winter.
It is natural
to see bees
and ants
gathering their food
during summers.
Animals know
they need to
make good use
of summers
to survive
their winters.
However,
humans are
a bit more
complicated.
there are
beaches
and crickets
during summer.
While the ultimate
waste of summer
is to
sleep it away.
While the ultimate
waste of summer
is to sleep it away,
because sleeping
is best done
in winter,
so those who
sleep in summer
is very
foolish
to do so.
but there are
other ways
for us to
waste our
summer.
I am not
saying that
we should not
do what is
enjoyable
during summer,
but I am
saying that
we should not
forfeit
our future
for the sake
of transient
enjoyment.
Jipin spent
his youth
in drugs.
It was so
difficult for him
to establish
a normal life
when he became
free from drugs
in his 40s.
So summer
can mean a
season in a year,
or it can mean
a season in
your life,
or a season
that is a season
for maturing
and growing.
It can also mean
your life on earth.
Our whole life
on earth
is a season
of summer
to prepare
for eternity.
Jipin
forfeited
many summers
of his years.
He forfeited
the summer
of his youth.
By God's grace,
he did not
forfeit the summer
of life.
In Christ,
he became
a son of God
and started
to have
hunger for the truth.
So in these
five verses,
we have considered
the mark
of a wise child.
He is one
who honors
the parents
and treasures
his parents.
Because of this,
he had the joy
to obey his parents
when he was told
to turn off the TV
and do his homework,
and he will grow up
into maturity,
into adults.
he will be able
to learn,
earn a living
for himself
and serve others.
What about
parents who are
self-centered
and foolish?
I mean,
no parent
is perfect.
Respecting your parents
may not necessarily
help you
to mature,
but disrespecting
your parents
will certainly
be harmful
to your maturity.
So we respect
our parents.
Your parents
are not wise
themselves.
It may not be
much help to us.
But in any case,
if we disrespect
our parents,
it would definitely
be harmful
for us
for our maturity.
In Luke,
in the Gospel of Luke,
chapter 11,
verse 13,
Jesus said
to the parents,
if you then,
who are evil,
know how to give
good gifts
to your children,
how much more
will the Heavenly Father
give the Holy Spirit
to those
who ask Him?
Jesus said
that despite
our fallen nature,
parents naturally
want to do good
to their children.
Ji-Ping forsook
his relationship
with his parents
in his younger days
and ended up
living a chaotic life.
When he repented,
his parents
did not accept him back,
but Ji-Ping
had a Heavenly Father
because of his
relationship
to God.
Ji-Ping
had the Spirit
of God in him
and he was able
to live a life
that was rational
and purposeful.
So in any case,
the emphasis
of Proverbs 10,
1-5
is what the wise son is.
It's not about
parenthood.
It is about
how we should
live our life
in relation
to our parents
and also
in particular
to God.
None of us
can actually
live up to the standard
in these
five verses,
as a wise son,
partly because
we do not know
how to,
partly also
because we do
not want to.
That's
why Jesus came.
Jesus came
not only to show us
what a wise son
is like,
he can also
help us to be one
because Jesus Christ
is a perfect son.
When Jesus
came to the world,
though he was a son,
he learned obedience
through what
he suffered.
God said to Jesus
in Luke 3,
verse 22,
you are my
beloved son,
with you
I am well pleased.
So,
he shows that
God is well pleased
with Jesus Christ.
Jesus
honored the Father
by not
only not going
after the pleasures
of the world,
but he also
did that
by choosing
to suffer
according to
God's will.
For the first
30 years
of his earthly life,
Jesus prepared
for his mission.
In Luke 2,
verse 52,
it says,
and Jesus
increased in wisdom
and in stature
and in favor
with God
and man.
After those
30 years,
he called
his disciples
and proclaimed
the message
of God,
telling people
to repent
and come
to know God.
What did
Jesus gain
by being obedient
to God
the Father?
He was treated
with hatred
by the religious
and political leaders
and he was
eventually killed
by them.
However,
his death
was for the purpose
of saving
his people
and also
for being
the first person
who inherited
the imperishable
body.
For the joy
that is,
for the joy
of saving
his people,
for the joy
of being
the first fruit
or first person
who inherited
the imperishable
body,
for the joy
of the glory
that is to come,
Jesus enjoyed
the cross,
despising the shame
and now
he's seated
now at the right
hand of God,
the right hand
of the throne
of God.
Through Jesus Christ
who died for us
and now he's
interceding for us,
we can relate
to God
as our father.
In Christ,
God is helping us
not so much
to be successful
in life,
he's helping us
to relate to him.
Until God
is our father,
everything else
we do is quite
meaningless.
There's not much
point for me
to tell you
to be diligent
if at the end
we all die.
When God
becomes your father,
your life
is about
God's business.
Then there will be
motivation
and hope
for you
to live
a life
that has
eternal value.
When God
becomes your father,
you will ask him
for the Holy Spirit
to fill you
so that you might
become mature
in Christ
and have the strength
to live a life
worthy of his calling.
And when God
becomes our vision,
there's nothing
that will stop us
to live a life
that's rich,
profitable,
and glorious.
Let us pray.
Father,
we know
that we
are foolish
and short-sighted
and we thank you
for your goodness
and mercy upon us
that
we could see
our
falling short
of your glory
and also
could see your glory
in Christ Jesus.
Oh, may you
help us to
see clearer and more
of the Lord Jesus Christ
and have this
life
that you have promised
in Christ.
Thank you, Lord.
We pray in Jesus' name.
Amen.