Take your Bibles and turn to the book of Proverbs. Today, we're going to be looking at a variety of Proverbs, multiple Proverbs. And you see that the handout you have there is fairly simple. There isn't a ton to it, which gives you the opportunity to fill in. But today we're going to be speaking about the application of wisdom. So last Sunday morning during our time together, we looked at the fear of the Lord. That is the reverence for God or the awe for God. Have you used the word awesome before? We look at something, we look out at the sky, whether that's a tornado coming our way or a beautiful blue sky, or you're sitting at the ocean and you're watching the waves crash and you're saying, this is awesome. When we have an awe for God, we have a reverence for Him. We have a respect for Him. And when we learn the reverence of God, we seek to push away all inclinations to displease Him because we want to obey Him. That's what we looked at last week. When we look at God and we reverence him, we don't want to displease him. He is sovereignly in control of everything that happens in our lives. And yet, even though he is in control of all things, he cares for us. And he wants us to know him. And if in the midst of the hardest thing we'll ever face, we're not alone and God is with us and he wants us to know him, how do we do that? How do we take the hardships of life and use them for the glory of God? How do we turn the most difficult situation that you will ever face into something that exalts his name? That when you come through it, you can say, God's name was glorified and it was for my good. If we look at the word wisdom, we would see it in multiple places in the Bible. But let's talk just very briefly about what is wisdom. Exodus 28 verse three says this, and now shall speak unto all that are wise hearted, whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom, that they may make Aaron's garments to consecrate him, that he may minister unto me and the priest's office. I wish we had time to dissect every bit of this, but I do want to very briefly dissect the next passage we read. So take your Bibles and turn to Psalm 107. Keep your finger in Proverbs. We're gonna see various verses in the book of Proverbs. We're gonna look at Psalm 107, Psalm 107, and we're gonna be reading verses 23 to 32. Psalm 107, 23 down to 32. So the psalmist here, he's envisioning Israelites encountering storms at the sea. and the course of their business. As they are going through their business day, they encounter storms. How do they face those storms? So those Israelites reading this are like, Oh, I know what he's talking about. I'm a fisherman. Listen to verse 23 down to verse 32. They that go down to the sea and the ships that do business in great waters, these see the works of the Lord and his wonders in the deep. For he commandeth and raises the stormy wind, which lifted up lifted up the waves thereof. They mount up to the heaven. They go down and again to the depths. Their soul is melted because of trouble. They reel to and fro and stagger like a drunken man and are at their wits end. Then they cry unto the Lord in their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distress. He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still. Then are they glad, because they be quiet. So he bringeth them unto their desired haven. Oh, that men would praise the Lord for his goodness and for his wonderful works to the children of men. Let them exalt him also in the congregation of the people and praise him in the assembly of the elders. I want you to go back to verse 27, which leads into verse 28. Look at verse 27. The trials come through this storm. They reel to and fro. They stagger like a drunken man and are at their wits end. Maybe that health crisis you're going through. Maybe that friendship that has dissolved. Maybe the tension between that sibling. Maybe the trials that you are facing now and the hardships you're facing now because of choices in the past. Maybe consequences that you have on your life because of choices that you made and your parents have put certain things in place that you're not allowed to do or you must do. And you're facing these hardships. And in the middle of those hard tips, all on your own, you are like this verse, they reel to and fro, they stagger like a drunken man and are at their wits end. I don't know what to do next. What do I do? Alone. Imagine what the disciples felt like when that storm came and Jesus was asleep. I'm all alone. I don't know what to do. Look at the next verse. Then they cry unto the Lord in their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distress. They fear for their lives until Yahweh calms the seas. The seas or the waters representing chaos and the ancient Near East and are described as being held back by Yahweh. They feel like they're all alone. So how do we take the trials of life and go from verse 27 and you reel to and fro like a drunken person, you're at your wits end and you don't know what to do next, but then you cry unto the Lord in your trouble. Why do you go to that? Why do you go from hardship that you're facing all on your own and you go to someone you can't visibly see and you say, God, I need your help. How would you do that? Well, let's look at one word. And that word is wisdom. The Hebrew word for wisdom is chakma, from the verb chakam, meaning to be wise. It covers a broad area of meaning in the Old Testament. It can refer to skill or ability or craftsmanship or artists. You know, there are even some animals. There's some animals that are described as very wise. Look at, go to Proverbs, go to Proverbs 30. What are some animals that are very wise? Because of their clever ways they overcome their weakness. Proverbs 30 verse 24. There are four things which are little upon the earth, but they are exceedingly wise. people not strong, yet they prepare their meat in the summer. The Cones are but a feeble folk, yet make their houses in the rocks. The locusts have no king, yet go they forth, all of them by bands. The spider taketh hold with her hands, and is in the king's palaces." Even animals have a certain level of wisdom. And you look at these individually, and you'd say, on their own, they can accomplish no good. An ant is easy to be stepped on. A spider is easy to be smacked by a flip-flop. But you put them together and you watch them over time and what they do, and you could say they are very wise or clever. Wisdom brings strength and favor. The wise avoid acting recklessly or out of anger. And even just the example of these animals and insects, what they do, what do they do? They plan. They look ahead. They plot. And they work together. So what is wisdom? If you want to write this down, you have plenty of space on the front and the back of your handout. Wisdom is the skill or ability to live successfully from God's perspective. God gives us what it looks like to be wise. It involves making decisions and living in a way that aligns with God's will and purposes. Not my own, not what I think is best, but what does God say I should do. And when God says I should do that, I will pursue that and nothing will distract me. I want to do two things this morning. I want to have Areas of practical, of wisdom in your life. What are some areas of wisdom in your life that you should begin to apply? And we're gonna go through these fairly quickly, but then I want to go to practical examples. Because that's where we live, right? We can talk about all these different things you see there on your handout, I've listed some of them, of areas of wisdom in your life, but actually applying those practically is where we live. So first, areas of wisdom in our life, first being speech. Proverbs 12, 19 says this. The lip of truth shall be established forever, but a lying tongue is but for a moment. Soft answer turned away wrath, but grievous words stir up anger. That is Proverbs 15, verse one. Our speech should be spoken with honesty and calmness, avoiding words that are hurtful. Wisdom gives us that desire. You know, we should be honest in our conversations. When truth guides your thoughts, your intent on living for God and giving Him proper glory. What is your speech like? When you join a circle of friends, when you join a circle of people you might not know, whatever it is, you join a conversation via text or a video call, you join a new job and you show up and you clock into work, What's your focus on? Is your focus that you need to get that edge in? You need to make sure that everyone knows what just happened in your life. Does your speech reflect this? Me, me, me, me, me. I did this. I am that. I don't feel well. I'm tired. I'm exhausted. I have all this going on. You just don't know what's going on. And by your speech, you are portraying either wisdom or foolishness. What do we portray when we approach a conversation with someone? Are we portraying that God is first in our life? Our speech should reflect wisdom. But our honesty. Honesty reflects wisdom. Truthful lips endure forever. Go to Proverbs 12, 19. I think I may have just read it. Proverbs 12, verse 19 says this. The lip of truth shall be established forever. What can you say bad about someone who tells the truth? What bad can be said about them? Nothing! Now, you can say lies about them, certainly. We see that all around in our world. The truth is twisted, but truth stands. Look at the verse at the end of it. But a lying tongue is but for a moment. Always strive to be honest in your dealings. Integrity should be the cornerstone of your character. You should say, I will not take away from the glory of God, but the way that I speak and the honesty of my life. We should also have a calmness about us. Go to Proverbs 15 verse one. A soft answer turneth away wrath, but grievous words stir up anger. A soft answer. Do we find ourselves ever being aggressive to get our way? A gentle answer turns away wrath. You know, we can maintain a calm demeanor even when provoked. You know, I learned this lesson, maybe I should be clear. I am learning this lesson. But just in the last, I would say, six to eight months, six to eight months ago, there were some things going on in my life that were stirring up anger within me. I was bothered. And it just continued happening, continued happening, continued happening. And from my perspective at that time, all those things that were happening to me were because of outside sources. And I was frustrated. I got to the point that I was angry. And I look at this verse, a soft answer turneth away wrath, but grievous words stir up anger. You know what I was doing at that time? I thought all of this is because of an outside source. And I started looking at my own life and I realized, I'm having grievous words. I'm having words that stir up anger. And it's making it worse in this situation. And God actually, in the end, brought to my mind and to my heart, ultimately, an understanding that, for the most part, I was the issue. I was the problem. And there were still things going on that were outside of my control. But I realized my grievous words, the way that I was speaking, whether in that situation or outside of it with others, I was causing further trouble, and not calmness within my spirit. Areas of wisdom in life could also be appropriateness. Proverbs 15 verse 2, the next verse says this, the tongue of the wise useth knowledge aright, but the mouth of fools poureth out foolishness. You know, a person finds joy in giving an apt reply, and how good is a timely word. Proverbs 15 verse 23 tells us. You know, we can speak at the right time and with the right words. You ever leave a conversation and you're like smack in your face. You're like, you idiot. You did it again. Am I the only one here? Come on. You leave conversations and you realize, did I just do that again? I just said that again. I allowed that conversation to go on again. And you realize just even practically speaking, appropriateness. What was appropriate for that conversation? Wisdom does speak into that. A tongue of the wise person adorns knowledge. And by the mouth of the fool gushes folly. Ever feel like you speak folly over and over again? You might even come into a conversation, you're telling yourself, okay, speak right, speak right, speak right, speak right, speak right. You know what, the beauty of that though, teens and adults, I want to encourage you because I'm on average 15 to 20 years older than all of you. And we have adults in this room that are older than that. And I still find myself at times going into a conversation saying, I've got to make right what I did wrong before. And then I leave maybe even that same conversation and realize I just spoke like a fool again. I did not understand the appropriateness of the conversation. I have to understand there is a place for humor. There is a place for having fun with someone. I have to understand that we can't always be straight faced, right? Straight faced people are no fun, right? Come on. If you can't have fun, you need to check yourself. You need to look in the mirror. You need to have a good time, but you also need to understand appropriateness because the end of verse two tells us this by the mouth, the mouth of fools pour without foolishness over and over and over again. Do you ever stop and think, What are the words that I'm speaking? What are they communicating to someone else? What are they saying to that person? Who am I? Am I constantly a goofball? Am I constantly sarcastic? Am I constantly nagging? Am I constantly complaining? Am I constantly speaking of myself? What is the appropriateness here? Is there a time and place to walk up to someone and share your burdens? Oh, yes. But how do you do it? What is the appropriateness of it? Another area of wisdom in our life is cautiousness. How can we be cautious? Go to Proverbs 18 verse 13. He that answereth a matter before he heareth it, it is folly and shame unto him. And I think honestly, a lot of these things could be lumped together. Right? Because I can mention one verse and I can go right back to referencing another issue of life or a conversation that you have. But understanding that actually Proverbs speaks to every single situation you will face. It does. So how do I have cautiousness? Cue answers before listening. It's folly and shame. You know how often I'm having a conversation with my wife or my daughters or someone here in the office, here church in the office, or even one of you. And I feel the urgency that while you're speaking in my mind, guess what comes up? Jordan knows the answer. And what do I do? I jump right in and I answer. You know what actually happened yesterday? My daughter, Jenna, five years old, she's getting really smart. She knows how to have conversations that kind of lead toward what she wants, right? But in this one, she was just trying to talk with me through something and she's talking about something and I'm not doing a very good job of listening because as dad, right, I have the answer already, right? I have the answer. So I answer her and you know what she says? No, dad, that's not what I was talking about. And it wasn't one of those disrespectful, mean responses from her, but she just kind of looked at me and she even put her hand on me like, dad, that's not what I was talking about. And I said, Jenna, can you say it again? I'm sorry, I responded too quickly. Are you cautious in the way in which you interact with others? Are you slow? Are you fast? He that answereth a matter before he hearth it is a folly and shame unto him. And in reality, when you look at this verse, it's speaking about strife. You're speaking about hardship between others and you might know the answer, but if you don't listen, it's what? Folly and shame unto you. What a fool you are to not allow the other person to speak. How hard that is for you. How hard that is for me to know that I have to be willing to slow down and be cautious. And maybe for some of us, maybe I should clarify, for all of us, we should practice silence at times. Go to chapter 10 or Proverbs 10 verse 19. And the multitude of words there wanteth not or there does not lack sin, but he that refraineth his lips is wise. But so here's what it says. If you find yourself to be the person who always has to feel like you need to have the edge in and you have to continue talking and talking and talking and explain yourself over and over again, you know what this verse actually tells us? When you're in a circle of friends and your friends observe that you are the person who dominates conversations and has to be the first one to speak and the last one to speak and the one right in the middle, you know what this verse is telling us? Be cautious, because in the multitude of words, there's no lack of sin. It's easy to sin when you feel like you have to constantly speak. But the person who refrains their lips, the person who is cautious with their words, is what? Good verse. Is what, Juliana? Wise. I saw you mouth the word. I wanted to hear it nice and loud. That person is wise. So what are we saying is silence at times and the understanding of a progression of a conversation. Can that be wisdom? Your friends speak foolishly and you don't know how to respond at the time. Maybe the best thing to do is to zip it and to come back to it later or conversation starts And you're like, nope, not even gonna go there. Not even gonna open my lips. So these are areas of wisdom in our life. But what about practical examples? Here's some practical examples for us in our remaining seven minutes here. Friendship. This is where we live. Four practical steps, first being friendship. Proverbs one, if you wanna turn there and you can kind of follow along as we look at it. It tells us this, verse 10. My son, if sinners entice, that ye consent thou not. All right, so these are words that we don't usually use, entice and consent, okay? If someone who is foolish, if someone who is selfish, if someone who only thinks of themselves says, hey, come on, join this conversation. You know what it says here? Don't give in. Don't give way. don't consent. If they say, come with us, let us lay wait for blood, let us lurk privily for the innocent without cause. Let us swallow them up alive as the grave and whole as those that go into the pit. Okay, so it's saying this, whatever we can do, let's subvert this person. Let's win them over to our sinful ways. But then it says this, my son, walk thou not in the way with them. Refrain thy foot from their path. Teens, Is there a distinct possibility that you may need to completely remove yourself from the path of some of the friendships that you currently have? Because that friendship is characterized by complete and utter foolishness. And the words they speak, and the choices they make, and the disrespect they have for the authority in their life, and the disregard for the holiness of God in the application of their personal life, And the way that they're living, you say, it's completely antithetical, completely the opposite of holy living. They're living for themselves. And Proverbs 1 tells us this, my son, don't walk with them. Reframe your steps from their path. Don't even walk a path with them. Maybe even some of you this morning are content to be distracted and say, I'm not even gonna listen to this. I don't want this. I want to live the way I want to live, and I don't care. God has caution for us. Because their feet run to evil, they make haste to shed blood. Surely in vain their net is spread in the sight of any bird. They lay wait for their own blood. They lurk privily for their own lives. So are the ways of everyone that is greedy and gain, which take away the life of the owners thereof. Teens, listen very carefully here. You may think that that friendship is okay, but what does this verse say? They lurk privily, and they wait for their own blood. For those who would be closest to them, they're ready to destroy them. Can you believe that? that maybe some of the friendships that you have could destroy you. You think they're good for you, but they could destroy you. Wisdom says this, don't even take their path. Run from them. Don't allow them to distract you. Proverbs 13 verse 20 tells us this, on the encouraging side of it. He that walketh with wise men shall be wise. but a companion of fools, they're gonna be destroyed. What kind of a friendship do you have? So I could have put that up on the screen there. It's pretty small text, but that was Proverbs 1. How do we be loyal and considerate and willing to confront others when hardship comes, when confrontation is a necessity? Wisdom. Apply wisdom into your life and you'll have the confidence as you walk in the spirit to please God. Secondly, work. Proverbs 6, 6 through 11 says this, go to the aunt of Sluggard. Consider her ways and be wise. She has no guide, no overseer, no ruler. She provides her meat in the summer, gathers her food in the harvest. How long will you sleep, sluggard? Wilt thou rise out of thy sleep? Get a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands of sleep. So shall thy poverty be as the one that traveleth, and thy want as an armed man. You know what, teens? Just sit there, be lazy, don't do anything. Be willing to be pulled this way and that way, and guess what's gonna happen? Anything good in your life will be taken away. It's gonna happen. You'll lose that which you think is most precious to you. God says this, be diligent. Be a hard worker for the glory of God. Just even look at the example of the ants. That ant takes time to gather, for the time when there is not gonna be plenty. So that when the need is there, they have it. Will you work diligently? This is a challenge to me even. For years and years in my elementary and high school years, and even into college years, I was lazy. And I still have times of struggle, of willingness to just kinda sit back, relax, and let other people do it. God challenges even me in teens, don't allow yourself to be lazy, be a diligent worker. Third, that being purity. Proverbs 2 verses 16 and 19 say this, to deliver thee from the strange woman, even from the stranger with flat earth with her words. which forsaketh the guide of her youth, and forgetteth the covenant of her God. For her house inclineth unto death, and her paths unto the dead. None that go unto her return again, neither take they hold of the paths of life. So what are you going to pursue, teens? Will you pursue that which makes your flesh feel good? What is purity to you? Is purity what you define it to be? Are you constantly erasing the line of purity and drawing it one line further and saying, I'm okay with this now. I'm okay with having a conversation via text that's inappropriate, but not totally all the way wrong. I'm okay with not following exactly the rules and regulations of my home that my parents have set for me. and relationships and the way that I dress myself and the way that I act. And that is something that is very important for each one of us to realize. The guidance of our parents is a guidance that God has given to them to execute. If you draw the line here, when your parents draw the line here, then when you're out of their home, where will you draw the line? Teens, you must be extremely cautious with your personal life and your purity. Protect yourself for the glory of God. And if God chooses to allow you to be married, you're protecting yourself for that future spouse. Teens, you must be very careful to not confuse this. It's not a matter of picking up your phone and looking up inappropriate things. Because it starts where? It starts in your heart. Purity starts in your heart and it becomes an outflow into your life and the fruit of your life and the way that you speak and the way that you interact and the way that you appear. So go to the heart first. Deal with your heart when it comes to purity. Proverbs 5 verses 15 to 19 encourages faithfulness in marriage and to delight yourself in your spouse, not in anything outside of that. If you want to understand how to protect yourself and to set yourself up for success in your life, look at those verses. Proverbs 6 warns us against adultery and its severe consequences. So if you want to study it, I'd be happy to give you my notes because there are a lot more passages of scripture here that I could give to you. But finally, I'm gonna take two minutes, okay? Family. First, wives. There we go. A foolish son is the calamity of his father and a contentious, contentious, and the contentions of a wife are continual. Dropping. It is better to dwell in the corner of a housetop than with a brawling woman in a white house. Ladies, are you setting yourself up for success when it comes to being a godly wife, if God were to have you married? You know, Proverbs 31 describes the qualities of a virtuous woman who manages her household well. There are some very practical things there, but even girls, what is your pursuit now of following the wisdom and the life that even your mother is showing, or grandmother, or a godly example of a woman in your life? How are you setting yourself up to be a godly woman, to be a godly wife? And children, which all of us in this room are children, some of us are in a different stage of life. Most of you are in a stage of life of being under the rule of your parents. My son, keep thy father's commandment, and forsake not the law of thy mother. A wise son heareth his father's instruction, but a scorner heareth not rebuke. He that wasteth his father, and chasteth away his mother, is a son that causeth shame, and bringeth reproach. Whoso curseth his father and his mother, his lamp shall be put into obscure darkness. So, who are we pleasing? Are we pleasing ourselves first? Are we pleasing God first? And if you're pleasing God, then you will be a person that pursues God. And finally, parents, he that spareth his rod, hateth his son, he that loveth him, chasteneth him, be times. Chasten thy son while there is hope, and let not thy soul spare his crying. Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child, but the rod of correction shall drive it from him. Withhold not correction from the child, for if thou beatest him with the rod, he shall not die. Thou shalt beat him with a rod and shalt deliver his soul from hell. And I want to be very careful to help you understand this. It's not telling your parents, as long as they stay alive, you can speak. Okay, that's not what it's saying. It's the instruction of this. What is it going to take to get your attention? That instruction, that correction from your parents, whether that's a physical spanking or a correction or a consequence that comes at play. What will get your attention, teens? What's gonna make you want to follow God with all of your life? Apply God's wisdom by involving these practical steps into your daily life. By exploring these principles, we can learn to live wisely from God's perspective, influencing our speech, our relationships, our work, and our family. Teens, I could take this lesson and I could have taught it for the next four or five hours. There's a lot more to dissect here. Happy to share my notes with you. But Proverbs does give us instruction on how to live this life. Go home this afternoon, you're frustrated by something. You don't know what direction to go. Pursue wisdom, study the scriptures, get to know your God. Let's pray.