[0:00] Amen. When the American Girl Scouts have produced a stressless badge!
[0:30] But now, and they've introduced in the US, this stressless badge. Apparently, Troop 2459 in Sunnydale, California have introduced a stress clinic for third grade brownies.
[0:44] Apparently, kids as young as seven are talking about being stressed out. You say, well, that's America, isn't it? That is America. But what about this?
[0:55] In the UK, in Liverpool, pupils at St Silas Primary School are being offered aromatherapy, foot and hand massages, and lavender-soaked tissues in order to reduce stress and aggression.
[1:08] I think that would have produced the opposite effect when I was in school. And you might say, oh, northerners. Northerners. But according to statistics, two-thirds of the UK suffer with anxiety-related problems.
[1:21] One writer in the Telegraph says this. Over the whole of England, people find themselves operating on a short fuse, little things which might in previous generations have been quite easily tolerated and absorbed as parts of the ups and downs of daily life now seem to assume bigger proportions.
[1:39] The general level of anxiety in the community is such that it only requires a small spark to ignite feelings of irritation, helplessness, frustration, anger, or violence.
[1:51] In other words, all over the world, doesn't matter where you're from, we're not coping very well with life, are we? And yet instinctively, instinctively, every human being wants to make a success of life.
[2:07] You only get one life. And it'll soon be over. And the problem is with life, you can only live it forward, can't you? And you can only evaluate it backwards.
[2:18] And we don't want to mess it up, do we? All of us instinctively want to do well. We want to live life as life was meant to be lived. And how are we going to do that?
[2:29] Is there anywhere we can find help to do that? Is there anywhere in the Bible that is going to help us to do that? And the answer is, of course, yes. The book of Proverbs is in the Bible for that very reason.
[2:41] Because Proverbs is all about making a success of life. It's all about living a life the way God intended it. It's all about living God's way in God's world. And that is what this series in Proverbs is going to be all about.
[2:53] And by way of introduction, I want to read, I want to look at the first six verses of Proverbs. Proverbs chapter 1. Let me read it to you. The Proverbs of Solomon, son of David, king of Israel.
[3:07] To know wisdom and instruction. To understand words of insight. To receive instruction in wise dealing. In righteousness, justice and equity. To give prudence to the simple. Knowledge and discretion to the youth.
[3:19] Let the wise hear an increasing learning. And the one who understands obtain guidance. To understand the proverb and the saying. The words of the wise and their riddles.
[3:31] It's one long sentence. ESV gets it right. It's one long sentence in the Hebrew. It's the longest opening of any book in the Old Testament. Now there's an old joke, isn't it? It used to come out at weddings. Somebody would get up and say at the wedding and speech they would say.
[3:44] Maybe they said it at your wedding. We pray that you may have the patience of Job, the wisdom of Solomon and the children of Israel. And the wisdom of Solomon is proverbial, isn't it?
[3:55] Everybody knows it. And over the next few months we're going to take a long, hard look at the wisdom of Solomon. In 1 Kings 4 that we read, verse 32, we're told that Solomon wrote or spoke 3,000 proverbs.
[4:12] That doesn't mean that they're all here. It's very interesting. There's only 900 proverbs in the book of Proverbs. And as you'll see, many of the proverbs in the book of Proverbs are not actually Solomons.
[4:24] They're not. They come from other sources. Somebody has described Solomon as a kind of magpie. God used Solomon as a kind of magpie to snatch up the spiritual treasures of wisdom wherever they might be found.
[4:40] And I think that is really helpful. What Proverbs is, is now that's what I call wisdom. Or the greatest wisdom in the world ever.
[4:50] You know those albums? It is a compilation. It is a compendium of wisdom. And Solomon is not so much his author, but his compiler. He is God's magpie who gathers it all in.
[5:03] So it's important to understand that. Now three things I want us to see tonight to start the scene. First of all, the promise of Proverbs. The promise of Proverbs. What is the book all about? Why is this book in the Bible at all?
[5:16] And why do we need to study it over these next couple of months? Well, just look over these verses. And very often, as is often the case in the Bible, the key is over the door, isn't it?
[5:28] And you have it there right at the beginning. If you're ever looking at a burglar house, look at the front door under the mat on the top of the door or go to the back door, normally the key is somewhere around that. Is that where you have your key?
[5:39] The raised door, yeah. No. It's not really there, is it? And if you look at the start of a book and the end of the book, there's normally always a purpose statement. And you've got one here in verses 1 to 4.
[5:51] And that is what Proverbs promises to do for us. Look at verse 1. To know wisdom and instruction, to understand words of insight, to receive instruction in wise healing, in righteousness, justice and equity, fairness, to give prudence to the simple, knowledge and discretion to the youth.
[6:09] So you see, it's for everyone. Now the book of Proverbs is particularly aimed at young men. So it's particularly aimed at. But it's relevant for all of us. It's a book that is particularly relevant to young people.
[6:21] But it's also for those who are long in the tooth. It's also for those who've got no teeth. Those who've been around a long time. It is for everyone. And the purpose is very clearly stated. The purpose is it will make the wise.
[6:34] It will make the simple wise. And that is what the book of Proverbs is to do for us. Now wisdom is not the same as knowledge, is it? It's not the same as being clever or well educated.
[6:48] Wisdom is not the same as having a high IQ or having any IQ. You can have a great IQ and be a fool. We all know people like that, don't we? You can think of the great intellectuals and so often they were fools.
[7:03] You know what the difference is between knowledge and wisdom? Knowledge is knowing that tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is not putting a tomato in a fruit salad, isn't it? It's a terrible joke.
[7:14] Did you get that? Oh, I thought it was funny. Anyway, I knew it was. Being smart doesn't make you wise. Perhaps you've heard of Samuel Taylor Coleridge.
[7:25] He's a poet, one of the finest poets to this day. He was an opium addict, druggy. And he wanted to be free of his addiction. So Samuel Taylor Coleridge hired a man to live with him 24 hours a day.
[7:37] You think, well, that's quite a wise move, isn't it? It's a very clever move. You want to get off the drugs? You hire a man for 24 hours a day. It's a smart thing to do. Well, it was, but then Coleridge began to devise schemes, to devise ways, and make plans to deceive the man he was paying to protect him from his addiction.
[7:54] That is very, very insightful. You see, knowing the right thing to do, if you're honest, and actually doing it is not the same thing, is it? And that is why we need the book of Proverbs.
[8:06] Because this book will make you wise. Now, let me put it to you like this, and this might help you to see where I'm going. I think the book of Proverbs is like windows.
[8:17] Windows on the computer. We bought a new computer yesterday. This illustration might not work. But anyway, I think the book of Proverbs is like God's operating system for your life. You need it to work the computer.
[8:29] You've got the most powerful computer in the world on your shoulders between your ears. Your brain, it's not just your brain, it's your mind, your heart, your will. The command center of the Bible is the heart, and your mind is power.
[8:40] And God has given you that, but it needs an operating system to make it work. And it needs the right software on that operating system to make it work.
[8:51] And if you like, I think that's what we have in the book of Proverbs. The first nine chapters you have the operating system. So we're not going to go through it verse by verse. I'm going to pick out some principles in the first nine chapters as to how we are to operate.
[9:06] As to how you and I are to function as human beings in God's world. So there's some very, very famous principles we'll pick up. The fear of the Lord, verse seven, is the beginning of wisdom.
[9:20] What's that saying? It's saying you can't begin to live right until you are rightly related to God. And we'll look at that. Proverbs four. Guard your heart, it says. Because out of your heart are the issues of life.
[9:34] In other words, this computer, if you like, if we can use that in other spaces, this computer needs some virus protection, doesn't it? So we need to guard the heart. And so there are principles we look at.
[9:45] We'll see the operating system for the first few weeks. Once we're done with that in chapter ten, we'll see the kind of downloading the software. And we'll have to be selective otherwise we'll be here all year, all the next two years.
[9:58] And we'll look at some of the software we need to live life as God intended it. So that is where we're going. The book of Proverbs is God's operating system for life. And we can only function properly if that operating system is properly installed.
[10:15] And you've downloaded the right software. Now that is the promise of Proverbs. That is what it will do to us. It will give us wisdom. It will give us discernment.
[10:27] Discernment is like when Sherlock Holmes goes into a room. He goes into a room with Sherlock Holmes and he sees what nobody else sees. He picks up the clues. Sherlock Holmes when he looks around he understands who will lead you and he says it was the butler in the drawer room with the candlestick.
[10:43] And he says well how can you possibly know that? And he says it's elementary my dear Watson. He sees it. That's discernment. It's coming into a situation.
[10:54] Any kind of situation. And as we go through the book of Proverbs we'll find different scenarios, different snapshots of daily life. And Proverbs gives you the discernment to live like Sherlock Holmes and understand what is going on.
[11:10] To look beneath the surface so you see the reality of the situation. So you'll make the right choices and the right moves. That is what this book promises to do for us and I think it's worth studying.
[11:21] So the first thing is the promise of Proverbs. The second thing is the problem with Proverbs. The problem with Proverbs is different verses five and six. We're told what we're going to find and it's almost like a contents page verses five and six.
[11:35] Let the wise hear and increase in learning and the one who understands obtain guidance to understand a proverb and a saying the words of the wise and their riddles. Let the wise listen.
[11:47] Let them add to their learning. Let them discern and get guidance for understanding. And that is what we're going to be coming up against again in verse six. To understand a proverb and a saying the words of the wise and their riddles.
[12:02] In other words how does this wisdom that we need for life how does it come to us? Well this wisdom this guidance does not come to us in nice neatly packaged ways in an orderly life in an orderly way.
[12:20] So where does the wisdom come to us? It comes in Proverbs in sayings in words in riddles. In case studies and in snark shots of life.
[12:32] And in the book of Proverbs they are all jumbled up together. You may have noticed that if you try to read the book of Proverbs I hope you have. It's so jumbled up isn't it?
[12:43] One writer says Proverbs changes subject more quickly than CNN. Ever watch CNN? You're in the airport it changes topics all the time isn't it? All the time.
[12:54] When you're stuck watching those 24 hour news channels they're constantly changing the subject all the time. You can't keep up with them. So if you're an engineer you might find Proverbs frustrating.
[13:06] Because engineers like things to be neat and organised! and orderly. The Proverbs is like that. The Proverbs is untidy. It is random. And yet life is like that isn't it?
[13:18] Life is like that you cannot systemise. You cannot I don't think organise these Proverbs in lots of ways. Listen to what Trent Longman the third wrote.
[13:30] It's a very very good commenter and he says this Proverbs reflect the randomness of life. The problems of life don't come in neat packages in sequential order. It's not like getting up in the morning and spending from 6 till 9 dealing with sexual problems and from 9 till 12 dealing with laziness.
[13:46] Problems in life come at us randomly and you never know what you're going to get. Well that's right isn't it? You can't say well on Monday I'm going to deal with my problem on finances and on Tuesday I'm going to deal with the kids but what happens if the kids are playing up on Monday?
[14:00] They normally do. And that is what life is like isn't it? Life is random. So you get up in the morning and you do not know what you're going to have to face tomorrow.
[14:12] You've got a clue some of you will go back to work after 2 weeks off or a week off and you've got no clue what you're going to have to face tomorrow or who you'll bump into. There are all sorts of colourful characters in the book of Proverbs.
[14:26] You've got the guy who's impossible in the mornings he's so bright and shirpy you've got the man who cannot shut up Mr. Talkative you've got the nagging wife you've got the noisy neighbor. There's all sorts of interesting characters in the book of Proverbs and we'll have fun I think as we look at them but the thing is you never know on any day of the week in any day of your life who you're going to bump into.
[14:49] You never know what sort of precise situation you're going to find yourself even when you go home tonight do you? And that is how Proverbs comes to us it is delivered in real time.
[15:00] It speaks to our life exactly the way our life is. But you see that's a problem isn't it? Particularly it's more of a problem for me than I try and preach it than it is for you.
[15:11] How do you preach it? You take it verse by verse subject by subject I listen to a number of services on that and they were alright I'm not sure they've got the book there. How do you preach through Proverbs? It is random that's the whole nature of the book.
[15:25] But that fits the way life is. But there are other problems. People often come to the book of Proverbs in the wrong way. People often come to Proverbs and see them as rules for holy living.
[15:41] So I've got an old manner of truth commentary. It's quite a good commentary. And the subtitle of it is Laws from Heaven for Life on Earth. Laws from Heaven for Life on Earth.
[15:51] It sounds good doesn't it? But it's wrong. Because there are countless situations situations that you will face tomorrow and every day of your life that actually are not covered by the rules.
[16:06] That aren't in Proverbs. Let's all find out. Let me give you an example. Come with me to Proverbs chapter 26. Proverbs 26. Proverbs 26.
[16:35] Proverbs 27. Proverbs 27. Proverbs 27. Proverbs 27. Proverbs 27. Proverbs 27. Proverbs 27. Proverbs 27. Proverbs 28. Proverbs 28. Proverbs 28. Proverbs 28. The other says, answer a fool.
[17:08] So what's the rule? Well, there isn't any rule there, actually. There's no absolute rule. How do you reconcile those two statements?
[17:18] Well, answer a fool, or you'll never learn. Or don't answer a fool, and you'll be reduced to his level. How do you obey? Which one do you obey?
[17:30] Well, it depends, doesn't it, on what kind of fool you're talking to. Doesn't it? You know the kind of fool that says, my mind is made up, don't confuse me with the facts. Well, there's not much point in arguing with someone like that, is there?
[17:42] Don't answer that kind of fool, don't bother, don't waste your breath. On the other hand, there are people who are foolish, and they've never thought seriously about anything in their life. And answer them, perhaps they'll learn something from you.
[17:55] But there's no absolute rule here. Proverbs are not rules. They're observations. Now that has been the most helpful thing as I've worked through proverbs the last number of months.
[18:10] Proverbs are not rules, they are observations. And that is why they are generalisations, not rules.
[18:21] And you and I will need to select the right proverb for the right occasion. They're all here, and if you've downloaded the software and you're operating under the operator principles, then you will select the right proverb for the right occasion, do you see?
[18:38] Now let me put it like this, proverbs are like looking through a lens of life, that's what you've got here. that is how Proverbs works Proverbs provides us with scenarios with snapshots so we have a Proverbs it's not in the Bible but we have a Proverbs more hurry, less speed which is generally true isn't that generally true?
[19:03] if you go too fast you go speeding ticket but that is not what it means if you go too fast you make mistakes and you end up having a start out all over again so more hurry, less speed and that makes sense it's a general observation that is generally true but it's not a hard and fast rule, is it?
[19:24] no, it's not so your child suffers from a terrible asthma attack are you going to live by that proverb? well, of course you're not you need to look for another proverb then, don't you?
[19:38] he who hesitates is lost and you get to the hospital as quickly as you can that is how Proverbs works they are not absolute rules you don't look up at an index and think, what is the rule for this thing or that thing?
[19:52] that's not how Proverbs work it's not how wisdom works these are not absolute rules not obligations they are observations and they are not promises either the book of Proverbs is not like a promise box you remember what a promise box was?
[20:06] people in the church I grew up in Habib you know, you give a little box full of bits of paper written in bits of paper actually it's quite a good idea in some ways but it was a little bit like letting you dip and you put your hand in the box you pull out a piece of paper and you have your promise of the day you know?
[20:24] there are some people that like to think of that don't they? in the book of Proverbs so they get their Bible and they read the first proverb that comes to their mind how long on simple ones will you love being simple?
[20:36] that's quite apt isn't it? they choose a random one but they're not like that there are some people who like to think of the book of Proverbs like that so train a child in a way that they should go and when he's old he will not depart from it is that a promise from God?
[20:58] I want to say to you no it's not and that makes them great harm actually you and I all know godly parents who have trained their children and have been cruelly disappointed by their children we know that that is a general observation now it is generally true it is a good thing isn't it?
[21:17] that it's generally true but it's not always always always the case commit all your ways to the Lord and your plans will succeed that's another proverb is that a promise? promise from God?
[21:28] is that always the case? if you commit all your ways to the Lord you'll succeed you'll never be ill you'll never suffer bankruptcy you'll never be cursed and persecuted well we all know don't we we all know that good things happen to bad people we know that bad things happen to good people we know that bad things happen to God's people and so we mustn't take the Proverbs in a superficial glib sort of way as if they were promises put them on fridge magnets they're not promises they're not precepts even they are observations not obligations now let's move on to my last point what Proverbs promises us is it will make the simple why is the problems of Proverbs and then lastly as we close the person of Proverbs look at verse 1 the Proverbs of Solomon son of David king of Israel that's very very important there's a connection between Solomon and Proverbs it's not simply that he's the author of Proverbs or that he's the compiler of Proverbs that he's God's magpie who's gathered them together but it is very significant that we automatically link Solomon with wisdom and we link Solomon with the book of Proverbs we're meant to do that 1 verse 1 but the connection is this that he is the king he is God's king that is the connection the connection between wisdom and Solomon is not a personal thing that he is very bright he's a very very bright bloke with all these interesting experiences no we link Solomon with wisdom because he is God's king and that is the connection here because wisdom is not sort of making up the rules for ourselves having general observations on life being discerning and making rules for ourselves wisdom as we go through Proverbs is actually coming under the rule of God's king and that is the wise way to live it is the only way to live do you remember right at the very end of Judges do you remember what it says what does it say it says in those days
[23:36] Israel had no king and everyone did what was right in their own eyes sounds very much like today it wasn't total anarchy the Judges everyone did wrong but it wasn't that they kicked off all the restraints they all thought at the end of Judges they were doing the right thing they all thought they were doing the right thing they all had values that they were teaching their children they had values that they were trying to live by they were doing what they thought was right or they were doing what was right but it was in their own eyes they were the boss of their own life there was no king there was no king that they bowed down to there was no king that they were accountable to there was no king in Israel but now there is a king and what a king he is it's Israel's golden age never in the whole history of God's redemption has there been a king like Solomon come with me to 1 Kings come with me to 1 Kings we'll go to chapter 3 1 Kings chapter 3 that's page 282 1 Kings chapter 3 and God's promise there
[24:52] God says Solomon I'll give you whatever you ask I'll give you whatever you ask it's an incredibly generous thing for God to do what would you what would you choose if God said I'll give you whatever you ask what would you choose very dangerous God says in verse 5 of 1 Kings chapter 3 ask what I shall give you Solomon is overwhelmed by the generosity of God and the task before him look at verse 7 and now oh lord my God you have made your sin a king in place of David my father although I am but a little child I do not know how to go out or come in he's about 30 years old there in verse 7 when he said that he's in his prime inside every man is a little boy trying to get out well that's that's how Solomon felt isn't he that's how he felt about ruling Israel look at verse 8 and your servant is in the midst of your people whom you have chosen are great people too many to be numbered or counted for multitudes which when you read that verse it should remind you of something shouldn't it look at verse 8 let me just read it to you again in the midst of your people whom you have chosen are great people too many to be numbered or counted for multitudes
[26:06] Abraham what was God promised to Abraham I'll make your descendants too many to be numbered Paul in Galatians chapter 3 verse 8 calls it the gospel in advance doesn't he he says this is the gospel the good news God's promised Abraham that I will make you a great nation I will give you descendants more than can be counted I will bless you and make you a blessing to others and all people on earth will be blessed through you and that's what God promised to Abraham and now Solomon he lays hold of that promise in prayer doesn't he Solomon is not saying he's not saying in verse 9 make me a bright boy he's not saying in verse 8 I know I've got a really difficult task I've got a really tricky day ahead of me please give me wisdom no no it's not that you see Solomon is aware he is conscious of where he stands in the unfolding plan of God's redemption for the world he's conscious conscious where he stands and he says I'm the one that you promised you promised David that you would give him a son and you would establish his throne and his kingdom and it is me Lord you promised Abraham that you would make him into a great nation and that there would come a time in the history of Israel when all the nations of the world will flow to Israel and they will flock to Israel and that is where I stand you see Solomon is very much aware of where he stands in God's plan of salvation so go to chapter 4 and verse 34 of 1 Kings and you have this great moment don't you and the people of all nations come to hear the wisdom of Solomon and from all the kings of the earth who is feared of his wisdom you will be a great nation
[27:50] Abraham and you will be a blessing to all the nations of the earth God promised Abraham hundreds of years before and now this nation that looked at one point like it was going to be extinguished in Egypt under Pharaoh is now a great nation this is Israel's golden age and Solomon has come to the throne for such a time as this and the Queen of Sheba comes to sit at his feet and not only the Queen of Sheba but people from all the nations of the world and they send their people to Solomon to hear him because of the answer to his prayer because God has given him wisdom to rule over his people Israel and just for a moment just for a tiny tiny little moment you get a glimpse you get a glimpse of what God intends for the new heavens and the new earth just for a moment you get a glimpse of what it is to be God's people in God's place under God's rule just for a moment and it doesn't last very long just for a moment you see God's people in God's place under God's rule and all the nations of the world flock to Israel and Eden is restored 1 Kings 4 did you see that?
[29:00] there's little hints on there Solomon is a kind of Adam figure 1 Kings 4 verse 32 he also spoke 3,000 proverbs his songs were 1,005 he spoke of trees from the cedar that is in Lebanon to the hyssop that grows out of the wall he spoke also of beasts and of birds and of ractals and of fish he's naming the animals the plants like Adam in the garden of Eden that moo someone must be a cow that wolf must be a dog now this is Adam in the garden of Eden you're meant to see that this isn't some anomaly in politics this isn't every dog has its day this isn't every kingdom has its moment it isn't that this is God's plan of salvation coming to fulfilment now God's king is on his throne ruling over Israel with wisdom from heaven not the wisdom of this world but wisdom from on high and the nations of the earth are flowing and of course there's tragedy isn't there because the best of men are men at best so Solomon the wisest man who ever lived becomes the biggest fool who's ever lived and the seeds of his own foolishness are there in 1 Kings chapter 3 isn't it in the very chapter where he asks God for wisdom this wonderful chapter folly is bound in his heart already so look at this 1 of 1 Kings chapter 3
[30:28] Solomon made a marriage alliance with Pharaoh the king of Egypt he took Pharaoh's daughter and brought her into the city of David he shouldn't have done that if he'd read the book of Deuteronomy he'd have known that and you know what it led to 700 wives 700 mother-in-laws is that wise?
[30:50] 300 girlfriends? some people want to argue I've got a bit of sympathy with this that the book of Ecclesiastes was written in his old age and Ecclesiastes is Solomon's repentance for a wasted life looking back on a long life and he blew it this man who at one stage was the most sought after man in all the world because of his wisdom became the biggest fool in the universe he threw it all away and if you know the book of Kings which is the book of Christ it is the book of losers isn't it?
[31:22] every single one of them but there is a king there is a king there is a king who will come from the stump of Jesse so turn lastly to Isaiah chapter 11 there is a king who will come from the stump of Jesse there will come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse Solomon's granddad even after Solomon and all his ilk have blown it a stump will come and a branch from his root shall bear fruit and the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him the spirit of wisdom and understanding the spirit of counsel and might the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord and his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord and he shall not gentile all his eyes see or decide the spirit of all his ears here look at this 10 in that day the root of Jesse who shall stand as a signal for the peoples of him shall the nations inquire and his rest and place shall be glorious read Isaiah 11 when you get home it will thrill your heart it will fill you with hope this is God's king and he is still to come do you remember what Jesus says in the Sermon on the Mount he says in Matthew 5 he refers back in the Sermon on the Mount to Israel's golden age and he refers back to the glorious Solomon he picks up a wild flower and he says it's not even Solomon in all his glory compares to this
[32:47] I don't even notice what a wild flower is I trample on it but Jesus picks up a wild flower and he says it's not even Solomon in all his glory compares to this when all is said and done Solomon is only a creature he's a frail fallible human being and we need more than that don't we we need a creator we need the creator not one of his creatures to rule over us and that is the great good news of the gospel the gospel is not some self-help it doesn't belong in the sections of worldly wisdom and how to help in the bookshops the gospel is great news that the creator himself has come into the world and become one of us because Jesus is God in the flesh to become our king to become our lord to rule over us to protect us from our enemies and to save us Matthew 12 the disciples the authorities are getting a bit iffy about Jesus and they ask him give us a sign to prove your credentials why should we believe who you say that you are and Jesus does not perform any kind of conjuring tricks he just says in Matthew 12 he says to them a greater than Solomon this year a greater than Solomon this year we see the queen of Sheba she comes and she comes from the south the queen of the south to sit at his feet and so you and I should come to the
[34:21] Lord Jesus and we should sit at his feet and we will see the queen of Sheba on the day of judgment Jesus tells us that in Matthew 12 at the judgment day we will see her rise up on the judgment day to condemn people she will condemn people who are so foolish that they don't come to Jesus a greater than Solomon is here and as we read the book of Proverbs we will bump into all sorts of interesting characters and we will find ourselves in all sorts of interesting situations but I want you to remember this every time we come together there is a greater than Solomon that is here remember what Jesus said to them in the book of Emmaus he showed them in all the scriptures Moses, the prophets the Psalms all the scriptures concerning himself and so when we read this book of Proverbs we need to remember that a greater than Solomon is here and if we don't meet him every time we study this book well actually I'm not doing my job we are coming to meet with Jesus we are not coming from recipes for life the book of Proverbs is not a list of how to sermons that if you want that you go to the book club switch on the
[35:43] God channel watch Joyce Meyer watch Joel Osteen no we are coming to worship Jesus and we are coming to fall at his feet because they came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon and behold something greater than Solomon is here Jesus says come unto me all you who labour and are heavy laden he finished it this morning weighed down anxious fearful vulnerable in this world come to me he says and I will give you rest if you think for a moment as you go home tonight about the peace and the rest that Solomon gave to Israel and Israel did have peace under Solomon for a very short time but that is nothing it is nothing compared to what rest Jesus can give you learn from me for I am lowly in heart I am meek they are not rules this is the yoke of Jesus it is arm around the shoulder to live
[36:47] God's way in God's world let's pray