Latest / The Woman at the Well Ministries Podcast / 429 | Conversations - Proverbs 28

Transcript

429 | Conversations - Proverbs 28 · The Woman at the Well Ministries Podcast

0:00
Music.
0:07
Hello, friends, and welcome back to another podcast of Woman at the Well Ministries,
0:11
where we believe that all of us have to come to Jesus like the woman at the
0:16
well in John chapter four.
0:18
Our highest priority is making God real in your life.
0:21
Whether you are listening in our app, in your favorite podcasting app,
0:25
or on our website at watwm.org, we invite you to sit down with us as we look
0:31
to the scriptures to learn more about God and to strengthen your daily walk with Jesus Christ.
0:37
Living her life for Christ. She's a happy girl.
0:38
Music.
0:48
She's a happy girl.
1:02
In this episode of the Woman at the Well Ministries podcast,
1:06
join Kim Miller and Erica Close in a conversation as we walk with Jesus.
1:11
In today's conversation, we continue a series on the book of Proverbs.
1:15
In today's podcast, we discuss the lessons learned in Proverbs chapter 28.
1:21
Well, hello, everyone, and thank you for joining us in this podcast.
1:25
I am Erica Close, and I am here with Kimberly Miller.
1:29
Hello, and thank you for joining us. We're so excited to do Proverbs 28 with
1:34
you and learn what he has to tell us about confession and repentance and his
1:40
God's laws and how we are to keep them and a host of other things.
1:44
There's a lot of things here in Proverbs chapter 28, as we have found,
1:48
as we have walked our way through the book of Proverbs.
1:51
And we have really nearly gotten to the end of the book of Proverbs.
1:55
We are going to hit the end of it.
1:57
And that's going to be a little bit sad because I've really learned a lot in
2:02
this study of the book of Proverbs.
2:04
And most importantly, we hope that you have learned as you have walked with
2:08
us, as we have walked through Proverbs.
2:10
So we are in Proverbs chapter 28 today.
2:14
And Kim, would you like to read the first half.
2:16
Absolutely. The wicked flee when no man pursueth, but the righteous are bold as a lion.
2:23
For the transgression of a land many are the princes thereof,
2:27
but by a man of understanding and knowledge the state thereof shall be prolonged.
2:32
A poor man that oppresses the poor is like a sweeping rain which leaveth no food.
2:37
They that forsake the law praise the wicked, but such as keep the law, contend with them.
2:43
Evil men understand not judgment, but they that seek the Lord understand all things.
2:50
Better is the poor that walketh in his uprightness than he that is perverse
2:54
in his ways, though he be rich.
2:56
Whoso keepeth the law is a wise son, but he that is a companion of riotous men shameth his father.
3:03
He that by usury and unjust gain increases this substance, he shall gather it
3:09
for him that will pity the poor.
3:11
He that turneth away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer shall be an abomination.
3:17
Whoso causeth the righteous to go astray in an evil way, he shall fall himself into his own pit.
3:23
But the upright shall have good things in possession.
3:26
The rich man is wise in his own conceit, but the poor that has understanding searches him out.
3:32
When righteous men do rejoice, there is a great glory.
3:36
But when the wicked rise, a man is hidden.
3:39
He that covers his sins shall not prosper, but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.
3:46
Happy is the man that feareth always, but he that hardeneth his heart shall fall into mischief.
3:52
As a roaring lion and a raging bear, so is a wicked ruler over the poor people.
3:58
The prince that wanteth understanding is also a great oppressor,
4:03
but he that hateth covetousness shall prolong his days.
4:07
A man that doeth violence to the blood of any person shall flee to the pit.
4:12
Let no man stay him.
4:14
Whoso walketh uprightly shall be saved, but he that is perverse in his ways shall fall at once.
4:21
He that tilleth his land shall have plenty of bread, but he that followeth after
4:26
vain persons shall have poverty enough.
4:30
A faithful man shall abound with blessings, but he that maketh haste to be rich shall not be innocent.
4:38
To have respect of persons is not good, for for a piece of bread that man will transgress.
4:45
He that hasteth to be rich hath an evil eye, and considereth not that poverty shall come upon him.
4:52
He that rebuketh a man afterwards shall find more favor than he that flattereth with the tongue.
4:58
Whoso robbeth his father or his mother, and saith, It is no transgression,
5:03
the same is the companion of a destroyer.
5:05
He that is of a proud heart stirreth
5:08
up strife, but he that putteth his trust in the Lord shall be fat.
5:13
He that trusteth in his own heart is a fool, but whoso walketh wisely, he shall be delivered.
5:19
He that giveth unto the poor shall not lack, but he that hideth his eyes shall have many a curse.
5:27
When the wicked rise, men hide themselves, but when they perish,
5:32
the righteous increase.
5:33
You know, there's a lot of stuff, and I know that we have a kind of an order
5:37
that you want to go through, but I am just struck by verse 13.
5:41
Verse 13 of Proverbs 28 says, He that covers his sins shall not prosper,
5:47
but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.
5:54
I think so often we see people trying the easy way out, and they sin,
6:02
and the Lord says, If thou shalt confess you know
6:05
that sin that he's faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from all
6:10
unrighteousness he also tells us that we are to repent of our sins and repent
6:16
means to turn away from which is like to forsake right to forsake sin to stop
6:20
doing it and i love how it's just clear,
6:25
that you know you're not going to be perfect we are to strive towards the prize
6:29
of the high calling, we're to strive to be perfect, but we're going to make
6:33
mistakes in this earthly body.
6:35
But if we confess our sins, He's faithful and just to forgive them.
6:38
But we have to stop doing them.
6:42
Because if you say you're sorry and continue to do the same thing,
6:46
you're really not sorry.
6:48
You might be sorry you got caught
6:49
at the very best, or you might just be saying words to try to get out.
6:53
And so I think it's important that we take note that true repentance,
7:00
a true I'm sorry, all involves stopping doing the transgression.
7:08
We stop the sin that we are repenting of, and we stop the sin that we're sorry for.
7:18
And in those times, that's when he shows us mercy.
7:22
But it's the condition of the heart that he's
7:26
looking upon not vain words you
7:29
know i think as you're talking it makes me just think of the phrase you know
7:34
you got to own it right we have to own things and we've got to own things before
7:38
god like we have to own things and be honest with ourselves if we have sin in
7:43
our lives and we've got to own it before god i mean he will forgive it if we confess it and repent,
7:50
but we have to own it.
7:51
You know, I had a big conversation today with someone about being authentic,
7:55
and we were talking about being like authentic in the workplace,
7:59
but we need to be authentic before God.
8:03
He's not surprised by anything we do, and there is nothing that we do that we can hide from Him.
8:11
Right. There's no point in covering our sins. He knows it.
8:15
Yeah. The psalmist David tells us no matter where we go, he's there,
8:18
even if we're in the pits of hell. Exactly.
8:20
He knows and he sees. And so I think that we need to realize that,
8:26
you know, we might try and fake some aspect of this Christian life.
8:31
And there may be some that we can fool, but we can't fool him.
8:36
And why would we want to when he is the closest friend we could ever?
8:40
And when forgiveness brings peace.
8:43
I mean, we know when we've done wrong. And until we try to make that right and
8:49
before we confess it, we are unhappy. We're nervous.
8:54
We're just not right. But I love 13 in conjunction with 14, which says,
8:59
Happy is the man that fears always, that he that hardens his heart shall fall into mischief.
9:04
And I mean, you know, I know the power of God and I know what his word says.
9:11
And I know that he says, be not deceived.
9:14
God is not mocked for whatsoever man soweth, that shall he also reap.
9:18
There are consequences for sin.
9:22
And, you know, we used to have a pastor that would say sin would take you further
9:26
than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay and cost you more than you want to pay.
9:31
There is pleasure and sin for a season, according to the Scripture,
9:35
but it's a short season, and it costs you so much.
9:40
And he's telling us in Proverbs that we need to.
9:45
We need to not try to cover or hide our sins, but that we need to confess them,
9:51
forsake them, and allow God to cleanse us.
9:55
And the person whose heart is flexible and willing and pliable by the Lord and
10:03
the Holy Spirit, that's the person who's happy.
10:05
That somebody who's hardened and it's my way or the highway and your way is
10:10
in opposition with the Lord, you're going to have a hard life.
10:15
And I think, you know, this verse talks about falling into mischief.
10:19
And I think that, you know, we often think of mischief as, you know,
10:23
messing around or fooling around or something like that.
10:26
But I also think that you fall victim to others' mischief.
10:31
You fall victim to the mischief of the devil, right?
10:34
I mean, it's not, I don't think that mischief here in this context is anything fun.
10:42
No. It's not fun mischief.
10:45
It's you are falling a victim to the mischief, the misdoings.
10:51
You know, it's so important that the prayer of Jabez says, Lord,
10:54
keep me from the evil of others.
10:57
People can't hurt you. And I think the devil uses people to steal your joy.
11:03
He uses people to cause you stress. He uses people to keep you in a state of angst.
11:09
It's not always your doing. Sometimes you're the victim of other people's sins.
11:16
But we have to keep our hearts right
11:19
with the Lord and allow Him to move in our hearts and to mold us and make us
11:26
into what we need to be so that we you don't end up with an unforgiving heart
11:30
or a calloused heart or a paranoid heart,
11:36
or, you know, everybody's out to get me kind of circumstance.
11:41
Because Psalms 118 says, if the Lord is on my side, what can man do unto me?
11:47
And we need to keep our eyes focused on that. But when we're looking at these
11:51
verses in 13 and 14 about covering sins,
11:55
I think it takes us to the natural progression of the section that he talks
12:01
about keeping God's laws.
12:03
Because when you don't keep God's laws, you're sinning.
12:06
And so he talks about that in multiple verses. He talks about it in 4 and 5 and 7,
12:12
and then he picks it back up again in 9 and 10, and then we get a little bit
12:16
further out and about 18 through 26 is got some pieces of keeping God's law.
12:23
But we want to hone in on verses 5, 25 and 26.
12:27
So I'll read those. And I know Erica is chomping at the bits to talk about Proverbs 28, verse 5.
12:35
Evil men understand not judgment, but they that seek the Lord understand all
12:42
things. I love that seeking the Lord here is tied to understanding.
12:49
I think that if there is anything we all want in this world,
12:54
it's to be able to understand.
12:56
To be able to understand what's going on in a situation, to be able to understand
13:00
what other people are thinking or feeling, to be able to understand what the
13:05
best words are to say in a situation, right?
13:08
To be able to understand just what are all the factors that are happening when
13:13
something is going on in our lives, right?
13:16
Understanding is such a gift. And I believe that true understanding can only come from the Lord.
13:24
And, you know, I think, and I say this all the time, but I think that the most,
13:29
common prayer that I pray is, Lord, give me the words for this situation, right?
13:36
Lord, give me the understanding to understand what's really going on in this situation.
13:41
That's a prayer I pray many, many, many times throughout the day as I'm trying to navigate.
13:48
The professional job that I have. And I think that it's the most,
13:53
you know, kind of important prayer because it's a prayer in a lot of ways of submission, right?
14:00
It's saying, Lord, you're the only one who can give me the full understanding that I need.
14:05
And when we come into a challenging situation as a child of God,
14:09
we're walking in with the Holy Spirit in our hearts.
14:12
But if we're not invoking the power of the Holy Spirit and bringing the Holy
14:16
Spirit into that situation, we're not going to be able to hear from the Holy Spirit.
14:23
And if we don't do that, that's kind of our own fault.
14:27
I mean, that's like choosing to walk around in darkness and not flip the light
14:30
switch, right? I mean, it's really our own fault.
14:34
And I think that we need to make the conscious choice to say,
14:38
Lord, help me in this situation. Help me understand.
14:41
Holy Spirit, give me the wisdom and the understanding in this situation.
14:45
And verse 5 says, evil men understand not judgment.
14:49
So those that are not following the Lord don't have understanding.
14:54
The second part of that verse is what's so powerful.
14:57
But they that seek the Lord understand all things. I want to understand.
15:05
Like, that's what I want. If I understand, I'll know what to do as being the
15:11
Lord's hands extended in whatever situation I'm in.
15:14
If I have understanding, I'm going to know what words to say,
15:18
and I'm going to know the next steps to take or the next step not to take.
15:24
And it only makes sense that you would have understanding if you're seeking
15:28
the Lord because he knows all things. Absolutely.
15:31
And Jeremiah 33 says, if we call unto him, he'll answer us and show us great
15:35
and mighty things which we don't know.
15:38
And if we're seeking him for answers, he is the way, the truth, and the life.
15:44
We're going to get the right information. You're going to know what you need
15:48
to know because you're getting the information from the source,
15:52
and it's the truth. And I love that.
15:56
And some of the problems we have that conflicts with that, we can see in verse 25, we're,
16:02
which says, he that is of a proud heart stirs up strife, but he that put us
16:07
his trust in the Lord shall be made fat.
16:11
And when we look at this word fat, you know, we're not saying,
16:16
okay, don't trust in the Lord, because if you do, you're going to have a large body.
16:20
That's not what we're saying at all. What we're saying is, is that we will have plenty.
16:26
Spiritual fullness is the little phrase on the side of my Bible.
16:29
I love that. Full of the Spirit.
16:31
And I think it's important that we understand that, that we know that we will
16:38
have the things that we need and that we'll be blessed with abundant blessings.
16:46
And I think that's important. But those who stir up strife, That's not what happens to them.
16:52
And when we are too proud to humble ourselves and ask God for help,
16:59
we're too proud to do what he says and trust that what he says is the right way.
17:04
If we forget that his ways are not our ways, but his ways are higher than our
17:08
ways, he has all the information.
17:11
And no matter how much information we have, we are working from a limited data set.
17:15
And I believe that it's the pride in our heart that causes us not to grasp what
17:24
God has for us, especially in the understanding.
17:27
So instead, we are not speaking the words God would have us to speak and we
17:33
cause a fight literally, or we stir up more trouble because we've made the situation
17:38
worse because we've done the wrong thing.
17:41
And so this 25 really warns us that when you're not keeping God's laws,
17:47
when you're not following what He has to say for you because you're too proud
17:52
is why you're doing it. And that's a problem.
17:54
And Scripture says that pride goes before a fall.
17:58
And 26 says, he that trusteth in his own heart is a fool, but whoso walketh
18:04
wisely, he shall be delivered.
18:06
And again, if you're so proud that you think you know all that,
18:10
and then some, you're really lacking wisdom.
18:16
And you're really having a heart of a fool.
18:20
And you'll be delivered. Like, if those who walketh wisely will be delivered,
18:27
right? If we, like verse 25, there's a promise, right?
18:30
That promise is to be made fat, which to be made spiritually full.
18:35
To be blessed. To be blessed, right? To be blessed with all good things.
18:39
In 26, we shall be delivered. If we're going to be delivered from whatever situation
18:44
we're in, it requires walking wisely.
18:49
It requires doing what he says as opposed to what we may think is the right thing.
18:54
Because oftentimes what we think and what he thinks are not in sync.
18:58
Often our wisdom does not always come from him, right? Our wisdom comes from our logic, our brain.
19:08
And logic will kill you. Absolutely.
19:10
And so walking wisely is listening to the Lord, right? It's seeking the Lord.
19:16
It's that same evoking the power of the Holy Spirit in a situation and asking
19:20
for wisdom and understanding.
19:22
It's a place also of
19:25
of submission amen right it's saying humility
19:29
it's humility it's lord i don't know what to do in this situation and we can
19:33
get so indignant in a situation and and feel that our whole the whole situation
19:41
is about about us when so often it's not but we can feel that way.
19:49
And I think that really causes us to get off track and take our eyes off of
19:53
the Lord and take our eyes off of having the spiritual eyes to see what's really
19:58
going on in the situation, which really goes back to verse 5.
20:03
Like, we want to have the understanding, and we want to understand all things.
20:08
And this proud heart, I think, is oftentimes the root of our problems.
20:17
And some of that gets increased, the pride in our heart, when we are successful.
20:26
Yes. Because we trust in our own riches.
20:30
And it's such a tool of the devil because it's a vicious cycle.
20:34
Because as we begin to trust in our own riches and trust in our own security
20:38
and our financial wealth, then what happens is we spend more time trying to gain it.
20:45
And less time understanding what true riches are.
20:48
I want to start this section about the danger of seeking to be rich with what true riches really are.
20:57
And in verse 27, he says, He that giveth unto the poor shall not lack,
21:02
but he that hideth his eyes shall have many a curse.
21:08
So true riches is giving, right?
21:10
It's being able to give. It's true riches is having enough to give and not be,
21:20
not lack, because you give.
21:23
See, I think it goes back to that 26 that says walking wisely.
21:28
Because when we give means we are not thinking our bucket of money is what's sustaining us.
21:37
We assume that if we're following Jesus and we give because he says give,
21:43
that he'll put that money back in again.
21:46
And I promise you that's a true statement. He will. You can't outgive him.
21:51
But a generous Christian is one who has not really attached their security at
22:01
all to their bank accounts or their portfolio.
22:05
They are attaching their security to the mighty hand of God.
22:12
They are counting their riches by the blessings of peace and love and friends.
22:23
And intangible non-material things.
22:26
A person who truly is walking with the Lord would empty their bank account without
22:34
much thought if God told him to. Now, they're prudent with their money. They're frugal.
22:39
They do what they're supposed to do. but money is not their end goal.
22:44
And money is not their purpose. Money is a means to do the work of the Lord
22:50
and distribute like a banker for God.
22:53
And those are the people who understand the true riches that God gives.
23:00
I love that you brought up understanding because kind of like the understanding
23:04
that we talked about in verse 5.
23:06
In verse 11, we read, The rich man is wise in his own conceit,
23:10
but the poor that hath understanding searcheth him out, right?
23:15
It's better to be poor and have understanding, right? Because the poor are going
23:20
to be more dependent upon the Lord.
23:22
It's better to be more dependent upon the Lord and have understanding than to
23:27
be wise in our own conceit.
23:30
What he says in verse 6, he says, better is the poor that walketh in his unrightness
23:35
than he that is perverse in his ways, though he be rich.
23:38
A poor person, perhaps by necessity, is walking hand in hand with God and completely
23:46
dependent on them for their sustenance.
23:49
Whereas the temptation to believe you're the powerful one if you have wealth is always there.
23:57
And so the Lord is saying, sometimes it's better.
24:01
If you can't manage the pride of your heart or you can't humble yourself to
24:07
God and allow Him to lead you and still completely trust in Him when you are His banker for others,
24:15
then it's better that you don't have anything to give.
24:20
I think this idea of not having anything to give, too, also just points to kind
24:24
of the last verse that's in this section is in verse 22.
24:29
He that hasteth to be rich. Like when you're being hasty. That's your purpose.
24:34
Right. And trying to be rich.
24:37
The verse says that you have an evil eye and you don't consider that poverty shall come. Right.
24:44
This idea that money is everything and not that money is fleeting.
24:49
And it doesn't matter how you get it.
24:51
Like in verse eight, it says, you know, whosoever he that by usury or unjust
24:57
gain increases his substance, he shall gather it for him that will pity the poor.
25:04
So if you're cheating and stealing to get it, you're going to lose it and probably
25:09
give it to somebody who's going to use money to do the right thing.
25:12
You may not give it willingly, but they're going to end up with it.
25:15
And what he's saying to us in this is that the end goal is not to be rich in material things.
25:22
And he keeps contrasting this with poor people because some of the most generous
25:28
people I know don't have much.
25:30
They don't. And they're so content and they're so happy.
25:33
Whereas there's a truth to the more things you have, it ties you down.
25:38
It becomes bondage because you've got to maintain it.
25:41
You've got to keep it. You've got to try to use it. You've got to try to do.
25:45
You know, get your money's worth or you're constantly spending on money on the
25:51
thing that costs you a lot of money to begin with. And it is a vicious cycle.
25:56
But when we delight in the Lord, He gives us the desires of our heart.
26:00
And delighting in the Lord has nothing to do with material wealth.
26:03
It is the peace and the satisfaction that comes from being holy and acceptable
26:09
in His eyes and walking hand in hand with him and lacking nothing. Amen.
26:15
Because he has you. And that's what true riches are.
26:20
In this entire chapter of Proverbs, really is a correcting.
26:25
It's like steering us to get a vision of God is the prize.
26:31
And a relationship with Him is what He's calling us to.
26:36
And there is more blessing in that than your eyes have ever seen or your mind
26:41
can imagine. And we need to get our purpose right.
26:45
Our purpose is to love the Lord with our whole heart, our whole mind,
26:51
our whole soul, and our whole strength.
26:54
This is the definition of living the abundant life we're promised in John 10.10.
27:01
Absolutely. Well, I really hope that you all enjoyed going through Proverbs
27:06
chapter 28 with us, and we will be back in Proverbs chapter 29 in just a week.
27:13
But most importantly, we hope that this study on Proverbs chapter 28 sparked
27:19
something in your heart or in your mind that the Lord can use to draw you closer to Him.
27:24
Remember, you are loved. Jesus loves you.
27:27
Music.
27:35
Thank you for joining us in today's podcast. You can visit the show notes for
27:40
quotes from today's podcast and scripture references.
27:43
We pray today has been a blessing and we encourage you to reach out to us through
27:47
our app, our website, or our Facebook page.
27:50
You can find our app by searching for Woman at the Well Ministries in your app
27:54
store or through our website at watwm.org.
27:58
We're on Facebook at facebook.com slash W-A-T-W-M.
28:02
If you visit our website, you'll be able to subscribe to Bible Bits,
28:06
a daily devotion written by Kim and delivered Monday through Friday by text message.
28:11
Woman at the Well Ministries is a nonprofit organization dedicated to serving our Heavenly Father.
28:17
And it is through your loving and generous support that our ministry continues to bless others.
28:22
To learn how to partner with Woman at the Well Ministries, please visit our website.
28:26
Thank you to the Gospel Group Fudge Creek for letting us use their hit song, Happy Girl.
28:31
We greatly appreciate your prayers. We are praying daily for our listeners.
28:36
Remember that God loves you.
28:37
Music.