Let's proceed into getting into the word this morning. And so I would ask you to turn in your Bibles to Ecclesiastes chapter number 10. Ecclesiastes chapter number 10. I will say right off the bat that we are taking a brief respite from our series on preventing the death of a church. These are messages that are for the church membership and so when we have at least four members that are out. I'm gonna hold off until we get them back so we can proceed together on those. And so we'll be going in a different direction this morning and we're gonna read one verse. This one verse will serve as our text. It's found in Ecclesiastes chapter number 10 verse number 1. Ecclesiastes chapter 10 verse number 1. Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking saver. So doth a little folly him that is in reputation for wisdom and honor." The title of the message this morning is, Dead Flies in the Ointment. Let's pray. Heavenly Father we thank you for the opportunity to be in your house today. We rejoice in the first day of the week and Lord the ability to to have health to get up and to get out to serve you and to worship you and Lord to have a place where we can gather together and Preach the Word of God without fear of the government coming in and because of the content of the message causing us to stop and cease and desist and Lord, we're just thankful for you. We're thankful for all that you've done. We're thankful for salvation that we have through the shed blood of the Lord Jesus Christ. And Lord, this morning as we gather together, I do pray that you would help us to remember that we are going by the name Christian. That that means that we are disciples of the Lord Jesus Christ. And as such, we are supposed to look to our reputation, look to our testimony here in this world. And Lord, today as we consider this verse out of the book of Ecclesiastes, help us to remember the importance of our testimony and to be on guard lest we behave in a manner that would ruin or destroy our testimony. Lord, we pray that today You'd speak to us. Have Your will and way. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Dead flies in the ointment. Now, I'm sure that you saw if not during the vice presidential debate on Wednesday night, certainly footage afterwards of the infamous fly that landed on Vice President Pence's head. Much was made over that fly. Once again, the left showed their malice, lack of civility, and idiocy. In short, they acted like they are fools. I mention that because flies seem to have been on people's minds this past week. Well, the fly that landed on Vice President Pence's head was a living fly. Today our text mentions dead flies. And I say this morning that our text verse serves as a warning to God's people that we must be careful to maintain a right and a proper testimony in this world. Now there are dangers, as this verse points out, that the wise Christian will be confronted with. Now these dangers may not always be treated as dangers. And we may not frequently even be aware of these dangers. But the reality is that these dangers can have a detrimental and disastrous effect on our testimony as the Lord's people. In short, failure to be on guard can lead to a testimony that here in Ecclesiastes chapter 10 and verse number 1 is compared to dead flies in the ointment. So today, may the Lord grant us mercy to see the application of this verse in each of our lives. And so today, we're going to look at this text, verse number 1, from four different angles, as we consider dead flies in the ointment. Here are the four angles and then we'll consider them individually. First of all, this angle, we want to give an explanation of the proverb and it should be no surprise to you that verse number one is in fact a proverb. Who wrote the book of Ecclesiastes? Solomon. Who wrote the book of Proverbs? Solomon. Solomon is giving us a proverb here that warns us about our Christian walk and so we need to give an explanation of the proverb. Secondly, we see this angle that there is the expectation of a wise reputation. Thirdly, we see the ease with which the reputation is lost. And then fourthly and finally we see this angle, the effect of the loss of that reputation. Four angles in which we consider dead flies in the ointment. So we begin this morning by looking at the first angle. we give an explanation of the proverb. It is very clearly, as we've already mentioned, a proverb. And so we must question, we must evaluate, we must investigate What does the proverb mean? What is the literal meaning and then what is the application for us as God's people? Now you know, whenever we get into hermeneutics, the science and art of biblical interpretation, We have to begin with explaining terms, right? There are a number of terms that are mentioned here, words that are mentioned in verse number 1 that we need to make sure we understand what they mean, right? So notice here, we read the verse again. Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking savor. So doth a little folly him that is in reputation for wisdom and honor. Now, there are a number of terms that we want to consider here. Some of the terms are self-explanatory, and at least one of the terms we'll save until later on in the message. But notice as we attempt to give an explanation of the proverb, we begin by explaining the terms, and first of all, you have the term dead flies. dead flies. The Hebrew expression literally is flies of death. Now I don't think, and you'll look at some commentators that might try to make the point that these could be poisonous flies. And certainly in the eastern countries there are poisonous flies that were in existence, but we're not talking, I believe, here in verse number one about poisonous flies. We're talking about flies, like you and I would see in our normal routine, and these are flies that are dead flies. They're no longer living. Now remember, that flies, in scripture, are a symbol of evil, judgment and ruin. If I were to say to you, I want you to think about an instance in Scripture where flies are mentioned, you would probably go back to the plagues. When God had told Moses and Aaron to go before Pharaoh and to allow the people to go so that they might worship the Lord and serve the Lord a three days journey and of course Pharaoh was hard-hearted and would not let them go and so God brought ten plagues upon them. One of those plagues was the plague of the flies in Egypt. And then we think as well about flies being a symbol of evil, judgment, and ruin. We studied a few weeks back in looking at the kings of Israel, how that one of those kings had sought counsel from the Philistine Achronite God Beelzebub, right? Beelzebub. And in the New Testament, Beelzebub is referred to as Beelzebub. And we told you then that Beelzebub, or Beelzebub, was literally the Philistine Achronite Lord of the flies. And so flies have always been a symbol of evil, judgment, and ruin. And so that ought to give you an indication as to what's coming here when the Bible says dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking saver. So we have an explanation of these terms. dead flies, but then notice secondly the term ointment. Dead flies cause the ointment. And so the word ointment literally in the Hebrew is oil, grease, or perfume. And this oil was made fragrant by mixing with it precious drugs. And literally what this ointment became was more or less of what we would refer to today as a perfume. It was a perfume. And it was used for many different purposes. Now remember, as we define these terms and explain these terms, all of these terms and the definitions that we give and the explanation of them apply to what we're going to get to as we look at how it applies to us and our testimony. So you've got the dead flies that are in the ointment. What is the ointment? It's a very precious substance, a perfume that is made that served many different purposes. Think about these different purposes that you'll find in Scripture for the ointment. It was used for anointing priests and kings as they assumed the office given to them. guests of the rich, when they would visit the rich, guests of the rich would be treated to this ointment as a luxury. This ointment was used medicinally for the application of the bodies of the sick. And then lastly, corpses were wrapped in burial clothes and these burial clothes were sprinkled with this ointment, right, to prevent the putrid smells and so forth. Now, great care was taken not only to make the ointment, but also to preserve the ointment. In fact, it was a shame when the great care was taken to make the ointment and this precious perfume existed and a dead fly would make its way into the ointment and ruin the ointment. So great care was taken to make it and preserve it. And then we have this term Apothecary. Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary. The word apothecary literally means to perfume. to make ointment of or to mix. It can refer to the person that's doing it or it can refer to the process of making the ointment. In fact, Moses, in talking about the ointments and the perfumes that were to be used in the service of the Lord in the tabernacle, uses the very term, the apothecary of the ointment, right? And so notice as well, the term stinking saver. Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking saver. The word stinking saver in the Hebrew literally means to abhor, to be an abomination or very simply to stink. And what is the implication here? A dead fly that would land in this precious substance, this perfume, this ointment, would corrupt the ointment and turn it into a nasty putrid smelling odor. Have you ever had anything that smelled really good and years later it didn't smell so good? Yeah, you guys remember some of the perfumes and colognes that used to have that you might run across one at a yard sale and you smell it and it's like, wow, you know, that doesn't smell like the Jovan Musk that I remember of the early 80s, right? It's putrid smelling. So stinking savor is relatively a common application. It's stunk. But then notice we get into some of the other terms. He says here, Solomon writes, a stinking saver, now watch, so doth a little folly, and I will tell you we're going to discuss the word folly later on in the message, and we'll explain that term later, but notice a little folly, him that is in reputation. Now the word reputation here literally means valuable, splendid, excellent, and then finally precious. And if you look up the Hebrew word for reputation in our English Bibles, you're going to find that it is most frequently translated, precious. And so the idea is, that there are people on this earth that have a precious testimony, we have a precious reputation. And I would say as well, we can refer to our reputation as our testimony. I'm not talking about our testimony of salvation whereby we might recite how it was that the Lord saved us. I'm talking about our testimony, our manner of living, right? We use that term generically sometimes, and I think it applies to our reputation. We might say, well, we know Brother so-and-so over at this church. What's his testimony? Does he have a good testimony? Oh yes, he's an honorable man of high character. He lives for the Lord and honors and glorifies the Lord. He's got a great testimony. It means he has a great reputation. And so we use those terms interchangeably this morning. And then notice as well, we have in verse number 10 the word wisdom. So doth a little folly him that is in reputation for wisdom. You ought to know by now the term wisdom literally means the proper application of knowledge. If you look the word up in the Greek, or in the Hebrew rather, it means wise. It means wit. Well, what is wisdom? It is the proper application of knowledge. Of course that necessitates that you possess knowledge in order to apply it. And then lastly, the word honor, right? Him that is in reputation for wisdom and honor. The word honor here means glory, splendor, or reverence. Honor is really what proceeds from a testimony of wisdom. And we'll look at that here in just a little bit. So we've explained these terms used in verse number 1. And of course, we're attempting to give an explanation of the proverb, and that leads us here to the exhortation that Solomon is giving concerning our testimony. Notice that little conjunction, so. Do you see that in the middle of the verse after the colon? Dead flies caused the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking saver. So, and do you see what's happening there? Solomon is linking what he is about to write to what he has previously written. He's drawing a thought that what applies next is proven by what he first mentioned. Right? So dead flies that would get into this precious ointment would ruin the ointment and cause it to stink. It's of no longer any value. Then he says, so, or likewise, doth a little folly Him that is in reputation for wisdom and honor. So literally the meaning is this. A noble person that possesses high character, which by the way should be every believer, and we'll talk about that in a moment. A noble person who possesses high character and is held in esteem by others can be corrupted and destroyed by a little father. Now I'm not saying that they lose their salvation. But what I'm saying is that they lose their testimony. Their reputation can be destroyed. Literally, an insignificant looking fault or weakness may outweigh all the good that God has done in the lives of a person of high character. It's true. Is this not what Solomon is teaching? Read it. Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking saber, so that they little folly Him that is in reputation for wisdom and honor. So we've explained the meaning of the proverb. Now we want to get into the second angle by which we consider dead flies and the ointment. We see the second angle. We see the expectation of a wise reputation. Notice the Bible says, Him that is in reputation for wisdom and honor. This does not alleviate anybody in this room from the responsibility given in verse number one. It is not as though, now stay with me on this, it is not as though this applies only to a few elite believers. It is not as though there are just a few Christians who have attained the reputation for wisdom and honor. No, beloved, this verse is to be applied in every believer's life. God expects of us, that we will have a testimony that is marked by wisdom and honor. God expects that you and I would strive for the attainments of all that we can be in honoring and glorifying the Lord. In other words, the Lord isn't looking for us to be average. The Lord isn't looking for us to just get by. The Lord is looking for us, and I say expects of us, that we be, as the person described in verse number 1, people that are held in reputation for wisdom and honor. Now, that carries a certain amount of concern. for us as the Lord's people because we need to look out and make sure that we are walking in such a way that we have a wise reputation both amongst those that are the Lord's people and as they are described in scripture, them that are without. Those that are not saved by the grace of God. Now, if this is to happen, The expectation of a wise reputation. If this is to happen in our lives and we are to be viewed as believers that have a reputation and a testimony of wisdom and honor, that means, first of all, that we are to have a testimony of wisdom. We are not to be described as the foolish of this world. And if you want an exercise in honesty, read the book of Proverbs. and read the description of the wise and the description of the foolish and then just keep telling. Do I have more marks on the side of foolishness, or do I have more marks on the side of wisdom? See, our problem is sometimes, a lot of times, we don't want to be honest. We have this facade that we have a great reputation and we're held in wisdom and honor, and it's not the case. And we don't want to be bothered by the fact that we have to do a little self-introspection. Well, it's real. It's a reality. We're to have a testimony of wisdom. You and I ought to do as the psalmist wrote in Psalms 90 and verse number 12, where the psalmist prays to the Lord, so teach us to number our days. Why? That we may apply our hearts unto wisdom. That is good for every believer, not just for the few elite that we may have in our minds. In fact, when you think about Solomon writing verse number 1, and you also think about the fact that Solomon wrote the book of Proverbs. What is the Book of Proverbs known as? It is the Book of Wisdom. And when we think about the Book of Wisdom and Solomon writing the Book of Wisdom, we ought to think about the purpose for which he wrote the Book of Proverbs. Now you and I know that he was led by the Spirit of God to pen it. It's Holy Scripture, but humanly speaking, what was His purpose in writing the book of Proverbs? And by the way, I'm going to give you a number of verses quickly here. You won't be able to turn to them, but stay with me. I'll read you the verses. Proverbs 1 and verse 2 says, To know wisdom and instruction, to perceive the words of understanding. So Solomon's purpose in writing the book was to know wisdom and instruction. This is for every believer. And then we think about what he wrote throughout the book of Proverbs. Proverbs 4, verse 5. Get wisdom. Get understanding. Forget it not, neither decline from the words of my mouth. Proverbs 4, verse 7. That was Proverbs 4, verse 5, by the way. Proverbs 4, verse 7, Wisdom is the principal thing. Therefore, get wisdom, and with all thy getting, get understanding. In Proverbs 16, in verse number 16, how much better is it to get wisdom than gold? And to get understanding rather to be chosen than silver. And then finally, by the way, I could not mention all the verses this morning. I just picked a few that I thought would apply. Man, read the book of Proverbs and you'll see that there's a plethora of those verses. But Proverbs 23, verse 23, buy the truth and sell it not. also wisdom and instruction and understanding. And so the idea there is that we would not literally pay money for the truth or wisdom and instruction and understanding, but that we would sell out that we might attain it. That we would make it the principal thing. That we would get wisdom. That it would be better to us than gold and all of the possessions and merchandise of this world. Is that your testimony? Do you seek to be wise in the sight of the Lord? Arthur Lake, who, by the way, was a translator of the King James Bible, right? He died in 1626, I think. Arthur Lake wrote this, O happy knowledge, by which a man becomes wise, for wisdom is the beauty of a reasonable soul. So what is the reasonable expectation for the child of God? The reasonable expectation is that you and I would be the person described in verse number 1 as being held in reputation for wisdom and honor. That is the norm for a Christian. It is not some elite super-Christian that's been living for X amount of years and has attained a certain status. That's God's expectation for all of His children. So the expectation of a wise reputation is clearly revealed here. And in order to do that, we're to have a testimony of wisdom. Now, the opposite of that, and I mentioned this just briefly here a few moments ago, is that if we are marked by foolishness, we're not going to be wise. In Proverbs 1, verse 7, the Bible reads, The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction. And so, if you despise the instruction of the Word of God, if you despise the right and proper application of the knowledge of the Word of God, you're not wise, you're a fool. And there are many today that name the name of Christ, and they are but fools. And so, we're to have a testimony of wisdom. And that wisdom leads to honor. Right? Notice he says in verse 1, So doth a little folly him that is in reputation for wisdom and honor. Now listen, honor follows wisdom. In other words, you can't experience honor unless you possess wisdom. The word honor, again, if we were to go back and consider what it means, we gave you these definitions a little bit earlier, but notice it means that it's one that is held in glory, splendor, or reverence. Now this is not in any way stealing the glory, splendor, or reverence of the Lord. We're talking about in the sight of men. Right? James talked about justification by works. Not the works of the law, but the fact that our works would prove to others that we're the real thing. Right? And so, it's a reality that we as the Lord's people, we are held in reputation for wisdom, and that wisdom, if we possess it, leads to honor. Proverbs 3 verse 35. The wise shall inherit glory, but shame shall be the promotion of fools. And so we are people that are characterized as having a testimony of wisdom that leads to honor. The wise shall inherit glory. But then notice that this all comes together. A right testimony, which is marked by wisdom that leads to honor, results in a good name. and a good name is to be sought after in this life. We're looking at dead flies in the ointment from this angle. There's an expectation that the Lord's people would have a wise reputation. And notice that a right testimony marked by wisdom that leads to honor culminates in a good name And this good name is to be sought for. Ecclesiastes chapter 7 and verse number 1, look at the parallel that is drawn by Solomon in Ecclesiastes 7 and verse number 1. A good name is better than precious ointment. a good name, a reputation as being a wise child of the Lord. A good name is better than precious ointment and the day of death than the day of one's birth. In Proverbs 22, verse number 1, A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches and loving favor rather than silver and gold. And so what do we learn, beloved? We learn that there's an expectation for you and I. to have a testimony of wisdom that leads to honor. We are to take our Christian walk seriously. Yes, when the preacher preaches from the pulpit, he really does expect you to live by it. Because he expects himself to live by it. We're not putting on a show here. This is not a performance. We're preaching the truth and the realities of the Word of God. And God expects us to live the life. Romans chapter 12 tells us that it is our reasonable service. It is not unreasonable to expect God's people to live by God's word and to have a testimony of wisdom that leads to honor. That's normal. That's the expectation. And so with that in mind, notice the third angle. The third angle in dealing with dead flies in the ointment is the ease with which the reputation is lost. The ease with which the reputation is lost. Notice here in verse number 1, So doth a little fall. so doth a little folly him that is in reputation for wisdom and honor." In other words, just as the dead flies in the precious ointment and perfume cause it to stink, so does a little folly cause the reputation and the testimony of the child of God to stink. It is easily lost. Our reputation and our good name and our testimony is easily lost. Though our testimony is gained by much labor. And if you've been saved any amount of time at all, you know the struggles and the battles and the fight that we go through as children of the Lord. You know, some people paint out the Christian walk as though, you know, we're whipping the devil around by the tail and we're living on cloud nine all the time and we don't have any problems fighting the old flesh. Beloved, that's not a realistic view and assessment of the Christian life. The Christian life is, as Paul described, the good fight of faith. It's a fight, right? And you have to be ready and willing to put on your Christian armor and engage in the battle. Beloved, it ought not to be foreign to you to, at points in your life, think, man, you know, I'm ready to go home. Sadly, I hate to say this, but just because I'm tired of the fight. I'm tired of battling this old flesh nature and this old sinful society and I let the Lord down through my lack of ability to gain the victory and I believe that those instances cause us to draw closer to the Lord and to desire to be closer and present with the Lord. But though our testimony and our reputation is gained through much labor, it is easily lost. Man listen, there have been times in my life where I have been so fit, I was ready to take on a bear. There have been times in my life where I've trained for marathons and man I feel like there are days when I was running, I felt like I could be Forrest Gump and literally run forever. And then how easily is that level of fitness lost? when you begin to eat all of the delicacies of this world, and you no longer exercise the body, and you no longer take care of the vessel that the Lord has given you. Man, there's much labor put in to be that vessel the Lord wants you to be in. It's easily lost. A bag of chips a night will help you easily lose that. Our reputation is gained through much labor. It is easily lost. Now think about this. First of all, our testimony is susceptible to spoil because it is a delicacy. Our testimony is susceptible to spoil because it is a delicacy. Now think about this. The more delicate the ointment or the perfume, the more easily it could be spoiled. So a common oil was not so liable to be spoiled. But the precious ointment and perfume, the more delicate that it was, the more easily it could be spoiled. And in that we see a parallel. The character of the wise Christian with a proper testimony is prepared with rare and costly ingredients. It is prepared by the Word of God, precious as it is, by the application of the Spirit of God, working progressive sanctification and growth in the Child of God. The Christian testimony that honors the Lord by living for the Lord is prepared with rare and costly ingredients. And because it is so, it is, the more so, easily spoiled. and destroyed. Listen to this quote from the biblical illustrator. Such a compound may be spoiled and rendered valueless by so small a thing as the decaying remains of flies. Such is the delicacy and rare preciousness of the wise man's character that the beauty and value of it may be impaired by a few falls. Coarse and common things are not easily injured. The chiefest dangers threaten that which is most skillfully and delicately contrived. The risks of such moral disasters arise from the very excellence of the wise man's character. And so you and I, as blessed by the Lord, to possess a right testimony and reputation of wisdom that leads to honor. It is a rare thing in this world. It is a delicacy. And because that is the case, we are susceptible to spoil because it is so. Think about this. We're talking about the ease with which a reputation is lost. Just a small misstep Just a small misstep can be disastrous. Now I mentioned a little bit ago when we were explaining the terms in verse number 1 that we would come back to the word folly. The word folly here in the Hebrew literally means silliness or foolishness. Do you realize that just a little silliness, a little foolishness, can lead to the destruction of our Christian testimony and our Christian reputation, we want to make it sound like we have to be guilty of some heinous, egregious sin in order to lose our testimony. And I submit to you that that is not the case. Do you really think that Lot was involved in homosexual activity? I don't believe Lot was a homosexual. And yet his reputation and testimony was lost. And when he tried to point these folks to the fact that the Lord was present, they said, you seem as one that mocks. So it is a little infringement, it is a little silliness, a little foolishness that can lead to the reputation being lost. Did not the Apostle Paul write, not only to the churches of the region of Galatia, but also to the church at Corinth. And you find that he first wrote this in Galatians 5, verse number 9. We're not going to read that verse, but it's quoted in 1 Corinthians 5, verse number 6. 1 Corinthians 5, verse number 6. Your glorying is not good. And here it is. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lung? He's writing to the church at Corinth and their lack of discipline upon this wayward, sinful member. And it's a little thing to allow a member not to be disciplined, is it not? No, it's a big thing, beloved. Because a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump. We're very familiar with the passage that Solomon wrote in Song of Solomon chapter 2 and verse number 15. In Song of Solomon 2 verse 15, the Bible reads, take us the foxes. the little foxes that spoil the vines, for our vines have tender grapes." We mention that a lot, but I wonder how often we've gone back and looked exactly at how these little foxes spoil the vines. Well, these little foxes, they're also referred to in Scripture as jackals. What they would do is that they would burrow in to the vine. And so, because they were burrowed in, they were hard to get at. And so it is with these little silliness and foolishnesses in our lives. They burrow in and then they're hard to get at and get out. These little foxes were silent. which meant that nobody heard them and they didn't take notice of them. And sometimes the little silliness and foolishness that we're involved in, we don't hear it, we don't grasp it, we don't understand that it can be a problem. They were solitary in their habits, which meant that they worked alone. And sometimes these little sins that trip us up, they work alone. We've got our eyes focused on bigger things where these little foxes working alone. can spoil the vine. And of course, these little foxes were destructive to the vineyards. They would plunder the ripe grapes. And so it is with our Christian testimony where we are ripe to be used of the Lord. It is the silliness and the foolishness, a little folly, the little foxes that will spoil our vines. Brother Spurgeon wrote this in his morning and evening devotion. He wrote, a little thorn may cause much suffering. a little cloud may hide the sun, little foxes spoil the vines, and little sins do mischief to the tender heart. These little sins burrow in the soul and make it so full of that which is hateful to Christ. And so it is, that just like the dead fly in the ointment can cause the precious perfume to stink, A little folly for the one who has a reputation of wisdom that leads to honor can cause our testimony to stink. You and I should consider this when we think about the ease with which our reputation is lost. Satan and his army monitors us. monitors us with the purpose of devouring us. Why is it that the preacher and the pastor is supposed to watch for your soul? To be sleepless in Hebrews chapter 13, watching for your soul? Because you know there are others that are watching and looking at your actions. And they are ready to trip you up. Remember that Satan walks about. He circulates. And He is seeking whom He may devour. And He uses every tool that He has in His arsenal. He uses all of those that are of their father, the devil, to try to trip up and ruin the reputation and testimony of the Lord's people. You know, Jeremiah was one of these folks. that did nothing more than preach the Word of God. And Jeremiah got discouraged and he said in Jeremiah 20, verse 9, that he was going to shut his mouth and not make mention of the name of the Lord. Why was that the case? Well, Jeremiah 20, verse 10, Jeremiah explains himself. In Jeremiah 20, verse 10, he says, For I heard the defaming of many, fear on every side, Report, say they, and we will report it. All my familiars watched for my halting. They watched for him to slip up and limp and halt. He says, all my familiars watched for my halting, saying, peradventure he will be enticed, and we shall prevail against him, and we shall take our revenge on him. Jeremiah was watched by everyone seeking an opportunity to destroy his good reputation and it had an effect upon Jeremiah. Nehemiah was the same way. Nehemiah learns of Shemaiah who calls Nehemiah to come into the temple discuss the current situation going on with Tobiah, Samballot, and Geshem. And Shemaiah says to Nehemiah, why don't you come on in and we'll meet at night because they seek to destroy your life. And Nehemiah says, should I, a servant of the Lord, be cowardly and go into the temple at night to save my life? And then the Lord gave him wisdom. And listen to this in Nehemiah 6 and verse 13 concerning this man. Nehemiah says, therefore was he hired. Therefore was he hired that I should be afraid and do so in sin. Now watch, listen. And that they might have matter for an evil report. that they might reproach Me. Do you not understand that what you do? You say, well, I'm in my house. Nobody sees me. The Lord sees you. Be careful what you do on social media. The world sees you. Be careful what you listen to. Be careful what you watch. You might say it's a little silliness. It's a little foolishness. The world is watching, seeking that they might have an occasion to reproach you and your Christian testimony. This is what Solomon is writing about. A little folly. Him that is in reputation for wisdom and honor. James Hamilton was a Scottish minister in the 17th century. He wrote, the wise are a standing rebuke to others, therefore men are prone to exaggerate their faults. You stand for the Lord and stand for the testimony of the Lord. You don't think that there are others that are going to be looking and trying to find you tripping up? So they can say, oh yeah, oh look, there's that Christian. We've experienced it how many times? Oh, you're such a Christian. As though they would even know what a Christian is. But they're looking for opportunities to defame your name and ruin your reputation. Hey, you know what? Let's agree this morning. to make their job hard. Let's agree this morning not to make it easy for them to find something that they might reproach us on. You know who made their job hard? A guy by the name of Daniel. Listen to Daniel 6, verses 4 and 5. Daniel 6, verses 4 and 5. Then the presidents and princes sought to find occasion against Daniel concerning the kingdom. But they could find none occasion nor fault. Forasmuch as he was faithful, neither was there any error or fault found in him. Now watch verse 5. Then said these men, We shall not find any occasion against this Daniel, except we find it against him concerning the law of his God. Daniel's testimony was such that they were not going to find him being a poor citizen, being a poor leader. Daniel was a morally right and upright man. He feared God just like Job and eschewed evil. And they said, man, the only way we're going to find anything against him is against his Christian reputation. And we ought to make it hard on our accusers. Notice the fourth angle, and we're done. So far we've looked at these three angles as it relates to dead flies and the ointment. An explanation of the proverb. The expectation of a wise reputation. The ease with which that reputation is lost. And then lastly, we culminate the sermon with this fourth angle. The effect of the loss of our reputation. Beloved, there are drastic effects. Literally, I do not say tongue-in-cheek this morning, although we might, literally a little folly can lead to a stinking testimony. It can lead to a foul, smelly testimony. And quickly here, I just give you the ways in which this happens, the effect of the loss of our reputation. Our reputation can become unraveled. Good names can be ruined by folly. And when these follies occur, what is the proverb that Solomon is teaching? It stinks in men's nostrils. It's a stench in men's nostrils. You think about some of the more infamous morally right people in our society that have been tripped up by what we might say started out as little follies. And you think of their names, and they're like a stench in your nostrils. We want nothing to do with them. There is the reputation that is unraveled. There is the reproach that is unleashed. David, I think we often think of, is marred by his notorious sin with Bathsheba. But how did that notorious sin start out? I would submit to you this morning that it started out with a little silliness and foolishness. It started out with David when it was time for kings to go to war. David was the king. It was time for him to go to war. I submit to you that it started out with a little foolishness and a little silliness on his part. He's supposed to be at war with the troops, leading the troops in battle. And he stays back at the royal palace and in the evening he walks out to get a fresh view of the city and to just feel the fresh air as it circulates in the evening. And he sees Bathsheba. and instead of seeing Bathsheba bathing and turning away and saying, oh my goodness, I don't need to see that, a little silliness and foolishness ensues in his heart and in his mind and it makes its way to his eyes. And he begins to look at Bathsheba. And what do you covet? You covet what you see. And he sees Bathsheba. And then he begins to covet his neighbor's wife, Uriah the Hittite. And he sins for Bathsheba and he takes Bathsheba. And they consummate this illicit affair that results in the pregnancy of Bathsheba and the ultimate death of this little child. And we say, well David is notorious for his sin with Bathsheba. Well yeah, but how did it start? A little folly. Silliness and foolishness. And what was the effect of David's loss of reputation? Well, here it is in 2 Samuel 12, verse 14. In 2 Samuel 12, verse 14, Nathan the prophet speaking to David, he says, How be it? Because by this deed thou hast given great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme. The child also that is born unto thee shall surely die. Hey, what is your testimony? Is your testimony such that when people think of you or see you, they honor and glorify the Lord? Or is it like Samson? When they looked at Samson, they glorified the Philistine gods. What is your testimony? David's sin gave great occasion to the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme. See, the reproach was unleashed. And once it's unleashed, it's hard to get it back in the bottle. In fact, David's testimony up until his dying day was a stellar testimony except. Except in the matter with Bathsheba. Read it in Scripture. So the reproach was unleashed. And one of the effects of the loss of our reputation is we can ruin to the utmost. All of the good that God has done through us can be ruined to the utmost. Ecclesiastes chapter 9 and verse number 18, which is the verse that directly is before verse number 1 of chapter 10. In Ecclesiastes chapter 9 and verse number 18, the Bible reads, Wisdom is better than weapons of war, but one sinner destroyeth much good. We're saints of God, but we're still sinners. And we can destroy much good. through our testimony. You know, the higher our character is, the more hurt that is caused by our sinful folly. Is that not true? You guys remember General David Petraeus? Silliness and foolishness resulting in an illicit affair ruins his reputation. And beloved, the Scripture is full of folks who had a high standing amongst the people of God. Why is it so important for the preacher? to look to his reputation. You think of preachers that have fallen into sin. Now you think of church members that have fallen into sin. And name real quick three church members that have fallen into adultery. Now name real quick three pastors that have fallen into adultery. And I can name you three right off the top of my head. Because more is expected out of them. Their testimony is to be such that it is a higher character. Whether we like it or not, we're held to a higher standard. we can ruin to the utmost. One sinner destroyeth much good. And then lastly, sadly, the loss of our reputation, the effect of it is it can render us useless. We can, as the Apostle Paul wrote about, we can be put on the shelf. Paul said, when I preach to others, I want to be careful that I myself am not a reprobate. That I am not useless and rendered useless. Proverbs 25 verse 26 reads, A righteous man falling down before the wicked is as a troubled fountain in a corrupt spring. The literal meaning there for the troubled fountain and corrupt spring is that it consists of foul water. What is foul water good for? You want to swig of foul water? You want to bathe in foul water? You want to swim in foul water? What do you want to use foul water for? And so beloved, the application is that a righteous man falling down before the wicked is rendered useless. Rendered useless. And so you and I ought to consider this morning, I hope we're paying attention. You and I ought to consider this morning what Solomon has to say to us. that our testimony is important before the Lord. And though it is hard to work to get that reputation and testimony, it is easily lost. Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth the stinking saver. So doth a little folly him that is in reputation for wisdom and honor. Beloved, you and I ought to consider this morning, this week, and the rest of the days of our lives, dead flies in the ointment. Let's pray.