The Danger of Self-Powered Salvation: Recovering the Fear of the Lord

• Sermon Series Introduction [00:37:00 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor announces the transition from 2 Corinthians to the book of Proverbs, explaining that the upcoming sermons will be thematic rather than verse-by-verse.
• Wisdom and Instruction [00:38:47 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses a personal anecdote about installing cabinet locks to illustrate the necessity of following instructions (wisdom) rather than relying on one's own understanding.
• The Nature of Proverbs [00:45:35 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor defines Proverbs as a unique genre of poetic wisdom literature, distinct from narrative, consisting of collected sayings that use imagery and comparison to reflect reality.
• Structure of Proverbs [00:46:36 ▶️ 📄]
  > The sermon outlines the two main sections of the book: Chapters 1-9 as a structured argument for seeking wisdom, and Chapters 10-31 as collections of wise sayings from various authors.
• Royal Instruction [00:48:25 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor interprets Proverbs as a king giving royal instruction to his children, applying this metaphor to believers as 'children of the king' in Christ, preparing them to live and reign in God's kingdom.
• Interpretive Caution [00:54:28 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor warns against treating Proverbs as 100% guaranteed promises, clarifying instead that they are principles and patterns for a blessed life, illustrated by the example of farming and crop failure.
• Interpretation of Proverbs [00:54:23 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor warns against two errors: making too much of Proverbs (treating principles as absolute guarantees) and making too little of them (treating them as mere helpful suggestions). He argues they are patterns of life and principles for a blessed life.
• Definition of Wisdom [00:59:04 ▶️ 📄]
  > Wisdom is defined as 'skill in living' and the application of knowledge, distinct from mere information. The pastor contrasts human information with divine wisdom, asserting that only God is the source of true wisdom.
• Prudence and Discretion [01:04:31 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor explains that Proverbs gives prudence to the 'simple' (naive or wavering), enabling them to avoid disaster and choose a single path of service to God rather than wavering between worldly and divine wisdom.
• Continuous Learning [01:09:43 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor argues that wisdom is not just for the simple or youth, but for the wise and learned as well, urging the congregation to avoid spiritual stagnation and continually gain more of God's word.
• Wisdom and the Book of Proverbs [01:11:46 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses an analogy of walking into a circle of wise people to explain how immersion in God's Word reveals the clarity and value of biblical wisdom over time.
• The Fear of the Lord [01:15:42 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor defines the fear of the Lord not just as reverence, but as 'trembling trust,' citing Scripture to show it involves awe, respect, and a recognition of God's holiness, distinguishing between the fear of a servant and the fear of a child.
• Christ as the Wisdom of God [01:23:20 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor connects the Old Testament concept of wisdom to Jesus Christ, arguing that Proverbs is a gospel book and that true wisdom is found by looking to the cross and the 'wise man on the tree' for mercy.
• Communion and Confession [01:27:35 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor transitions to the Lord's Table, inviting those who acknowledge their foolishness and need for forgiveness to partake, framing the meal as a moment of salvation and cleansing from sin.
• The New Covenant and Atonement [01:32:17 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor defines the cup as the blood of Christ shed for the forgiveness of many and cleansed of sins.
• Practical Liturgy and Communion Protocol [01:32:35 ▶️ 📄]
  > Instructions are given regarding the placement of wine and grape juice and the timing of partaking.
• Divine Grace vs. Human Wisdom [01:35:44 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor prays that God does not weigh foolish actions against wise ones, but instead cleanses believers in Christ.

• Sermon Illustration [00:37:41 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor shares a personal story about installing baby cabinet locks in his kitchen. He describes dumping the parts on the floor, initially thinking he could figure it out without reading the instructions, but ultimately realizing that following the instructions provided by the maker was the best way to achieve the intended result.
• Sermon Illustration [00:37:41 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor shares a personal anecdote about installing baby cabinet locks. He describes dumping the parts on the floor and initially trying to figure them out without instructions, only to realize that reading the instructions (the 'design') was the best way to achieve the intended result. He uses this to illustrate how humans often try to figure out life on their own rather than following God's instructions.
• Sermon Illustration [00:51:25 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses the analogy of an excellent wife being like a crown to explain how proverbs use comparison to convey dignity and value, noting that proverbs act as 'little models of reality.'
• Sermon Illustration [00:53:54 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor references Jesus' teaching on the Sermon on the Mount, pointing to birds and flowers as examples of how Jesus used pictures from nature to teach spiritual truths, similar to how Proverbs uses observations of the world (like ants) to witness to God's wisdom.
• Sermon Illustration [00:55:21 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses the example of a farmer whose crop is destroyed by fire to illustrate that Proverbs are principles, not 100% guarantees, and that God's word is not false when outcomes differ from expectations.
• Sermon Illustration [00:57:01 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor compares treating Proverbs like a 'fortune cookie'—reading a saying and throwing it away—to the incorrect view of Proverbs as mere helpful suggestions without life-and-death significance.
• Sermon Illustration [01:03:15 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses the analogy of driving through mountains on a windy road with dense fog to describe life's confusion, and insight as the clearing of that fog to see life clearly.
• Sermon Illustration [01:04:54 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses the analogy of a ship turning to avoid a rock to explain prudence as the ability to look ahead and avoid disaster.
• Sermon Illustration [01:08:28 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses the analogy of sticking a finger in an electrical outlet to demonstrate that 'living what is true for me' is false when faced with the reality of consequences, illustrating the need for divine knowledge.
• Sermon Illustration [01:11:55 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses the analogy of walking into a circle of wise people talking to explain how understanding Proverbs and God's word transforms riddles into clear, wise instruction over time.
• Sermon Illustration [01:12:01 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor describes walking into a circle of wise people talking; initially, the listener doesn't understand, but as they listen more, the value becomes clear and the 'riddles' make sense.
• Sermon Illustration [01:14:48 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor compares approaching God's wisdom to showing up to Thanksgiving dinner without having prepared the feast; one simply drives up, sits down, and eats because the table is already set.
• Sermon Illustration [01:16:15 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor uses the analogy of learning to read or write an essay, stating that just as one must learn the ABCs first, one must learn the 'fear of the Lord' as the first lesson of the Christian life.
• Sermon Illustration [01:20:40 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor contrasts the fear of a servant afraid of a harsh master with the fear of a son who has a firm but loving father, explaining that believers fear God with 'trembling trust' rather than terror of punishment.

• Pastoral Charge [00:41:26 ▶️ 📄]
  > Read Proverbs 1:1-7
• Pastoral Charge [00:43:49 ▶️ 📄]
  > Listen for three specific points during the sermon
• Pastoral Charge [01:13:10 ▶️ 📄]
  > Read the entire book of Proverbs over the course of 31 days.
• Pastoral Charge [01:28:13 ▶️ 📄]
  > The pastor invites those who have not come to Christ to abstain from communion and instead use the moment to confess sins and trust in Christ for salvation.
• Pastoral Charge [01:32:40 ▶️ 📄]
  > Wait for everyone to receive communion before partaking.
• Pastoral Charge [01:36:11 ▶️ 📄]
  > Stand up for the closing song.

[00:01:31] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[00:01:31] Good morning, Harbor Church. Good morning, Harbor Church and guests of Harbor Church. Welcome.

[00:01:41] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]
[00:01:41] Harbor Church is a family of God. We are bound together to glorify and enjoy Him forever.
[00:01:47] And we do this by sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ. And there's three S's. Maybe make it easier for you to remember. We're strengthening each other in Him, showing Him to our community and the world. And I missed one. Sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ, strengthening each other
[00:02:04] him to our community in the world. So those three things, and I hope you feel like that's part of what we're doing here this morning. It's a large part of what we're doing. So welcome. I've got a
[00:02:12] couple of announcements. Red Cross Blood Drive is coming up. We do this every year. It's coming up on the 19th, so it's less than two weeks. Today, McKenna Larson is here raising her hand over there.
[00:02:25] She's going to help you sign up so that you can get a reservation for a time where you can come in and donate blood. So I think that's probably going to happen over the last couple, next couple
[00:02:33] of Sundays. So please see her right after worship. And after worship today, in time of fellowship, we're having all-church prayer, so we'll meet in here to pray. So please be part of that.
[00:02:47] I have a follow-up from Sharon's announcement last week, and I'll read it to you verbatim, just as she wrote it. Just a brief reminder for women, the first discussion of covenant theology will take place here at the church, 7 p.m. this Wednesday, the 10th. All women are encouraged to
[00:03:06] participate, whether or not you have had opportunity to begin reading the book. This is the summer series that was described last week by Sharon. For more information, speak to Jennifer Donovan or any women's care team member. And last, I think we have something from Jennifer.

[00:03:27] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_00]
[00:03:27] Good morning. I wanted to give you a quick VBS update. First of all, you notice if you're signed up for VBS? It says staff training today. That is incorrect. Staff training is, and which involves
[00:03:42] everybody that's going to be in the day-to-day routine of VBS during July 6 through 10, which is like one month away, folks. Everybody will be invited to that. We're going to do it on Wednesday
[00:03:55] night, the 24th of June, and we'll have pizza for dinner, so you can bring your family, bring your kids, and then the kids can play while we do the staff training on that Wednesday night, June 24.
[00:04:07] We still have a few needs. We could use one more adult shepherd. We could maybe use one more teen shepherd, and we need one adult shepherd just for Tuesday. We need one adult shepherd for the whole
[00:04:21] week. We could use one adult shepherd if you could be available Tuesday morning. That would complete one of the age groups. We need you to start collecting and not recycling your paper towel and toilet paper rolls. There'll be a collection. We'll collect those in the preschool room at the
[00:04:40] back. And then if you're not taking notes, we're going to send out an email this week that will reiterate all those things and especially have some prayer prompts for you to begin praying for our kids, for our staff, for the whole week. We'll send that out this week. So
[00:04:56] thanks for the way you have signed up for the way you're supporting and encouraging us if there are other needs like decorating needs I'll ask Naomi and we can put that in the email as well things to that you might be able to share to help us create the scene for King David

[00:05:11] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_08]
[00:05:11] all right thanks so much appreciate it as we come to worship the Lord the call to worship is from Psalm, there's only one place that you can go on the Lord's day where the Lord guarantees that
[00:05:34] he will meet you. And it is with his people, worshiping him. Our call to worship begins with these words, taste and see. That's the invitation for you this morning. And God is not a liar.
[00:05:51] when you come to him and you come to worship him this morning, the invitation for all of us is this, taste him and see. It's what he is calling you to right now as we are gathered together as
[00:06:07] his people. Would you stand with me as the Lord calls us to worship? I'll read the regular text if you'll respond by reading the bold and underlined. Oh, taste and see that the Lord is
[00:06:23] good. Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him. O fear the Lord, you his saints, for those who fear him have no lack. The young lions suffer want and hunger, but those who seek the Lord lack no good
[00:06:39] thing. Come, O children, listen to me. I will teach you the fear of the Lord. Let's pray.
[00:06:47] oh Lord God this morning I pray that you would allow us to come to you in the fear of the Lord that you would teach us to tremble and trust before you Lord I pray that you would quiet
[00:07:06] our hearts where we come burdened and weighed down by so many things by worries, by sins by distractions I pray Lord that in this quiet moment you would remove all of those from us, and you would give us a desire to see Jesus. And it's that
[00:07:32] Son of God who taught us to pray your prayer so long ago as we now pray together.
[00:07:39] Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts,
[00:07:54] as we forgive our debtors and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.
[00:08:00] For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.
[00:08:05] Amen.
[00:08:06] If you're able, stay standing as we sing together.

[00:08:08] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]
[00:08:08] All invisible, godly wise Lighted, accessible yet from our eyes Most blessed, most glorious The ancient of days Almighty, victorious, thy good neighbor, hasten in silence his love.
[00:09:11] Justice like mountains, thy soaring gold, thy clouds which our fountains adore, their sky does spring.

[00:10:24] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[00:10:24] As we confess our sins together, think about the attitude that David had in Psalm 51 when he was confessing his sin.
[00:10:34] And he said, Thou dost desire truth in the innermost being.
[00:10:39] In the hidden part, thou wilt make me know wisdom.
[00:10:43] So as we together say this confession of sins, let's not say it just reading it, but really consider it.
[00:10:53] And let's have that attitude that David had of knowing that God desires that truth in our innermost being.
[00:11:03] confess together. Redeeming God, help us to approach you with the fear of the Lord.
[00:11:12] We confess to you today that we are prone to love our own wisdom better than yours. In our weakness, we forget to think of you, to ask for your help, to remember how foolish we are. In our pride and
[00:11:28] rebellion. We spurn your wise commandments and instruction. We confess to you. We find it difficult to trust you, and we fear you in all the wrong ways. You have punished your precious son in our place. Help us to believe there is no wrath left for us because you have poured it all
[00:11:53] out in our place. Hear God's assurance that we are forgiven from Psalm 130. If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand? But with you there is forgiveness that you may be feared. Let's stand. Let's sing again.

[00:12:23] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]
[00:12:23] How deep the Father's love for us, beyond all measure, which by thy hand I've given.

[00:15:40] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_08]
[00:15:40] As we come to confess our faith together, we're confessing this morning from Heidelberg Catechism, question 94.
[00:15:51] Now this question is about the first commandment.
[00:15:54] you shall have no other gods before me.
[00:15:59] I ask you then this morning, dear Christians, what does the Lord require in the first commandment?
[00:16:07] That I rightly know the only true God, trust Him alone, and look to God for every good thing humbly and patiently, and love, fear, and honor God with all my heart.
[00:16:21] In short, that I give up anything rather than go against God's will in any way.
[00:16:30] We're beginning our new memory verse, James 1.5, as we begin this month.
[00:16:37] Let's say it out loud together.
[00:16:40] If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.
[00:16:51] Let's continue to sing together.

[00:16:53] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]
[00:16:53] Before we read the Word of the Lord this morning, there's a theme in our worship.

[00:21:13] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_03]
[00:21:13] There's two words.
[00:21:15] Just a rhetorical question.
[00:21:16] Have you caught those two words?
[00:21:18] You've spoken and you've heard them probably four or five times already.
[00:21:22] You're going to hear it again as we read, and you're going to hear it again as I go into prayer.
[00:21:26] And certainly, as Tyler preaches, let's read together from Colossians 1, verse 28.
[00:21:35] Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom that we may present everyone mature in Christ. For this I toil, struggling with all his energy that he powerfully works within me. For I want you to know how great a struggle I have for you and for those at Laodicea
[00:21:55] and for all those who have not seen me face to face, that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, to reach all the riches of full assurance, of understanding and the knowledge of God's mystery, which is Christ. In him are hidden all the treasures of wisdom
[00:22:13] and knowledge. Let's go to the Lord in prayer. From Psalm 111. Praise the Lord. I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart, in the company of the upright in the congregation.
[00:22:39] Great are the works of the Lord, studied by all who delight in them. Full of splendor and majesty is his work, and his righteousness endures forever. He has caused his wondrous works to be remembered.
[00:22:52] The Lord is gracious and merciful. He provides food for those who fear him. He remembers his covenant forever. He has shown his people the power of his works and giving them the inheritance of the nations. The works of his hands are faithful and just. All his precepts are trustworthy.
[00:23:12] They are established forever and ever to be performed with faithfulness and uprightness.
[00:23:17] He sent redemption to his people. He has commanded his covenant forever. Holy and awesome is his name.
[00:23:24] The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and all those who practice it have a good understanding.
[00:23:31] His praise endures forever.
[00:23:39] Lord God, as we lift our prayers and requests to you, Lord, remember your word just read that speaks of your works, your character, and your promises.
[00:23:50] You are the Lord who has established his covenant forever.
[00:23:54] You're gracious and compassionate, faithful and righteous.
[00:23:59] holy and powerful, and you delight in receiving and hearing and especially answering our prayers.
[00:24:08] Lord, we have many on our prayer request list, the same names, Lord, that we have been praying for over and over for weeks and months. Lord, we pray that you would hear and answer these
[00:24:19] prayers as we've been faithful to continue lifting them up. Lord, we pray for Jennifer and Emma, and especially Emma, Lord, help her to see her self-worth as your daughter in Christ.
[00:24:31] Lord, we pray for a therapy program close to home that aligns with the care that she needs.
[00:24:37] And Lord, we lift up our sister Jennifer for the emotional and physical toll this has taken on her.
[00:24:43] Lord, we ask that you would be her strong tower, her defender, that you would stand between her and Satan as he attempts to spread lies. Lord, please defend and protect her and Emma.
[00:24:59] Lord, we lift up Bennett Mitchell. Lord, pray for his season of seizures to be at an end. Lord, we thank you that they're fewer and less severe. But Lord, we pray that you would just take those
[00:25:13] away, that he would grow in strength and knowledge and wisdom. Lord, we lift up Lindsay's sister-in-law, Barbara, Crystal's father, and Janice's uncle. All these, Lord, we have been praying for. Lord, for their physical healing, for their care, for those that are caring for them. Lord, I pray that
[00:25:31] you would surround them with people that you have gifted with special wisdom and understanding.
[00:25:36] Lord, that they would care for them well and receive the treatment that they need.
[00:25:40] We lift up our missionaries, Ken and Lynn Cross. Lord, we pray for Ken's preaching ministry that he has been doing. It requires a lot of travel, so we pray also for his safety.
[00:25:49] Lord, we pray for that effective preaching of the word that the church there would grow in their knowledge and wisdom.
[00:25:56] We pray, too, for his ministry to Joe Gibbs Racing, for all the young men that he meets with in small groups.
[00:26:02] Lord, that they would grow in their knowledge and wisdom as well as he shepherds them.
[00:26:07] We pray for Lynn's surgery this Tuesday to remove precancerous mass.
[00:26:11] Lord, pray that you would just, Lord, again, keep her from just worry and doubt from all the Satan's lies.
[00:26:21] Lord, pray that she would just feel a special presence and peace over the surgery.
[00:26:26] Again, I pray, Lord, that you would surround her with physicians and nurses and caretakers that would just be full of wisdom and compassion.
[00:26:35] Lord, that they would do just what needs to be done and that you would give her a fast healing.
[00:26:40] We lift up the Community Pregnancy Center of Lake Norman.
[00:26:43] Lord, we're so thankful for the banquet that they had recently and just the success there of that banquet.
[00:26:49] We pray, Lord, for the impact that they're having on women in this community, for their spiritual counsel and the material support, and, Lord, for our partnership with them.
[00:26:59] Lastly, Lord, we just pray that the staff there would just have a great time of refreshment over the summer.
[00:27:05] We lift up Pastor Mike Gordon and Grace Covenant in Hickory.
[00:27:09] Lord, we pray for the preaching of the word there.
[00:27:11] Lord, that your words would be preached in power, that it would change hearts, and that as a result of that, Lord, that your gospel would spread through that community.
[00:27:23] For Harbor, Lord, we pray for our study of your word.
[00:27:26] Lord, we pray that we would have a daily commitment to studying your word.
[00:27:30] We pray for the groups that meet together, the small groups, even as we wrap up for the summer.
[00:27:35] Lord, we pray that the time that we've had, that the word that was shared, Lord, that that would grow in us, that seed of your word that's planted in us, Lord, that it would just produce abundant fruit and that we would share that with
[00:27:50] our neighbors. Lord, I want to pause now and, Lord, lift up to you all the names that we have in our hearts, that people that don't know Christ, people in our own families, our neighbors,
[00:28:03] coworkers, or maybe some that may profess to be a Christian, but there's just really not any fruit there. Lord, we just pause as those names are lifted up to you. Lord, please use us in this
[00:28:31] community and our outreach. Lord, we pray that we would have the confidence, the trust, and Lord, that we would overcome whatever fears we may have within to invite others to church, those that we know to church or a small group or some church event, Lord, that they would know by our works,
[00:28:55] by our just being in our presence, Lord, that it's your presence that they're in, that they would see something and sense something that they want, something different, and that being the Holy Spirit. Lord, we pray that you would use us to spread your word throughout this
[00:29:09] community. And last, Lord, I pray for our church planning. Lord, it seems maybe to be going slow as we're searching for the right person to lead this new church plant and a core group that would be part of that
[00:29:23] and the resources, Lord, you've provided many resources already.
[00:29:27] Lord, so we ask for patience as we wait for all of that to come together because it has to be, Lord, in your timing.
[00:29:34] It has to be of your doing because if we do it on our own, Lord, it's going to fail.
[00:29:39] So, Lord, pray for your will and your timing and the right place and all the things that need to come together for this to be a success and for your kingdom to grow in the place that you've already prepared
[00:29:50] where the gospel needs to be spread, that people need to hear the gospel.
[00:29:56] Lord, I lift all these things in prayers.
[00:29:58] In the name of your son, Jesus, our Lord and Savior.
[00:30:01] Amen.

[00:30:08] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_08]
[00:30:08] As the deacons prepare for the taking up of offerings, I have a great privilege each week that I get to stand up here.
[00:30:18] I get to look out and I get to see a sea of God's blessing.
[00:30:23] Each person sitting in a seat represents someone who has been extremely blessed by God.
[00:30:33] Oh, you might have more money than I have, or a bigger house than the next person, or this or that, but we have all been greatly, greatly blessed by God.
[00:30:45] God has sustained you every single hour of your life up until this point.
[00:30:51] Do you forget that sometimes? I do. I do.
[00:30:54] I have grown more and more, especially as I get to stand here and look out at the sea of God's blessing to enjoy this part of our worship more with each passing Sunday. And so if you're a
[00:31:08] visitor here with us this morning, as we come to give to the Lord, we want you to know that we don't expect anything from you. We're really happy that you're here. We're glad that you've come to
[00:31:18] worship the Lord. And if you choose to give, that's wonderful. And if you choose not to, We're happy to see you.
[00:31:25] For those of us who are members of Harbor Church, we have agreed to support the church in her work and in her worship.
[00:31:31] And part of that we do by giving sacrificially to the Lord.
[00:31:36] And so whatever you choose to give this morning, would you give as one who has been blessed by God?
[00:31:43] And would you give cheerfully and full of joy?

[00:31:50] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_05]
[00:31:50] Let's sing again.
[00:31:50] This is Psalm 1.
[00:31:53] And Bill Thrillkill brought this to us when he preached here, I don't know, a month ago, five, six weeks ago.
[00:32:01] So you guys know the tune, and we all know the psalm pretty well, so we're going to drive it further into our minds and down into our hearts by singing it.

[00:32:08] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]
[00:32:08] Blessed is the man who loves God's Word.
[00:32:20] His soul, his heart will undergird.
[00:32:25] His meditation fixed on God Will help him walk where Jesus trod Let all the world build house on sand While on the word of God he'll stand And when the storms of time assail God's truth alone will never fail
[00:33:00] God's precious word is his delight Giving him strength to stay the fight He will bear fruit for heaven's praise Follow God's truth through all his days God's holy book is filled with light Showing my feet a path that's right
[00:33:36] Help me to walk in ways so pure Trusting my Christ the ever sure Oh, plant my eyes on sacred faith Which God has given to every age His holy truth in us abound Shining God's glory all around
[00:34:13] Dear Jesus, You the living Word Your grace and mercy we have heard Help us your truth to lighten within for our team.

[00:34:39] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_08]
[00:34:39] Let's pray.
[00:34:46] Lord our God, you are the giver of every good gift.
[00:34:52] What do we have that we have not received from heaven on high?
[00:35:00] What moment of life have we lived that was not a gift from you?
[00:35:04] But what purchase have we made that did not first come to us from your hand?
[00:35:13] Lord, everything we have is a gift from You.
[00:35:18] Let us live as grateful servants.
[00:35:22] Lord, I pray that You would take the offerings that have been given this morning and that You, by the power of Your might, would use it to build Your kingdom Sunday after Sunday, offering after offering,
[00:35:36] that, Lord, we would stand on the shore of eternity and we would say because of what was given, the glory of Christ was made known.
[00:35:44] So we ask, O Lord, that you would do this great work for the great honor of your name.
[00:35:53] We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.
[00:35:57] Would you stand with me as we praise God together by singing the doxology?
[00:36:36] Be seated.
[00:36:39] If you've got a Bible, or if there's one in front of you that you need to grab under a chair, you can go ahead and begin turning over to Proverbs chapter 1.
[00:36:50] We've officially finished our sermons in 2 Corinthians, and now we turn for a few weeks to the book of Proverbs.
[00:37:00] Now, we're not going to be going through Proverbs verse by verse for all 31 chapters.
[00:37:06] What you've got ahead of you is we have about 13 sermons on the book of Proverbs where we'll be preaching sort of thematically.
[00:37:17] So what Michael and I have done is we've sat down and we've picked what we think are 13 of the most common themes that we see throughout the book of Proverbs.
[00:37:26] It would be a really hard book to preach verse by verse.
[00:37:30] But as you're turning there to Proverbs chapter 1, I want to take you to a scene on the floor of our kitchen earlier this week.
[00:37:41] I spent a few minutes this week installing some baby cabinet locks in our kitchen.
[00:37:49] Walter has discovered that he can open the doors to the kitchen cabinets and pull out all the cookie sheets and all that fun stuff.
[00:37:59] And so after cleaning up way too many cookie sheets for far too long, we got some cabinet locks.
[00:38:07] And so I got the box of these locks, and if you've ever installed these, we got these fancy magnetic kinds. Very neat.
[00:38:17] And so I took the box, and I opened it up, and I dumped the box out there on the kitchen floor.
[00:38:22] And I sat down, and I thought to myself, there are more parts here than I thought there were going to be.
[00:38:30] And so I looked at it, and not really knowing what parts went where, the part of me that has grown up into a man said, I bet I can figure this out.
[00:38:43] So I started to rummage through the parts.
[00:38:47] And then the part of me that has grown in wisdom said, you know, I better just read the instructions.
[00:38:54] So I got the instructions out and step by step with the instructions help installed the locks.
[00:39:02] Now, the truth is that those parts scattered on the kitchen floor were made by someone.
[00:39:11] And they were made with a purpose.
[00:39:14] And so the best result of using those things was to just simply follow the instructions.
[00:39:23] But many of us go through life and we sort of do it like this.
[00:39:28] We dump all the parts of our life out on the floor and we sort through them just kind of trying to get the pieces to somehow fit and come out making sense.
[00:39:42] But there is a Creator God in heaven who made this earth.
[00:39:54] And He made you.
[00:39:57] And He created you.
[00:39:59] And He created this world with order and with purpose and with design.
[00:40:07] And He didn't just create you with a purpose and in a world full of order and designed to work a specific way.
[00:40:17] He also gave to us instructions, wisdom on how to live best in His world that He created.
[00:40:31] How silly it is for us then to go through our life just thinking that we can try to get the pieces to fit and ignoring the God who has given us His instructions.
[00:40:43] So we come then to the book of Proverbs, a book of wisdom, a book of God's instructions.
[00:40:53] And in this book, what we hope to see is we hope to see the God who teaches us His design.
[00:41:01] He teaches His design to His people to live in His wonderful way.
[00:41:10] This book is a book of great wisdom, and if we bow our knees to its instruction, we will come out much better than if we tried to do life on our own.
[00:41:26] Come with me then to Proverbs chapter 1.
[00:41:30] We'll begin in verse 1 and we'll read down to verse 7.
[00:41:35] Hear the word of the Lord, the Proverbs of Solomon, son of David, king of Israel.
[00:41:45] to know wisdom and instruction, to understand words of insight, to receive instruction in wise dealing, in righteousness, justice, and equity, to give prudence to the simple, knowledge and discretion to the youth.
[00:42:07] Let the wise hear and increase in learning, and the one who understands obtain guidance.
[00:42:16] to understand a proverb and a saying, the words of the wise and their riddles.
[00:42:24] The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.
[00:42:30] Fools despise wisdom and instruction.
[00:42:36] Let's pray.
[00:42:40] Oh, Father, as we come to your word, speak to us now.
[00:42:50] Lord, take any part of this sermon that would be gathered together in my wisdom and take it away from our memories.
[00:42:58] Lord, help us to remember only your word, only what you desire.
[00:43:04] And Father, I pray that you in these moments would empower your word by your Holy Spirit, that we would have spiritual eyes to see you and to see Christ.
[00:43:16] We long to see him.
[00:43:19] Help us in that work now.
[00:43:22] We are desperate for you, oh God.
[00:43:25] We ask this in Jesus' name.
[00:43:28] Amen.
[00:43:29] If you're a kid and you want a few things to listen out for, I've got three things that you can listen for.
[00:43:37] And these three things, they're going to come quickly.
[00:43:41] They're not part of long stories, so you really got to listen this morning for them.
[00:43:46] So three things to listen out for.
[00:43:49] Be listening for a fortune cookie, an electrical outlet, and the ABCs.
[00:43:57] A Fortune Cookie, An Electrical Outlet, and The ABCs.
[00:44:06] The book of Proverbs is a unique kind of book.
[00:44:16] And so as we begin, we have three things we're going to be looking at this morning.
[00:44:21] I've got three B's for you.
[00:44:23] They didn't make it into the notes, but you can write it down in your notes nonetheless.
[00:44:27] less. We're going to look at the background of Proverbs, the blessing of Proverbs, and the beginning. The background, the blessing, and the beginning. And because Proverbs is such a unique book in the text of Scripture, we begin by looking at some background material. This sermon may feel
[00:44:53] more like a sermon that wets your appetite for more of Proverbs? And if you walk away feeling like, well, yeah, but I want more. Good. That's the purpose of the text before us. So I'm not
[00:45:09] going to answer every question that you have about the book of Proverbs this morning, but we're going to begin with a little bit of background information. Look at verse 1. The Proverbs of Solomon, Son of David, King of Israel.
[00:45:25] The title for the book of Proverbs comes from the first word in the Hebrew text, Proverbs.
[00:45:33] That's how we got the title.
[00:45:35] Proverbs is a unique genre in the biblical literature.
[00:45:40] It's a book of wisdom or poetic literature.
[00:45:44] It's different from reading a book like 1 Samuel or 1 Kings, which are narrative.
[00:45:51] It's going to read different because it was designed to read differently.
[00:45:56] It's not going to say, and he went here and did this, and then they did this, and then God did this.
[00:46:02] It's a book of collected sayings, wise sayings to live by.
[00:46:09] And so it's going to read more as art or poetry.
[00:46:13] It's going to be communicated with things like similes.
[00:46:18] You've got to go back to English class.
[00:46:20] Metaphors, parallelisms, and artistic imagery.
[00:46:28] The book of Proverbs, we could divide it into two big main sections.
[00:46:36] The first section of the book of Proverbs is chapters 1 through 9.
[00:46:41] And in this first main section, it's a little bit more well-organized than the other chapters in Proverbs.
[00:46:50] In chapters 1 through 9, Solomon is essentially giving us this argument.
[00:46:57] You want wisdom. Go get wisdom.
[00:47:03] You read chapters 1 through 9, and the main theme of these first nine chapters is this.
[00:47:10] Wisdom is good. You should get it.
[00:47:14] And it's a well-structured, well-thought-out section.
[00:47:17] But at the end of chapter 9, the text transitions to the second main section, chapters 10 to 31.
[00:47:26] And in these 21 chapters, we have about six collections of Proverbs, mostly written by Solomon, also written by Agur and King Lemuel.
[00:47:42] And so what these are, are collections of wise sayings gathered together in about six collections.
[00:47:51] So you've got your first nine chapters and you've got your second 20, 21 chapters.
[00:47:58] And these Proverbs are attributed to Solomon, son of David, king of Israel.
[00:48:03] And it's not because Solomon wrote every single one of these Proverbs, but by and large, he gathered together and wrote most of them.
[00:48:14] So this is a book from Solomon.
[00:48:19] And the text says he is king of Israel, son of David.
[00:48:25] One thing you'll pick up on as you read through the book of Proverbs is that Proverbs is a king giving royal instruction to his son.
[00:48:40] If you could imagine it like this, You have a king or someone in royalty who is desiring to depart wisdom to his children who are royal, who will come to serve in the royal household.
[00:48:55] It's not just generic wisdom for everyday living, although it is for everyone.
[00:49:01] It is a king giving instructions to his royal children who will one day hopefully rule and reign.
[00:49:12] And so where do we find ourselves in that?
[00:49:16] I'm not sure if any of us in here are destined to be the king of America.
[00:49:22] We don't have kings.
[00:49:23] But you, I don't think, are destined to wear a crown in this life, most likely.
[00:49:29] So where are we in the book of Proverbs?
[00:49:32] Well, we are in this book in this.
[00:49:35] We are children of God.
[00:49:38] You are a child of the king in Christ.
[00:49:43] And so the royal wisdom being departed here is preparing you and I as royal children to live and reign in the kingdom of God.
[00:49:56] We live as children of the king in his kingdom.
[00:50:01] And so part of what Proverbs is doing is teaching you the life of blessing in God's kingdom.
[00:50:09] Now, we have to be clear.
[00:50:12] The instructions and wisdom we gain in the book of Proverbs is not how we enter into the kingdom.
[00:50:20] Proverbs is not, do these things, follow these principles, and if you do enough of them, you'll gain entrance into the kingdom and you'll be saved.
[00:50:31] That's not the book of Proverbs.
[00:50:32] The book of Proverbs is how a child of God lives well in the kingdom of God.
[00:50:44] So the Proverbs of Solomon.
[00:50:47] What is a proverb?
[00:50:49] We can't really go too far into this book without gaining some kind of definition for a proverb.
[00:50:56] If I could boil it down to its most simple definition, I'd boil it down to this.
[00:51:01] A proverb is a wise saying.
[00:51:06] It's a wise saying.
[00:51:07] The word for proverb comes from the idea of to be like something.
[00:51:14] So many of the proverbs set two things next to each other, and they compare or contrast them.
[00:51:22] So consider Proverbs 12.4.
[00:51:25] An excellent wife is the crown of her husband.
[00:51:32] It takes a wife, an excellent one, and compares it to a crown.
[00:51:37] she brings dignity, she brings honor, she brings value.
[00:51:43] It's a wise saying, and one author notes that the Proverbs are often a pithy little sentence packed with a thought-provoking punch.
[00:51:55] Most Proverbs, you read them one sentence at a time, and they stand alone, and they're sharp, and they pack a punch.
[00:52:04] And many of them, if we're honest, they hurt and they convict us.
[00:52:08] Another commentator writes about a proverb that most proverbs act as a little model of reality.
[00:52:19] So a proverb will often give you a tiny picture of what reality is like.
[00:52:26] Consider a crown.
[00:52:29] The reality is an excellent wife is like that.
[00:52:33] It gives us pictures and images of everyday things around us and says, this is what the world is really like.
[00:52:44] Solomon, the wisest king to have ever lived, studied plants, he studied animals, he studied the world around him, philosophy, and he took that wisdom that he gained of the world around him and he interpreted the world
[00:53:04] as giving witness to God's wisdom.
[00:53:08] So he would say things like this in chapter 6. Consider the ant, you sluggard. Look at what a diligent worker the ant is.
[00:53:19] Or he would say things like this, consider fire. That's what temptation is like. And so he gives us these pictures of everyday life all around us and says, see God's wisdom in the world that he
[00:53:36] ordered. And isn't that how Jesus taught so often? He taught us from stories and parables and pictures. And so Jesus on the Sermon on the Mount stops and he says, look at those birds.
[00:53:54] What an excellent preacher they are to you. Look down at those flowers. Look at how they remind you of God's care. And the Proverbs operate in a similar way. They give us pictures of reality.
[00:54:09] and what's true and what's real in life.
[00:54:13] And so before we really dive into the book of Proverbs, we have to think about two ways that we can go wrong with the Proverbs.
[00:54:23] One way that we can go wrong in reading and interpreting the Proverbs is this.
[00:54:28] We can make too much of the Proverbs.
[00:54:33] We can make too much of them.
[00:54:34] We do this by clinging to every proverb and every wise saying as if it's a 100% guarantee or a never-failing promise from God.
[00:54:51] And here's what I mean.
[00:54:55] The proverbs are often principles of life, patterns of life.
[00:55:03] Some of them are divine promises, don't get me wrong.
[00:55:07] But many of them show us the pattern of a good life, the principles that we follow as we want to live a blessed life in God's kingdom.
[00:55:17] So consider this.
[00:55:19] Consider Proverbs 12, 11.
[00:55:21] It says this, whoever works his land will have plenty of bread.
[00:55:29] If we cling to this verse, whoever works his land will have plenty of bread.
[00:55:33] If we consider this verse to be a 100% always guarantee from God, what do we make of the farmer who worked his land and a fire came through and destroyed his whole crop?
[00:55:50] He did not end that season with plenty of bread.
[00:55:54] Well, is God's word false?
[00:55:56] Has God lied?
[00:55:58] No, because the Proverbs are wise sayings, principles and patterns of a life well lived.
[00:56:08] And so the principle that you order your life around is this.
[00:56:12] If you plant seeds in the ground and you tend to them and you work the field, most often you will end up with plenty of bread.
[00:56:23] Principles and patterns of a wise life.
[00:56:26] And so we can go off the rails by sometimes making too much of the principles that were taught in Proverbs.
[00:56:37] We can also go off the track by making too little of the Proverbs, though.
[00:56:42] So you say, okay, then, well, then it's not really a divine promise I can cling to, so it's probably just, you know, a helpful suggestion.
[00:56:53] Maybe some life hacks that I can live by and maybe make my life a little easier.
[00:57:01] But the book of Proverbs is not a fortune cookie.
[00:57:07] It's not a fortune cookie that after you finish eating your meal, your main course, you kind of crack open the cookie and you read the little saying, you say, oh, that's nice, and you throw it away.
[00:57:18] That's not what Proverbs are.
[00:57:20] They're not helpful suggestions that don't really mean anything in your life.
[00:57:25] Proverbs 13 says that the wisdom of God displayed in the book of Proverbs is a matter of life and death.
[00:57:35] if you ignore the wisdom of proverbs god says it's a matter of life and death so we go off the track by making too much but we also go off the track by making too little and i pray that by the
[00:57:52] time we make it through the book of proverbs you'll have a little bit of a better idea of what it means then to kind of ride that middle road where we trust the proverbs as god's word and
[00:58:04] God's wisdom and where we do it well. So let's put it all together then. In the book of Proverbs, we see as God's royal children how God teaches us to best order our lives in his kingdom
[00:58:22] according to his instructions. That's the background of Proverbs. Now, let's move on then to the blessing, the blessing of Proverbs. The next five verses will lay out for us a whole slew of blessings that wait for the person who engages with this book.
[00:58:48] So let's jump in. Verse two, the book of Proverbs is to accomplish this task, to know wisdom and instruction to understand words of insight.
[00:59:04] The book of Proverbs is wisdom at its best.
[00:59:08] And so as we engage with this book, the purpose is this, to know wisdom.
[00:59:15] Wisdom, most simply defined, is skill in living.
[00:59:22] Skill in living.
[00:59:24] It's the skill to live in a way that's best, in a way that's pleasing to God.
[00:59:33] It's, as one person puts it, it's skill or expertise or competence to understand how life really works and how to achieve successful and beautiful results.
[00:59:47] And there's really only two sources of wisdom.
[00:59:51] Where will you go to learn the reality of life and how to live best?
[00:59:58] Where will you go to find wisdom?
[01:00:00] There are really only two sources.
[01:00:03] God and the world.
[01:00:07] And I want to just put the question before you this morning.
[01:00:12] Which instructions should you trust best?
[01:00:19] The one who created everything or the one who was created?
[01:00:25] We can learn some things from our fellow man.
[01:00:33] We can learn how to cook a dinner, how to build something, how to read a book.
[01:00:41] But where do you learn wisdom on high?
[01:00:46] The only source is from God himself.
[01:00:52] And so we come to this book to know wisdom.
[01:00:56] But wisdom is not just information.
[01:00:59] We don't come to God's Word just to gather up information.
[01:01:05] One commentator, John Kitchen, wrote this, and I thought it was kind of striking.
[01:01:11] With the exponential growth of technology and our ability to gain more and more information faster and faster, This, he says, has rendered us neither wiser nor godlier.
[01:01:34] You have access right now to more information than anyone in all of the world for all of time.
[01:01:44] And it has neither made us more wise or more godly.
[01:01:53] Information is not wisdom.
[01:01:58] Wisdom is taking the information we receive, taking the knowledge that we get, and applying it to our life.
[01:02:09] You must apply the knowledge you receive from God to be wise.
[01:02:15] We need to sit down with Jesus.
[01:02:18] We need to listen intently to His ancient wisdom.
[01:02:22] We need to turn it over in our mind, meditate on it, and then we need to order our lives according to what He says.
[01:02:33] And if we do that, then we will begin to know wisdom and instruction.
[01:02:40] It's one thing to know how electricity works.
[01:02:45] It's wisdom to be able to change out the light fixture.
[01:02:51] To know wisdom and instruction.
[01:02:56] To understand words of insight.
[01:02:59] Insight is something that was not clear being now made clear or obvious to you.
[01:03:08] We need insight.
[01:03:09] Life is muddy.
[01:03:12] And we're trying to understand it on our own.
[01:03:15] If we're doing that, it's like driving through the mountains on a windy mountain road when the fog is dense.
[01:03:24] We need the fog of life to clear away so that we can see life clearly.
[01:03:32] That's insight.
[01:03:35] Verse 3, to receive instruction in wise dealing, in righteousness, justice, and equity.
[01:03:42] If we're going to become wise, we must receive instruction.
[01:03:51] We must become like a student, eager to learn, humble and admitting what we don't know and what we don't do well.
[01:04:01] We must be open to God's instruction.
[01:04:06] And when we do that, it leads us to live rightly with righteousness.
[01:04:14] It leads us to live well before others and deal justly with equity.
[01:04:22] Verse four, to give prudence to the simple, knowledge and discretion to the youth.
[01:04:31] When we come to God's word to receive his wisdom, in this book we receive prudence.
[01:04:38] That's not really a word that we use very much, but prudence is not being easily influenced or deceived.
[01:04:47] It's being able to look ahead and see disaster coming and to avoid it.
[01:04:54] It's like a ship in the water turning to avoid a rock.
[01:05:01] We want to drive through our life and navigate through it safely with all of the dangerous twists and turns.
[01:05:10] That's prudence.
[01:05:12] To give prudence to the simple.
[01:05:16] All throughout the book of Proverbs, the invitation is to come, you who are simple.
[01:05:23] The word for simple can mean naive or ignorant.
[01:05:28] And at first, it kind of feels like an insult.
[01:05:31] What are you saying about me, God?
[01:05:34] I'm naive.
[01:05:36] I'm simple.
[01:05:37] I'm ignorant.
[01:05:38] That's not really how you encourage one another here at Harbor.
[01:05:42] Though it may feel like an insult at first, this is actually a wonderful word for us.
[01:05:50] Because here's what it means.
[01:05:52] It means that anyone, no matter what you know or where you're at in life, can begin today to receive divine instruction and wisdom from God.
[01:06:06] Do you feel simple sometimes?
[01:06:08] Do you feel naive about the things of God?
[01:06:12] Well, there's good news.
[01:06:13] He says, come all you who are simple and receive instruction.
[01:06:19] Live with prudence because of my wisdom.
[01:06:22] The word for simple also carries the idea of being open or uncommitted.
[01:06:33] And here's why this matters for us.
[01:06:35] The simple person is not just someone who lacks information.
[01:06:41] It's also someone who is wavering between two options in life.
[01:06:49] It's someone who says, well, there's wisdom of the world and there's wisdom of God.
[01:06:55] There's a pathway over here and a pathway over there.
[01:06:59] And I like to try and keep one foot in this path and one foot in the other.
[01:07:06] The simple one is the one to whom Joshua would say, choose this day whom you will serve.
[01:07:16] Quit wavering between two options.
[01:07:18] If the world has the wisdom that's best, go after that.
[01:07:23] But if God has the wisdom that's best, serve the Lord.
[01:07:28] As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.
[01:07:33] Choose this day, you who are simple, which path you will follow.
[01:07:39] To give prudence to the simple, knowledge and discretion to the youth.
[01:07:45] We need knowledge in this life, but we need divine knowledge from God.
[01:07:52] We need to know how life works, and we need to know what is truly real.
[01:08:02] To admit that you need knowledge from a source outside yourself is the total opposite of what our age would teach you.
[01:08:11] The wisdom of this age says this, My actions have no consequences.
[01:08:20] All I need to do is live what's true for me.
[01:08:28] That sounds good until you stick your finger in an electrical outlet.
[01:08:37] Well, that's fine.
[01:08:38] My actions don't have real consequences.
[01:08:42] But you are face to face with reality when your pinky finger enters into the outlet and the shock comes.
[01:08:50] Why?
[01:08:50] Because no matter what you think, there is a world that God has created and it operates according to God's principles in God's ways.
[01:09:02] And so knowledge is learning what's real and wisdom is ordering your life according to those principles.
[01:09:14] We have to know what's real in life and we have to accept it.
[01:09:18] It is wise to know that Clorox bleach does not make a good cup of coffee.
[01:09:26] And it is wise to know that when you drink the cup of sin, it will always burn going down.
[01:09:34] To gain prudence for the simple, knowledge and discretion for the youth.
[01:09:43] Verse 5, let the wise hear and increase in learning.
[01:09:48] and the one who understands obtain guidance.
[01:09:53] God's wisdom is not just for the simple.
[01:09:57] It's not just for the youth who need to learn some things and grow up.
[01:10:01] The wisdom of God's Word is for the wise to hear it and increase in learning.
[01:10:11] There is never a point in our Christian life where we finally arrive and we know everything that we need to know.
[01:10:20] But the Christian always needs more wisdom, always needs more insight.
[01:10:29] Not just for the simple, not just for the youth, but for the wise and the learned.
[01:10:34] We need more of God's word.
[01:10:39] It's not just a task for the baby Christian.
[01:10:41] It is the continual call for every one of us here at Harbor in every stage of life to not grow stale and stagnant in your walk with the Lord.
[01:10:56] To not go complacent in your life and in your knowledge of the Lord.
[01:11:04] You are a smart and a wise church.
[01:11:09] Don't grow stale in your knowledge of God.
[01:11:13] God is too glorious.
[01:11:15] His wisdom is too precious.
[01:11:19] His word is a treasure unending.
[01:11:22] Do not grow stagnant in it, ever gaining more and more of the riches of God's word.
[01:11:35] Verse 6, to understand a proverb and a saying, the words of the wise and their riddles.
[01:11:44] Much of our life feels like a riddle.
[01:11:46] to have the riddles made known to us is sort of like this.
[01:11:55] It's sort of like you walk into a circle of people talking.
[01:12:01] And this group is talking, and the people in this group are much wiser than you are.
[01:12:06] And at first, when you walk into this group, you don't really understand what they're talking about.
[01:12:12] But the more you listen, the more you begin to catch on.
[01:12:16] And the more you realize the value of what they have to say, the more we spend time in the book of Proverbs and in God's Word, the things that at first didn't seem so clear begin to make sense.
[01:12:34] The riddles begin to feel like wise instruction that we can know.
[01:12:43] Do you want these things?
[01:12:45] Do you want wisdom, knowledge, clarity, discretion?
[01:12:52] Do you want insight?
[01:12:54] Then immerse yourselves in the Word of God.
[01:12:59] Give yourself to gaining wisdom.
[01:13:04] Spend the next 31 days reading the 31 chapters of the book of Proverbs.
[01:13:10] Give yourself to this work and gain wisdom.
[01:13:14] I just wonder how often we know that we need help in life.
[01:13:22] And we would even tell others that we feel stuck.
[01:13:29] But we don't go to the divine wisdom of God for help.
[01:13:35] Brothers and sisters, it shouldn't be that we wake up and we say, Oh, my life is so hard.
[01:13:44] I just feel like I'm out of gas.
[01:13:47] I don't know which direction to go.
[01:13:49] I don't know what to do next.
[01:13:52] And then we just stop there.
[01:13:57] God's Word calls that something.
[01:13:59] It calls it grumbling.
[01:14:04] Oh, be honest about your life and about your struggles.
[01:14:07] Be honest about your need.
[01:14:09] Wake up and exclaim to the Lord, Lord, I feel stuck.
[01:14:15] But then go to His wisdom and seek for help.
[01:14:20] Seek for words of life.
[01:14:26] Go to the Word of God.
[01:14:27] The table is set.
[01:14:32] The feast of God's wisdom is open and ready.
[01:14:36] All you need to do is open the book.
[01:14:44] We overcomplicate our life with God sometimes, don't we?
[01:14:48] It's just like showing up to Thanksgiving dinner.
[01:14:56] You didn't work to prepare any of the feast.
[01:14:59] You didn't slave over any of the wisdom.
[01:15:03] All you did is drive up, walk through the door, sit down and eat. The table of God's wisdom, divine counsel from the creator of all things and the one who formed you, the table is set. The question is, will you come and will you eat?
[01:15:25] So where do we start? What is the beginning of this walk in wisdom? The beginning is this in Verse 7, the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.
[01:15:42] Fools despise wisdom and wise counsel.
[01:15:47] How do you begin to grow wise in God?
[01:15:51] You do it first and foremost by the fear of the Lord.
[01:15:58] It's the beginning of wisdom.
[01:16:01] It is the ABCs of the Christian life.
[01:16:06] The first lesson we must learn when we come to God is this, to fear Him.
[01:16:15] Just like you can't learn to read or write an essay without first learning your ABCs, we will never grow wise, we will never approach the Lord of glory unless we first come to Him with the fear of the Lord.
[01:16:32] It is the beginning, but it's not just the beginning.
[01:16:35] it's not just the first lesson that we learn.
[01:16:38] It is the path that we walk all life long.
[01:16:43] You don't just check off the box and say, I've learned to fear the Lord.
[01:16:46] Next lesson, please.
[01:16:48] You operate each and every day under the fear of the Almighty.
[01:16:54] But it's not just the first lesson we learn.
[01:16:56] And it's not just the middle principle.
[01:16:59] It's also the last lesson that the Lord brings us to.
[01:17:04] Solomon, who wrote the book primarily most of Proverbs, also wrote the book of Ecclesiastes.
[01:17:11] And after he surveys all the world's wisdom and he wraps up everything he's come to learn in chapter 12, here's his conclusion after going all kinds of pleasures and vanities and knowledge.
[01:17:26] Here's his conclusion.
[01:17:29] Fear God and do what He says.
[01:17:32] The fear of the Lord is the first step as we approach God.
[01:17:39] It is the abiding principle that drives us all lifelong, and it is the final lesson that we learn as we close our eyes.
[01:17:49] And so what is it?
[01:17:51] What is the fear of the Lord?
[01:17:55] Well, growing up, you may have heard the definition pretty similar to what I have known most of my life.
[01:18:02] I've heard most people define the fear of the Lord as this, to have reverence and awe for God.
[01:18:09] And that's part of it.
[01:18:12] But if we shrink the fear of the Lord down to just reverence and awe, we miss part of the picture.
[01:18:21] We miss half of the pie.
[01:18:24] I want you to just consider these verses about the fear of the Lord.
[01:18:29] Consider Psalm 119, verse 120.
[01:18:33] My flesh trembles for fear of you, and I am afraid of your judgments.
[01:18:47] There's some teeth to the fear of the Lord.
[01:18:52] Or consider Jeremiah chapter 5.
[01:18:57] Do you fear me, declares the Lord?
[01:19:01] Do you not tremble before me?
[01:19:05] They do not say in their hearts, let us fear the Lord our God who gives the rain in its season, the autumn rain and the spring rain.
[01:19:15] Consider Malachi 2 verse 5.
[01:19:18] My covenant with him is one of life and peace and I gave them to him.
[01:19:24] It was a covenant of fear and he feared me.
[01:19:29] He stood in awe of my name.
[01:19:35] We cannot define the fear of the Lord and take fear out of it.
[01:19:39] There is a sense in which you approach the Lord of glory with, as one man put it, a trembling trust.
[01:19:51] We can't take the teeth out of the fear of the Lord.
[01:19:56] If a sinner, unwashed from his sin, approaches the King of glory, he cannot stand.
[01:20:07] There's teeth in that fear.
[01:20:09] There is a trembling sense to the trust that we have.
[01:20:15] There is a reverence and an awe that we bring to it as well.
[01:20:23] Sinclair Ferguson helps us in understanding this difference a little bit.
[01:20:29] When we come to the Lord and we fear Him as those who have trusted in Jesus, we fear Him differently than one who will be judged in their sin.
[01:20:40] We don't fear God as a servant with a harsh master afraid of a beating.
[01:20:49] We fear him as a son with a firm and loving father who does not want the punishment that comes.
[01:21:01] A good father will discipline.
[01:21:05] A good father is firm, but he is loving.
[01:21:10] And so we fear God with a trembling trust.
[01:21:17] Not as a servant, just afraid of getting attacked by a mean and a vengeful God.
[01:21:26] We fear Him as a son with a just and loving dad.
[01:21:35] But without Christ, we do fear Him as a criminal who will be punished by the judge.
[01:21:41] I want you to understand that.
[01:21:43] That's the first step in the fear of the Lord.
[01:21:46] If we've never trusted in God, if we've never come to Jesus for forgiveness, the only fear we come to Him with is fear of judgment.
[01:21:57] And there's teeth in that fear.
[01:22:01] And so we come to Him in the fear of the Lord.
[01:22:05] But when we approach Him and we throw ourselves on His mercy, the fear of punishment disappears.
[01:22:13] And we fear him now as a father, full of love, full of compassion, but a father who is still firm, a father who has designed the world to work in a certain way. And if we step outside of our
[01:22:32] father's way, guess what is waiting for us? Nothing good. So the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, but we cannot rightly fear the Lord without coming to Christ. As we approach the next
[01:22:54] 13 weeks of sermons on the book of Proverbs, I hope that what you don't anticipate is 13 weeks of rules and regulations. That's not where we're planning to head because that's not where the Bible goes. Proverbs, like every other book of Scripture, is a gospel book. Jesus
[01:23:20] is the wisdom of God robed in human flesh. If you want to see what a wise life ordered according to God's ways looks like, you look no further than the Son of God.
[01:23:39] Wisdom in the flesh, come down to dwell with sinful man.
[01:23:46] 1 Corinthians 1.30 says that in Jesus, He became to us wisdom.
[01:23:56] This wisdom is a collection of writings primarily from Solomon, but Matthew 10 declares to us that wisdom greater than Solomon has come.
[01:24:09] It's Colossians 2, 3 that we read earlier that tells us that Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge, you will not live a wise life apart from Christ.
[01:24:39] Christ shows us what the price for our foolishness really was.
[01:24:48] We read the book of Proverbs and we're faced with this fact.
[01:24:56] We are not nearly as wise or as good as we thought we were.
[01:25:01] You read the book of Proverbs and any honest assessment will walk away from the book of Proverbs saying two things.
[01:25:10] I need to be wiser and boy, I've blown it.
[01:25:14] And the price of our foolishness was this.
[01:25:19] That God Himself, divine wisdom, came down from heaven, wrapped in swaddling clothes born of a woman grown up under the instruction and the counsel of parents with one purpose to at 33 years give His life as a sacrifice
[01:25:48] for our sin and our foolishness.
[01:25:52] If you want to grow in wisdom here's how you do it.
[01:25:56] In the fear of the Lord, lift your eyes to the cross and see the wise man on the tree.
[01:26:07] Do you want to grow wise in your life?
[01:26:11] Behold the Son of God, the wise one, the perfect one, the one who kept every proverb without fail and see every failure of yours pinned to the wood.
[01:26:24] see every punishment that we deserve all the fear that we should hold for judgment see it placed on him see the price paid in full and keep looking until you grow wise keep looking until your pride
[01:26:42] melts and through humility and fear and reverence and all you say oh lord jesus the wisest of the Wise, have mercy on me.
[01:27:03] Oh, Father, we come to you, fools in need of wisdom.
[01:27:10] May we behold the wisest of all.
[01:27:14] May we behold our great King.
[01:27:17] And as we look to him, and Lord, even as we come to his table, would you make us more wise?
[01:27:26] Would you lead us in the way of life everlasting?
[01:27:29] We ask this in his great name. Amen.
[01:27:35] As the elders come forward, we come now to the Lord's table.
[01:27:43] We come to the table in which the wise King of Kings invites us to come and be nourished by Him.
[01:27:55] This is the Christian's table.
[01:27:58] This is for all those who have confessed, O Lord, I am a fool and I need Your forgiveness.
[01:28:05] And if you have never come to Christ, I offer you this invitation.
[01:28:13] Don't take this meal.
[01:28:17] Let these elements pass you by.
[01:28:19] But as you watch the bread go by, and as you watch the wine pass you by, I invite you to make this the day of salvation.
[01:28:31] This, God says, can be the day where you turn to Him and you confess your sins and you trust in Christ as He hung on the cross for you and you can be saved.
[01:28:44] And so it was on the night in which Jesus was betrayed, he took the bread and he broke it.
[01:28:51] And he said, this, this is my body given for you.
[01:28:55] Eat of it, all of you, in remembrance of me.
[01:29:00] And here at Harbor, we like to serve family style, which just means if you'll hold on to your bread until we've all been served, then we'll all partake together.
[01:31:51] The body of Christ given for us, let's eat in remembrance of him.
[01:32:02] On the night in which Jesus was betrayed, after the bread, he took the cup.
[01:32:08] He said, this is the cup of the new covenant of my blood, given and shed for the forgiveness of many.
[01:32:17] They will be forgiven and cleansed of their sins.
[01:32:19] This cup is the blood of Christ, shed for every foolish decision you've ever made.
[01:32:29] Praise the Lord.
[01:32:31] Now here at Harbor, we serve both wine and grape juice.
[01:32:35] Wine is on the outer ring.
[01:32:38] Juice is on all the inner rings.
[01:32:40] And just like with the bread, if you'll hold until we've all received, then we'll all partake together.
[01:35:25] Blood of Christ shed for us, let's drink in remembrance of him.
[01:35:33] Let's pray.
[01:35:37] Oh Lord God, we're so grateful for the cleansing that comes through Christ.
[01:35:44] We're so thankful that you don't count our foolish actions and stack them up to our wise ones and see who comes ahead.
[01:35:52] Lord, you just cleanse us in Christ.
[01:35:57] May we go forward this week with a trembling trust of Him in the fear of the Lord that we would gain a heart of wisdom.
[01:36:08] I ask this in Jesus' name.
[01:36:10] Amen.
[01:36:11] Would you stand with me as we sing our closing song together?

[01:36:45] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_06]
[01:36:45] Before we receive the benediction,

[01:39:31] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_08]
[01:39:31] we do have our prayer service.
[01:39:33] let's do we're gonna meet back here at 11 20 so i'll give you a little little bit time since i know we went a little long so 11 20 be back in here for all church prayer we have snacks and
[01:39:46] coffee right out the door to the right in the gathering room and there'll be an elder and a representative of the women's care team up here for prayer if anyone needs prayer after this service. Receive the Lord's benediction over you from Numbers chapter 6. The Lord bless you
[01:40:05] and keep you. The Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you.
[01:40:12] The Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.