The Things That Urge Us
(Proverbs 16:25-30)
Psychologist Abraham Maslow made three assumptions about human nature and developed the Motivation Theory. The first assumption is that humans have desires that cannot be fully satisfied. The second assumption is that human behavior is aimed at fulfilling these unsatisfied desires. The third assumption is that human needs are structured in a hierarchy, from basic needs (physiological needs, safety needs) to higher-level needs (belonging and love, esteem needs, self-actualization needs), organized in five stages. Human beings have insatiable desires. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is a motivational theory which is structured as follows:
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Physiological Needs: The most basic needs for survival, such as the need for food, water, shelter, and even sexual needs.
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Safety Needs: The desire for protection from danger, threats, and deprivation after physiological needs are met. It is the desire to avoid anxiety and find security.
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Love/Belonging Needs: The desire to form connections with family, friends, and others, and to feel a sense of belonging within a group.
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Esteem Needs: The basic human desire to be respected by others and to have a positive self-image.
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Self-Actualization Needs: The desire to reach one's full potential and continue personal growth. Unlike other desires, these needs tend to increase as they are satisfied, which is why they are sometimes referred to as “growth needs.” Cognitive and aesthetic needs also fall into this category (Internet).
When thinking about Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, I consider that for Christians, these needs can be categorized into two types: physical needs and spiritual needs. Physical needs are similar to Maslow's first category, physiological needs. An example of a basic physical need is hunger; when we are hungry, we desire to eat. On the other hand, for Christians, there is another kind of need, which is spiritual needs. These spiritual needs can be further divided into two categories: the desire to act righteously and the desire to sin (Internet).
In today’s passage, Proverbs 16:26, the Bible mentions human physical needs: “The laborer’s appetite works for him; his hunger drives him on.” What does this mean? It means that hunger urges us. Humans work to eat (Psalm 128:2). This is God’s law (Genesis 3:19). Therefore, the Bible calls those who do not work “unruly” or “unlawful” (2 Thessalonians 3:11). Moreover, in 2 Thessalonians 3:10, the Bible says, “If anyone is not willing to work, neither let him eat.” If a person only eats and rests, his heart will fill with evil thoughts (Genesis 6:5), and as a result, the risk of sin increases. There is a saying, "The devil makes a nest in the heart of the lazy." Therefore, humans must work diligently on earth (Park Yun-seon).
Brothers and sisters, workers should work diligently. The Bible condemns laziness and encourages diligence (Proverbs 10:4-5; 12:24; 14:23; 28:19). Diligent work is done “for oneself,” or “because of hunger,” as the Bible says. Working diligently “for oneself” means working to sustain one’s physical needs, particularly food. The Bible teaches that we work hard because our hunger urges us. This is our natural instinct: when we are hungry, we seek to satisfy our hunger. If there is no food, we strive to earn money to buy food. Most people work hard to earn money to buy food, but some will even beg for money in order to eat.
Sometimes when I’m driving, I see people standing at traffic lights holding flat cards asking for money. The words written on the card often read "I am hungry." Even in Proverbs 6:30, the Bible mentions that people, in their hunger, will resort to stealing in order to satisfy their empty stomachs. Hunger urges us, compelling us to work. When I think about our basic physical need for food, I am reminded of Deuteronomy 8:3, which says: "So He humbled you, allowed you to hunger, and fed you with manna which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord."
Why did God allow the Israelites to hunger in the wilderness? Why does God allow us, who live in a world similar to the wilderness, to experience hunger? The purpose is so that we would believe in Jesus, the bread of life who came down from heaven (John 6:33), and through faith in Him, we would receive eternal life. God allows us to hunger so that we may understand that we live not by physical bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from God’s mouth.
Thus, Jesus, the bread of life, speaks in John 6:27: "Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life." After hearing this, the people asked Jesus, "What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?" (John 6:28). Jesus answered, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent” (John 6:29).
Brothers and sisters, we must live by faith in God. Although our physical hunger urges us to work, our spiritual hunger can only be satisfied by the Word that comes from God’s mouth. We are not meant to live by sight, but by faith (2 Corinthians 5:7). We must live without worrying about what to eat, drink, or wear (Matthew 6:25, 31), and instead, we should "seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness" (Matthew 6:33). In doing so, we will be fulfilling our spiritual desire for God’s righteousness.
However, within us, there is also another urge, the urge to sin. This urge to sin can lead us into transgression, and today, I want to reflect on two specific ways this urge manifests itself, based on today’s scripture:
First, the desire to sin is rooted in self-deception.
In Proverbs 16:25, the Bible says, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.” Why do we sometimes think we are walking on the right path when those around us (especially our spiritual mentors) may see that we are not? The reason is that we are deceiving ourselves. We may think we are on the right path, but in reality, we are not. This self-deception is a common pitfall, and there are three types of people who are prone to this deception (Park Yun-seon):
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The first group: The disobedient. People who disobey God's Word become spiritually blind due to their sin and believe that their actions are right.
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The second group: The legalistic Pharisees. People who follow religious rituals and rely on their self-righteousness and works for their own glory believe their actions are correct.
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The third group: The hypocrites. These people have a mismatch between what they say and what they do. They may speak the right words but fail to follow through with righteous actions, yet still believe they are in the right.
In James 1:22, the Bible warns us: “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.” If we only hear God’s Word and do not act on it, we deceive ourselves. In other words, if we claim to have faith but have no actions to show for it, our faith is dead. We are deceiving ourselves. When we deceive ourselves in this way, our spiritual discernment becomes clouded, and we lose the ability to properly evaluate our own lives. If we continue in this self-deception, we will walk the path we have chosen in our ignorance and will ultimately face the consequences, which may be the “way of death.”
Therefore, everyone, we need to reflect once again on the Korean proverb that says, “Even when crossing a stone bridge, tap it first.” What does it mean? It means that, no matter how well we know something, we should be cautious and avoid making mistakes (Internet). When we relate this proverb to verse 25 of today’s passage, even though we may think we are walking the right path, we need to check and recheck, ensuring that we are not making any mistakes. Especially when we are overly confident and believe that the path we have chosen is indeed the right one, we should take a moment to look back and reflect. We should ask ourselves if we may be disobeying God's word, whether we are acting like legalists, or if our words and actions are inconsistent. Even though the path may appear correct to us now, we should still pause and reconsider whether the path we are walking on is truly right in the eyes of God.
Secondly, the desire to sin within us is evil.
Here, "evil" can be understood in three ways:
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The evil desire to sin is wickedness.
Let’s look at Proverbs 16:27: "A worthless man plots evil, and his lips are like a scorching fire." The term "worthless man" (a scoundrel) literally means "a man of Belial" (6:12). A worthless person refers to someone who is both useless and wicked (Walvoord). The role of such a person is to plot evil. Like a hunter digging a pit to catch prey, they create traps in our lives, leading us to fall into sin and offend God. Specifically, this wicked person uses their "scorching lips" to try to cause us to stumble, as stated in Proverbs 16:27. Everyone, Satan often makes us sin through our words. He uses worthless and malicious speech to lead us into sin against God and our neighbors. We should not sin with our lips, as Job did not (Job 2:10). Even in painful situations, we must not "sin and blame God" as Job did not (1:22).
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The evil desire to sin is deceit.
Let’s look at Proverbs 16:28 and 30: "A perverse man stirs up strife, and a whisperer separates close friends... He who shuts his eyes to devise perverse things, who closes his lips, does evil." The term "perverse man" here means "a liar" (Park Yun-seon). Such people have a rebellious heart and always plot evil, causing strife (6:14). This perverse person is said in Proverbs 16:30 to "devise perverse things." The Bible also says that they "shut their eyes" to plan evil, and "close their lips" to act decisively and powerfully to carry out their wicked plans (Park Yun-seon). This kind of person is also described in Proverbs 6:19 as one who "sows discord among brothers." In Proverbs 16:28, the Bible says, "A whisperer separates close friends." Ultimately, the perverse person causes division between brothers and close friends through lies and gossip. Satan continuously works to cause division between our brothers and sisters. He hates it when we love our neighbors and works to sow discord, leading us to argue, drift apart, and eventually hate one another. We must fight against this temptation of Satan. To do so, we must not harbor rebellion in our hearts. We must not plot evil or devise harmful plans. Instead, we should have sincere hearts, obey the Lord’s commands, and make good plans to love our neighbors.
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The evil desire to sin is violence.
Now, let’s look at Proverbs 16:29: "A violent man entices his neighbor and leads him in a way that is not good." A "violent man" refers to someone who harms others. He leads others into a "way of evil," or the way of destruction (Park Yun-seon). As we meditate on Proverbs, we see examples of such violent individuals. For example, in Proverbs 7, we read about the adulterous woman (v. 5) and the deceitful woman (v. 10). She uses various sweet words to lure a foolish young man (v. 7), seduces him with flattering speech (v. 21), and ultimately causes him to lose his life (v. 23). Satan, likewise, is constantly trying to lead us astray, seeking to destroy our lives. He wants to harm our souls, make us abandon our faith, and lead us to betray the Lord. So, what should we do? We must fight this spiritual battle with God’s word. Let’s look at the psalmist. In Psalm 119:11, he says, “I have hidden Your word in my heart that I might not sin against You.” Like the psalmist, we should store God’s word in our hearts to avoid sinning against Him. Through His word, we can fight and overcome Satan’s temptations. May we all be victorious by the word of God.