This proverb rehearses a lot of things we have already talked about. So tonight it is on you. There is no possible way to know which proverb or proverbs apply to you most. So you need to look through these proverbs and think about which ones apply most to you?  Do you struggle with lying, there are plenty of proverbs here that talk about that. Or maybe you need to think about 10:22 and about modesty. None of us are perfect and we all have areas we need to work on. Think about what the bible says and consider how to start living it.

Focus on verses 9-14. Here we see a selection of proverbs about how the righteous person and the wicked person affect those around them. Remember that just because these people are called “righteous” and “wicked” doesn’t mean they are completely righteous or wicked it is just used to show us the affects of righteous and wicked actions. As human beings we have an affect on the people around us, and we have a responsibility to what that affect is. Verse 9 shows us that sometimes we can destroy the people around us. Here again we see words as the means by which people are hurt. I hope you have been taking these in and realizing how important controlling our words are. Verse 10-11 shows how great of an influence we could have. This is hard to believe, an entire city rejoicing over one righteous person? However if you think about it, it really makes sense. Think about how most people treat others. Think about school and how you see people treat others they don’t like. People can have a very negative affect on others. Think about the recent suicides some teenage kids committed because they were being abused on websites like Facebook. This is the kind of affect wicked people have on others. Not always this extreme but a terrible affect none the less. Now think about what a difference a loving Christian could have made. Christians have the ability and the knowledge to be a force of love and dignity for those around them. If Christians would live out Gods word the people around them would be affected. They would feel loved, respected and there is no limit to the amount of people who could be affected.

Here is the question I want you to think about throughout the day; how do you affect the people around them? Think about that throughout the day.

I love verse 9.  Think about it like this. Have you ever lied about something, then had to come up with another lie to cover up that lie? It is a slippery slope.  Or have you ever done something you didn’t want anyone to find out about but eventually people find out? Doing things we aren’t supposed to can become quite a hard lifestyle. On the other hand, if we don’t have anything to hide life becomes a lot simpler. There is nothing to be found out, there is nothing to make us slip and fall. Even when we make mistakes we aren’t trying to hide them so once again life is much simpler. A wise man once said that the best thing that could ever happen to us is for all of our sin to be put online or on tv for all to see. Then we could stop hiding, stop trying to cover up our sin, we would be free to start over. Sin does not help us in life, it only makes ins worse. So why don’t we just give up, confess, repent, and allow God to make life a whole lot more simple?  Can you find any other verses in this chapter that say something similar? (vs 16, 17, 22, 23, 24, 27 all have similar ideas)

There is another topic int his chapter that we have talked about, our words and how we use them. Verse 11 captures this idea very well, words can be used for great things or for terrible things. Verse 19 talks about restraining what we say to make sure we are careful about what we say.  Have you been watching you words since Monday? It is important to not just read the bible but put it into action.

This is more like the proverbs you are used to. Quick sayings of wisdom that don’t always relate to each other. From now on we definitely won’t be able to cover them all, so from now on I will pick ones that are relevant and talk about them. If there are others that you are interested in, think about them, pray about them, ask God to help you apply these to your life.

This passage is similar to some of the passages that we read in the beginning of Proverbs. You might be thinking ok wisdom I get the picture you really want me to listen to you and you want me to know that your way is better than the way of sin. I know that this is a little bit repetitive but it is important. The bible knows that it is easy to get confused on what we want in our lives. We have talked about this and about how we can sometimes desire sin above the righteous path, sometimes not even knowingly. Often times people think that having a lot of money would make them happy so they pursue money. Yet this is exactly what the bible says not to do.  This is exactly what wisdom is talking about and trying to avoid by repeating itself. We must not buy into the lie that money or anything else with give us a life that will satisfy, only God can do that and he uses wisdom to do it. The world say that money will make a person happy and wisdom says that a life of righteousness is more precious than any amount of money. Who will you believe?

I know that you have heard this before but repetition is not a bad thing. Throughout the book of proverbs you will hear things repeated a lot! Sometimes we can think it is a waste of time to hear things again and again but it is not. There is a difference between knowing something and living it. Proverbs wants to repeat things until we live them. So when we read things that we already know, don’t just pass over them evaluate whether or not you are LIVING them! So are you living this out, are you seeking wisdom and righteousness above all or are you seeking money, popularity and other worldly things?

These are two beautiful chapters. Here wisdom itself is personified. We have talked about how wisdom would have us speak and how it would have us remain sexually pure and in the rest of Proverbs we will hear so much more. Before we move forward we need to hear wisdom’s call again. Wisdom is calling for us to listen, not just with our ears but with our lives. Wisdom is asking us if we will indeed follow her and keep her ways!

This morning I asked you to try to figure out the connection between the four sections. I am sure that you can see how three of them are related. Verses 1-5, 12-15, 16-19, have several things in common. First they all talk about speech. How we talk is so important. The way we use our words can determine the type of person we are. As we all know, words can hurt, words can cause divisions, and words can end lifelong friendships. All three of these sections talk about how wrong it is to use words to hurt or lie to people. In an age when lying is hardly even considered a sin in light of the other sins people do on a regular basis, it is easy to ignore how sinful it actually is. Not only lying but saying mean things to others is often ignored even more. It seems to me that people are very careless with their words these days and it is right here that we learn how verses 6-11 relate to the rest. Read verses 4-11 closely. The reason the passage talks about being lazy is because that is exactly how some people are with their words. Most people just say whatever comes to their mind without ever thinking if it should be said or not. The passage is warning people against being lazy because if someone is lazy in general they are going to be lazy in their speech. Since words are so powerfully and can be used for good or bad it is so important that we are not lazy with our words. We must be disciplined and intentional with the words we speak. Do you filter what you say? Do you guard yourself from saying mean things or do you react in the moment and speak harmful words? Do you use your words to lift up the people around you or do you just say whatever comes to mind? This is the difference between lazy speech and words of wisdom!

This proverb is split into four sections (1-5, 6-11, 12-15, 16-19). I want you to see if you can find out how these four sections are related. Read through them and see if you can find out what links them all together.

Now I want you to watch two videos. In case you haven’t noticed I really like Christians Rap, mostly because the lyrics are often so biblical sound. Some of what is said is cliché but it is true, please listen these are men of God. The first one is mainly to girls but I want guys to watch it too. It is about how you dress yourself.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yindNTrrgP8

The second is in line with what we talked about on Wednesday, controlling your thoughts and eyes. (the lyrics are in the description)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MjdnBBW2tgA

I really like the second song. Will you make a covenant with your eyes in order to make sure that you do not even come close to sexual sin?