Well, turn with me, if you will, in your Bibles to Proverbs chapter 1. We'll be looking at verses 8 through 19 together this evening. But before we read from God's Word, let's go to the Lord in prayer together again. Our Lord, we acknowledge our great need for wisdom, and we thank You for Your Word of truth that You have not left us alone, but in that wonderful attribute of Scripture, the sufficiency, we have all that we need for life and godliness. May we see our great need for Christ each time we study Your Word. May we long to walk in holiness of life in a way that is pleasing to You as we live joyfully under that kind and tender authority that instructs and directs us in our manner of life. And it's in the name of Christ, our risen Lord and King, that we pray. Amen. Let's stand together for the reading of God's Word. Proverbs 1 beginning in verse 8, hear my son your father's instruction and forsake not your mother's teaching for they are a graceful garland for your head and pendants for your neck. My son, if sinners entice you, do not consent. If they say come with us, let us lie and wait for blood. Let us ambush the innocent without reason. Like Sheol, let us swallow them alive. and whole, like those who go down to the pit. We shall find all precious goods. We shall fill our houses with plunder. Throw in your lot among us. We will all have one purse. My son, do not walk in the way with them. Hold back your foot from their paths, for their feet run to evil and they make haste to shed blood. For in vain is a net spread in the sight of any bird, but these men lie in wait for their own blood. They set an ambush for their own lives. Such are the ways of everyone who is greedy for unjust gain. It takes away the life of its possessors. This is the word of the Lord. You may be seated. And we continue this evening with our brief series through these first nine chapters of the book of Proverbs. I call it a brief series just to compare it with our previous series in the book of Exodus. But let's remember that in these nine chapters, we really have foundational work. It's groundwork for what we find in the rest of the book in chapters 10 through 31. Now, I think we could argue that the only way that we can truly, lastingly profit from the book of Proverbs is if we come to this book with a humble heart. If we acknowledge our need for wisdom, if we confess that yes, we do need to increase in discernment and understanding, that type of a posture is evidence of a teachable and humble heart that is willing to be corrected and instructed. And so, as we continue to work our way through this section of Proverbs, let's not lose sight of this important qualifier. can only come to the one who is interested in cultivating a heart of humility. Now, life is filled with all sorts of complexities, inward emotional complexities, relational complexities, decision-making complexities, and the sin nature within our hearts leads us to believe that we can figure out all of these complexities of life on our own through our own insight, through common sense. through our own reasoning or through our vast consumption of podcasts and YouTube videos, making ourselves an expert on whatever topic we believe we need to figure out. In other words, the great temptation that we face is to presume that we have wisdom enough already, and so we really don't need to listen. But what the text before us tonight presumes to be true of each one of us is that, in fact, we all listen to someone. We are all influenced by certain voices around us, and we make a choice as volitional beings, a choice as to which voice we are going to give value to, which voice we are going to give weight to, which voice we will listen to because we consider that voice to be more important than all of the others. And all of the voices around us that are clamoring for our attention, that are vying for the allegiance of our hearts, they can really be put into one of two categories, the voice of wisdom or the voice of foolishness. If you're humble, the Scriptures tell us, you will listen to the voice of wisdom. If you are proud, You will be led astray by the voice of foolishness. And these two voices are represented here in this passage from Proverbs chapter 1. There's the voice of the father and mother. These are voices that represent God-given and God-appointed voices of authority. And then there are on the voices of our peers, those who generally lack wisdom but can have great influence upon us for various reasons that we'll see as we move along. And so, let's think this evening about how the writer of Proverbs contrasts these two voices as he calls us to listen wisely to the one while we disregard the other. Our first point this evening is found there in verse 8, where the writer of Proverbs opens with an exhortation. And so, here's our first point tonight, an exhortation to hear, hear your father's instruction, listen to your mother's teaching. Now, it's just as true today as it was in the ancient Near East when this text was first written. The primary location for instruction and training is within the home. Now, certainly if you have school-age children and perhaps they go to a public school or private school and they're out of the home for a number of hours each day, but the home is still the most influential and important location for teaching. And notice how both the parent and the young man have a responsibility. The parent has this high calling and responsibility. The text presumes that the parent already understands their charge before the Lord to instruct and make the most, as we'll see, of every opportunity to instruct the children that the Lord has blessed him or her with. Just as the son, and if we could add, of course, the daughter has a responsibility to hear and respond obediently to what they are being taught. So what exactly should then be taught? What is the body of instruction that should be passed along from parents to child? Well, even though the emphasis there in verse eight is more upon the who that should be listened to rather than the content of what should be taught, I think there was a reference here that would remind the reader of a very formative part of Scripture. The word that is translated as here, as the text begins there in verse 8, is the little Hebrew word Shema, which would take the reader all the way back to that familiar passage of Deuteronomy chapter 6. Now, Deuteronomy 6 is a passage of Scripture that every little Hebrew boy or girl would put to memory, probably the first portion of Scripture that they would memorize in their youth. Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all of your heart, with all of your soul, with all of your might. The words that I command you today shall be upon your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children. You shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way, when you lie down and when you rise." And so, when a young man comes to Proverbs 1 verse 8 and is told, what your father is saying, it should immediately remind him of that critical passage of Scripture that he put to memory from Deuteronomy 6. This is the content of what he should listen to. Listen to the commands of God while growing in your love and affection for that body of truth imparted to you. And when should this instruction occur? Deuteronomy 6 says, take advantage of every opportunity to speak about things of the Lord. Look to encourage one another in faithfulness. Reflect upon the Word of God together as you seek to live according to His truth. And maybe you've had this experience in your own parenting or if you've done some babysitting for families in the church. And that is speaking to a child and knowing that he does not listen to anything that you're saying. Maybe they have that glazed over look in their eyes, or their eyes are wandering around the room. And no matter how eloquent your words are, you feel as though, man, I wish I could record this and publish this speech. It is amazing. But the child's not listening at all. It's not for lack of comprehension. It's not that his ears are stopped up and he needs to visit an audiologist, but it's a failure to listen, which is a matter of the heart. To truly hear the way in which the Scriptures advocate is to receive within the heart. So again, here's the opening exhortation to the young man or woman, hear from your heart the truth of God's Word as it is faithfully and regularly taught to you within the home, as it is faithfully and regularly discussed with you in your home. Which takes us to our second point in which there is this motivation that is held out to the young man to listen to those voices of authority. And so we could put our second point this evening as this, a reason to listen. There's the exhortation to hear now followed by a reason to listen. Now, we're not always as attentive to this in our own lives as we should be, but we really do have a reason for everything that we do in life. And part of wisdom is growing to understand the reasons behind the things that we do. The human heart craves reasons. There must be a reason behind all of our actions, all of our choices, the things that we prioritize and value, even down to the very words that we speak. We are always motivated by something at every point in our lives. And what the book of Proverbs is interested in doing is helping us to mature in a growing manner to uncover those motives of the heart, why you are doing the things that you're doing, and then to help you reorient those motives away from a self-oriented to a God-oriented perspective. Ed Welch writes, motives might be hard to see, but they become evident in varying ways. And one of the ways in which we discover our motives, Welch guides us, is to fill in the blank to this statement. I want...fill in that blank. I want peace. I want comfort. I want appreciation. I want affection. I want companionship. I want control. And if I don't have that which I want, above all else, I'm miserable and I will make everyone else around me miserable. Welch goes on. By nature, the heart is selfish. It wants what it wants when it wants it. It doesn't want God setting limits or providing direction. When changed by God Himself, the heart's selfish and anti-God motives are not immediately erased, but they are gradually replaced by a desire to love God and live for Him alone. And so this gradual dying to self and Living for the Lord, again, is part of the motive that the writer of Proverbs is getting at. Motives are what drive us in life. Motives are, again, what lead us to do the things that we do. You hear this incessantly in the questions that a toddler asks of you. Why? Why do I need to listen? Why do I need to do what you're telling me to do? Now, more often than not, perhaps that is a defiant why. But at other times, it's a genuinely inquisitive why, as this young heart is being formed, as motives are being established. Now, there are two main ways in which the Scriptures look at motives. God's Word holds out the consequences for disobedience, and His Word holds out the blessings of obedience. Now, this is not to say that life is reduced to some simple formulaic approach that if you do X, Y, and Z, then the result will be blessing. But Proverbs capture the general way that things work in God's creation. By way of example, generally, the person who lives on a fast food diet will develop heart disease and high cholesterol. But there's that rare instance of the person who seems to go through Wendy's perhaps four or five times a week. and seems to have a very healthy report every time they visit the doctor. Generally, the one who listens to the instruction of God's Word will have the blessing of a maturing relationship with the Lord. But of course, that does not mean that their life is immune from trials and hardships. But it's generally true that the one who walks foolishly will bring difficulty into his or her life. And we see both of these motives here held out to us in this passage. don't go the path of foolishness because it will bring destruction in your life. We'll come back to that in verse 18 and 19. Instead, as you do listen to father and mother, there are wonderful blessings to be had, verse 9. And perhaps in your own parenting, you find yourself trying to motivate your child more through threats of punishment for disobedience. sort of like the fear of consequences in order to try to get them to listen and obey. When the child is young, don't touch that or you'll get hurt. Don't do that or you will get punished. As they age into adolescence, don't do that, you'll destroy your life. But notice how in verse 9, it's the benefits of obedience that are held out as the motivation, rewards and blessings for hearing for heeding within the heart those voices of authority. There are wonderful blessings and a joy-filled life for the one who walks according to God's truth. Harry Bleymeyer in his book, The Christian Mind, points out how important it is to help our young people see the life-affirming nature of the Christian faith, not simply presenting Christianity as life-rejecting. In other words, helping our young people to see the wonderful joy of living for the Lord God. If the Christian faith that we teach is only dwelling upon the things that we are not to do, that may not serve the adolescent well to see the wonderful joy of following Christ. Blamires notes that in those enticing voices of the world, there is the impulse to glamorize passion at the expense of responsibility and duty and charity. And it's really this life-affirming nature of the Word of God that is held out as the motive to the young man there in verse 9. That instruction and teaching that is offered to you is like a garland for your head. It's like pendants for your neck. It's the attractive and desirable reward that is held out as the motive to hear and treasure this instruction. to wear a garland or a pendant would be to reflect some sort of status. We could think of these as ornaments of recognition or evidence of wisdom. You might think of someone who competes at a high level, let's say at an Olympic event, and is crowned with a garland for his head and a gold medal around his neck. While those things are certainly valuable and could probably be sold for a great deal of money on eBay, they are merely symbols of a greater achievement. They serve as indicators of his accomplishment and victory. And so, what the writer of Proverbs is saying here is this, as you take to heart the instruction of God's Word, as you work that truth deep into your mind and heart, It will bear evident fruits in your lives, and they will be true and lasting blessings in a joy-filled relationship with the Lord God. It's a very valuable and desirable thing to listen and to be teachable. And so, the lesson that's taught here is very simply this, pay attention to the source of those competing voices. to those God-ordained voices of authority because they are just that. They are God-ordained. They are given to you from the Lord God who is your heavenly Father who loves you in Christ Jesus. These are voices that want to help you learn to live for eternity. The voice of authority, Father, Mother, is not a self-serving voice. It's not a voice that's trying to control you, not trying to ruin your life, contrary to popular opinion. but they truly care for you as they want to point you to the living God. Now, the alternative voices, these seductive voices that we'll consider in a moment, may give the illusion of loving you, but they don't really care for you. They're just using you for their own benefit. It's a very sad thing when we read in our own time, as I'm sure you all have, about young people who are drawn to something like the transgender lifestyle out of a desperate desire for community, a desire to belong. A young person goes through that awkward stage of life in which they feel uncomfortable with the body that God has given to them, and they find some online community that seems to affirm them, seems to love them, seems to care for them. And then through medical intervention, they try to change their identity. And as they go through that process, they are hailed as brave and genuine and beautiful and amazing. They use family language of belonging to deceive. But if that young man or woman ever wake up to the lies of what they're being told, and if they return to their God-given identity, they will be immediately discarded, disowned. bullied and harassed even by those who claimed to care for them. It's all a facade. The voices of affirmation are just using you and lying to you. And this is exactly what the fatherly figure in Proverbs 1 warns about as he goes on to caution about the nature of these competing voices. Which brings us to our third point this evening from our text that starts there in verse 10, and that is a warning, do not yield. There's the exhortation again in verse 8, hear and listen. And now in verse 10, another exhortation in the form of this warning, not to listen, not to yield. If sinners entice, do not consent. And we may face all sorts of temptations from the loud voices that are calling for our allegiance. And we simply cannot cut off the reality of those voices existing. But of course, we are responsible for what we do with those voices, how we respond to those that are calling to us. To consent is like a willingness to accept, a willingness to concede that there's some level of truth in what's being said. It's already a beginning step of compromise. I think it's a way to capture those beginning stages of moving in the direction of those who are enticing to give your attention to this alternate allegiance. I think of how Eve entertained a conversation with a serpent in the garden, with the serpent there when she should have rebuked him and turned away. When she thought she could stand on her own ground and could reason on her own, The battle was already lost. And the same here, when a young man yields, when he gives his ear and begins to listen to these enticing voices by finding something desirable, something plausible in what they are saying, he has given them a foothold into his life and soon his behavior will follow. Someone has put it like this, adolescence is the quest for a sense of identity. And notice how these voices entice. In verse 11, notice how it's the fatherly figure here who is putting words into the mouths of those who would deceive. He's preparing the young man for the types of things that he will hear. It's almost like he knows how they operate. It's almost like he can reflect back upon his own adolescence and think of instances in which he too was tempted to be led astray through these smooth words and deceptive ways. What sorts of things do the wicked hold out? What is it that they use to entice? If it's a path of foolishness, if it's a path of destruction, Well, what did they do to make this path seem beneficial? I read recently about this small town in Europe in which I think perhaps through general erosion or a storm, this bridge was washed away. Now, everyone in the town knew that the bridge was gone and just went alternate ways, but no one bothered to put up a sign or update Google Maps to tell them that the road was no longer there. And someone who was an out-of-towner following their Google Maps, drove right off the no longer existing bridge to their own death. Now, if you know that that path will lead to destruction, of course you will stay away. So what is it that makes it enticing? What is it that makes this path desirable? You might look at verse 11 here of our text and say, This doesn't sound like anybody that I know. I never had friends growing up that told me, hey, let's wait in the bushes for Mrs. Jones to get home. Let's murder her and rob her. So how in the world is this relevant to me? Well, if Proverbs you see is interested in motivations of the heart, think about how their hearts are being revealed as they propose this path of destruction. It's all about profiting at the expense of another. Now, it may not be murder, but it could be destroying another person with your words, belittling others so that you and your very friend group is built up at the expense of another. It's a heart of greed that looks for a quick profit, things like stealing, embezzlement, dishonest labor practices, even gambling, playing the lottery, looking for an immediate reward, any way in which we might use others to benefit ourselves. Back in 2018, the restrictions on sports gambling were loosened. And since that time, just six years ago, Americans have lost over $250 billion in sports gambling alone. Greed is something that can take such root in our heart that it doesn't care what it needs to do in order to be satisfied. Lives have been destroyed. Families have been ruined in the pursuit of financial gain. It's been a number of years now, but this question, this simple question was asked to working Americans, whether they would choose higher pay or more time off. And without fail, it seemed like the answers were, well, more money, of course. And so part of the enticement of these foolish voices is greed, the temptation to profit at the destruction of another. But another reason these voices seem attractive is the enticement or the allure of belonging. There's this camaraderie of being part of the inner group. C.S. Lewis wrote a paper entitled, The Inner Ring. And in that, Lewis notes that we all have experienced this phenomenon at some point in our lives, in some sort of social context. It may have been on the playground as a child. It might be in the workplace as an adult. But there are those who are on the inner ring or the inner circle of popularity or influence, and they've done something to establish themselves as the dominant ones in that group. And if you're on the outside, you have this desire to be part of the inner ring and this terror of being on the outside. It is, of course, invisible line, but everyone in that social group seems to know that that line exists and what must be done in order to cross that line to be part of that inner ring. And it's those on the inside who have the power to determine who crosses in. Lewis states that you may find yourself doing very bad things, unconscionable things in order to get in. And he says, it's a quest that will break your hearts unless you break it. And part of the immaturity of these young and foolish voices is the presumption that they are immune from consequences and will not be held accountable. And what else could lead them to such destructive behavior unless they deluded themselves in a thinking that they can do whatever they want? Maybe you've seen those recordings from police body cameras in which they have some interaction with an unruly adolescent, some entitled young person who is awakened perhaps for the first time to reality that there are actually consequences for the things that they do, and they're in for that great awakening. One commentator put it like this, at times the young can grow weary of being in the place of learning, and it can be enticing to hear someone tell you that you can take control of your circumstances. And so these are things that the enticing voices used to appeal to one's motives. It's that youthful restlessness, it's the longing to satisfy one's greed, immediate gratification, flattery that appeals to the gullible, a desire to belong, to be part again of that inner ring. And it's important to be aware that there is a level of gratification to these things. We would never sin if we didn't feel some sort of reward or satisfaction as our immediate desires are gratified. And so the enticement is immediate. The pleasures are real, and yet the consequences are eternal. It's a matter of life and death. The Father's way is a path of life, but the way of evil is one of death. And the voice of wisdom helps us to see that this path is one of ruin and destruction. And that's the final thing that we see from our text this evening. And our fourth point, reject those voices of destruction. Reject those voices of foolishness. There's this vivid illustration that's used there in verse 17. Look there again. For in vain is a net spread in the sight of any bird. But these men lie in wait for their own blood. They set an ambush for their own lives." Now, a trap only works, of course, if it is not seen for what it really is. If someone is obviously going to destroy you, then, again, of course, you would avoid it. And there's this sense of irony here in that this path is a trap that only destroys oneself. They lie in wait for their own blood. They set an ambush for their own lives. Listen to Psalm 9, verse 16. The wicked are snared in the work of their own hands. In Psalm 57, we read, they dig a pit and fall into it themselves. Proverbs 5.22 says, the iniquities of the wicked ensnare him and he is held fast in the cords of his sin. And so true wisdom and discernment sees where this path will end. There may be those immediate pleasures. There may be instant gratification. But venturing down this path of self-indulgence is a path that will lead to destruction. And so if it's true that at every point of life we are listening to some voice It's critical that we listen to the voice of wisdom and life while we disregard that voice of foolishness and death. And it's every little choice that we make, choices that are seemingly insignificant on a daily basis, that forms and establishes our character within our hearts and determines which path we are walking down. And these competing voices have different aims, they have different goals, different objectives, different allegiances. You cannot listen to both. You must choose one and reject the other. And we'll see this more in our series as we move along. But life in Proverbs is likened to a path. We foresee that here in verse 15. And the way that you go down a path is slowly and methodically, step by step. sometimes not knowing what is around the next bend of that path, but trusting as you're following the Word of the Lord. Daily choices, daily words, daily longings of the heart, daily listening to the voice that you value above all others. And what we ought to long for above all else is a relationship with the living God that we find only through Christ Jesus, pursuing Him and loving Him. Now, I think a text like this is relevant in the Christmas season, not simply to guard our hearts against greed when we share gifts with one another on Christmas morning. This isn't to rob you of that joy of being grateful for what you receive and giving to one another. But there's more for us to consider. Think about how many times in your own life you have failed to listen to that voice of wisdom and have followed that voice of foolishness, perhaps in ways that you're still reaping the consequences of that foolish decision. But the great comfort is that the Christmas season, we have a perfect Savior who from the day of His birth all the way to the cross cherished and treasured the words of His Father. and he took the penalty that we deserved upon himself. He was treated as a fool for us that we might receive the blessings of his obedience. May God's people truly treasure the life-giving words of our God as we become more aware of those enticing voices, those alternate voices that would lead us astray. May that be true of each one of us.