...that church north point
4.22.12
LISTEN, MY SON, TO YOUR FATHER’S INSTRUCTION...
The Way, The Truth, & The Life in Proverbs | Rev. Eyde Mabanglo
PROVERBS SERMON
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge,
but fools despise wisdom and instruction.
Listen, my son, to your father’s instruction
and do not forsake your mother’s teaching.
They are a garland to grace your head
and a chain to adorn your neck. (Proverbs 1:7-9)
INTRO TO SERMON:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_WamkRSDeD8
"Just The Two Of Us" (1998)
From the first time the doctor placed you in my arms
I knew I'd meet death before I'd let you meet harm
Although questions arose in my mind, would I be man enough?
Against wrong, choose right and be standing up
From the hospital that first night
Took a hour just to get the car seat in right
People driving all fast, got me kind of upset
Got you home safe, placed you in your bassinette
That night I don't think one wink I slept
As I slipped out my bed, to your crib I crept
Touched your head gently, felt my heart melt
Cause I know I loved you more than life itself
Then to my knees, and I begged the Lord please
Let me be a good daddy, all he needs
Love, knowledge, discipline too
I pledge my life to you
[Chorus:]
Just the two of us, we can make it if we try
Just the two of us, (Just the two of us)
Just the two of us, building castles in the sky
Just the two of us, you and I
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Five years old, bringing comedy
Every time I look at you I think man, a little me
Just like me
Wait and see going to be tall
Makes me laugh cause you got your dads ears an all
Sometimes I wonder, what you going to be
A General, a Doctor, maybe a MC
Ha ha, I want to kiss you all the time
But I will test that butt when you cut out of line, true that
Uh-uh-uh why you do that?
I try to be a tough dad, but you be making me laugh
Crazy joy, when I see the eyes of my baby boy
I pledge to you, I will always do
Everything I can
Show you how to be a man
Dignity, integrity, honor an
An I don't mind if you lose, long as you came with it
And you can cry, no shame in it
It didn't work out with me an your mom
But yo, push come to shove
You was conceived in love
So if the world attacks, and you slide off track
Remember one fact, I got your back
[Chorus]
It's a full-time job to be a good dad
You got so much more stuff than I had
I got to study just to keep with the changing times
101 Dalmations on your CD-ROM
See me-I'm
Trying to pretend I know
On my PC where that CD go
But you, ain't nothing promised, one day I'll be gone
Feel the strife, but trust life does go wrong
But just in case
It's my place
To impart
One day some girl's going to break your heart
And ooh ain't no pain like from the opposite sex
Going to hurt bad, but don't take it out on the next, son
Throughout life people will make you mad
Disrespect you and treat you bad
Let God deal with the things they do
Cause hate in your heart will consume you too
Always tell the truth, say your prayers
Hold doors, pull out chairs, easy on the swears
You're living proof that dreams do come true
I love you and I'm here for you
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IMPART ING WISDOM
What did you see in that video? a father who loves his son. a son who looks up to
his father. an old song mixed with a new. an attempt to summarize all of life's
lessons, so that a young boy might grow up to be the man God intended him to be.
Will Smith wants to impart Wisdom on his Son. Will first wrote a children's book,
and then he set the "rap" to music--music which spans two generations ("Just The
Two of Us" by Bill Withers and Grover Washington, Jr. and the R&B band backing
up Will Smith). The video is shot in a beautiful monochrome which for me lends
the genius of the art direction that wanted to communicate the timelessness of the
truths heard in Will's fatherly advice.
I love this video for all of these reasons. For me, this music video helps us jump
into the Book of Proverbs. Will Smith is trying to do in 4 minutes what Solomon
and a few other wise voices did in 31 chapters of proverbial wisdom.
Solomon's proverbs were penned around 900 B.C. During his reign as king, the
nation of Israel reached its pinnacle spiritually, politically, culturally, and
economically. As Israel's reputation soared, so did King Solomon's.... From all
nations people came to listen to Solomon’s wisdom, sent by all the kings of the
world, who had heard of his wisdom. 1 Kings 4:34.
Knowledge is nothing more than an accumulation of raw facts, but wisdom is the
ability to see people, events, and situations as God sees them.
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TO OUR CHILDREN
This week, my son turned 17. My birthday was two days earlier, and I found out
that a local coffee shop gives free 16oz coffees on your birthday, so I took him
before school to get his free drink. While we waited for our barista to put the
finishing touches on our large mochas. Eddie looked up at the ventilation system,
and told me that he could 'touch that'. He proceeded to take two large steps, make
an Olympic size leap, touch the duct system, twist around, and land. He told me the
reason why he twists around is so that he won't stumble and fall at the end of the
jump. By leaping with a twist he is able to stick his landing--worthy of Olympic
Gold. Salute the judges!
At this time, I see my son as simultaneously age 17 and age 7, and I love that...
As I have been surveying the Book of Proverbs, I have been challenged to reflect on
how I have tried to impart wisdom on my children. Eddie is 17. He is legally an
adult in one year. Have I taken the time to give him all of life's lessons to spare him
any heartache, wasted time, or foolishness in the years to come. To learn from my
mistakes in addition to the ones he will surely make? Is it too late? Should I just
show him Will Smith's video and be done with it?
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WHAT WILL I PASS ON...
Because my parents died when I was young, I wasn't even interested in any
wisdom they might have shared with me. As a young adult, I wished I had more of
their pragmatic and wise counsel available to me as I carved out my own life, and
especially as I started my own family.
When i found out that I was pregnant, I took to writing a journal for each of my
children. Will Smith and I are about the same age (he is 44), and I wonder if
whatever motivated me to write my children a few thoughts (now once in a blue
moon) was the same that moved him to write a children's story (to later become
his best selling solo hit). Did we, as children of the 80's, want to pass on to our
children something that we longed for from our own parents or feared we would
never get a chance to deliver in person (should we die young as well)--what made
us want to write down things like: the secrets of life, the manual for parenting, the
answer to trails, pain, and hardship. Was it the same for Solomon and the other
writers of the Book of Proverbs or any writer of any proverbial writings
throughout the history of the earth? It is out of love that we, you and me included,
want to spare our children of this kind of grief. Is there anything I can tell them
now that will help them side step danger in their relationships, careers, and/or
discovering who they are in Christ?
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TIMELESS TRUTHS-THE PROVERBS
Timeless Truth is a proverb--a pithy statement, easy to remember, that imparts
wisdom--not just knowledge. Although, timeless as truth is, new ways of
communicating that truth is needed for this generation and the next.
An example of a timeless truth in proverbial form is--a picture is worth a thousand
words. Of course, post- modern adaptation of that proverb is--a pixel is worth 10
words.
PROVERBS at OUR HOUSE (not really)
 Artificial intelligence is no match for natural stupidity.
 A closed mouth gathers no feet.
 If you're too open minded, your brains will fall out.
 Before you criticize someone, walk a mile in his shoes. That way, if he
gets angry, he'll be a mile away - and barefoot.
 Men are from earth. Women are from earth. Deal with it.
 No husband has ever been shot while doing the dishes.
BETTER PROVERBS
 If you want your dreams to come true, don't oversleep.
 Ideas won't work unless YOU do.
 One thing you can't recycle is wasted time.
 One who lacks the courage to start has already finished.
 The heaviest thing to carry is a grudge.
 Don't learn safety rules by accident.
 One thing you can give and still keep…is your word.
 A friend walks in when everyone else walks out.
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PROVERBS 8
1 Does not wisdom call out?
Does not understanding raise her voice?
2 At the highest point along the way,
where the paths meet, she takes her stand;
3 beside the gate leading into the city,
at the entrance, she cries aloud:
4 “To you, O people, I call out;
I raise my voice to all mankind.
5 You who are simple, gain prudence;
you who are foolish, set your hearts on it.[a]
6 Listen, for I have trustworthy things to say;
I open my lips to speak what is right.
7 My mouth speaks what is true,
for my lips detest wickedness.
8 All the words of my mouth are just;
none of them is crooked or perverse.
9 To the discerning all of them are right;
they are upright to those who have found knowledge.
10 Choose my instruction instead of silver,
knowledge rather than choice gold,
11 for wisdom is more precious than rubies,
and nothing you desire can compare with her.
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GET SMART
Wisdom is out in the brightness of day. She is not hidden. Wisdom is described as
Woman Wisdom that calls out to us in the major intersection of our lives, and bids
us to know her. We are to pursue her, see her, and find her.
Proverbs 4:5; "Get wisdom, get understanding; do not forget my words or swerve
from them."
Pursue Woman Wisdom! If we were to take this timeless truth and put it in
modern language we would say get smart. Get Jesus.
Truth/Wisdom... She is what we are to pass on from father to son. She is more
precious than silver or gold. So proverbs is more than just a collection of many
pithy axioms to lend the child of God tips to survive and thrive in this life, but it is a
collective voice proclaiming timeless truth....AND JESUS SAID i AM THE WAY, THE
TRUTH, AND THE LIFE...
WHAT IS TRUTH?
Pilate looked Truth in the face and asked, "what is truth?" And then he walked
away... [John 18:38]
There is a warning here for people who question the reality or relativity of truth.
There is a warning here for folks who don't take Truth seriously... for any man who
peruses the Scriptures in search of truth will surely find it.
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12 “I, wisdom, dwell together with prudence;
I possess knowledge and discretion.
13 To fear the LORD is to hate evil;
I hate pride and arrogance,
evil behavior and perverse speech.
14 Counsel and sound judgment are mine;
I have insight, I have power.
15 By me kings reign
and rulers issue decrees that are just;
16 by me princes govern,
and nobles—all who rule on earth.[b]
17 I love those who love me,
and those who seek me find me.
[compare to Jeremiah 29:13f]
18 With me are riches and honor,
enduring wealth and prosperity.
19 My fruit is better than fine gold;
what I yield surpasses choice silver.
20 I walk in the way of righteousness,
along the paths of justice,
21 bestowing a rich inheritance on those who love me
and making their treasuries full.
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ABSOLUTE TRUTH
There is no absolute truth. Are you absolutely sure? Isn't this one of the failures of
higher education: that instead of understanding better just how much we don't
know, graduates assume they know...and one of the things many presume is that
we can't know absolute truth and/or truth doesn't exist. This is a self defeating
premise...
There is something called Roadrunner logic. As Wylie Coyote chases down the
roadrunner, he fails to see that the Roadrunner has stopped just short of a deadly
cliff. Almost always, Wylie runs pass the safe roadrunner, and becomes suspended
animation as he is frozen over a deep chasm below him. We and he realize
together that he has no ground to stand on....
This morning we sang a song called "Hallelujah" and repeated the refrain: Your
LOVE is a mountain firm beneath my feet! Our job is to give them ground to stand
on...
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GIVE THEM SOMETHING TO STAND ON...
1981, when I was in High School and Will Smith was in junior high, Dr. David Elkin
wrote a book called "The Hurried Child". His basic premise was that parents had
been hurrying their children for personal gain--whether that was boasting rights,
vicarious dreams, or abdicating their parental responsibilities to clubs, schools, or
youth organizations. [http://www.parentbooksummaries.com/the-hurried-child25th-anniversary-edition/]
Many children raised in the church grow up and move out and don't return to
church. why? We haven't given them the ground to stand on. We have given them
knowledge, but we haven't given them Christ. We have abdicated their spiritual
upbringing... we want them to make their own decision, but we haven't told them
what the choices are. Proverbs does that: choose wisdom and follow after eternal
life or choose folly and follow after deceit, distraction, self-destruction, and death.
THE FATHER'S LOVE
It is a father's love that wants to spare his children pain, suffering, and heartache.
It is THE father's love for you and for me, that sent his only begotten son to spare
us from the pain of eternal separation from the Father who loves us. The wisdom
of Proverbs is that it tells us to seek Wisdom. It tells us to teach our children to
seek Wisdom. It challenges us to see Wisdom as Christ himself. So we see that the
very WAY our heavenly father has imparted TRUTH & LIFE is by sending us
himself. As the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, so the Word existed 'in the
beginning.' (John 1:14-18)
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Proverbs 8 continues...
22 “The LORD brought me forth as the first of his works,
before his deeds of old;
23 I was formed long ages ago,
at the very beginning, when the world came to be.
24 When there were no watery depths, I was given birth,
when there were no springs overflowing with water;
25 before the mountains were settled in place,
before the hills, I was given birth,
26 before he made the world or its fields
or any of the dust of the earth.
27 I was there when he set the heavens in place,
when he marked out the horizon on the face of the deep,
28 when he established the clouds above
and fixed securely the fountains of the deep,
29 when he gave the sea its boundary
so the waters would not overstep his command,
and when he marked out the foundations of the earth.
30 Then I was constantly at his side.
I was filled with delight day after day,
rejoicing always in his presence,
31 rejoicing in his whole world
and delighting in mankind.
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FOR DADS...AND NOT JUST FOR DADS
What a wonderful reflection on the occasion of my son's 17th birthday. What a
wonderful reminder that we were never meant to exist for our self. Whether we
are a parent or not, no adult was meant to live life without regard for the next
generation.
SIDE NOTE ...astonishing statistics say that if Dad attends church with his
family, then a significantly higher percentage of children will remain church
goers...even if Dad' attendance is irregular.
[http://www.touchstonemag.com/archives/article.php?id=16-05-024-v]
HOWEVER, this message isn't just for Dads like Will Smith. This is for each of us. If
we are in the Lord then we are mandated to raise all children to love God and to
seek after His Wisdom. To seek the person called Wisdom. To seek Christ.
My prayer for all children is the same as for my son...that one day he would take
two large steps, take a leap of faith, twist around, and stick his landing because he
had ground to stand on. That would be better than Olympic Gold...or silver... "for
wisdom is more precious than rubies, and nothing you desire can compare..."
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