Divine Wisdom For The Family, by Dr. John MacArthur

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Divine Wisdom for the Family, from the book of Proverbs, by Dr. John MacArthur. His sermon follows sermon highlight points.

[In the following, all bracketed statements, underscoring and emboldening are mine.]

If all of man’s accumulated knowledge since the beginning of recorded history were represented by one inch until 1845; then from 1845 – 1945 would equal 3 inches; from 1945 – 1975 would equal 555 feet; according to Buckminster Fuller (inventor, innovator and mathematician) who presented his ‘doubling curve’ in 1982, in his best seller, Critical Path.

His argument was that our accumulation of knowledge since the end of WWII, had jumped from doubling approximately every century to doubling every 25 years.

By 2010, the development of Nano technology arrived; doubling knowledge every 2 years; and clinical knowledge, every 18 months; shortly thereafter, every 13 months; presently, every 12 hours our accumulated knowledge doubles.

We are in a world of exploding knowledge we can barely keep up with; however, we are still described in scripture as fools; men and nations walk in an empty-minded manner, darkened in sin and ignorance such that they cannot understand divine truth.

SERMON HIGHLIGHTS: [Dr. MacArthur used a lot of scripture in this sermon, I noted a reference or two in the following points, listen to the sermon for all the references.]

  • Romans 1:22 Professing to be wise, they became fools, 23 and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and 13 crawling creatures.
  • The darkness shows itself in the practice of every kind of sensuality and impurity with greediness.
  • The above perfectly describes the unconverted; however, the converted may know the mind of Christ via His word and the illumination of the Holy Spirit.
  • 2Tim 3:7 [NASB, 1977] [fools are] always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.
  • 1 Corinthians 2:14 But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.
  • Proverbs 22:15 Foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child; The rod of discipline will remove it far from him.
  • That is, we enter the world as fools; that is the root of our sinfulness and separation from God.
  • THE CHARACTERISTIC MARKS OF A FOOL ARE IDENTIFIED IN THE FOLLOWING 10 POINTS:
  • ONE: they all reject God: Psalm 14: The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, they have committed abominable deeds; There is no one who does good.
  • The apostle Paul repeated the above in Romans 3
  • Roman 1: 25 For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.
  • In scripture, everyone who rejects God is a fool – Romans 1 is about God giving over those rejecters of Him to their own depravity, under His curse, they proceed into debasing passions (manifesting sexual perversions) until their minds become reprobate
  • Someone with a reprobate mind may possess a higher degree; e.g., masters or doctorate [part of God’s curse on fools who reject Him is that He withholds the blessing of divine wisdom from them; such wisdom is derived from partaking of His means of grace, the word, prayer – so Romans one indicates]
  • TWO: Fools worship self. Proverbs 12:15 The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, But a wise man is he who listens to counsel.
  • That is, the fool makes up his own rules; he is god in his own eyes and self-sufficient
  • THREE: The fool mocks sin – they defy anything that describes their conduct as wrong, corrupt or sinful. Proverbs 14:9 Fools mock at sin, But among the upright there is good will.
  • Romans 1:28 And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper, 29 being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice; they are gossips, 30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, 31 without understanding, untrustworthy, unloving, unmerciful; 32 and, although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them.
  • FOUR: They corrupt others – Proverbs 15: 2 The tongue of the wise makes knowledge acceptable, But the mouth of fools spouts folly.
  • Proverbs 1: 7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; Fools despise wisdom and instruction.
  • The above describes the entire human race [as long as they remain unconverted by God]
  • Proverbs is the book of WISDOM; wisdom is therein, personified
  • Proverbs 1: 20 Wisdom shouts in the street, She lifts her voice in the square; 21 At the head of the noisy streets she cries out; At the entrance of the gates in the city, she utters her sayings: 22 “How long, O naive ones, will you love simplicity? And scoffers delight themselves in scoffing, And fools hate knowledge? 23 “Turn to my reproof, Behold, I will pour out my spirit on you; I will make my words known to you.
  • Proverbs 1: 24 “Because I called, and you refused; I stretched out my hand, and no one paid attention; 25 And you neglected all my counsel, And did not want my reproof; 26 I will even laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your dread comes,
  • Proverbs 1:28 “Then they will call on me, but I will not answer; They will seek me diligently, but they shall not find me, 29 Because they hated knowledge, And did not choose the fear of the LORD.
  • Proverbs 1:33 “But he who listens to me shall live securely, And shall be at ease from the dread of evil.”
  • The irony of the above is that fools believe they are wise: those who call the gospel foolishness, are the ultimate fools
  • Believers have the mind of Christ, as it is in scripture; we know how Christ thinks about everything via the Bible; He is to us Wisdom, Righteousness, Sanctification and Redemption
  • Luke 24:25 And He said to them, “O foolish men and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! 26 “Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into His glory?” 27 And beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures. [All scripture has a specific meaning; that one meaning is to be sought out in study – I have heard Sproul and MacArthur say that many times; that is, you can’t say, “to me, it means…”]
  • One of the major purposes of Proverbs is to contrast the Wise and the Foolish; furthermore, that one enters into the possibility of knowing wisdom when he turns from rejecting God
  • The last aspect of point four is the necessity of selecting friends wisely: Proverbs 1:10 My son, if sinners entice you, Do not consent. [1:10 is the beginning of a long passage that identifies numerous enticements that people use to lead their friends into sinful behavior; such a section is in Proverbs 2:11ff also – it is good to read Proverbs regularly]
  • FIVE: The fool does not subdue his desires: Proverbs 5: 20 For why should you, my son, be exhilarated with an adulteress, And embrace the bosom of a foreigner? 21 For the ways of a man are before the eyes of the LORD, And He watches all his paths. 22 His own iniquities will capture the wicked, And he will be held with the cords of his sin. 23 He will die for lack of instruction, And in the greatness of his folly he will go astray. [I think that verses 22 and 23 are the best description of addiction that I have ever come across]
  • Proverbs 6:20 My son, observe the commandment of your father, And do not forsake the teaching of your mother… 23 For the commandment is a lamp, and the teaching is light; And reproofs for discipline are the way of life, 24 To keep you from the evil woman,
  • Proverbs 9: 13 The woman of folly is boisterous, She is naive, and knows nothing. 14 And she sits at the doorway of her house, On a seat by the high places of the city, 15 Calling to those who pass by, Who are making their paths straight: 16 “Whoever is naive, let him turn in here,” And to him who lacks understanding she says, 17 “Stolen water is sweet; And bread eaten in secret is pleasant.” 18 But he does not know that the dead are there, That her guests are in the depths of Sheol.
  • [Her words are intended to entice people into the way of foolishness and death; in this culture wherein God has been barred from the public square, the gate, the high places of the city, Lady Folly has many more places to sit and entice wayfarers; we know that the billionaire tech giants are working diligently to remove truth from our society, truth is of God, there can be no wisdom without it. The elite Marxists hate truth…]
  • [Lady Folly’s words are justifying sin by rationalizing and minimizing it, making it acceptable; those words deny what the Sovereign Lord says in His word, that is a fatal error, taking those who follow her to eternal destruction]
  • SIX: Marital Fidelity: Proverbs 5:18 Let your fountain be blessed, And rejoice in the wife of your youth. 19 As a loving hind and a graceful doe, Let her breasts satisfy you at all times; Be exhilarated always with her love. [He cited verses 15 – 23]
  • SEVEN: Watch your words: Proverbs 4:24 Put away from you a deceitful mouth, And put devious lips far from you.
  • Proverbs 6:12 A worthless person, a wicked man, Is the one who walks with a false mouth,
  • EIGHT: Work hard: Laziness is a sure way to poverty, Proverbs 6:6 Go to the ant, O sluggard, Observe her ways and be wise…
  • Proverbs 10: 2 1 Ill-gotten gains do not profit, But righteousness delivers from death. 3 The LORD will not allow the righteous to hunger, But He will thrust aside the craving of the wicked. [he cited through verse 5]
  • NINE: Manage your money: Proverbs 3: 9 Honor the LORD from your wealth, And from the first of all your produce; 10 So your barns will be filled with plenty,
  • Proverbs 6:1 My son, if you have become surety for your neighbor, Have given a pledge for a stranger [Dr. MacArthur cited more from this passage with the intent to say that each person is responsible to God for stewardship of the money God gave him; we should not take on the debts of another, as you cannot be sure as to whether they will responsibly fulfil their obligation to the co-signer]
  • TEN: Serve Others: Proverbs 3: 27 Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, When it is in your power to do it. [He cited verses 27-36 to indicate that God blesses those who are generous]

In the above ten points from Proverbs, wisdom is found. The process of acquiring wisdom begins with fearing God [revering and respecting].

There is a lot of knowledge in the world, not much wisdom however. Dr. MacArthur recommended that those seeking wisdom read Proverbs 8 and Job 28: Proverbs 8 compares wisdom to many precious things, gold…, stating that wisdom is better; Job 28, speaks about the futility of unconverted people seeking wisdom; can’t be found without God [apparently, the Holy Spirit illumines the word and strengthens the prayers such that wisdom becomes possible for the converted].

In concluding, Dr. MacArthur cited some New Testament verses to explain 4 principles: walk wisely; make the most of your time; walk in divine wisdom, knowing the will of the Lord; don’t get drunk with wine, which is dissipation, be filled with the Spirit.

Jesus modeled all of those principles for us in His earthly ministry.

Ephesians 5: 15 Therefore 10 be careful how you walk, not as unwise men, but as wise, 16 making the most of your time, because the days are evil. 17 So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18 And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit, 19 speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, [Psalm 90 calls for the same].

Wisdom is available for all who love God and come to Christ.

Paul’s prayer from Ephesians 1:17 that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him. 18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, 19 and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe. These are in accordance with the working of the strength of His might 20 which He brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead, and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, 21 far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in the one to come.

Thus, the remedy for all foolishness is WISDOM, personal and familial; that wisdom is in your Bible, it is the mind of Christ.

 

 

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