Things we need to do
[Proverbs 24:10-20]
There was a little boy sitting next to Missionary Yoo last week Wednesday night prayer meeting. The kid is the grandson of Missionary Yoo's couple. I think Missionary Yoo went home and read the Bible for her grandson and prayed before the child fell asleep and asked him what he remembered during the prayer meeting. Then the child said, 'Wisdom is better than weapons.’ Haha. That is the first half of Ecclesiastes 9:18 that we meditated on: “Wisdom is better than weapons of war.” Do you remember any of the words of Proverbs 24:1-9 that we meditated on during the Wednesday prayer meeting last week? I don’t think it’s easy for all of us. So I’m going to review the lessons that we have already received over the past two weeks, focusing on the words of Proverbs 24:1-9, in three ways how the wise do things: (1) The wise man doesn’t envy the prosperity of the wicked (v. 1). (2) The wise man builds up his house firmly (v. 3). (3) The wise man wage war by wise guidance (v. 6).
I would like to receive 6 lessons about what we should do with the wisdom that God gives, based on the words of Proverbs 24:10-20. As we receive these six lessons, I hope and pray that God the Holy Spirit will give each of us enlightenment and give us grace to practice.
First, we should not be discouraged when faced with difficulties.
Look at Proverbs 24:10 – “If you falter in times of trouble, how small is your strength!” Living in this world can lead to discouragement when we face difficulties. In particular, when the difficulties are so difficult and overwhelming that we alone can’t handle it, then we ask for help around us. But when we don’t receive any help, then we can be discouraged. At that time, we realize that the only one to rely on is the Lord. So we go to the Lord and ask Him for help. However, no matter how much we pray, we can become more discouraged when we seem to have no answer from the Lord (Lk. 18:1). When we are discouraged like this, our strength will weaken a lot, and we may become exhausted and desperate.
In 1 Samuel 17:32 we can see David the shepherd telling King Saul: “… Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine; your servant will go and fight him.” Here, “this” Philistine refers to “Goliath, the Philistine champion from Gath” (v. 23). When the Israelites saw Goliath, they all ran from him in great fear (v. 24). So David said, “"Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine” and that he would go and fight Goliath (v. 32). What do you think of the David's word? If we had been there, could we listen to David and not be discouraged anymore by Goliath? When all the people around us saw Goliath and were terribly afraid and fled before him, can we not be afraid and not run away and not be discouraged? But how did David not get discouraged when he saw Goliath, but rather told King Saul that he would go out and fight him? See King Saul's reaction to the David’s word: “…You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a boy, and he has been a fighting man from his youth” (v. 33). If we think in common sense, the fight between Goliath, the fighting man from his youth, and David, a boy, is a fight that cannot be compared. And it's our human nature not try to fight at all that we can't win that opponent Goliath. The reason is because we know that w are going to lose the fight. So we can be discouraged for sure. But how did David try to fight Goliath without being discouraged or afraid? I looked for the answer in the first half of verse 37: “The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine. ….” David believed in the God of salvation. He believed that God would deliver him from Goliath’s hand. Because David had this assurance of salvation, he was not only not afraid but also not discouraged.
The apostle Paul says in Galatians 6:9 – “Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we do not grow weary.” As we do good, we can get discouraged due to difficulties and hardships. But we should not be discouraged and should not give up doing good. Rather, like the psalmist, we must ask God, proclaiming this to our own souls (Ps. 42:5, 11; 43:5): “Why are you in despair, O my soul? And why have you become disturbed within me? Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him For the help of His presence.” And, like David, the boy who fought Goliath and won, we must rely and trust in the Lord completely. Therefore, we must not be discouraged, but rather boldly overcome difficulties in faith. May we all move forward with boldness and confidence by faith in the Lord in the Lord (Eph. 3:12).
Second, we must rescue those being led away to death.
Look at Proverbs 24:11 – “Rescue those being led away to death; hold back those staggering toward slaughter.” I think you have already heard it through the news. On April 15 this year, an Islamic extremist militant group Boko Haram kidnapped 276 female students in Chibok City, Borno State, in northeastern Nigeria. Since then, dozens of people have escaped, and it is said that about 219 are still being held. But, as far as I know, the Nigerian government has not been able to rescue those 219 girls yet. But when I read an internet newspaper last week (July 9th), it is said that ‘there will be good news soon’, the Nigerian authorities said. A man named Godwill Akfabio, chairman of the Nigerian National Committee, made up of a former president, governor, and parliamentary leader, told reporters, ‘I was satisfied with the police knowing where the girls are.’ He said that the key is how to safely rescue the girls (Internet). In addition to this, there are many people in this world who are unjustly kidnapped by evil people and are in prison. One example is the sex slaves of little girls and boys all over the world now. According to the Australian branch of International Justice Mission Australia in Sydney, Australia, the ministry began in 2006 to prevent young girls and boys from being sold as sex slaves in Cebu, Philippines. As a result, the mission helped the Philippine government, police and prosecutors to rescue children who were sold as sex slaves. Through five years of ministry, 220 children who were sold as sex slaves were rescued, and more than 90 adults who exploited children were arrested (Internet). Another example is people who are unfairly accused of being jailed in the United States. According to the US media on May 21, 2012, the Michigan Law School and Northwestern Law School analyzed court data and found that more than 2,000 cases were found belatedly innocent while serving in prison after being convicted (Internet). There are many unfair people in this world. How many people have died as well as those who are about to die unjustly.
In Proverbs 24:11, the Bible is telling us not to hesitate to rescue those who are about to die unjustly. That is, the Bible is telling us to rescue them quickly. I meditated on the verse 11 in connection with the verse 10. As a result, from the standpoint of those who were dragged into the hands of a murderer and were unjustly killed (v. 11), they were to be surely discouraged (disheartened) (v. 10). If we are people who are about to die unjustly, I think we might try to give up in despair. In this way, we will be able to show the weakness of our strength. If we were these weak people who are about to die unjustly, then wouldn't we eagerly want someone to rescue us from dying unfairly? If we can do nothing on our own and can't save ourselves, and we just fall in despair and are waiting only for the day we die, then wouldn’t we desperately want someone to deliver us quickly from that life and death situation? If we think about it that way, shouldn't we try to rescue him or her quickly if we see someone who is about to be killed unjustly? If we look at Proverbs 24:12, the Bible says: “If you say, ‘But we knew nothing about this,’ does not he who weighs the heart perceive it? Does not he who guards your life know it?’ ….” What does it mean? It means that we have responsibility to deliver those who are dragged to death. And the Bible tells us not to avoid that responsibility. Then, what is the really important responsibility we should not avoid? Look at Ezekiel 33:7-9: “Now as for you, son of man, I have appointed you a watchman for the house of Israel; so you will hear a message from My mouth and give them warning from Me. When I say to the wicked, 'O wicked man, you will surely die,' and you do not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require from your hand. But if you on your part warn a wicked man to turn from his way and he does not turn from his way, he will die in his iniquity, but you have delivered your life.” When I think of these words, it sounds like God is saying that if we see people dying without knowing Jesus and don’t take responsibility for preaching the gospel to them, God will find their blood in our hands. Of course, if we preach the gospel to them, the Bible says that if they don’t believe and die of their sins, our lives will be preserved.
Our God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live (Ezek. 33:11). Therefore, we must also rejoice that those who don’t believe in Jesus and who are heading to eternal death hear the gospel through us and believe in Jesus and turn from the path of death and walk on the path of life. We have responsibility to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ. We must not avoid this responsibility. Because God is watching our hearts, He knows that we make excuses to avoid our responsibility. We must not forget. God is the God who will repay each person according to what we have done (Prov. 24:12). May we all be praised by the Lord by faithfully taking the responsibility of preaching the gospel.
Third, we must gain wisdom.
Look at Proverbs 24:13-14: ”Eat honey, my son, for it is good; honey from the comb is sweet to your taste. Know also that wisdom is sweet to your soul; if you find it, there is a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off.” Do you like honey? Sometimes, when my wife makes me ginseng tea, she adds honey instead of sugar and gives it to me to drink. But do you know how honey is good for you? According to a website, honey regulates blood sugar levels to eliminate body fatigue. It has calcium and magnesium. So it is very effective in insomnia, neuralgia, arthritis, and is good for various inflammations (Internet). In addition, if we look at Hippocrates or My Monid's ‘Disease-free longevity’ theory, it is said that honey is the best remedy, is good for constipation, and is good to drink when we are thirsty after bathing. The reason is because honey is digested by bees in advance, so it is well absorbed, and unlike other sugars, it does not stimulate the kidneys or the inner walls of the stomach. So it has a great effect to calm the body and mind. It is said that this is because it is an alkaline food with a lot of minerals such as, zinc, and copper (Internet). On a website, it summarized the benefits of honey in 12 ways as follows (Internet): (1) Expellant effect: It is used for swelling along with detoxification. (2) Constipation effect: It is good for diarrhea or dysentery, and is also used for chronic constipation. (3) Pain Relief: It is used for pain such as heartburn, muscle pain, toothache, and mastitis. (4) Chiropractic effect: It is used for coughing and bronchitis and etc. (5) Mind and body comfort effect: It is applied to neuroses and surprises, and is good for insomnia and enuresis. Used when children show emotional anxiety and convulsions in the eyelids or the edges of the mouth. (6) Vitality·Anti-inflammatory: It makes new flesh grow, and is also used for purulent diseases such as boils, tonsillitis, otitis media, and sore throat. (7) ‘Ja-eum’ effect: to cure impotence. (8) Skin effect: It makes the face moist and is used for eczema or pediatric alone (a condition in which the skin becomes open and hot due to toxicity caused by heat). (9) Effect on gynecology: It is used for dyspareunia or major symptoms. (10) Preservation effect: It improves the function of the gastrointestinal digestive system and protects the stomach. (11) Effects on longevity: A survey of 200 elderly people aged 110 to 120 in the Soviet Union found that most of them were raised in beekeepers or were always eating honey. (12) Sterilization Effect: It has the effect of sterilizing bacteria, dips, and paratypic bacteria. In other words, bacteria cannot survive in honey, Dips bacteria 48 hours, Paratyps bacteria 25 hours, Tifs virus 5 hours, Chronic bronchitis-causing bacteria 4 days, ameba that causes bloody flux (a type of dysentery that is an acute infectious disease) is destroyed within 10 hours (Internet).
This is what Proverbs 24:13-14a says: “Eat honey, my son, for it is good; honey from the comb is sweet to your taste. Know also that wisdom is sweet to your soul; ….” The Proverbs writer tells us to eat honey because it is good. He specifically says that we should eat honey from comb. He says that wisdom is sweet to our souls so we should have wisdom. Here, “honey from the comb” refers to the honey that has just flowed down from the hive among various types of honey. This honey is said to be the sweetest, purest, non-tearing honey (internet). If so, the reason why the Proverbs writer compares “wisdom” to “honey from the comb” is because the wisdom is the sweetest and purest, and no speck is mixed, just as the honey from the comb is the sweetest and purest, and no speck or flaw is mixed. Then the question we might ask is, how could the wisdom such as honey from the comb be pure and not mixed with any speck or flaw? This is because, according to the Bible, honey comes from the rock. Look at Psalms 81:16 – “But I would feed you with the finest of the wheat, And with honey from the rock I would satisfy you.” As honey comes from the rock, wisdom comes from Jesus Christ, who is the Rock, so that wisdom is the sweetest, purest, and not mixed with any speck. So the Proverbs writer said in Proverbs 4:5-7: “Acquire wisdom! Acquire understanding! Do not forget nor turn away from the words of my mouth. Do not forsake her, and she will guard you; Love her, and she will watch over you. The beginning of wisdom is: Acquire wisdom; And with all your acquiring, get understanding.” We must gain wisdom as the Proverbs writer said. We must gain wisdom at the expense of anything. That’s how important wisdom is. In order to do that, we must first love wisdom. If we love wisdom, we will eat the word of God as we eat honey. In other words, we yearn for the pure and flawless word of God (30:5), and will keep it by our side for life, read it, and meditate on it day and night. We should never forget or ignore His word.
Why should we gain wisdom by eating the pure word of God as we eat honey from the comb? What is the reason? Look at Proverbs 24:14b – “… If you find it, then there will be a future, And your hope will not be cut off.” The reason we need to gain wisdom is that if we gain wisdom, we will surely have a bright future and hope will not be cut off. Doesn't this remind us of Proverbs 23:17-18, which we have already meditated on? “Do not let your heart envy sinners, but always be zealous for the fear of the LORD. There is surely a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off.” What does it mean? It means that the wise Christians who always fear God have a hope for the afterlife. What is the hope of the future life that we Christians have? It is that the Lord will receive us to glory (Ps. 73:24). So, the second half of Proverbs 14:32 in the Bible says, “… but the righteous hath hope in his death” (KJV). I hope and pray that all of us can gain wisdom by eating the pure word of God that is like honey from the comb.
Fourth, we must rise again even if we fall seven times.
Look at Proverbs 24:15-16: “Do not lie in wait, O wicked man, against the dwelling of the righteous; Do not destroy his resting place; For a righteous man falls seven times, and rises again, But the wicked stumble in time of calamity.” While living in this world, we who, by God's grace, believe in Jesus and are justified, may suffer from the wicked and fall because of them. Of course, I don’t think only the wicked make us fall. I am sure there are many things that cause us to fall while living in this wicked world. For example, in our fight against our sinful natures, we can fall. We may be discouraged and fall because we sin against God by falling into the temptations of this sinful world. Asaph, who wrote Psalms 73, was envious of the wicked's prosperity and almost fell. I think we can do that too. We see that the righteous are suffering, but the wicked eat well, live well, make good money, etc. When we see such wicked, we can envy and fall.
On the second day of the last church's 34th anniversary revival meeting, a guest speaker gave a sermon under the title of ‘Witness of Salvation’ centering on Matthew 16:21-25. Looking back at verse 23 of those words, Jesus said to Peter: “… Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men.” Looking at this word, it is Satan who causes Jesus to fall. Is Satan the one who causes only Jesus to fall? No, isn't it? Satan is the one who causes us, the Christians, the church of Jesus, to fall as well. How is Satan trying to make us to fall now? It is Satan who is trying to make us like the apostle Peter to think about the things of men rather than the things of God. Satan is tempting us to turn from walking the narrow path of the cross like Jesus and walk the broad path of the world. Satan continues to tempt us to make us think about the will of our people, not the will of the Lord, so that we can abandon the will of the Lord and live according to our own will.
Satan is trying to make us to fall somehow. He is trying to get us all to fall somehow, not only us, but also our homes and churches as well. What should we do? We can think of many lessons in the Bible, but I’m going to think based only on the words of Proverbs 24:16. First, we need to know that we can fall. In other words, we think that we can stumble because of the work of Satan that causes us to fall. And we can fall not only once, but seven times, even countless times. At that time, we may be disappointed because of our own fall, and may suffer from guilt. But the second thing to keep in mind is that, as the Bible says, “For a righteous man falls seven times, and rises again” (v. 16). Because I believe in these words, I think that our Christians' life of faith is like a roly-poly. Just as if we hit the roly-poly and then it rises again, we must believe that even if Satan and the wicked strike us and cause us to fall, we will rise again. How can the roly-poly rise again even it falls down? The reason is because the lower part of the roly-poly is the heaviest, so even if the upper part is accidentally tilted downward, the heaviest part is going to go down again due to the effect of gravity, so in the end it always stands upright. The lesson we can learn from here is that the center of gravity must be located below to be safe. So even if it stumbles momentarily by external influences, it will be able to stand back (Internet). I believe that the “center of gravity” that makes us to stand up again and hold the center again is the Lord who is the Rock. Even if we fall countless times, the Lord is the God who raises us up again countless times. The Lord who raised up Elijah who fell down again is the God who raises us up so that we can fulfill His mission. The Lord is the God who raises us up by rekindling our discouraged souls with the perfect word of God. May the Lord reach out to us with the right hand of His power and hold our hand and raise us up again.
Fifth, we should not rejoice when our enemy falls.
Look at Proverbs 24:17 – “Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, And do not let your heart be glad when he stumbles.” What do you think about this word? Our sinful nature is to rejoice inwardly when our enemy falls. Isn't our nature rejoices in our hearts when our enemy fall? I think that when our enemy perishes, whether we look at it or hear the news, we can even rejoice, thinking that God is a just God and He has avenged for us. But the Bible tells us not to rejoice in our hearts when our enemy falls. What is the reason? I found the answer in Ezekiel 33:11 – “As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign LORD, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that they turn from their ways and live.” Clearly, the Bible says that God is not pleased with the death of the wicked. If we apply this word to Proverbs 24:17, we can understand why the Bible tells us, “Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, And do not let your heart be glad when he stumbles.” What pleases God is that the wicked turn away from his way (Ezek. 33:11). In other words, God is a God who rejoices in repenting of our enemies, not a God who rejoices to see our enemy perishes (Prov. 24:17). So what should we, children of God, do? Our joy is that our enemies should not fall and perish, but that they should repent and return to the Lord. If not, Proverbs 24:18 says, “Or the LORD will see it and be displeased, And turn His anger away from him.” What does it mean? If we break the word of the Bible and rejoice when we see our enemies fall, then God sees us rejoicing and doesn’t pleased with us. Why wouldn't God be pleased with us? The reason is because we aren’t imitating our Heavenly Father's heart and aren’t rejoicing when our enemies repent and turn to Him. Also, God is saying that if we rejoice to see the enemy's fall (perish), He may take away (and turn away) His wrath from him (Prov. 24:18). What does it mean? It means that a person who is pleased with the fall of an enemy may be punished by God and may fall on his own (Internet). So, this is what Proverbs 17:5 says, “… and he that is glad at calamities shall not be unpunished.” The teaching of the Bible is clear. Look at Matthew 5:44 – “But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” Look at Luke 6:27-28: “But I say to you who hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.” The teaching of the Bible is to love our enemies. In that context, considering the words of Proverbs 24:17, we must not rejoice in our hearts when our enemies fall.
Sixth and last, we must not get upset and angry because of evil men.
Look at Proverbs 24:19 – “Do not get upset because of evildoers, Or be envious of the wicked” (Amplified Bible). Aren't you upset and angry when you see someone who persecutes, tortures, and makes you difficult? Wouldn't your anger rise when someone makes your loved one cry and hurts his heart? Aren't you very upset when you see truly wicked people? Aren't you angry when they eat well and live well even though they are really evil? Are you not envious of being angry and at the same time seeing the prosperity of the wicked? I think this is our natural instinctive response. When we see the wicked prosper in this world, we can be upset. Still, we may be able to subtly envy their prosperity. However, in Proverbs 24:19, the Bible tells us not to get upset with the evil men and not to be envious of the prosperity of the wicked. We have already been told in Proverbs 24:1, “Do not envy wicked men, do not desire their company.” Also, in Proverbs 23:17, we were told, “Do not let your heart envy sinners, but always be zealous for the fear of the LORD.” In this way, the Proverbs writer repeatedly told us not to be envious of the prosperity of the wicked, and in Proverbs 24:19, he also said not to be upset and be angry with them. What is the reason? Look at Proverbs 24:20 – “for the evil man has no future hope, and the lamp of the wicked will be snuffed out.”
There is no future for the wicked. They have no bright future and their lamp of hope will go out. Although from the perspective of this world it seems that they will have a bright future for them to eat and live well in this world, and even if it seems that their lamps will not be extinguished for a lifetime, the Bible clearly says that they have no hope and their lamp will be snuffed out. However, the Bible clearly says that those who don’t envy sinners' prosperity with their hearts and who always fear God have a future and our hope will not be cut off (23:18). In addition, if we look at Proverbs 24:14, the Bible says that there will be a future for those who obtain the same wisdom as honey from the comb, and hope will not be cut off. Who are those who have an unbroken hope and a clear future? They are those who have gained wisdom and who fear God. And the wise man who fears God doesn’t have anger over evil men and doesn’t envy the prosperity of the wicked. I hope and pray that we will not be upset and angry with the evil men, and that we will not be envious of the prosperity of the wicked who have no hope in the future.
There are things we Christians ought to do. We, who have been saved by God's grace and have eternal life, have things to do. For example, in 1 John 4:11, the Bible says, “Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.” In today's text Proverbs 24:10-20 we learned 6 things we ought to do: (1) We should not be discouraged when faced with difficulties. (2) We must rescue those being led away to death. (3) We must gain wisdom. (4) We must rise again even if we fall seven times. (5) We should not rejoice when our enemy falls. (6) We must not get upset and angry because of evil men. I hope and pray that all of us may able to please God more by doing these six things with the wisdom that God gives us.