Proverbs 23

So before we begin today I need to bring up the fact that we only have 10 or 11 days left on Proverbs before we move on to our next book and I was thinking about looking at the book of Daniel which will take us about 40 days then move in to the book of Revelation which will take us about 70 days or even Ezekiel which will take about 105 days. So both will take about the same amount of time it just comes down to what we want to study first. To tell you the truth I am leaning in favor of Daniel and revelation. But what are your thoughts? I will let you know what the outcome in in about week.

Proverbs 23

New King James Version (NKJV)

1 When you sit down to eat with a ruler,

Consider carefully what is before you;

2 And put a knife to your throat

If you are a man given to appetite.

3 Do not desire his delicacies,

For they are deceptive food.

4 Do not overwork to be rich;

Because of your own understanding, cease!

5 Will you set your eyes on that which is not?

For riches certainly make themselves wings;

They fly away like an eagle toward heaven.

6 Do not eat the bread of a miser,

Nor desire his delicacies;

7 For as he thinks in his heart, so is he.

“ Eat and drink!” he says to you,

But his heart is not with you.

8 The morsel you have eaten, you will vomit up,

And waste your pleasant words.

9 Do not speak in the hearing of a fool,

For he will despise the wisdom of your words.

10 Do not remove the ancient landmark,

Nor enter the fields of the fatherless;

11 For their Redeemer is mighty;

He will plead their cause against you.

12 Apply your heart to instruction,

And your ears to words of knowledge.

13 Do not withhold correction from a child,

For if you beat him with a rod, he will not die.

14 You shall beat him with a rod,

And deliver his soul from hell.

15 My son, if your heart is wise,

My heart will rejoice—indeed, I myself;

16 Yes, my inmost being will rejoice

When your lips speak right things.

Do not let your heart envy sinners,

But be zealous for the fear of the LORD all the day;

18 For surely there is a hereafter,

And your hope will not be cut off.

19 Hear, my son, and be wise;

And guide your heart in the way.

20 Do not mix with winebibbers,

Or with gluttonous eaters of meat;

21 For the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty,

And drowsiness will clothe a man with rags.

22 Listen to your father who begot you,

And do not despise your mother when she is old.

23 Buy the truth, and do not sell it,

Also wisdom and instruction and understanding.

24 The father of the righteous will greatly rejoice,

And he who begets a wise child will delight in him.

25 Let your father and your mother be glad,

And let her who bore you rejoice.

26 My son, give me your heart,

And let your eyes observe my ways.

27 For a harlot is a deep pit,

And a seductress is a narrow well.

28 She also lies in wait as for a victim,

And increases the unfaithful among men.

29 Who has woe?

Who has sorrow?

Who has contentions?

Who has complaints?

Who has wounds without cause?

Who has redness of eyes?

30 Those who linger long at the wine,

Those who go in search of mixed wine.

31 Do not look on the wine when it is red,

When it sparkles in the cup,

When it swirls around smoothly;

32 At the last it bites like a serpent,

And stings like a viper.

33 Your eyes will see strange things,

And your heart will utter perverse things.

34 Yes, you will be like one who lies down in the midst of the sea,

Or like one who lies at the top of the mast, saying:

“They have struck me, but I was not hurt;

They have beaten me, but I did not feel it.

When shall I awake, that I may seek another drink?”

1. So let’s start with (v. 4) we read “Do not overwork to be rich; because of your own understanding, cease!”
   1. This life style leads to never having enough money and never resting. We live in a world that admires the men with the money. We have all seen those that work their life away just to end up alone and wishing that they had just focused on the right things earlier in life.
   2. Yes as we have read in the previous chapters, God wants us to work and take care of our families but there is much more to life than work. I wrote in the post entitled “Colors” that God made all the colors for us not just one. And with that in mind we need to live a balanced life; Work, Love, Play and most of all dance as much as you can.
2. In (vv. 6, 7) we read “Do not eat the bread of a miser, nor desire his delicacies; for as he thinks in his heart, so is he. “ Eat and drink!” he says to you, but his heart is not with you”
   1. When we eat from the table of a miser there will be a price to pay because nothing he gives come without a price (Deut. 15:9). As Pastors we are always telling people that they need to be like Christ and think like Him. To me that is just what we see here, when our hearts are as the miser we are like him but when we are like Christ we reflect Him.
3. Let’s finish with (vv. 20, 21) we read “Do not mix with winebibbers, or with gluttonous eaters of meat; for the drunkard and the glutton will come to poverty, and drowsiness will clothe a man with rags.”
   1. There are at least two good reasons for not living this life style. 1^st gluttony and drunkenness are both vices and lead to a shortness of funds. 2^nd this life style also limits your earning capabilities (see 24:33, 34).

I like this thought so much it will be the topic of my sermon this week.

 “Worldliness is living as if there is no eternity”

We live in a materialistic age. Gadgets and luxuries with their glitter and glamour entice even Christians to spend too much energy and money to obtain them. That’s why it’s important to keep spiritual values foremost in our minds.

Have you been putting all of your energies into getting ahead in this world while neglecting heavenly values? Jesus said, “Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life” (Jn. 6:27). Have you attempted recently to lead anyone to Christ and offered food that satisfies forever?

If you want to see how materialistic you are, take this little test: Suppose someone were to offer you a thousand dollars for every person you earnestly sought to lead to Christ. Would you try to witness to more people than you are doing now? Is it possible that you would do for money, even at the risk of blunders or ridicule, what you would hesitate to do otherwise in obedience to Christ’s urgent commands? Is your love of money stronger than your love of God or the souls of people?

What is the prime goal of our lives? For what are we working? Jesus asks us today, as He did Peter, “Do you love Me more than these?” (Jn. 21:15).

Living for Jesus through earth’s little while,

My dearest treasure, the light of His smile;

Seeking the lost ones He died to redeem,

Bringing the weary to find rest in Him.

Personal Reflection and Discussion

1. What do you think (v. 13) is saying?
2. What other things do you see in the text?

Prayer Activities

1. Call your Partner and discuss this devotional.
2. Continue to have a prayer list and continue to praying for them.
3. Pray with them and ask for the following;
   1. For God to live a balanced life.
   2. For God to guide us and show us His wishes for us.
   3. For the individuals on your pray list.
4. Let’s use (1 Cor. 10;14-17) for today’s prayer verse.