Pastor Rob Wheeler

January 24, 2010

Potholes in the Road to Wisdom

Proverbs 2:12-22

I. Avoid the wicked who stand against God (12-15)

A. The perversity of the wicked (12-13)

John 8:44 You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father's desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. NIV

Prov 26:11 1 As a dog returns to its vomit, so a fool repeats his folly. NIV

B. The preference of the wicked for evil (14-15)

II. Avoid the wayward who abandon their covenent with God (16-19)

A. The promiscuous abandon their covenant with God (16-17)

Rom 16:18 For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery they deceive the minds of naive people. NIV

B. The path of the adulterous leads to death (18-19)

Prov 5:3 For the lips of an adulteress drip honey, and her speech is smoother than oil;

4 but in the end she is bitter as gall, sharp as a double-edged sword. NIV

III. Avoid the wrong choice which leads to death (20-22)

A. The promise for the righteous (20-21)

Ps 1:1 Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. 2 But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. NIV

Matt 7:13 "Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. NIV

Deut 30:15 See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction. 16 For I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess.

Gal 6:7 Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. 8 The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. NIV

B. The punishment for the wicked (22)

Deut 30:17 But if your heart turns away and you are not obedient, and if you are drawn away to bow down to other gods and worship them, 18 I declare to you this day that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess. NIV

Heb 3:18 And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest if not to those who disobeyed? 19 So we see that they were not able to enter, because of their unbelief. 4:1 Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it. NIV