Wisdom Over Wealth: The Christian’s True Priority

• Two Types of Foolishness [00:35:35 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor contrasts two biblical examples of foolishness: the rich fool in Luke 12 (wisdom without fear of the Lord) and the wicked servant in Matthew 25 (fear of the Lord/master but no wisdom/skill in management).
• Definition of Biblical Wisdom [00:42:14 ▶️ 📄]
  > Wisdom is defined not as academic knowledge or grades, but as 'skillful choices that navigate through the complexities of life' and the ability to choose well, particularly in finances.
• Responsibility vs. Victimhood [00:43:13 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor argues that blaming circumstances ('I'm a victim of circumstance') prevents one from finding wisdom, whereas taking responsibility for one's response to situations is key to gaining wisdom.
• Responsibility vs. Victimhood [00:43:29 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor contrasts the 'victim of circumstance' mindset with being 'response-able,' urging listeners to take responsibility and learn from difficult situations rather than blaming others.
• Faith and Doubting [00:47:23 ▶️ 📄]
  > Analyzing James 1, the pastor defines biblical doubting not as a lack of belief in God's existence, but as double-mindedness—serving one's own interests rather than God's will.
• Critique of Word of Faith Movement [00:48:37 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor debunks the 'health and wealth' gospel, arguing that words do not manipulate God and that faith is not a mechanism to access physical prosperity like a 'personal genie.'
• Value of Wisdom vs. Comfort [00:52:53 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor argues that God prioritizes wisdom and maturity over comfort, using the statistic of lottery winners going bankrupt to illustrate that resources without wisdom lead to ruin.
• True Wealth and Fellowship [00:57:22 ▶️ 📄]
  > Citing Bruce Waltke, the pastor explains that wisdom provides fellowship, home, and love, which money cannot buy, though he affirms that God is pro-wealth and pro-health when aligned with His purposes.
• Wisdom and Trials [00:58:21 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor argues that while trials are not enjoyable, believers should count them as joy because God uses them to impart wisdom, which has greater value than immediate comfort.
• Prosperity and Wealth [00:59:13 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor clarifies that God is 'pro-wealth' and desires health and success for believers, distinguishing this from false teachers by emphasizing that wisdom must precede wealth to avoid 'mo' money, mo' problems.'
• Creation and Redemption [01:01:45 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor connects Proverbs 3 and Revelation 22 to argue that wisdom is the logic of creation; redemption does not replace creation but restores God's original intent for the physical world and human responsibility.
• Christian Responsibility [01:04:28 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor asserts that salvation includes becoming a responsible person in daily life (e.g., taxes, chores), warning that irresponsibility damages the cause of Christ, and calls for a shift from seeking comfort to seeking wisdom.

• Sermon Illustration [00:35:35 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor references the biblical story of the rich fool in Luke 12 who built barns for his wealth but died that night, illustrating wisdom without the fear of God. He also references the parable of the talents in Matthew 25, where a servant buried his talent out of fear, illustrating a servant who feared the master but lacked the wisdom/skill to manage resources.
• Sermon Illustration [00:41:39 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor shares an anecdote about his college English professor lamenting students who had high GPAs but didn't know how to learn, illustrating the difference between seeking grades (advantages) and seeking understanding (wisdom).
• Sermon Illustration [00:43:13 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses a humorous illustration from 'The Three Stooges,' quoting Curly Howard saying 'I'm a victim of circumstance' to describe the attitude of blaming external factors for one's problems, which he identifies as a barrier to finding wisdom.
• Sermon Illustration [00:43:29 ▶️ 📄]
  > A humorous anecdote about the Three Stooges (Larry, Mo, and Curly) where Curly claims to be a 'victim of circumstance' to illustrate the foolishness of blaming external factors for one's problems.
• Sermon Illustration [00:44:31 ▶️ 📄]
  > The biblical account of Adam in the Garden of Eden blaming the woman God gave him, serving as an early example of deflecting blame and missing wisdom.
• Sermon Illustration [00:51:16 ▶️ 📄]
  > A reference to the movie 'Tangled' and the character Rapunzel to clarify that biblical 'double-mindedness' is not about being confused or scared, but about divided loyalty between God and self-interest.
• Sermon Illustration [00:58:21 ▶️ 📄]
  > A personal testimony from the pastor's 20s, where he struggled with bills and disliked his job, but came to realize God was teaching him wisdom through those hardships.
• Sermon Illustration [00:55:50 ▶️ 📄]
  > A statistical illustration that 30-70% of lottery winners file for bankruptcy within 3-5 years, demonstrating that resources without wisdom lead to ruin.
• Sermon Illustration [00:58:21 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor shares a personal anecdote about initially disliking a difficult situation but realizing God was teaching him wisdom, noting that while he doesn't like the trial, he counts it joy because of the wisdom gained.
• Sermon Illustration [00:59:37 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses a humorous hyperbole about borrowing a jet if a congregant became wealthy, and distinguishes between making money from writing a book (acceptable) versus making money from tithes (problematic).
• Sermon Illustration [01:00:38 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor quotes Notorious B.I.G.'s 'mo' money, mo' problems' to illustrate that wealth in the hands of a fool leads to mischief and nonsense, emphasizing the need for wisdom before wealth.
• Sermon Illustration [01:02:54 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor contrasts the Old Covenant focus on the earth with the New Covenant, using the 'Tree of Life' imagery from Genesis, Proverbs, and Revelation to show God's consistent plan from creation to restoration.
• Sermon Illustration [01:04:28 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses the mundane example of doing taxes and cutting grass to illustrate that even those destined for glory must remain responsible in daily life to learn wisdom.
• Sermon Illustration [01:05:55 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor shares a personal anecdote about trusting someone to preach the gospel but not trusting them to watch his children due to their irresponsibility, illustrating the disconnect between theological knowledge and practical wisdom.

• Pastoral Charge [00:52:37 ▶️ 📄]
  > Trust God to provide wisdom according to His purposes and timing, rather than demanding specific outcomes or comfort.
• Pastoral Charge [00:53:47 ▶️ 📄]
  > Change perspective to prioritize wisdom over comfort and actively look for God's teaching in difficult situations.
• Pastoral Charge [01:08:00 ▶️ 📄]
  > Come forward to trust Jesus
• Pastoral Charge [01:08:16 ▶️ 📄]
  > Come forward for prayer help or yield life to God in place
• Pastoral Charge [01:08:31 ▶️ 📄]
  > Pray for a shift in focus from comfort/validation to wisdom/understanding

[00:00:05] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[00:00:05] See this? And then I pop up. Good morning everyone and we have a wonderful way to start our service this morning. We're baptizing two young men today. Mr. Justin Collar and Mr. Landon Cox are both following the Lord in Believer's Baptism. So it is my joy to introduce to you Justin at this time. And so Justin, do you confess before these witnesses
[00:01:35] that you are a sinner justly deserving God's wrath with no hope in yourself to save you from your sins?
[00:01:40] Yes.
[00:01:41] And do you confess Jesus Christ is your Lord and your Savior, the only one who can save you from your sins?

[00:01:48] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:01:48] Yes.

[00:01:48] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[00:01:48] And are you prepared to live the rest of your life with Jesus as the Lord of your life by the power of his Holy Spirit?
[00:01:55] Yes.
[00:01:56] Okay.
[00:01:56] And on your public profession of faith, I baptize you, my brother, in the name of the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit.
[00:02:03] buried in the likeness of his death raised to walk in newness of life next we have landon cox who's following the lord and believers baptism as well so landon i'll ask you the same questions i
[00:02:30] asked justin do you confess that you are a sinner justly deserving god's wrath with no hope in yourself to save you from your sins yes yes and do you confess jesus christ as your lord and your
[00:02:41] savior the only one through his death who can save you from your sins yes and are you prepared to live the rest of your life with jesus as the lord of your life by the power of his holy spirit
[00:02:51] yes yes amen by your public confession of faith i baptize you my little brother in the name of the father son and the holy spirit buried in the likeness of his death to raise to walk in the new

[00:03:11] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[00:03:11] There we go. Good morning, church. Good morning. It's so good to be back in the house of the Lord with you this morning. I always love baptism Sundays. It's good to be back in the house of
[00:03:44] the Lord with you this morning, everyone. And like I always say, whether you've been with us for a thousand Sundays and you've spent your life in this church, or maybe you're just wandering in here for the first or second Sunday, maybe you've come with a friend or a family member, we just
[00:03:58] want to tell you that we are so glad that you have come into the house of the Lord this morning.
[00:04:03] and we want to tell you that it is not by accident we want you to know that God loves you he has created you just according to his purpose and his design and he wants to either begin or to
[00:04:16] deepen that relationship that we have with him and that he invites us to have with him and we also want to have a relationship with you too if we don't have one yet one of the ways that we can
[00:04:28] do that is to have you fill out a connection card you can find that in the pew in front of you we invite you to take one of those and fill that out and place it in the offertory plate as it
[00:04:38] comes along a little bit later on in our service. And if you have any prayer requests that haven't been yet heard this morning, we would love for you to flip that card over and to put your prayer
[00:04:48] requests, if you should have one, on the back. We do pray over them every staff meeting. So we want to make sure that you are being lifted up in prayer this week. So we invite you to do that as
[00:04:59] well. Church, just a couple of things to note before we get into our time of worship this morning.
[00:05:05] Our business meeting is happening tonight at 6 p.m. right here in the sanctuary. You don't want to miss this one because we're going to be discussing some exciting updates on our building project. So make sure that you are here tonight at 6 p.m. for our business meeting. And of course,
[00:05:22] today is the last day to submit a scholarship application for our graduating seniors. So if your senior. And if you haven't submitted one yet, please do that today. And of course, please take a look at our weekly bulletin so that you don't miss anything else happening around here at
[00:05:37] Southside. Church, I want to share with you out of the book of Proverbs as we come into our time of worship. Proverbs 3 verses 13 through 15 says, blessed are those who find wisdom, those who gain
[00:05:53] understanding. For she is more profitable than silver and yields better return than gold. She is more precious than rubies and nothing you desire can compare with her. Scripture shows us that we need to come to church for Christian fellowship, to be worshiping together, to spend
[00:06:13] some time in the Lord's presence here together, and also to seek the Lord's face. And I'm asking, May that be our desire together as we stand and we worship him this morning, that he may open our eyes of our hearts to gain that precious wisdom from the word and let him lead us today.
[00:06:31] Amen. Amen.
[00:06:33] So would you stand with us as we worship the Lord together this morning?

[00:11:11] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_00]
[00:11:11] I'm David Shipley, one of your deacons.
[00:11:15] Very proud of that.
[00:11:17] One announcement I want to make.
[00:11:21] my wife and I spend a lot of time working the senior adults and one of the things that happens each year is there's a recognition program this next Sunday is the senior adult adult recognition
[00:11:36] in addition to that we always have a luncheon and if you would if you're 55 years of age or older there's a sign-up sheet on the bulletin board right outside the thanks for door here and just
[00:11:52] sign up for the lunch. It's going to be a good one. Let us pray. Father, make our presence known and felt during the service today. Help us to worship and give us hearts of obedience
[00:12:12] and worship. Remember our loved ones who are ill or grieving, specifically some of those Jane Hager, Phoenix Rich, Ed Heron, the Willis family, Brian Heron's brother, Mike, Dora Triffick, Cindy London, and Francis Franklin.
[00:12:39] Those are a few.
[00:12:41] There are several more, but just remember all of us that are having issues or agreeing.
[00:12:49] in closing father give pastor david the words and message we need to hear today amen amen would you

[00:13:03] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[00:13:03] stand with us as we continue to worship the lord together this morning you give life you are love

[00:13:31] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:13:31] which i want you to look at the words that are on the screen but in righteousness dare not trust

[00:20:09] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[00:20:09] the sweetest frame but wholly trust in jesus name i want to make sure that we're really mean in those words and that we really know what that means for our lives so i challenge you bring that verse again
[00:20:23] yourself have you really relied on the lord even this morning how he's working in your life have

[00:20:37] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:20:37] you seen him work in your life recently jesus the sweet i stopped that's uh just the lord of our

[00:26:15] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[00:26:15] lives this morning moving forward god we seek your face this morning together father and we continue

[00:26:33] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[00:26:33] our worship this morning through giving. My name is Pastor David Kleinitz. I'm the senior pastor here and I see some new faces. Unfortunately, I didn't get the chance to meet you yet because we had our baptisms this morning. But I want you to know that you are welcome here and we are glad
[00:26:48] that you're here and the Lord has brought you here. And we believe he brought you here to have relationship, first with him through the gospel and secondly through the local church. And we would love for you to fill out your connection card. It should be in the pew in front of you
[00:27:02] or you can scan the QR code on your bulletin, and that allows us to get into relationship with you, find out some things about you, and invite you in a deeper relationship. And so as the
[00:27:13] offering plates are coming by, if you have filled out your connection card, you could place that in the offering. But for those of us who are a part of Southside Baptist Church, we're part of the
[00:27:22] work here, we're a part of the worship here, we want to honor the Lord with our wealth, as we talked about last week in the book of Proverbs. One of the ways that we do that is by regularly
[00:27:33] giving. And so that's why we say this is an expression of worship. It's not just in the songs we sing. It's not just in the words we hear, but it's actually in the actions that we do that
[00:27:45] show our worship to the Lord. And I would invite you to worship the Lord who is worthy of your trust this morning by giving to him today. I know there are many of you watching online as well.
[00:27:55] I want to just welcome you to our service and hope we get in-person relationship with you at some point.
[00:28:02] But if you are online, you can go to our website, www.sbcmoresville.com.
[00:28:09] And while you're on our website, you can let us know some things about you and you can also participate in giving as well.
[00:28:15] And as you're doing that, let us go before the Lord in a word of prayer asking his blessing on what we give to him today.
[00:28:21] Father God, you have blessed us richly through your son, Jesus.
[00:28:25] You have given us eternal life.
[00:28:27] You have given us the forgiveness of sins.
[00:28:30] You have given us a new walk in this world with a new mission.
[00:28:35] And God, you have also given us wisdom through Jesus by your spirit so that we can walk skillfully through the complexities of life.
[00:28:44] And God, because you have done all this for us, we can trust you with the treasures of this world.
[00:28:50] we can lay up for ourselves in heaven what a little bit of what we have on earth and we ask that as we lay up our treasures in heaven this morning by giving to you in your mission god that
[00:29:02] you would bless all that we give that you would be pleased by our giving that father that you would further your mission through south side to the uttermost parts of the earth and father we ask
[00:29:13] that you would hasten the day of the lord jesus christ but until he returns we pray that we would be faithful with all that you give to us to see your kingdom advance in this world and we pray

[00:29:24] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[00:29:24] this in jesus name amen the water so my soul long desire my children ages three through third grade

[00:32:44] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[00:32:44] are excused to children's church they can come forward and follow the gentleman in the hawaiian shirt this morning, as they go to Children's Church. So we're going to give some time for our kids to get to where they need to go. But for those of you that remain, if you'll turn with
[00:33:03] me to the book of Proverbs chapter 3. I see we've got a decent size attendance this morning. You all must have heard that I was talking about money. There's nothing that brings the crowds like when
[00:33:16] preachers talk about money. Well, I have warned my staff and I will warn all of you. I wish I was an expert in money, but unfortunately I'm going to have to stick to the text this morning because
[00:33:29] this is still a struggle for me in my life. So we're going to stick to what God has to say about our finances from the book of Proverbs chapter 3 verses 13 through 18. I'm going to
[00:33:42] read aloud. I'd love for you to follow along in your Bibles. The Bible says this, Blessed is the one who finds wisdom and the one who gets understanding. For the gain from her is better than the gain from silver, and her profit better than gold. She is more precious
[00:33:59] than jewels, and nothing you desire can compare with her. Long life is in her right hand, and her left hand are riches and honor. Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths are
[00:34:14] peace. She is a tree of life to those who laid hold of her. Those who hold her fast are called blessed. Let us pray. Father God, as we come to your word, remind us that it's not just the eternal
[00:34:32] all heavenly things that you have given us instruction, but God, also the daily life things. For as concerned as you are about the eternal riches, you know that we have bills now.
[00:34:47] As concerned as you are about your gospel being preached through the whole world, you still know every sparrow that falls to the ground. And so, God, you are aware of our needs and you want to instruct us in them in the way of wisdom.
[00:35:03] And we pray that we would be good listeners today.
[00:35:06] God, we have a lot of ideas and we have a lot of resources that we could use, but I believe that through your word, you want to instruct us by your spirit in the way of wisdom.
[00:35:17] So help us to have ears to hear, help us to have hearts willing to receive.
[00:35:23] And God, let us not be hasty.
[00:35:26] If we have to make changes in our life, in response to your word today. And we pray this in Jesus' name. Amen.
[00:35:35] Jesus told two different stories about two different kinds of foolishness. In the book of Luke chapter 12, verses 19 and 28, Jesus tells the story of a fool who is rich on this world's terms,
[00:35:51] who is wise and who knew how to make a living, but had no fear of the Lord. And so in Luke chapter 12, as this man is considering what to do with his wealth and building new barns to accommodate
[00:36:04] all his wealth, verse 19 tells us, and I will say to my Luke 19, Luke 12 verses 19, where God tells him, and he says to the Lord, and I will say to my soul, soul, you have ample goods laid up for many
[00:36:22] years. Relax, eat, drink, be merry. But God said to him, fool, this night your soul is required of you and the things you have prepared, whose will they be? So is the one who lays up treasure for himself
[00:36:37] and is not rich towards God. So one type of foolishness is wisdom without the fear of the Lord. Wisdom without the fear of the Lord can make you rich, but cannot get you to heaven.
[00:36:51] And so Jesus wants to warn people who want to be rich that they need the fear of the Lord as well.
[00:36:58] But there's a second kind of foolishness and one that afflicts many a Christian.
[00:37:03] And that's foolishness revealed in Matthew chapter 25, beginning in verse 24.
[00:37:09] It says, Jesus tells the parable of the talents where a master goes away and gives to his servant talents.
[00:37:18] And he gives one servant one talent.
[00:37:21] And this servant decides to bury this talent in the ground.
[00:37:25] And the master comes back looking for an increase in the talent he's given.
[00:37:30] And this is what is said in verse 24 of Matthew chapter 25.
[00:37:35] He also who had received the one talent came forward saying, Master, I knew you to be a hard man reaping where you did not sow and gathering where you scattered no seed.
[00:37:46] So I was afraid and I went and hid your talent in the ground.
[00:37:51] here you have what is yours but his master answered him you wicked and slothful servant you knew that i reap where i have not sown and gather where i scattered no seed then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers and at my coming i should have received
[00:38:09] what was my own with interest and so jesus tells the other kind of foolishness is one notice who has fear of the Lord, in this case the servant who has fear of the master, but no wisdom. And
[00:38:29] brothers and sisters, we talked about the first kind of fool last week, one who has a kind of wisdom, a earthly wisdom, but no fear of the Lord. And this week we want to zero in on those who have
[00:38:40] fear of the Lord, but no wisdom. And I guarantee you know people like this in your life. They are the people who just love Jesus. They're the people who are sweet and kind to everybody,
[00:38:53] but you would not entrust any money to them to save your life. You wouldn't count on them to be able to manage things. You wouldn't count on them to be reliable because what resources they
[00:39:08] do have, they are extremely foolish. And brothers and sisters, I want to tell you that kind of person is the kind of person Jesus is talking about, a person who squanders what they have because they don't know how to manage it well. And so I want to tell you this morning that the Bible
[00:39:28] wants better from you than that. And if you want to be the kind of person who fears the Lord, but also gets wisdom, then it's going to have to require us to change our perspective
[00:39:41] of wisdom, and especially how we value it. Pastor Chris, while you're up, can you hit the AC?
[00:39:50] You're the man. That's a wise man right there. I thought maybe I could preach through the heat.
[00:39:58] I'll end early because I'm hot, but you know what? I couldn't do it. So Pastor Chris is going to hit the AC for us. And so God wants us to shift how we understand wisdom, how we understand how we
[00:40:11] manage stuff by becoming people who fear the Lord and are wise. And the biggest thing for us is we have to change the way we value wisdom because wisdom is incredibly valuable. Now, we're in the
[00:40:25] middle of a sermon series talking about God's wisdom for our finances. And one of the wisest things you can do is change the way you see your finances. You have to understand that money isn't
[00:40:36] everything. It's something, it's important, but wisdom is better. Wisdom is by far better.
[00:40:48] Look at verse 13. It says, blessed is the one who finds wisdom and the one who gets understanding.
[00:40:57] So the first thing we're going to learn this morning is every situation is an opportunity to gain wisdom. Every situation is an opportunity to gain wisdom. The Bible says blessed is the one who finds wisdom. Well, if wisdom has to be found, why is it hiding? Well, wisdom isn't
[00:41:22] necessarily hiding. It requires us to pay attention and to look for it. I think about the students that will join groups or attend classes, not for the education, but for the prestige that comes with it. I remember when I was in college, I had an English professor
[00:41:39] who would lament that she had all these kids with these fantastic GPAs who didn't know how to learn, right? Because what they learned how to do was to get good grades, not necessarily to learn
[00:41:53] something. And their difference was, it's not that teachers weren't teaching, it's they weren't looking for understanding. They weren't looking for knowledge. They were looking for a good grade.
[00:42:04] And brothers and sisters, I want to tell you the same thing is true in our relationship with the Lord. If you are looking for the advantages of faith, if you are looking for God to get you out
[00:42:14] of a jam, you're going to miss wisdom. Now, some of you are new with us, and we defined wisdom a couple of weeks ago as skill. Wisdom is any kind of skill. In the book of Proverbs, wisdom is
[00:42:31] skillful choices that navigate through the complexities of life. Wisdom is your ability to choose well in the world that God has made. Now, when it comes to our finances, that means managing our finances well, making good choices with our money. And so God wants us to understand
[00:42:53] that if we would be looking for it, every opportunity, every situation we come into is an opportunity for wisdom. But let me tell you what will keep you from finding wisdom in the situations you're in. I'd like to quote for you one of my favorite philosophers.
[00:43:13] His name is Curly, and he's a gentleman that in one episode of his TV series, he was in a courtroom with his other associates, Larry and Mo. And when he was getting up on the
[00:43:29] stand, Mo said, get it together. And Curly said, but Mo, I'm a victim of circumstance.
[00:43:37] The reason why I love that phrase, I'm a victim of circumstance, is because that attitude is one of the best ways to miss wisdom. And we all understand what that means. Everything is wrong with everybody else and if they would just get their acts together, I would be fine. How many
[00:43:59] of us have felt like that? We get into a bad situation and we are quick to notice the faults of everybody else. We're a victim of circumstance, right? And we miss out on the opportunity for
[00:44:15] wisdom by deflecting the blame to the world around us. One of the very first foolish things somebody ever said was all the way back in the Garden of Eden when Adam said, but God, the woman
[00:44:31] you gave me. Adam's just a victim of circumstance. And we do it too. One of the best ways to miss out on wisdom in your situation is to look at everybody else's the problem. Jesus would say it's trying to
[00:44:50] get the speck in everybody else's eye when you've got that beam in your own. But blessed are you if you find wisdom, if you take responsibility. Some of you have been through some horrific things.
[00:45:06] Some of you have had bad relationships that have left a pretty giant scar in your life. I want to tell you that when I say take responsibility, I don't mean it's your fault. It may not be your
[00:45:20] fault, but you are always response able. You are always able to respond. And if you would take even your worst experiences and seek wisdom in it, you will become wise from it. Okay. And so one of the
[00:45:43] most important things we can do with our finances, with our stuff, with our relationships, is to say, I may not like it, but I can learn from it. I may not like it, but I can learn from it.
[00:46:06] You don't have to be a victim of circumstance. You can be response able. You are able to respond and learn wisdom from it. You can learn how not to do it the next time. You can make adjustments
[00:46:26] to yourself. One of the things I learned is that I can make adjustments in my life better than I can fix other people.
[00:46:35] I can make adjustments to me better than I can fix somebody else.
[00:46:41] It takes the work of the Holy Spirit to fix someone else.
[00:46:45] And the reason I know that is because it took the work of the Holy Spirit to work on me.
[00:46:50] I can respond to every situation, learn from it, cooperate with God in it, and become better because of it.
[00:47:00] But that requires me to be response able. And so I have to have an attitude. I am not a victim of a circumstance.
[00:47:09] I am able to respond and learn wisdom. But the second way we can miss wisdom is actually found in the book of James. In every situation, one great way to miss wisdom is to do what James says
[00:47:23] here. James chapter 1 in verses 5 through 8. James will give us what we can do in difficult situations. And he says, verse 5, if any of you lacks wisdom, that's me, let him ask God who gives
[00:47:40] generously to all without reproach and it will be given him. So God wants to give you wisdom.
[00:47:47] God wants you to learn from your circumstances. But, verse 6, let him ask in faith with no doubting for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind
[00:48:04] for that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord for he is a double-minded man unstable in all his ways okay so one way we can miss wisdom in our circumstances
[00:48:19] is to make ourselves a victim be victims of circumstance the second way we can do it is by doubting, according to the book of James. Now, you got to understand, when James talks about doubting, he does not mean what some preachers mean when they talk about faith. There's a lot
[00:48:37] of preachers, and I'll talk about them a little bit later, especially if you're up late at night and you watch those guys on TV, especially cable stations, that seem to come in when every other
[00:48:47] station is not working. I don't know how that happens, but the nuclear bomb could go off, and there are some ministries that would still be broadcasting just fine.
[00:48:58] I don't know how it works.
[00:48:59] But anyway, if you watch those guys, a lot of them are what we call health, wealth, gospel kind of people.
[00:49:05] Word of faith movement.
[00:49:07] They come from Kenneth Hagin, who learned from E.W. Kenyon.
[00:49:11] There's a long line of people, and basically they would say this, is that anything you want from God, you access it by faith and the word.
[00:49:23] So you literally speak it, you believe it, and it's yours.
[00:49:26] And I want to tell you guys that it's heresy.
[00:49:29] The basic idea is that Jesus, when he died on the cross, accomplished your health, your wealth, your healing, your prosperity, everything.
[00:49:38] He accomplished it spiritually.
[00:49:40] But if you want it physically, you have to access it by believing it, not doubting, and claiming it as yours.
[00:49:49] So this is where people will say, I'm believing God for my private jet.
[00:49:54] I'm believing God for my curing of cancer, all this kind of stuff.
[00:50:00] And the reason this is a heresy is because your words do not manipulate God.
[00:50:05] That's what the pagans do.
[00:50:07] Jesus specifically told us not to do that, right?
[00:50:11] God is not going to hear you because of your many words and you're really believing it.
[00:50:15] He is not locked into a box because you told him what you want.
[00:50:19] He is absolutely free.
[00:50:21] He is absolutely sovereign.
[00:50:24] Okay?
[00:50:24] And so the promises of faith in the Bible are not promises that you can use God like your personal genie.
[00:50:32] And that includes wisdom.
[00:50:35] So when James is talking about not doubting, he's not saying that God has to and is obligated to give you wisdom because you said the right words and you really, really believe them.
[00:50:48] What James is talking about here is that God wants to give you wisdom.
[00:50:52] He's not stingy when it comes to wisdom.
[00:50:55] The doubting is not God's ability to give it, but our desire to receive it.
[00:51:02] When the Bible talks about double-mindedness, it's not talking about like what we saw Rapunzel do in the movie Tangled, where she's like, I'm free. No, I'm not. I'm so in trouble. Some of you know what scene I'm talking
[00:51:16] about. That's not the double-mindedness. The double-mindedness in the Bible is talking about serving God or serving our interests. And in the book of James, that's a big deal.
[00:51:29] Do we want wisdom to serve the Lord in the way he wants us to serve, or do we just want to use God to serve our interests. Ironically, that's what a lot of Christians do with the word of faith stuff
[00:51:42] is using God to serve their interests. But if God wants to give us wisdom, then we have to receive it according to how he desires to give it. And when we ask God for wisdom, we are asking God to
[00:51:57] make us wise in the situations we're in the way he thinks is best. And brothers and sisters, I will tell you, many of us would prefer a shortcut around our obstacles rather than going through
[00:52:12] our obstacles and gaining wisdom. I would rather have that bill paid than learn to be satisfied with what God gives, even when my creditors aren't. I would much rather feel great than to have to trust God through a bad diagnosis. And so when we ask God for wisdom, we have to do so
[00:52:37] in faith, trusting that he is going to give it according to his purposes, in the way he sees best. And a lot of us would rather have an exemption from difficulty than to learn wisdom.
[00:52:53] but God believes wisdom is more valuable than your comfort. I want you to understand that.
[00:53:04] God believes your maturity, your wisdom is more important than your comfort.
[00:53:13] And I don't say that joyfully. I say that from experience. I can point to a lot of experiences in my life that were really hard, that hurt. But those hardships that hurt made me wiser than just
[00:53:33] about any other thing God could have done for me. And the same thing is true for you. If you are in the midst of a difficult situation, if you are having issues of faith, wondering whether you
[00:53:47] could trust God, one of the best things you can do in that situation is to change your perspective and to say, my wisdom is more important than my comfort, and I can look in this situation and
[00:54:02] start to see how God is trying to teach me wisdom, okay? But a lot of us, again, we don't believe wisdom is really that valuable, and so the book of Proverbs wants to make it clear that your wisdom
[00:54:15] is better than your finances and your money. So when you're looking at your budget, you may be happy about what you see there, or you may not be happy, but I want everybody to see that's not as
[00:54:28] important as the wisdom that God wants to bring you through your finances. And so read with me in verse 14, it says this, for the gain from her is better than gain from silver and her profit
[00:54:44] better than gold. She is more precious than jewels and nothing you desire can compare with her. So your second note this morning is we get wisdom's benefits when we realize wisdom's value. You're going to miss the benefits of finding wisdom in any situation if you don't value wisdom.
[00:55:11] If you are looking for something else like comfort, wealth, prosperity, you're going to miss wisdom. But if you find wisdom, as we're going to see, some of those other things are going to be added to you. So why would I say that wisdom is more valuable than something like money? Why would
[00:55:37] Proverbs say, for the gain from her is better than the gain from silver? Well, for one reason, did you know 30% of people who win the lottery file for bankruptcy?
[00:55:50] Yeah, that's the conservative number.
[00:55:54] Some people have up to 70% of people who play the lottery filing for bankruptcy.
[00:56:01] And they do so within three to five years.
[00:56:07] What happened?
[00:56:08] Well, they got resources without wisdom.
[00:56:15] Brothers and sisters, I want to tell you, some of you who are praying for your lottery payday, God loves you more and wants to give you wisdom first.
[00:56:28] A lot of us would like to have the lottery payday and make wisdom optional, but without wisdom, you're headed towards bankruptcy.
[00:56:39] Because you've got to know how to manage that kind of wealth.
[00:56:42] Believe it or not, it's going through stuff, going through situations, struggling with money.
[00:56:48] That's one of the best ways to learn how to manage wealth.
[00:56:52] And so one reason why wisdom is better than money is because without it, you won't have money for long.
[00:56:58] But more importantly, wisdom gives you access to the things of real value.
[00:57:06] That's why the book of Proverbs says it's not just better than silver or financial money, financial wealth.
[00:57:12] It's better than precious jewels.
[00:57:14] It's better than the most beautiful diamond that you could ever imagine.
[00:57:18] Why?
[00:57:20] Well, Bruce Waltke puts it this way.
[00:57:22] It is better than the profit of silver because money can put food on the table, but not fellowship around it.
[00:57:34] A house, but not a home.
[00:57:37] and can give a woman jewelry, but not the love she really wants.
[00:57:43] By contrast, wisdom gives both physical and spiritual benefits.
[00:57:50] You know, God knows what is more valuable.
[00:57:56] He knows what is better for you.
[00:57:59] And he is not going to let you settle for trinkets when he wants for you wisdom.
[00:58:08] And so we have to learn the value of wisdom.
[00:58:10] Now, I will tell you, in my 20s, when I was struggling to pay the bills, when I didn't like the job that I had, it occurred to me that maybe God is doing this to teach me wisdom.
[00:58:21] I said, okay, but I still don't like it.
[00:58:26] Fine.
[00:58:27] That is fair.
[00:58:29] We count it joy going through trials, but we don't have to count our trials like it's enjoyable.
[00:58:36] right you don't have to enjoy your trials but you count it joy that god is doing something in your trials and so god wants to give you wisdom through the hard things because he knows that that's got
[00:58:47] the greater value and notice the full value of wisdom is revealed in verses 16 and 17 long life is in her right hand and her left hand are riches and honor her ways are ways of pleasantness and
[00:59:00] all her paths are peace. She is a tree of life to those who lay hold of her. Those who hold her fast are called blessed. And so the blessing from wisdom is health, wealth, success, and honor. But
[00:59:13] pastor, you literally just told us that the people on TV who promise us health and wealth and all that, they're not speaking for God. Well, hold on. I want you to know that God is pro-wealth for
[00:59:29] your life. That's good news. God's preference for you is health. God wants you to be successful.
[00:59:37] God wants you to be prosperous, okay? I don't have a problem with any of that. If one of you were able to come into wealth and buy a jet, I would insist you let us borrow it. That's the
[00:59:52] full extent of the big problems I have with people having money. I don't have a problem with Christians getting rich. I do not have a problem. I don't have a problem that a pastor writes a book and gets a lot of money. I do have some issues if pastors get a lot of money from
[01:00:07] tithes and offerings. That's an issue. But if a pastor writes a book and makes a lot of money from it, I don't have a problem with that. And I don't think God does either, okay? So God does not
[01:00:18] want to keep you from riches and all that. God wants you wise first. He really does want you wise first. Because a long life for a fool is a lot of mischief and nonsense. A lot of wealth for a fool
[01:00:38] is a lot of problems, right? As Notorious B.I.G. said, for those of you who grew up in the 90s, mo' money, mo' problems. There it is. Mo' money in the hands of the fool is mo' problems.
[01:00:54] and God does not want that for you. So he intends to bless you, to give you good things in your life, but he wants you wise first, because if you're wise, you know how to do the things
[01:01:10] that make you healthy. You know how to manage money. You know how to navigate relationships.
[01:01:17] I love what it says where all the paths are peace, right? That has to do with like everything you do, like it says in the book of Psalms, prospers. That really is what your father wants
[01:01:31] for your life. And, you know, in the rest of the rest of this chapter, we get a reason for why God is so concerned and really wants you to prosper. Well, it tells us in Proverbs chapter three,
[01:01:45] verses 19 and 20. Look at this. And this is key. The Lord, by wisdom, founded the earth by understanding he established the heavens.
[01:01:58] By his knowledge, the deeps broke open and the clouds dropped down the dew.
[01:02:04] What the Bible is telling us this, genuine wisdom is how God created the world.
[01:02:12] To the extent we are wise is to the extent we are in keeping with God's creational design.
[01:02:20] And so as we prosper by following the manual, for how this whole thing works, we glorify God when he said, it is good, all the way back in the book of Genesis. And more importantly, a lot of times we tend to think that as Christians,
[01:02:39] we're concerned about heaven. But in the old covenant, they were just concerned about the earth. But I want to tell you that what God is doing in redemption is not replacing creation.
[01:02:53] Why do I think that?
[01:02:54] Well, turn with me in the book of Revelation chapter 22.
[01:02:57] Really helps when I have people in the Bible making my point for me.
[01:03:01] Revelation 22, verses 1 and 2, it says this.
[01:03:04] Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, brightest crystal flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb, through the middle of the street of the city, also on either side of the river,
[01:03:17] the tree of life with its 12 kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.
[01:03:30] Where did we see the tree of life? Proverbs talks about that wisdom will be a tree of life.
[01:03:40] In the book of Genesis, when Adam and Eve are kicked out of the garden, they are barred from the tree of life. What it's telling us is from the very beginning to the very end, God has one
[01:03:53] plan, and it comes to fruition in Jesus. And what he intended from the very beginning, he is going to fulfill at the very end. And so one very helpful way of putting it is when Jesus says, behold, I'm making all things new.
[01:04:14] He didn't say, behold, I'm making all new things.
[01:04:18] He is restoring God's original intent, God's original purpose for the whole created world.
[01:04:26] And so brothers and sisters, I want to tell you this.
[01:04:28] When you say yes to Jesus, when your sins are forgiven, when you are assured of your home and eternal glory, don't be surprised that you still have to do your taxes right that sounds very weird doesn't it
[01:04:47] like you would think if I'm on my way to glory I should be able to skip having to cut my grass if if God's glory is my destiny I should be exempt from having to make my bed and yet through all of
[01:05:06] those things, God makes you face it and do it so that you can learn the wisdom by which he founded the world and the wisdom that you will need in God's forever kingdom. Your salvation experience
[01:05:26] includes becoming a responsible person. And I want to tell you that is so important.
[01:05:32] there are so many pastors, so many ministries that have been irresponsible and have done damage to the cause of Christ. There's a lot of Christians that can speak truth and do so, so badly. It alienates people from the cause of Christ. There are people that I would trust to
[01:05:55] tell me about Jesus, but I wouldn't let them watch my kids when they were younger because they were irresponsible and so your salvation experience includes growing in wisdom if you would take every situation you're in and instead of whining about it instead of being the
[01:06:20] victim of it become response able and look for wisdom in it and your father who wants to give you wisdom, will give you wisdom. You will learn it and you will grow and you will become a tree
[01:06:38] of life for those around you. You will tap into the very logic of the universe, the very understanding that God used to put the stars in the sky, to put the grass in the fields, to clothe flower, to feed
[01:06:55] birds, all of that God wants to impart to you. But we have to change our perspective. We have to agree with God that wisdom is more valuable. What he wants to do for me is more important than
[01:07:10] making me comfortable. And that's hard, but I promise you, if you will make that decision in your own life and in your own heart, God will take whatever situation you're in and help you to become mature. And so we're going to go into our time of response. Miss Emily's going to come
[01:07:27] She's going to play. I don't know where you're at. Maybe you're here today because you came to see somebody. They drug you to church today. I'm glad they did. But I hope that if you don't know
[01:07:39] Jesus as your Lord and your Savior, you can't guarantee that you are on the path of wisdom that he wants for his people. I guarantee that you're still doing life, as the Bible says, according to your own understanding. And if you're tired of doing life according to your
[01:08:00] own understanding and you want to come know Jesus, I'm going to encourage you to come forward and put your trust into him today. Some of you, you know that your situation, your struggle is God's opportunity for wisdom and you don't like it and you're going to need some help praying
[01:08:16] through it. You come forward too. But if God is not motivating you to come forward, the beautiful thing about our Lord is you can talk to him right where you're at. You can yield your life to him.
[01:08:31] You can say, God, show me in my life where I've got the wrong focus, where I've got the wrong perspective. Help me to look for wisdom more than comfort. Help me to find understanding more than validation. And so grow into the person that you want me to be.
[01:08:53] God answers those kinds of prayers because they're according to his will and so if you just need to pray that where you are you pray that where you are but we're going to go before the Lord

[01:09:06] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[01:09:06] in our response today church like Pastor David said I'm going to play for a moment and we want to give you that space to respond and whether that's up here at the altar in your seat we're

[01:09:30] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_04]
[01:09:30] going to be responding together to the Lord over the minutes confess that we trust you with our

[01:14:21] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[01:14:21] eternity, but we fail to trust you with our today. We can count on you for our eternal life, but it gets hard to trust you for the small things like paying the bills and finding a job
[01:14:37] and finding a spouse, all those things that concern us in this life. And so Father, help us to understand that you sent Jesus while we were sinners because you loved us. And if that's the
[01:14:53] kind of love you had for us while we were sinners. We should not fail to think that you would fail to give us everything we need to be the people you want us to be. And so God, we lay down our pride,
[01:15:10] we lay down our resistance, and we are willing to find wisdom in the situations you put us in.
[01:15:18] And we will confess that wisdom is better than our comfort, our wealth, our temporary satisfaction.
[01:15:30] So, God, we pray today that you would give us wisdom this week, even if it comes in hard times and hard seasons.
[01:15:37] And God, that we would be faithful to look for wisdom in the challenges we face.
[01:15:44] And Father, we also pray that you would allow others to see the wisdom that you are working in us.
[01:15:51] God, one of the great ways that we can stand out from the world is to be wise.
[01:15:57] Father, I pray that you would call the simple, the foolish to faith in Jesus so that they can be wise too.
[01:16:04] And I pray that that would happen as they see wisdom at work in us.
[01:16:09] We pray all this in Jesus' name.
[01:16:13] Amen.
[01:16:14] And before we do our benediction, I've got some great news this morning.
[01:16:18] Dewey, Rachel, Ada, and Tate Bussell have come forward to join Southside Baptist Church.
[01:16:23] So if you guys could come forward.
[01:16:25] All right.
[01:16:27] Well, hold your applause.
[01:16:30] They may not get voted in.
[01:16:33] So we have to do the formal vote.
[01:16:36] And so I would like to make the motion to receive the Bussell family as members of Southside Baptist Church.
[01:16:42] All in favor, aye.
[01:16:44] Aye.
[01:16:45] All opposed.
[01:16:46] all right now you can clap all right well we are so glad that you guys are joining us i'm sure you'll be mobbed after i close everything out and so make yourselves available and get to
[01:17:00] know folks but uh with that will you guys lift your heads your hands and hearts to receive the lord's blessing as we go may the grace of the lord jesus christ and the love of god and the
[01:17:09] fellowship of his holy spirit impart wisdom to you this week as you walk by his word in jesus name amen amen you are dismissed