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366 | Conversations - Proverbs 15 · The Woman at the Well Ministries Podcast

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  Music.
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  Hello, friends, and welcome back to another podcast of Woman at the Well Ministries,
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  where we believe that all of us have to come to Jesus like the woman at the well in John chapter 4.
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  Our highest priority is making God real in your life.
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  Whether you are listening in our app, in your favorite podcasting app,
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  or on our website at watwm.org,
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  we invite you to sit down with us as we look to the scriptures to learn more
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  about God and to strengthen your daily walk with Jesus Christ.
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  Living a life for Christ. She's a happy girl.
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  Music.
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  She's a happy girl.
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  In this episode of the Woman at the Well Ministries podcast,
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  join Kim Miller and Erica Close in a conversation as we walk with Jesus.
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  In today's conversation, we continue a series on the book of Proverbs,
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  and in today's podcast, we're discussing the lessons that we will learn in Proverbs chapter 15.
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  Hello, everyone, and thank you for joining us. I am Erica Close,
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  and I am here with Kim Miller.
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  Hello, and thank you for joining us in this podcast of Women at the Well Ministries.
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  I'm so excited about what we're going to learn in Proverbs chapter 15.
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  Proverbs chapter 15 has so much in it. There's 33 verses in here,
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  and we're going to read the whole chapter.
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  And then we're going to talk about some of these lessons that are found in this
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  chapter that in this chapter that are repeated over and over again throughout this one chapter.
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  So Kim, would you like to start reading? Read us the first part of Proverbs chapter 15.
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  A soft answer turneth away wrath, but grievous words stir up anger.
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  The tongue of the wise useth knowledge aright, but the mouth of fools poureth out foolishness.
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  The eyes of the Lord are in every place, beholding the evil and the good.
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  A wholesome tongue is a tree of life, but perverseness therein is a breach in the spirit.
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  A fool despiseth his father's instruction, but he that regardeth reproof is prudent.
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  In the house of the righteous is much treasure, but in the revenues of the wicked is trouble.
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  Lips of the wise disperse knowledge, but the heart of the foolish doeth not good.
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  The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord, but the prayer of
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  the upright is his delight.
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  The way of the wicked is an abomination unto the Lord, but he loveth him that
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  followeth after righteousness.
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  Correction is grievous unto him that forsaketh the way, and he that hateth reproof shall die.
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  Hell and destruction are before the Lord, how much more than the hearts of the children of men.
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  A scorner loveth no one that reproveth him, neither will he go unto the wise.
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  A merry heart maketh a cheerful countenance, but by sorrow of the heart the spirit is broken.
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  The heart of him that hath understanding standing seeketh knowledge,
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  but the mouth of fools feedeth on foolishness.
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  All the days of the afflicted are evil, but that he that is of a merry heart hath a continual feast.
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  Better is little with the fear of the Lord than great treasure and trouble therewith.
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  Better is a dinner of herbs where love is, than a stalled ox and hatred therewith.
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  A wrathful man stirreth up strife, but he that is slow to anger appeaseth strife.
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  The way of the slothful man is as a hedge of thorns, but the way of the righteous is made plain.
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  A wise son maketh a glad father, but a foolish man despiseth his mother.
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  Folly is joy to him that is destitute of wisdom, but a man of understanding walketh uprightly.
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  Without counsel, purposes are disappointed, but in the multitude of counselors they are established.
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  A man hath joy by the answer of his mouth, and a word spoken in due season, how good is it!
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  The way of life is above to the wise, that he may depart from hell beneath.
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  The Lord will destroy the house of the proud, but he will establish the border of the widow.
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  The thoughts of the wicked are an abomination to the Lord, but the words of
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  the pure are pleasant words.
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  He that is greedy of gain troubleth his own house, but he that hateth gifts shall live.
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  The heart of the righteous studieth to answer, but the mouth of the wicked poureth
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  out evil things. The Lord is far from the wicked, but he heareth the prayer of the righteous.
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  The light of the eyes rejoiceth the heart, and a good report maketh the bones fat.
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  The ear that heareth the reproof of life abideth among the wise.
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  He that refuseth instruction despiseth his own soul, but he that heareth reproof
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  getteth understanding. The fear of the Lord is the instruction of wisdom,
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  and before honor is humility.
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  I think that this chapter has so many themes in it, and there are so many different
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  ways that we could approach this chapter.
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  And I will admit that we have a plan for how we're going to approach this chapter,
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  but there are two verses I thought we could start out with, because there are
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  two verses in this chapter that are very much about prayer.
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  Verse 8 and verse 29.
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  I think they talk about what the Lord wants from us in prayer.
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  Verse 8 says, the sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord,
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  but the prayer of the upright is his delight.
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  I love that verse. And I love because I think what it says is that God would
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  rather have a conversation with a saint, with one of us,
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  than to have a showy sacrifice from someone who has sinned, right?
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  God's desire is that we would have a relationship with Him and live uprightly
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  with Him, and He wants to talk to us about that.
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  And I think that what he's saying is that he'd rather be with someone who is
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  genuine and truly loving and committed to him than the hypocrite who's acting
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  like he does, but his heart is far from him.
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  I think that's something that we all have to be very clear in our hearts and
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  our minds about, is that God knows the thoughts and intents of our heart.
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  He knows what's really going on.
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  And we can only fake this Christian life so long.
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  And you can only fake it to the people around you. You never fake it to him. Amen.
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  Verse 29, which is also about prayer, says, The Lord is far from the wicked,
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  but he heareth the prayer of the righteous. Amen. Hallelujah.
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  How we live our lives matters.
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  Matters. And how we live our lives determines our proximity to Jesus.
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  Amen. If we are living the way he wants us to live, we're going to be close to him.
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  When we live further away from God's will and his plan for our lives and further
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  away from how he would have us to live in this world, we place distance between us and the Lord.
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  And I think it's very important to realize he never moves. Yes, it's us.
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  It's us moving. And he says, if you draw nigh unto him, he'll draw nigh unto you.
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  So one turn towards him in a step and he comes after you.
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  But when there is a distance between you and the Lord. He has not moved.
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  It is you who have turned from him. Absolutely.
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  So another topic that is throughout this chapter in Proverbs chapter 15 is about
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  how we talk to others and our conversations with others and about our conversations with God himself.
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  So it matters how you speak. It really does. And I think we say so many words
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  a day that sometimes we forget that our words matter.
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  But this chapter in Proverbs really gives us some information regarding our
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  conversations with others and, as you said, our conversations with God.
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  First one says, a soft answer turneth away wrath, but grievous words stir up anger.
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  We have the ability to stir up anger.
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  We often use a phrase in our culture about stirring the pot,
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  right? We have the ability to stir up anger in others, and we should not.
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  And this verse makes that very clear.
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  Verse 2 says, The tongue of the wise uses knowledge aright, but the mouth of
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  fools pours out foolishness.
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  He's saying if you are a wise person, then you speak your knowledge appropriately.
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  But people who are foolish just speak. They're the same words.
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  And we don't want to be those people. So verse four, a wholesome tongue is a
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  tree of life, but perverseness therein is a breach in the spirit.
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  We want to be life giving to others.
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  We want to be those that give others an understanding of the life of Jesus, right?
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  They give others the love and the mercy and the grace of Jesus.
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  That is a tree of life. We want to have words that people can come and pick
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  off of to get more of Jesus into their own lives.
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  The second part of this verse says, but perverseness therein is a breach in the spirit.
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  I think that's kind of scary to me.
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  I mean, it makes me think that when we have unholy talk or ugly talk.
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  What we're doing is we're sort of demonstrating where we have holes in our heart,
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  where we have places where perhaps the Holy Spirit,
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  where we haven't let him in any, we haven't let him clean out those parts of our heart.
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  The Bible says, for out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaketh.
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  I think we're showing where we have a breach. And not only where we have a hole,
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  but where we may have let badness in.
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  Right, right. We have put something between us and the Spirit.
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  In verse 23, we read, A man hath joy by the answer of his mouth,
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  and a word spoken in due season, how good is it?
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  There's a time that we speak and a time that we don't.
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  And I love it because it says that a man has joy when you have the right answer.
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  You know, we say the right thing.
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  And there is a moment, a perfect moment to say things.
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  Timing matters. Timing absolutely matters. I will agree to that.
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  And I have been known to be one who doesn't always have the best timing.
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  Yeah, I didn't say that. I wanted to, but I did not say that.
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  So I can speak from personal experience saying that this is true.
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  There is a time that is appropriate for us to speak,
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  to speak words, whether they're, you know, whether they're our opinion,
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  whether they're words that are, that are words that the Lord has given to us.
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  We may have information, but there's still a timing factor to that.
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  And that's why I think that our words need to be prayerfully given out.
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  Verse 26 says, the thoughts of the wicked are an abomination to the Lord,
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  but the words of the pure our pleasant words.
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  We want our words to be pleasant to the Lord.
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  And I think we need to be very reflective and make sure that our words are pleasant to the Lord.
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  I think it's also saying that our words need to be pleasant because we are told
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  all throughout scripture that we are to be encouragers and words that aren't
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  pleasant do not encourage people.
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  Verse 28 follows exactly what you just said and
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  says the heart of the righteous studieth to
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  answer but the mouth of the wicked poureth out
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  evil things you know think before you speak that's what
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  study before you study before you answer right think in your
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  mind all the different options you have and pick the
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  right one because a good word spoken at
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  the right time is pleasant right and
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  a good word spoken at the wrong time is not
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  going to be received with the intent to
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  which it is given it's not going to be a soft answer like
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  we're told in one exactly and it's going to stir up trouble
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  exactly we have to be so careful and.
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  So prayerful in our in our
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  difficult conversations in our you know crucial conversations every conversation
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  people are listening and people don't always understand what you're saying or
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  they hear your words and you mean one thing, but you're saying another.
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  So he's telling us to study, don't say things that can be so misinterpreted
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  and say what you mean and mean what you say.
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  That is such a wonderful word.
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  Just a summary of what these verses are with our conversations with others.
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  We need to spend more time being very aware of how we speak and what we say.
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  Absolutely. So there's a couple other verses in here that really speak to God's
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  omniscience, his all-knowing character, and the fact that he knows just so many
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  things and he sees all things.
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  And verse 3 says, The eyes of the Lord are in every place. Hallelujah.
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  Praise the Lord. Beholding the evil and the good holds. That's the thing.
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  It's like we read that and we're like, ooh, the Lord is watching,
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  right? He sees all things.
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  But if his eyes are seeing all things, that means his presence is there with us.
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  Which means if you're living righteously, you're excited about it.
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  If you've got sin in your life, you're freaked out.
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  So if you had a ooh moment, then you need to go back on your knees and let the
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  Holy Spirit reveal to you what it is that's making you not happy.
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  That he's with you at every moment, because I'm telling you his presence changes everything.
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  He's your protector, your God, your leader.
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  He gives you grace, mercy, and joy, and he is your ultimate protector.
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  So knowing he is with you always, knowing that he never leaves or forsakes you,
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  should bring you great joy, great peace, and absolute just abundance of gratitude.
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  Absolutely. Verse 11 speaks to the same thing and says that hell and destruction
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  are before the Lord, how much more than the hearts of the children of men.
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  God himself, we know, sees into hell. He sees and he knows what happens there.
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  It's not something that he wants for us, and it's not his plan for us.
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  But as much as he can see into the deepest pits of hell, he can see into the hearts of us.
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  God knows our hearts. We just said that God knows the thoughts and intents of
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  our hearts, and he can see into our hearts.
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  He knows the places of our hearts that we haven't yet yielded to him.
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  He rejoices over the places in our hearts that we have yielded to him.
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  And I think that it's very important for us to just be very mindful of the fact
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  that we're not hiding things from him.
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  And if we think we are, we're just robbing ourselves of the peace and the joy.
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  We're lying, but we're robbing ourselves of the peace and the joy of having him in our hearts.
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  You know, Erica, I'm really excited as we have divided this chapter into four
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  amazing topical lessons he's trying to give us.
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  And this one that you're getting ready to walk into where less is more with
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  God, I think is a lesson that all of us need to adhere to and really pay close attention.
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  Less is more with God. Let's walk through that, Erica.
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  So there's three verses in this chapter that really talk about that.
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  And I'm going to read all three of them. 16.
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  Sorry, there's four. Good job. Thank you.
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  15, 16, 17, and 27.
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  Starting in 15. All the days of the afflicted are evil, but he that is of a
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  merry heart hath a continual feast.
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  Better is little with the fear of the Lord than great treasure and trouble therewith.
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  Better as a dinner of herbs where love is than a stalled ox and hatred therewith
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  and verse 27 he that is greedy of gain troubleth his own house but he that hateth gifts shall live.
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  There is material things
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  that draw us from god yes and
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  the love of money is the root of all evil and
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  when we find ourselves trying to
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  fill a void by just getting more and more and
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  more that's a real keen sign that
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  we have a void and the only thing that really is going to fill that void is
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  is jesus and i know that you have much to say about this but i'm going to jump
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  in here with verse 16 i'm sorry verse 17 better is a dinner of herbs where love is Thank you.
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  Than a stalled ox and hatred therewith. We used to have a friend,
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  he's gone on to be with the Lord now, that used to talk about the difference
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  between a house and a home.
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  And it had nothing to do with the outside, the value of it monetarily.
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  If it was a house, it was something that was just void of love.
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  If it was a home, it was a place of great love.
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  And he would talk about homes as he would walk by, or we would drive by,
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  and he would say, that's a magnificent home. And it might be one of meager financial value.
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  But he would explain to us the love and the joy and the peace that was in that home.
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  And then we might go buy a house that was of great financial value.
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  And he would say, you don't want to go in that house.
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  If you have a choice, go to this home. And it was a lesson that he taught continuously,
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  nearly every time that you were with him.
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  And this verse is what that's saying.
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  Love not only covers a multitude of sins, love is our greatest value.
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  It's our greatest gift from God in the form of his son, from Jesus in the form
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  of his life and from those around us who truly care for us.
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  And we have to get our perspective right.
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  Finances and gain and much stuff cannot be your compass.
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  Absolutely. Verse 27, greedy gain troubles a house.
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  A continual feast comes from a merry heart, we read in 15.
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  And in 16, better is little with the fear of the Lord than great treasure and trouble therewith.
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  Treasure and trouble are tied together there.
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  And so often we know that. And all of us can share examples of people where
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  we have seen great treasure bring about great trouble. We see it all the time.
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  That could be a headline in the 630 News.
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  Treasure and trouble go together. I don't even think if we're honest with ourself,
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  we have to look at other people.
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  The more things you have, the more things you have to maintain.
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  The more things you maintain, the more time it takes.
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  The more time it takes, the more tired you are. So these very things that you
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  think are amazing that give you a moment of pleasure in recreation or whatever
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  are the very things that are tiring you out.
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  Or you can have so many things that you can't use any of them.
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  And then there's a weariness of the mind that sets in.
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  God gives us amazing blessings and amazing gifts.
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  And there's nothing wrong with having material things as long as they're placed in the right place.
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  But there is no material thing that will ever give you the joy that sitting
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  in the presence of Jesus gives you every single time. And it costs you nothing.
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  Amen. All right. The last topic that's in this proverb is that topic of reproof,
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  of reflection, of being able to take correction.
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  And let me read us a few verses that talk about that.
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  So in verse 10, we read, correction is grievous unto him that forsaketh the
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  way, and he that hateth reproof shall die.
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  In verse 22, we read, without counsel, purposes are disappointed,
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  but in the multitude of counselors, they are established.
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  And then we close out the chapter, starting in verse 31.
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  The ear that heareth the reproof of life abideth among the wise.
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  He that refuseth instruction despiseth his own soul, but he that heareth reproof
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  getteth understanding.
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  In verse 33, the fear of the Lord is the instruction of wisdom,
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  and before honor is humility.
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  Our ability to take reproof and instruction from the Lord is very tied to who we think God is.
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  Verse 33 says that the fear of the Lord is the instruction of wisdom.
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  When we have respect and reverence and honor for the Lord, we understand where
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  we don't measure up, where we're not where we're supposed to be.
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  And we need to be able to take correction.
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  I think we understand that.
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  As you were saying, what the hierarchy is. He is God. And plainly put, we are not.
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  Absolutely. Verse 10, right?
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  If you hate reproof, it leads to death. We need to be able to take correction
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  in our lives to get us onto the path that God wants us to be.
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  Verse 22 talks about counselors.
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  When God puts wise people in your life, it's because they have something to give you.
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  When you have wisdom and God places you in somebody else's life,
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  it's your job to share the godly wisdom that you have.
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  Verse 31 talks about the ear that heareth reproof of life, abideth among the wise.
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  If we want to be counted among the wise, we have to be those that can take reproof.
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  We have to not get our feelings hurt when God asks us to go in a different direction.
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  We have to be open to instruction because we're not wise in our own eyes,
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  we're told in Proverbs 3.7.
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  Verse 32 says, he that refuses instruction despiseth his own soul.
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  If we love the soul, If we love what God has given us, we need to take care
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  of it, body, mind, and spirit. Amen. Hallelujah.
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  All of that. All right. Well, thank you all so much for joining us in this discussion
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  of Proverbs chapter 15. We thank you for spending time with us.
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  We hope that you were able to follow along.
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  I'm certain that if you sat down with Proverbs chapter 15 now,
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  you would find so many more things. It's a rich, rich chapter.
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  But we're excited that we got to share these topics with you.
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  Thank you for joining us today.
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  Remember that God loves you and that you are loved.
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  Music.
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