[0:00] And we're turning tonight to Psalm 37 for our scripture reading. Psalm 37, I'll read the first 13 verses. This is the word that is to dwell in us richly.
[0:15] A Psalm of David. Do not fret because of evil men or be envious of those who do wrong. For like the grass, they will soon wither.
[0:26] Like green plants, they will soon die away. Trust in the Lord and do good. Dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. Delight yourself in the Lord.
[0:39] And he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord. Trust in him. And he will do this. He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn.
[0:52] The justice of your cause like the noonday sun. Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him. Do not fret when men succeed in their ways.
[1:04] When they carry out their wicked schemes. Refrain from anger and turn from wrath. Do not fret. It leads only to evil.
[1:16] For evil men will be cut off. But those who hope in the Lord will inherit the land. A little while and the wicked will be no more. Though you look for them, they will not be found.
[1:28] But the meek will inherit the land and enjoy great peace. The wicked plot against the righteous and gnash their teeth at them.
[1:39] But the Lord laughs at the wicked. For he knows their day is coming. May the Lord bless his word to us tonight. Pastor Jason. Come and preach.
[1:55] What would it look like for the mind of Christ our Savior to dwell in us richly? I think it would look a lot like the book of Proverbs dwelling in us richly.
[2:08] It would look like a life of wisdom, graciousness, generosity, love, righteousness. Those are all things that are at the very heart of the book of Proverbs.
[2:20] And so I would invite you there. Proverbs chapter 23. Proverbs chapter 23. Have you noticed that the book of James is sort of the New Testament version of the book of Proverbs in many respects?
[2:45] If anyone lacks wisdom, he should ask God who gives generously to all without finding fault. I don't know about you. I suspect I know the answer. But I use that promise a lot.
[2:57] But I am always asking for wisdom because I need it. And so I'm in a situation and I don't know what to do. I'm in a situation I don't know what to say.
[3:08] I'm at my wit's end. And that is a promise that I make much use of. And I'm sure that you do as well. But if you read the book of Proverbs, you'll see that growing in wisdom is more than just getting stuck in a situation and asking God for wisdom for that particular situation.
[3:30] Asking the Lord to help you to know what to do. We're to want wisdom more than occasionally or situationally. It's surely good to have wisdom in certain situations.
[3:42] But what the book of Proverbs says is wisdom is worth having all of the time. Every day. All of the time. The Lord isn't just wise in certain situations.
[3:56] He's the all-wise God in every circumstance. All of his plans. All of his thoughts are wise. Perfectly wise. And the book of Proverbs has this wonderful purpose.
[4:10] This exciting purpose in our lives. And that is to make us like God. To make us wise.
[4:20] To make us into something beautiful. Creative. Discerning. Practical. Resourceful. Full of just so gentleness.
[4:34] And just so firmness. That smooths the path before you. That gets life done. So brothers and sisters, do you want wisdom?
[4:47] You just asked for may the mind of Christ my Savior to dwell in me richly. What would that look like? He is the wisdom of God. It would look like you living wisely.
[4:58] So today we're back in these 30 sayings of the wise. And we're going to continue to work through them. And just I have two big main points for this evening.
[5:14] Just two big main points. The first is how do you get wisdom? Because three of the sayings that we're going to look at are about getting wisdom and the result of that.
[5:24] And then do not envy the wicked. So those are our two main points. How do you get wisdom? And then wisdom does not envy the wicked.
[5:37] And it's sayings 12 through 15 is what we're going to look at. Sayings 12 through 14 cover the first point of how do you get wisdom. And you can see that in Proverbs chapter 23 verse 12 is where we're going to begin.
[5:56] How do you get wisdom? This is one of the reoccurring lessons in this section. And it's found there of how do you get wisdom? Our most wise, our most loving father is teaching us here.
[6:11] And he's saying this is how you get this wisdom. And so are your hearts open? Are you ready to obey? Are you eager to put the word of God into practice?
[6:25] Well, what does this look like? Look at it with me. It's Proverbs chapter 23 verse 12. Apply your heart to instruction and your ears to words of knowledge.
[6:37] Now notice, you don't just ask for wisdom. Wisdom is something, in order to get wisdom, you have to do something. It's something that you do. It's not passive.
[6:49] It's active. It's not merely praying for wisdom. It's actually pursuing wisdom. It's something you do. You apply your heart is how it goes.
[7:03] So that word apply, it means to move your heart to instruction. So you're getting your heart up. You're picking it up. You're taking it with you.
[7:14] And you're taking it to instruction. It's not passive. You're not waiting for instruction to merely come to you. You are taking yourself, the very core of your being, to instruction.
[7:28] The same word is used to talk about bringing the crops into the barn. Now, I think most of the crops are out of the field, and I don't think any of them came on their own to the barn and into the silo.
[7:43] They didn't climb up under the tractor and drive to the place where they're going to be stored for the winter. No, you have to take them there. Wisdom is not just going to come to you.
[7:54] You have to go get it. You have to go out in the field. You have to bring it. You have to carry yourself to where wisdom is. And so you have to bring your whole self to it, the very core of your being.
[8:07] But you notice there's a particular part of your body that you are to bring to wisdom. It's your heart, but especially your ears.
[8:22] Your ears. Now, I've never seen anyone talk out of their ears. Ears are for listening. And this age, above every age, it seems, is the age of blathering, talking people.
[8:41] Everybody has something to say, and everybody has some place to say it. Our phones. Our computers. And we are free to talk.
[8:53] Everywhere you look, you see people wanting to use their tongues and wanting to talk. And these half-formed, half-witted ideas are everywhere in the world.
[9:04] There's no shortage of opinions. There's no shortage of verbiage. News used to be a half an hour, and now it's 24 hours. I don't know if there's more news than there used to be.
[9:16] But there sure is a lot more talking than there used to be. But you don't get wisdom with your tongue. You get it with your ears. You get it with your heart, applying it to instruction.
[9:30] So you press your ears to the words of knowledge. Now, these are things that I know I've said multiple times in this series in the book of Proverbs. And it's because multiple times the book of Proverbs has said it.
[9:43] And why is it saying it all over again here? Why are we going to keep on hearing this? The simple answer is because we need it all over again.
[9:57] We need it again. Not just the youngest. Maybe especially the youngest. Especially young people.
[10:09] And young people, I do hope that the book of Proverbs is like a fisherman catching you. And you're caught. And you're saying, oh, that is some good stuff.
[10:21] I want to bring this into my life. I want to start living this out. That would be wonderful. So, yes, this is especially for young people to apply yourself to wisdom.
[10:34] But why are they saying these things again and again? And it's because you really can't sit there and do nothing. You really have to do this if you're going to be wise.
[10:47] And we talked about this in Sunday school. We all have this inclination to ease, to comfort, to passivity. And the book of Proverbs is always saying, no, you have to pursue this.
[10:59] You have to do something. You have to apply your heart to this wisdom. But it's not just the young. And it's not just the foolish or the simple.
[11:09] Remember that word? The uncommitted that need to apply themselves to wisdom. I think if you are growing in wisdom, you are growing in your desire for wisdom.
[11:22] The oldest Christian and the wisest Christian needs to hear this again. Charles Bridges is a wonderful pastor in the 19th century in England.
[11:34] And his commentary on the book of Proverbs is a classic. But he said this on this verse. So is that you?
[11:47] Maybe you're saying that's not me. Well, are you older? Have you been in the faith a long time? Have you learned a lot? Well, this is what he says. The best taught, the most advanced Christian will be most earnest in seeking more instruction and will most gladly sit at the feet of the Lord's ministers to hear the words of knowledge.
[12:06] This is the wisdom of the wise. That they know how much they don't know. And they want to remedy it. They want wisdom. And so they're hungry for it.
[12:16] They're glad to sit and listen. They're not reluctant to pursue wisdom. This is what they want more than even when they were younger. They're most eager.
[12:28] More eager than when they were young. So they've tasted the goodness of wisdom. Proverbs says it's sweeter than honey. There's a limit to how much honey you can eat without getting sick.
[12:42] But there is no limit. The wise will say there's no limit to the amount of wisdom I can get. And the more I have, the better it is. The better I feel, the better I live.
[12:53] And so how do you get wisdom? It's something that you do. You apply yourself. Are you applying yourself? May the mind of Christ my Savior live in me.
[13:07] What did Jesus do? What did Jesus do? Well, Jesus was 12 years old. And he went down to Jerusalem with his family for a feast.
[13:21] And the time of the feast was over. And they were all returning home. And it was a big caravan. I'm sure of family and friends and everyone from the north. Who had gone down south.
[13:32] And now they're going up north. And, you know, it's just a big group of people all traveling together. And Mary and Joseph thought that Jesus was just somewhere among this group.
[13:43] Have you ever lost your children? Mary and Joseph did one time. After three days, they found him. Remember, they come back to Jerusalem. They're looking all over the city. And they didn't think to look here.
[13:58] It took them three days to get here. But eventually, they showed up at the temple. After three days, they found him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them.
[14:09] And then, that caught my attention this week. Jesus was listening to these men. Listening to them and asking them questions.
[14:22] So he's sitting among the teachers. All of his friends and cousins and second cousins and family, they're all traveling back up.
[14:33] But he's not with them. He's not hanging out with his friends, talking about whatever nonsense things. He sees this opportunity to learn.
[14:44] And so there he is at the temple. And he is with the best and the brightest minds of his day as a 12-year-old. And so here's this poor peasant boy sitting with the professors of the nation.
[15:02] And he's listening to them. And he's learning from them. And he's asking them questions. And he's answering questions in return. Do you remember that quote from probably like a year ago that I quoted Dallas Willard, who said that Jesus was literally the smartest man who ever lived?
[15:21] You see something of how precocious, how intelligent he was. And here he is. He's 12 years old. And he has a chance to learn.
[15:32] And he's applying himself to it. Luke says he was listening to them. The very word of God, John 1-1.
[15:45] The word of God, the spoken word of God into a dark world is now in the temple. And he's listening. He was applying his ears to words of knowledge.
[15:59] Now, if listening was good enough for Jesus, then why do we feel that we need to talk so much? Why aren't we asking more questions?
[16:14] And so there's Jesus. He's asking them questions. And he's apparently answering questions that they throw at him. There's no doubt they're putting him to the test. And they are amazed at his understanding is what it says.
[16:26] They're amazed at his wisdom. Of his clarity of thoughts. Of what he's responding to them. So when he's older, and so that's 12.
[16:41] We don't see him again until he's 30. And he takes up his public teaching ministry. And he's older now. So how did he speak so eloquently and powerfully about ordinary life?
[16:59] There's never been a teacher like Jesus. And we even have him as a model. And even the best pastors, they don't come up to his skill about spiritual things, about talking about ordinary life.
[17:15] And so he talks about men building houses. And he talks about shepherd and sheep and how they get along. He talks about stewards making daring deals in order to save their own skin.
[17:29] He talks about birds in the air. He talks about people waiting a long time at a party for the guest of honor to show up. He noticed how people sat when it came time for the meal.
[17:47] And where did people jockey for position? He noticed seating arrangements. And he was always turning it and putting it into context with the Lord and his kingdom and the word of God.
[18:03] How was he always doing that? Because his mind was always turned on. His mind was always thinking. He was applying himself to wisdom.
[18:15] So the wisdom of God applied himself to wisdom. So how do you get wisdom? It's something that you do. Something you do. You apply your heart to instruction and your ears to words of knowledge.
[18:30] So how do you get wisdom? It's something that you do. And next, it is actually. And then we have, this is saying number 13.
[18:41] It's something that is done to us. It is something done to us. So how do you get wisdom? It is on the one hand something that you do.
[18:53] But we see in the very next saying that it is something that is done to you. Do not withhold discipline from a child. If you punish him with a rod, he will not die.
[19:05] Punish him with a rod. And save his soul from death. Now, we've already had a whole sermon on child discipline, child training. We've already looked at this verse.
[19:17] And I don't, so I don't want to take too much time here. But you see how it goes hand in hand with the verse that came before. There's a partnership. Mom and dads, there's a partnership.
[19:30] Young people, there's a partnership here between the learner and the teacher. Between the child and the parent. Between the Christian and his heavenly father. There's a partnership in order to get wisdom.
[19:45] The teacher, the parent, the father has to do something. And the children need to do something as well. The learners do.
[20:00] You can just notice here, first of all, that the wise men, these sages here, are under no illusions about young people. It's not a matter of trying to bring out the best in them.
[20:16] You don't ever hear anything like that in the book of Proverbs. Of, well, we need to foster this innate wisdom that children have.
[20:27] Not at all. Wisdom, one commentator said, wisdom had to be drummed into them. And sometimes, literally.
[20:39] Folly is bound up in the heart of a child. And so bringing out their best is not going to be good. It's not going to be good enough.
[20:51] It's not going to be helpful. The Lord just letting his spiritual children alone is not going to be good. So, Christian, do you see your heavenly father here in this verse and how he treats you?
[21:05] What is he after in this discipline? He's saving your life. He's correcting your mind. He's saving you. So, I don't need just good opportunities to show the wisdom that I've gained.
[21:17] You know, so it's not just good enough for me to apply my ears to instruction and my heart to wisdom. That is definitely something that I need to do, but that in and of itself isn't even enough.
[21:29] I need, children need, discipline. I need pain to learn. I need pain to learn.
[21:42] And that's just a fact. And I'm talking about me. There are some depths of wisdom that only pain and suffering will teach you.
[21:58] And so God disciplines us. So parents discipline their children. Hebrews, endure hardship as discipline. God is treating you as sons.
[22:08] He's giving you something that you desperately need. Have you learned that God's discipline, it was painful?
[22:26] Yeah, it was so painful, but it was so necessary. So necessary. I've learned things under his rod that I needed to learn.
[22:40] I learned things about the world that I needed to know. That I wasn't going to get any other way. That I just wasn't going to get any other way.
[22:55] The problem was not the word of God. The problem was not the Holy Spirit. The problem was me. I wasn't receptive. I wasn't in the right frame of mind. But God had to drum some wisdom into me.
[23:08] So is he drumming you? Well, you ask for wisdom. And he's giving it to you. And sometimes it comes no other way.
[23:21] Well, the question is, why do we, why do children, why do children need this kind of discipline?
[23:32] Why do they need spankings? Why do they need pain? Why do they need that drumming? Well, because we're all suffering under the same delusion to some degree or other.
[23:49] And children are especially. They are thinking that the world is going to bend to their will. They're thinking that the world is just as they imagine it to be.
[24:03] And so children come into the world as little tyrants. And then they're going to insist that the world act just like them. And they're going to think that the shape of the world will bow before them.
[24:16] Will melt before them. And so where do you learn that the world is not going to bend before you? You learn it in the nursery.
[24:29] You learn it in diapers. That's where you first learn it. The world has a shape. It's not made by you. God didn't ask your opinion when he created it.
[24:42] The world has a shape. It has hard edges. It will not bend before them. It will not bend before you. It will not break. But it will break you if you don't change.
[24:53] And so they disobey their parents. And they're spanked. And they're learning. I'm not in charge.
[25:06] I just can't do whatever I want. That sin has a price. And they disobey. And they find out that they aren't. There isn't just getting away with it.
[25:20] There's only pain. And so what are they learning? They're learning the shape of the world. They're learning. This is the way God made this world. And this is the way it is.
[25:31] And so they're learning the fabric of the world that I've talked about so much of the time. Well, wisdom is going with that fabric. And not against it. Wisdom is going with it.
[25:43] Folly is fighting it. And so they learn these first lessons in pain. Pity them if they don't learn. Pity them if they don't learn it when they're young.
[25:54] Because it's only going to get harder. And that's what the wise man is saying here. Punish him with a rod. And save his soul from death.
[26:04] Because the consequences later, or the consequences eventually, is death. Children that never learn that there is a world outside of them that will not bow to them.
[26:18] There is a God who will hold them accountable. Children that never learn that. They grow up to be mockers. And read through the book of Proverbs. And mockers are only destroyed.
[26:31] And so God loves us too much to pamper us. He loves us too much to let us go on in our delusion. And so under those loving strokes of his, we learn wisdom. And parents, that's what we're doing.
[26:47] We're partnering with God. We're being instruments in his hands to teach our children wisdom. And so yes, you bring pain into their life. But we are teaching wisdom. So how do you get wisdom?
[26:58] You pursue it. It's something that you do. And it's also something that is drummed into you. It's something that is done to you. And now, let's move on to something happier.
[27:12] What's the happy result? So all this has been work and hard things. But there's a happy result. And that's the next saying here.
[27:25] It's verses 15 and 16. Which, if you're keeping track, is saying number 14. And it says this, My son, if your heart is wise, then my heart will be glad. My inmost being will rejoice when your lips speak what is right.
[27:39] So you see what's going on here. My son, if your heart is wise, and you're speaking what is right, then my heart will be happy.
[27:54] I will be glad. And my inmost being will rejoice. I will have a party on the inside every time I hear those wise words coming out of your mouth.
[28:05] And so here's motivation for both parents and children. Here's motivation for every Christian who is in this parent-child relationship with God. Your heart wise.
[28:19] My heart glad. Your lips right. Oh, my lips are smiling. So here's the parent and the child.
[28:31] And the teacher and the learner and father and his children working together. And they're working hard for wisdom. And they're doing what is difficult. And this is the happy result.
[28:45] There is wisdom and joy all around. That transformation happens in that child. And so now it's no longer folly is bound up in the heart of a child. Now there's wisdom in his heart.
[28:56] And now it's bubbling out of him. And instead of that sadness that comes from just having a fool for a son. Oh, there's joy. So remember after they found Jesus listening and learning in the temple when he was 12?
[29:13] You remember what happened? Next. Well, this is like the summary of all of his teenage years. What was Jesus like as a teenager?
[29:27] Here's what you have here. Then he went down to Nazareth with them and was obedient to them. But his mother treasured all these things in her heart.
[29:40] And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature and in favor with God and man. So as he was growing up and becoming a physically full-grown man, he is growing in wisdom.
[29:54] And he's obeying his parents and his mom is thinking about all of this and treasuring everything that she's seen before. What this thing in the temple and how he's behaving.
[30:05] She's treasuring all this up. And it says that Jesus grew in favor with God and men. Jesus grew in favor. As he grew in wisdom, he grew in favor. People delighted in him.
[30:19] God's pleasure. God's favor even grew. He delighted in his son. But now he's delighting in his son in a whole new way that he had never done before.
[30:32] Now he's delighting in him as a maturing, growing man. Growing in wisdom. And he'd always been pleased with him. But here's a new, different kind of joy.
[30:45] Here's my son with whom I am well pleased. That's not just talking about who he was from eternity. That's talking about who he was on earth.
[30:57] It's both. So blessed are the parents who can say that about their children. Who can say, look, they're growing up and they're growing in wisdom.
[31:08] Those are happy parents. And blessed are the children whose parents can say, look at my son. Look at my daughter. Look at what they're doing.
[31:18] That's wisdom. So that's the happy result. And where is all this going? Well, God has predestined us to be holy and blameless in his sight.
[31:31] He's predestined us to grow into the fullness of Jesus Christ. And that in part is wisdom. And so where is all of this going? Where does this verse find its final and full fulfillment?
[31:44] It happens in little ways in our lives, but it is actually going to a place where we, Jesus brings us to his father and says, here I am with the children that you've given me.
[31:58] And we're all like him. Wise and understanding. And all the lessons and all the pain are now over.
[32:12] And now it's happiness. This is our happy hope. This is where we're going. This is where the book of Proverbs is wanting to take us.
[32:23] So bow to his rod. Children, your parents love you when they spank you. They're doing you one of the greatest goods that you'll ever have done to you.
[32:35] They're teaching you. This is the way the world is. And it goes well with you if you live obediently. So bow to his rod. Give him your heart. Wisdom is taking us to a happy place.
[32:48] But our next saying is going to say, you know what? This is not a road that is without danger. Because when it gets hard, and at times it will be hard, you need to not lose heart.
[33:04] And you need to, and you cannot let yourself envy sinners. That's the next saying. It's saying number 15.
[33:14] Do not let your heart envy sinners, but always be zealous for the fear of the Lord. Lord, there's surely a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off.
[33:27] I read Psalm, I had Psalm 37 read because the hope of the wicked is cut off. They don't last very long. So here's wisdom.
[33:39] It doesn't come cheap, and it doesn't come easy, and it takes work, and it takes pain. The end is good, but there is danger. The danger is that you are going to see the wicked and the foolish, and you're going to start to envy them.
[33:53] Have you ever envied the wicked? Why fear God? It only hurts. I don't know if I want to be in this school when this hurts so badly.
[34:09] Why fear the Lord? It doesn't seem worth it. And so you see how he puts it? Don't let your heart envy. Your heart's going to naturally want to do this.
[34:23] This is something that you are resisting. This is something that you are preventing from happening. Don't let your heart do it. So here's the self-control, the sober-mindedness that is one of the fruit of the Spirit, where your mind is fully stocked with the Word of God, and you are governing your mind.
[34:42] You are governing your thoughts, and you are starting to see your thoughts start to envy the wicked. And what do you do? You capture them, and you bring them back. You say, we're not doing that.
[34:54] You're not envying the wicked. So reign in your heart. Control your heart. Instead, you choose zeal for the fear of the Lord.
[35:07] Again, zeal is not something that you passively has happened to you. In the book of Proverbs, this is something that you choose. You choose wisdom. You choose it.
[35:17] So you're either sitting back, and you're giving way to envy, or you're going to choose wisdom. You're going to keep pursuing it, even when it's hard.
[35:30] Even when it's painful. You know, Asaph probably knew I was going to go here, but Asaph saw the prosperity of the wicked, and he was envious. He envied their life.
[35:41] They aren't plagued with the common troubles of man. You can tell he's not thinking clearly. And later on, he says, I was a brute beast before you. I wasn't thinking clearly.
[35:52] But this is how he feels. And we can say, haven't we been there? They're not being put through the ringer. It's not so rigorous for them.
[36:05] Here I am doing what is right, trying to be wise, serving God. And there they go. They get the promotion. Their children are all healthy and well. There they are, sleeping in on Sunday morning.
[36:21] There they are on Wednesday night, all tucked in, and I'm leaving for the prayer meeting in the dark. And I'm giving my money. And they're just spending whatever they want. And what do I get for it?
[36:32] Where's my reward? There's another problem. We envy their prosperity. We envy their ease.
[36:44] Apparently, you just get away with it. It's what it seems like so much of the time. Apparently, God doesn't seem to care. Or God's not fair.
[36:55] I'm beat up and I'm hurt. And I'm trying to do what is right and wise. And they just keep going. That's the danger.
[37:10] But what does he say? Surely, the Proverbs say, surely there's a hope for you. Your hope will not be cut off. Just wait and see. And in due time, even in this life, you start to see.
[37:25] We judge the Lord too quickly. Isn't that part of that hymn of don't judge the Lord by feeble sense? We do it too quickly. He's playing a longer game.
[37:36] And we're wanting immediate results. But what happens in this life, even in this life, is you start to see what he's up to. And so that bitter thing, it suddenly becomes sweet.
[37:50] And that unbearable discipline that you thought was just so unnecessary and so pointless, now you see it as something absolutely essential.
[38:02] I needed that. That was life-defining, life-shaping. Now I'm further equipped for ministry. Now I'm further equipped for life. I wouldn't trade that for anything. And so what seems so unfair, you actually now start to say, that was God's kindness.
[38:18] I would never go back to being the way I was. Our hope comes to flower. Faith becomes sight. And it even starts to happen in this life. How much more is it going to happen later?
[38:33] But not so the wicked. Not so the wicked. Where was it that Asaph got his mind set right?
[38:44] Where did he get out of that funk that he was in and started thinking right? He says, it was oppressive to me. It just weighed me down. Have you been there?
[38:56] Just weighed me down. Until he went where? Where did he go? The sanctuary.
[39:07] The sanctuary. What did Asaph see in the sanctuary? I want you to apply your heart to this. Apply your ears to this.
[39:18] Learn from this. Did he come to a place like this? Carpet. Wonderful pews. Air conditioning in the summer.
[39:30] Nice heat in the winter. Peter. You know, he didn't come to a place like this at all. He came to a temple.
[39:42] Not with a pulpit. But with priests. With knives. Carrying bowls of blood. He could see with his own eyes.
[39:55] His animals went limp. As their life went out of them. And read the first eight, nine, ten chapters of the book of Leviticus.
[40:10] Read about the sacrifices. It was animals cut into pieces and burned in fires.
[40:21] And priests flicking blood everywhere. That's where Asaph went. He went to a place where sins are forgiven, but sins are dealt with.
[40:34] And sin is judged. And sin is called to account. And it wasn't easy. And it wasn't life.
[40:47] And it wasn't prosperity. It was death. And it was gore. And it was God dealing. It was God deals with sin. That was the message coming out of the loudspeaker at the sanctuary.
[41:04] No matter how green the pastures. No matter how sweet the grass. No matter how wonderful life was in the sunshine. And under the moonlight. All of those animals.
[41:17] Their lives ended there. Don't let your heart envy sinners. They have no hope.
[41:30] And no matter how green their pastures. And no matter how sweet their grass. And no matter how sweet their life is under the sun. They're going to the slaughter.
[41:45] So really the whole temple picture is a picture of the cross. Isn't it? So what do we do when our hearts start to envy sinners?
[41:57] We have to take ourselves to the cross. And I think we need to ask ourselves a couple of things. Or say a couple of things to ourselves. And the first is. Jesus died.
[42:09] To separate me. From my sin. God called me out. From living among them. So now will I envy and want to go back?
[42:29] And do I want to really. Go on to that side where. There is no hope. He will rule them with an iron scepter. And his robe is splattered with blood.
[42:43] All the hope of the sinful world. Of the evil. Will come crashing down into death. And so the second question is. Will you really envy the doomed?
[42:55] Follow him. so apply your heart to that apply your ears Psalm 25 no one whose hope is in you will ever be put to shame so we have sin too but our sin is dealt with and so we have a living hope this is what the Lord God says see I lay a stone in Zion a tested stone a precious cornerstone a sure foundation the one who believes will never be shaken and those verses are repeated several times in the New Testament and every time they are applied to Jesus he is our sure foundation no one who ever believes in him will ever be shaken and so don't let your heart envy sinners that's to betray what Jesus was doing on the cross that's to betray the whole point of Christmas that's to betray the fathers choosing you and setting you apart and making you part of his holy nation don't let your hearts envy sinners but always be zealous for the fear of the Lord are you zealous are you zealous for Christ zealous to know him zealous to be close to him zealous to abide in him are you zealous for wisdom no one who trusts in him will ever be or is ever disappointed because he saves and he saves to the uttermost and so he's the hope of his people and he's coming again and our hope's not going to be cut off and so believers
[44:52] I hope you see the path that's before you that Proverbs is laying before you there is something for you to do apply your heart apply your ears to instruction there's something for you to endure even and that's the discipline of the Lord parents this is something for you to do with your children to discipline them and the whole time we need to guard ourselves from losing hope from envying the wicked your best days are in front of you Christian your best days are in front of you so take heart take heart let's pray Heavenly Father we do want to give ourselves to you again we want to give ourselves to you afresh this night we want to be zealous for you and repent of any envy that we've had of the wicked any laziness we've had any shirking of your rod give us sweet submissive spirits give us open ears and open hearts and we pray that you would lead us in the path of wisdom that we might shine for you in a dark world that our wisdom might be winsome to those who know us and that they would say oh there's something different about them and be drawn to Jesus who is the wisdom of God who lives in us and who works through us and so may they forget the channel and see only him please bless our week help us to love one another deeply and help us to serve you gladly help us to always be zealous for you keeping our spiritual fervor serving the Lord
[46:48] I pray this for Jesus sake amen well we're going to close with hymn number 706 it's a call to actually do the work and take the time to be holy hymn number 706 let's stand as we sing