THE IMPORTANCE AND THE DEMONSTRATION OF OBEDIENCE

RETURN TO SYLLABUS

PROVERBS 19:16-29
Lesson #32
THE IMPORTANCE AND THE DEMONSTRATION OF OBEDIENCE

• Memory verse: Your choice.
• The majority of the proverbs in this section of the book speak to the theme of obedience in one way or another. Proverbs gives us the application and the implication of God’s moral law. In other words, we are told what to do in life and the results of either obedience or disobedience to what we are told.
• Read Pro 19:16-29
  • ^“He that keepeth the commandment keepeth his own soul; but he that despiseth his ways shall die.” (16)
    • Key words: commandment (command).
    • Implied in the proverb is that “the commandment” comes from God.
      • Throughout the whole Bible God stresses the importance of obedience and submission to His Word. There are many examples in the Bible of severe problems in life that result from disobedience and rebellion. Why is obedience so important to God?
      • God’s perspective is outside of time and space.
        • Man’s perspective is always limited to time and space.
      • God’s perspective is never distorted by selfishness.
        • Man’s perspective is always clouded by his own will.
      • God’s perspective is always based on His extreme love for man’s welfare.
        • Man’s perspective is always obscured by his own sinful nature.
      • Disobedience is a form of rebellion. Even Jesus had to learn obedience. (Heb 5:8)
        • The most difficult lesson that a person must learn is obedience to authority over him.
      • Obedience is the highest form of expressed love.
    • Jesus said that if we love Him we will keep his commandments. (Joh 14:15)
    • Of course the proverb tells us that the person that does not acknowledge God’s gift of love, Jesus Christ will not have eternal life but will suffer the second death which is eternal separation from God in the lake of fire. (Rev 20:13-15)
  • ^“He that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto the Lord; and that which he hath given will he pay him again.” (17)
    • If you give to the poor, you are lending to the Lord at the same time.
    • Why does the proverb say you are lending to the Lord?
      • God identifies himself with the poor in the same way that He identifies himself with those who are persecuted for their faith in God. Remember when the Apostle Paul persecuted Christians and God appeared to Paul in a vision and asked, “Why persecuteth thou me?” (Act 9:4)
      • When Jesus came to this earth the first time, He identified himself with the poor and the down trodden. For this reason He became flesh and dwelt among us in a human body and referred to himself as the Son of man. (Joh 1:1, 14)
      • God commands His people to give to the poor. (Deu 15:7 Mar 10:21 1Tim 6:17-19)
    • Therefore, because of this identification with the poor, when you give to the poor you are giving to God in obedience. God pays all his debts.
  • ^“Chasten thy son while there is hope, and let not thy soul spare for his crying.” (18)
    • Don’t let your love and compassion for your children’s crying cloud your determination to discipline your children.
    • Pro 10:13b tells us that corporal punishment is good for a child… “a rod is for the back of him that is void of understanding”.
      • The ultimate love that a parent can express to a child is to break a rebellious spirit in his child.
      • The Bible tells us that if we love our children we will discipline them. In the same way God disciplines His children because He loves us. (Heb 12:8)
      • A parent that disciplines his child and breaks a rebellious spirit helps his child to learn obedience to God when that child grows and becomes an adult. (Pro 13:24)
  • ^“A man of great wrath shall suffer punishment: for if thou deliver him, yet thou must do it again.” (19)
    • This proverb tells us that the hardest thing for a person to learn is to control his temper because anger occurs over and over again to become a habitual pattern in life.
      • The uncontrolled emotions are evidence that the flesh nature is in control of the situation.
        • When you get angry at someone, you permit that person to control your emotions.
        • When you get angry at something, you permit that object to control your emotions.
        • When you get angry at yourself, you permit your flesh nature to control your emotions.
      • The believer needs to let the Holy Spirit control his emotions. This is something the believer learns to do by practice.
      • Some hints:
        • Usually you lose your temper when triggered by something. Figure out what triggers your emotions to anger. That becomes a red flag.
        • When a red flag occurs, walk away.
        • Separate yourself and pray, giving the situation to God.
        • The antidote to great wrath is forgiveness and peace.
      • If you are angry at a person, forgive him even if he does not deserve it.
      • When you forgive, God give you the peace.
  • ^“Hear counsel, and receive instruction, that thou mayest be wise in thy latter end.” (20)
    • Key words: counsel (advice); instruction (moral discipline for discernment); wise (a believer).
    • The believer in Jesus Christ is supposed to listen to Godly advice from mature believers concerning important decisions in his life.
    • The “latter end” is the end result in your life. Through our many experiences in life we gradually learn wisdom (to live like an expert). It is accumulative and comes from walking with the Lord in obedience and in company with other believers over many years.
    • The believer in Jesus Christ learns to walk in God’s will by learning obedience to God. He learns God’s will by hearing Godly counsel, hearing the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and by observing the lives of more mature believers.
  • ^“There are many devices in a man’s heart; nevertheless the counsel of the Lord, that shall stand.” (21)
    • Key words: heart (soul); counsel (advice).
    • The only advice that will stand over time into eternity is the counsel of God.
      • Because there are many diverse voices seeking to deceive the believer, the believer must learn by experience to distinguish the voice of God so that he can be obedient to God.
      • How must the believer decide between all of these diverse voices which voice belongs to God? You must ask yourself these questions:
        • -1- Is it true to the Son of God? (Joh 16:13-14)
        • -2- Does it line up with scripture? (Isa 8:19-20)
        • -3- Does it leave you with peace inside? (Deu 13:1-5)
        • -4- Does it lead you into liberty or bondage? (2Pet 2:17)
        • -5- Consider the validity of the person bringing you the message. (Mat 7:15-20)
        • -6- Does it confuse you, or is the message confusing and/or changes doctrine? (Deu 18:20-22)
        • -7- Is there an anointing from God on the message and/or the messenger? (1Joh 2:20-24)
    • All other counsel (advice) will prove to be temporary and not based on the eternal truth of God that is found in the Bible.
    • Jesus said that His sheep know His voice. (Joh 10:4, 27)
  • ^“The desire of a man is his kindness: and a poor man is better than a liar.” (22)
    • Inherent in the meaning of this proverb is that the poor man is an honest believer while the rich man is a lying non-believer. Of course we know that all poor people are not honest believers. Neither are all rich men lying non-believers.
    • The proverb sets up a contrast by parallel:
      • Desire of man / poor man
      • Kindness / liar
      • Man should desire to be wealthy enough to be able to show kindness to others. If he is extremely poor, he will not have the resources to show much kindness.
      • Therefore, if he pretends to be rich so as to show kindness, it is a lie, a presumption, and not a kindness in God’s sight.
  • ^“The fear of the Lord tendeth to life: and he that hath it shall abide satisfied; he shall not be visited with evil.” (23)
    • Key words: fear of the Lord (awesome reverence).
    • To have that awesome reverence for God in your life will serve you well through all of your life.
      • That awesome reverence means you are living in a constant personal relationship with God through Jesus Christ, your redeemer.
      • In that constant personal relationship you are protected by God’s presence, by the forgiveness of sin in Jesus Christ, and by the help and guidance of the Holy Spirit.
      • Notice the person that has the fear of the Lord “abides” satisfied. That means he is living in obedience to Christ. Then the result is that evil will not visit him.
  • ^“A slothful man hideth his hand in his bosom, and will not so much as bring it to his mouth again.” (24)
    • Key words: slothful (lazy).
    • This man is too lazy to move his hand enough to feed himself. He is even too lazy to work to get money to buy food for himself.
    • If this person is a Christian and complains about the lack of provision from God, he needs a lesson in obedience to God. The Christian life is a co-operation between man and God. Trust and obedience are uniquely related.
      • Many Christians say they are waiting for God to do something.
      • Usually for what they are waiting God has already done through Jesus Christ on the cross. Jesus said, “It is finished”.
      • Now it is up to us to believe that what Jesus did is sufficient. Then it is up to us to be obedient to step out on faith to claim the promise by doing our part.
        • For example: Reading and studying the Word of God is the believer’s spiritual food yet many Christians are too lazy to read and study it.
        • Reading and studying the Bible is not an option. It is a command.
        • Read 2Tim 2:15
  • ^“Smite a scorner, and the simple will beware: and reprove one that hath understanding, and he will understand knowledge.” (25)
    • Key words: scorner (arrogant hater); simple (unwise); reprove (correction); understanding/ understand (discernment of good from evil); knowledge (power to know truth).
    • We see three kinds of people in this proverb:
      • =1= the scorner (arrogant hater) is rebuked for learning nothing.
      • =2= the simple (unwise) are warned by what happens to the scorner.
      • =3= the wise person that lives skillfully will deepen his discernment of good and evil through correction so as to know the truth.
    • Remember the “simple” are the baby believers that do not know the Word of God or they are the carnal Christians that try to live in the world and with Christ at the same time.
      • A focus of Proverbs is to try to get the “simple” to wake up and change their ways so as to become spiritually mature believers.
      • As the unwise believer sees what happens in the life of a person that is an arrogant hater of God and God’s people, he will see the warning and change his lifestyle.
      • Correct the believer that has a discernment of good from evil, and he will gain the power to know the truth of God.
  • ^“He that wasteth his father, and chaseth away his mother, is a son that causeth shame, and bringeth reproach.” (26)
    • Key words: reproach (censure).
    • The idea in this proverb is that the son is wasting his father’s money by a poor lifestyle choice, and in turn he is wasting his own eventual inheritance. The Biblical example is the prodigal son.
    • The actions of his lifestyle cause shame to his mother when he does not follow God’s ways. Therefore God has to censure him and discipline him.
      • It is easier to receive the discipline of an earthly parent when the child is young.
      • It is more difficult to receive the discipline of our heavenly parent when we are adults.
      • Therefore, it is better to learn obedience to authority when we are young.
  • ^“Cease, my son, to hear the instruction that causeth to err from the words of knowledge.” (27)
    • Key words: instruction (moral discipline for discernment); knowledge (power to know truth).
    • .If your life keeps going off track, away from your ability to know the truth of God, stop listening to the modern moral disciplines that psychology promotes. Don’t let the spiritual blind lead you.
      • Only God can give you the power to know the truth.
      • Modern psychology is based on the fact that man is basically good and that his problems come from his parents.
      • The Bible teaches us that man is basically a sinner with a sin nature prone to evil. His problems are the result of his selfish sin nature.
  • ^“An ungodly witness scorneth judgment: and the mouth of the wicked devoureth iniquity.” (28)
    • Key words: scorneth (arrogant hater); judgment (discernment); wicked (lawless evil); iniquity (sin).
    • The arrogant hater lives his life in lawless evil. He dislikes and turns against God’s moral discernment to indulge himself deeper into new areas of sin. His lifestyle is the supreme example of disobedience to the ways of God.
    • This is the person whose sins start out small and become addictive. The more he partakes of sin the more addictive and all-encompassing those sins become dragging him deeper into lawless evil.
  • ^“Judgments are prepared for scorners, and stripes for the back of fools.” (29)
    • Key words: scorners (arrogant hater); stripes (punishment); fools (no God for me).
    • Read Rev 20:11-15
    • The word “judgments” in this verse refers to the final judgment of non-believers at the great white throne when the books are opened, and the unbeliever’s name is not found in the Lamb’s book of life.
      • Instead of being judged by the righteousness of Christ that covers all believers in Christ, this non-believer will be judged by his own works that fall far short of God’s perfect standard.
      • The eternal punishment in the lake of fire is for the non-believer that is the “fool” in Proverbs who says he wants nothing to do with God in his life.
      • God did not make the lake of fire for disobedient man but for the fallen angels that rebelled against God before the creation of man.
    • One of the basic characteristics of God’s nature is perfect justice.
      • That means there must be a reward for good and for a righteous lifestyle.
      • That means there must be a punishment for evil and for a disobedient lifestyle.

Homework
Proverbs 20:1-15

• Application of Pro 19:16-29
  • What is the very best thing a person can do for himself? (16)
    • He can be obedient to God and to those in authority over us.
  • When should a parent correct his children? (18)
    • The child should be spanked when he is young enough to learn obedience.
  • When will we be wise according to verse 20?
    • At the end of our walk with the Lord if we have abided in a close relationship with Him.
  • Verse 21 refers to the counsel of the Lord. Where do I find this counsel?
    • In the Bible.
• Preparation for Pro 20:1-15
  • Read Pro 20:1-15
    • What do you think is a valid Biblical approach to alcohol for a Christian? (1)
    • What is the Biblical answer to Pro 20:9?
    • What does Pro 20:11 teach you about man’s basic nature?
    • What is a precious jewel in verse 15? Why?
• Memory verse: Pro 20:5