Ask It (2-6), Musical Chairs

2.The reason we are going to spend six weeks is that I would like to convince you to make this a lifelong habit. It will save you: money, time, and tears.

3. You will carry around less regret. And best of all, you won’t have to apologize

near as much.

4. I bumped into these truths at Basic Youth Conflicts.

5.If you aren’t a Jesus follower, this is optional. If you are a Christian, however, this question should be a staple, a part of your decision-‐making arsenal. It’s required. Here it is:

What’s the wise thing to do?

6.Last week, we fleshed it out a bit:

In light of my past experience, current circumstances, and future hopes and dreams, what is the wise thing for me to do?

Your homework last week was to: Ask It

· Of every invitation, opportunity, decision.

· You didn’t have to do anything different, but you owe it to yourself to know.

7.By asking it, even if you don’t follow through, you discover something about you.

We learn that we may not have our own best interest at heart.

WE: IDENTIFICATION (MAKE IT CLEAR THAT YOU STRUGGLE)

Whether you have your best interest in mind.

GOD: ILLUMINATION (THE GOAL IS TO RESOLVE THE TENSION

I. Solomon’s Options

Solomon, the third king of Israel, who wrote more about wisdom than any biblical writer, considered by some to be the wisest man who ever lived, lays out three options to the way of wisdom.

People would come from all around to hear his wisdom and advice.

This is offensive.

A. Simple: Naïve/Clueless . . . Lack experience

1. We all come into the world naïve/simple.

We are naive because we lack experience.

Taylor Swift nailed it…

“When you’re 15 and somebody tells you they love you, you’re gonna…. believe them.”—Taylor Swift

'Cause when you're fifteen, Somebody tells you they love you You're gonna believe them And when you're fifteen

Feeling like there's nothing to figure out

Count to ten Take it in This is life before you know who you're gonna be At fifteen

· Unassisted, naïve people make unwise decisions. None of us will admit it. Naïve people don’t know who they are. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be.

Key Passage Proverbs 7:6-27

1. The key passage is Proverbs 7:6–27.

· Here’s a guy naively walking into a mess. We all want to shout, “Go back!”

· The Simple respond to wisdom with: “Nothing’s gonna happen.”

“I can handle it.” “You’re overreacting.”

2. Under 21 lack experience; haven’t experieneced consequences; debt, addiction, callous heart from hurt.

3. Here’s the great thing: You can have YOUTH and WISDOM. But you will have to seek wisdom.

2. Wisdom allows you to get it right the first time. And many of us would love to go back knowing what we know now and get it right the first time.

3. You can know what we know now, but you will have to ask. When you

Ask It, you need to ask someone older and wiser.

4. Please . . .

Simple: Don’t trade what you want most for what you want in the moment.

Ask it . . . ask somebody.

Baker Commentary on the Old Testament: Proverbs Interpretation

7:21–23. These verses describe his capitulation to her seduction and his resultant fate. It is her talk, not her beauty, that does the trick. Her flattery appeals to his vanity, and he goes after her. His impetuous response indicates that he is not thinking with his brain, but like an ox he goes off to the slaughterhouse. The ox is happy as it goes into the house, not knowing that a violent end is at the other end of its journey. There are translation problems associated with v. 22c (see translation footnote), but in any case it speaks of a victim who unknowingly walks straight into a bad situation. Verse 23 culminates this section and says that ignorance persists till the horrible end, an end that is likened to an arrow piercing one’s liver. The location of the arrow in the liver specifies a particularly painful way to die.

The second alternative is . . .

B. The Fool

Knows the difference between right and wrong, but doesn’t care.

Proverbs 26:11

11 As a dog returns to its vomit, so fools repeat their folly.

Proverbs 10:23

23 A fool finds pleasure in wicked schemes . . .

1. Wrongdoing is a sport. They take pride in their independence and arrogance.

· They will not receive instruction.

· They are going to do their own thing driven by their own desires.

2. Whereas the naïve say: “Nothing’s wrong with . . .” the Fool says, “I don’t really care if it’s wrong. Besides, I can handle it.

3. Whereas the cure for the naïve is TIME, the cure for the fool is TRAGEDY.

4. The naïve can learn from others. Fools learn the hard way.

· They have to crash; hit rock bottom; face the full consequences of decisions.

· The tragedy is, everybody close to them is harmed as well.

· Solomon also said:

Proverbs 13:20

20 Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm.

C. Mocker: Critical, Condescending

1. They don’t simply do what’s wrong; they are critical of people who do what’s right.

2. Making fun of others is a sport:

· The little people

· The losers

3. You don’t even want these people to know you go to church for fear of what they will say.

4. They’re condescending, quick to criticize.

5. Anybody with a moral absolute is a target.

Proverbs 9:7–8

7 Whoever corrects a mocker invites insults; whoever rebukes the wicked incurs abuse.

8 Do not rebuke mockers or they will hate you . . .

Correct the simple and they won’t get you. Correct a fool and he will ignore you.

Correct a mocker and he will hate you. Correct the wise and they will thank you.

Here’s the kicker . . .

II. Eventually, people in each of these chairs need wisdom, but they may not find it.

A. When they face big decisions: marriage, major, investments, choice of friends, career, raising kids . . .

B. When they are trying to unwind themselves out of a mess they have created: financially, relationally . . .

C. The Bible tells us, observation tells us that if you sit here too long and ignore wisdom, when you need it, you won’t be able to find it.

You will have distanced yourselves from wise counsel

2. You won’t recognize it.

3. You won’t be willing to receive it.

Put yourself in a seat for three minutes. I want to read you something. In Proverbs 1:20–33, Solomon presents wisdom as a woman who stands in the street begging those in these three seats to get up and move. Listen. This isn’t God. This is Wisdom. This isn’t a pronouncement of God’s judgment. This is just what happens . . .

Proverbs 1:20–33

20 Out in the open wisdom calls aloud, she raises her voice in the public square;

21 on top of the wall she cries out, at the city gate she makes her speech:

22 “How long will you who are simple love your simple ways? How long will mockers delight in mockery and fools hate knowledge?

23 Repent at my rebuke! Then I will pour out my thoughts to you, I will make known to you my teachings.

24 But since you refuse to listen when I call and no one pays attention when I stretch out my hand,

25 since you disregard all my advice and do not accept my rebuke,

26 I in turn will laugh when disaster strikes you; I will mock when calamity overtakes you—

27 when calamity overtakes you like a storm,

27 when disaster sweeps over you like a whirlwind, when distress and trouble overwhelm you.

28 Then they will call to me but I will not answer; they will look for me but will not find me,

29 since they hated knowledge and did not choose to fear the LORD.

30 Since they would not accept my advice and spurned my rebuke,

31 they will eat the fruit of their ways and be filled with the fruit of their schemes.

32 For the waywardness of the simple will kill them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them;

[That should scare the chair out of you.]

33 but . . .

33 whoever listens to me . . .

[In light of my past experience, current circumstances, and future hopes and dreams, what’s the wise thing to do?]

33 . . . will live in safety and be at ease, without fear of harm.”

YOU: APPLICATION (TELL PEOPLE WHAT TO DO AND WHAT THEY HAVE HEARD)

Conclusion

Where are you sitting?

1. Here’s the promise: “Whoever listens to me will live in safety and be at ease, without fear of harm.”

2. But you’ve got to ask it:

In light of my past experience, current circumstances, and future hopes and dreams, what is the wise thing for me to do?

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