Saturday, February 26, 2011

Lesson 17 - The Gospel According to John & Proverbs

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The Same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. (John 1:1-5)
God was the beginning of the world. God was before the beginning of the world. He is the Alpha. The Word was "with" God, or in a face-to-face relationship with God; Jesus is one with God. God was the Word; Jesus and God are one. God is the great I AM.
"The Lord by wisdom hath founded the earth; by understanding hath he established the heavens" (Proverbs 3:19). "The Lord possessed me [wisdom] in the beginning of his way, before his works of old. I was set up from everlasting, from the beginning, or ever the earth was. When there were no depths, I was brought forth; when there were no fountains abounding with water. Before the mountains were settled, before the hills was I brought forth: While as yet he had not made the earth, nor the fields, nor the highest part of the dust of the world. When he established the clouds above; when he strengthened the fountain of the deep. When he gave to the sea his decree, that the waters should not pass his commandment; when he appointed the foundations of the earth; Then I was by him, as one brought up with him: and I was daily his delight, rejoicing always before him. Rejoicing in the habitable part of his earth; and my delights were with the sons of men" (Proverbs 8: 22-31).
 God had wisdom in the beginning that He brought with him to create the earth. We should strive not of earthly wisdom but of Wisdom from the Lord. What's the difference you ask? The difference is that earthly wisdom is like "street-smarts." You recognize the ways of others and you can beat them at their own game. You recognize a liar, a coward, a bully when you see them. Wisdom from the Lord, however, is many things. I can't even begin to explain what it is to be honest. Those who are wise fear the Lord or "to hate evil: pride, and arrogancy, and the evil way, and the froward mouth, do I hate" (Proverbs 8:13). Wisdom is understanding, truth, knowledge, prudence, accepting of instruction, to not ramble or gloat. "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding" (Proverbs 9:10).

Because God is the beginning, he knew everything that was to be; He knew we were to be born when He created this world. When He created this world, He knew that Adam and Eve would sin just as He knew that He would be betrayed. This is why we can say that Jesus died for ALL of our sins, because God knew us when He created the earth. He knew that Jesus (God in the flesh) would have to endure what we run from. Jesus chose to endure the pain, the lashings, the beating, the scorning, the humiliation, the crucifixion, tears, the absence of family, misunderstanding, the betrayal sealed with a kiss. He lived through every negative things that we could live through so that all was forgiven. He lets me experience the negative in the world so that I can see His goodness because without evil in the world, how would we see the good that He brings. We have to experience storms in our lives to believe that He exists. We just have to remember that to trust in His goodness, we have to recognize that when something negative happens in our life, that is apart of His plan to bring us either closer to Him or to gain knowledge and wisdom that He will provide for us if only we believe and have complete faith in Him.


A website that has a cool list of tips to live life

The Itunes podcast of Apex Church's sermons
http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/resources-forms-apex-community/id79423587


The Wise Man According to Proverbs: An Outline

  • His Character
    • He Is Teachable, Not Intractable
      1. He receives and loves instruction (18:15; 19:20)
      2. He grows in wisdom (1:5; 9:9; 10:14)
    • He Is Righteous, Not Wicked
      1. He fears the Lord (1:7; 14:16; see below under relationship to the Lord)
      2. He hates what is false (13:5)
      3. He shuns evil (3:7; 14:16; 16:6)
      4. He does what is righteous (2:20)
      5. He speaks the truth (22:21)
    • He Is Humble, Not Proud (15:33)
    • He Is Self-controlled, Not Rash
      1. His temperament
        1. He is self-controlled (29:11)
        2. He has a calm spirit (17:27)
        3. He is slow to become angry (29:8,11)
      2. 2. His actions
        1. He is cautious, not hasty (19:2)
        2. He thinks before he acts (13:16; 14:8)
        3. He thinks before he speaks (12:23; 15:2)
    • He Is Forgiving, Not Vindictive
      1. He is patient (19:11)
      2. He is concerned about goodwill/peace (14:9)
      3. He forgives those who wrong him (10:12; 17:9)
      4. He is not vindictive (20:22; 24:29)
  • His Relationships
    • To the Lord
      1. He fears the Lord (9:10; 14:16; 15:33)
      2. He trusts in the Lord (3:5; 16:3,20)
      3. He is ever mindful of the Lord (3:6)
      4. He chooses the Lord's way/wisdom (8:10-11; 17:24)
      5. He submits to the Lord's discipline (1:2-3; 3:11)
      6. He confesses his sin (28:13)
    • To His Family
      1. To his parents
        1. Respects them (17:6; contrast 30:17)
        2. Listens to them (23:22; cf. 1:8; 4:1)
        3. Seeks to bring them honor and joy
          1. By being wise (10:1; 15:20; 29:3)
          2. By being righteous (23:24)
          3. By being diligent (10:5)
      2. To his wife
        1. He appreciates her
          1. As a gift from the Lord (18:22; 19:14)
          2. As his crowning glory (12:4; 31:10-31)
        2. He praises her (31:28)
        3. He trusts her (31:11)
        4. He is faithful to her (5:15-20)
      3. To his children
        1. He loves them (3:12; 13:24)
        2. He is concerned about them (1:8-9:18)
        3. He trains them (22:6)
          1. Reasons for training them
            1. Own peace of mind and joy (29:17)
            2. Child's honor and well-being (1:8-9; 4:9; 19:18; 23:13-14)
          2. By teaching/instructing them (1:10; chs. 5-7; 28:7; cf. 4:1-9)
          3. By disciplining them
            1. By verbal correction (13:1)
            2. By physical discipline (13:24; 23:13-14)
        4. He provides for their
          1. Physical needs (21:20; cf. 27:23-27)
          2. Spiritual heritage (14:26; 20:7)
    • To His Friends and Neighbors
      1. To his friends
        1. He values them (27:10)
        2. He is constant to them (17:17; 18:24)
        3. He gives them counsel (27:9,17; cf. 27:6; 28:23)
      2. To his neighbors
        1. He fulfills his obligations (3:27-28)
        2. He strives for peace (3:29-30)
        3. He does not outstay his welcome (25:17)
        4. He does not deceive or mislead them (16:29; 26:18-19)
  • His Words
    • The Power of His Words
      1. Their power
        1. The power of life and death (12:6; 13:14; 15:4; 18:21)
        2. The power to heal or to wound (11:9,11; 12:18; 15:4,30; 16:24)
      2. Their limitation
        1. No substitute for deeds (14:23)
        2. Cannot alter the facts (26:23-26)
        3. Cannot compel response (29:19)
    • The Character of His Words
      1. They are honest, not false (12:22; 16:13)
      2. They are few, not many (10:19)
        1. Not boastful (27:2)
        2. Not argumentative (17:14)
        3. Not contentious (29:9)
        4. Not a gossip
          1. Revealing secrets (11:13; 20:19)
          2. Spreading slander (10:18; 26:20-22)
      3. They are calm, not emotional
        1. Rational (15:28; 17:27)
        2. Gentle and peaceable (15:1,18)
        3. Yet persuasive (25:15)
      4. They are apt, not untimely (15:23; 25:11)
    • The Source of His Words
      1. His heart/character (compare 4:23 with Mt 12:33-35)
        1. Positively, he is righteous (cf. 10:11; 13:14)
        2. Negatively, he is not
          1. Proud (13:10; cf. 6:16-19)
          2. Hateful (26:24,28)
      2. His companions (13:20; 27:17)
      3. Reflections (15:28)

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