Sermon Tone Analysis
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Anger
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Analytical
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Extraversion
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*Proverbs: *
*/God’s Answer Sheet/*
*January 25, 2004*
Q: What is the hardest class you have ever taken?
*Greek *was my hardest.
I carried flash card everywhere (dunamai, pantokratop?).
I fell asleep reciting verb endings.
If I was sick, I’d skip all my classes except Greek, so I didn’t fall behind.
· If you missed even *one* day, you were gone.
· And so:/Charis umin /(blaah) /kai/ /eirene apo Chistou /(blaah).
*Q:* Ever take a test that you weren’t ready for?
*Q:* What if the teacher gave everyone the *answer* sheet for 10 minuets?
You know that the test is *coming*, that you’re *ill prepared*, but here are all the *answers*.
Would you *talk* to your friends, *doodle* on the sheet, or furiously try to *memorize* it?
· The *adverbial* participle is *anarthrous*.
· The *adjectival* participle is *articular*.
· This is gold!
Real life tests
Tests don’t end with school; *life* is full of *tests*.
I wake up knowing that I may *argue* with my wife, be tempted to *ignore* my *responsibilities*, or respond to *criticism* from my boss.
· It was constructive criticism.
Is Bruce here?
Instead of a *good* or *bad* report card, we get good or bad *memories*, depending how well we do on these tests.
Instead of an “A,” we get a healthy *relationship*, a clear *conscience*, a secure *future*, a good *name* and *reputation*.
Instead of an “F,” we get frustrated *relationships*, a flawed *conscience*, financial *poverty*, a failing *name* and *reputation*.
· *These* are the tests we need that answer sheet for.
· And God has given us one ... the book of Proverbs.
· *Proverbs* is God’s *answer sheet* for life’s tests.
We will be tested when we argue with our spouse or coworker.
A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.
/Proverbs 15:1 NIV// /[repeat as if memorizing]
· Oh, that’s how it works!
We will be tested when we want to ignore our responsibilities.
Lazy hands make a man poor, but diligent hands bring wealth.
/Proverbs 10:4 NIV// /[repeat as if memorizing]
We will be tested when we receive criticism or advice.
The way of a fool seems right to him, but a wise man listens to advice.
/Proverbs 12:15 NIV// /[repeat as if memorizing]
Life is *filled* with “cause and effect” exams.
We cause things to happen through our *words*, *attitudes*, *action*, or *lack* of *action*.
We then enjoy, or suffer the effects.
· There are *calculable* *consequences* to our actions.
· Proverbs’ purpose is to *reveal* those calculable consequences.
A few years ago, when Paul Carter was our Administrator, Paul gave me the job of sweeping the parking lot.
With every stroke, the wind would catch the dust and blow it into my face.
· I was thinking, “Stupid wind.
Stupid dust.
Stupid Paul Carter.”
· Paul was watching me sweeping *into* the wind, not *with* it, thinking, “Stupid Josh.”
· “There’s something wrong with that boy”
The Proverbs teaches us *cause* and *effect*.
Know and obey the Author
We can choose to believe that our world is *random*, without clear cause and effect; we are *victims* of what *happens* to us.
Or we can *realize* our world was *created* by God and *reflects* His *order*.
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom…/ Proverbs 9:10 NIV/
To *fear* the Lord is to *obey* Him, to *obey* Him is to live in *harmony* with His created *order*.
· When we *ignore* His created *order*, we will bear the *calculable* *consequences*.
This does not mean that non-Christians can never be wise.
We all know some non-Christians who are wiser than some Christians.
All *truth* is *God’s* truth.
· Tony Robbins has made a very good living off of God wisdom!
The ancient Greeks earnestly sought this under-laying order, this truth, the meaning of creation, calling it The Logos.
This is why John wrote:
In the beginning was the Word [/Logos/], and the Word [/Logos/] was with God, and the Word [/Logos/] was God….The Word [/Logos/] became flesh and made his dwelling among us.
/John 1:1, 14 NIV/
· I got an “A” in Greek.
In Christ Jesus the *wisdom* and *order* of the universe became *flesh* and lived with us.
· In other words, to know *Him* is to know *wisdom*.
· And we must know Him, because *wisdom* is all about finding *God’s perspective*.
three guidelines to reading Proverbs
Proverbs is a road map; it can show us how to get from A to B, but it won’t drive us there.
I could have an expensive *leather*-bound, *gold*-embossed, collector’s-edition map.
· As long as it sits on my *coffee table*, it won’t get me any closer to *Dallas*.
· I knew I should’ah taken that left turn in Alba-*koy*-key.
Okay, so here are *three* *guidelines* to help you read Proverbs:
1) Proverbs give reliable *principles*, not absolute *promises*.
Proverbs gives the *likely* outcome of various *actions* and *attitudes*.
They are trustworthy and reliable to *live* *by*, but we will get in trouble if we view them as *divine guarantees*.
Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it.
/Proverbs 22:6 NIV/
If we train raise our children in the ways of God, they will *probably* remain in them.
If we do *not*, they will *probably* follow the ways of the *world*.
· This is *principle*, not a *guarantee*.
· Our children have free will.
2) Proverbs are worded to be *memorable* and *concise*, not *exhaustive* and *thorough*.
Highly *nuanced*, *long*, *detailed* statements may be more accurate, but they are hard to follow and even harder to remember.
We could say: Men and women who are *deficient* in *understanding* and *insight* are *disinclined* to learn from their *miscalculations* and *errors* in judgment.
· Rather they’re *inclined* to suffer the *painful* *consequences*, yet repeat the *same* error, continuing in a *dysfunctional* *cycle*.
Or simply:
As a dog returns to its vomit, so a fool repeats his folly.
/Proverbs 26:11 NIV /
*Q:* Which version will *you* remember in an hour?
· God wanted Proverbs to be *memorable*, and *usable*.
3) Proverbs must be interpreted in the light of Scripture.
A bribe is a charm to the one who gives it; wherever he turns, he succeeds.
/Proverbs 17:8 NIV /
The Bible isn’t *condoning* bribery!
Other Proverbs expressly *condemn* bribery.
Sometime Proverbs makes *observations* on human behavior without comment.
Because Proverbs was written in *another culture*, some of them can be a little *difficult* for us to follow.
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