Well, good morning. I was a little surprised by this portion of the text. And poor Miss Denise, I gave her the wrong sermon title because I changed it after that. So, you have me to blame for that. And I chose the sermon title I did and then changed it because I initially thought, hey, I covered that. And there was another element of fatherhood that needed to be brought into the picture. And so we have to deal with the text, I believe, in totality. You can't deal in partial elements. And the point of Proverbs, a huge point of Proverbs, as I've mentioned before, is fathers. This is a book of a father to a son. It is an integral part of the very book itself. So you can't deal with anything in Proverbs without dealing with fathers and what that means. We need to read the proverb. So we're dealing with Proverbs 1, verses 8 through 10. Let's stand for the reading of God's word. Here, my son, your father's instruction. Do not forsake your mother's teaching. Indeed, they are a graceful wreath to your head and ornaments about your neck. My son, if sinners entice you, do not consent. Let's pray. Dear Jesus, I thank you for today. I thank you for your word. I pray that this message will go out and edify your people, and they will be better for it. Keep me, Lord, from error, so that I not teach wrongly. And I pray, Lord, that you would bless the ears and the heart of those who hear. Let them weed out the error that I may say, and rest solely in your word. I ask these things in Christ's name. Amen. You may be seated. So I've done two sermons on Proverbs so far. The first one was an introduction to the book. The second one I covered the introduction to the book and the major themes of the book of Proverbs. And so before we get into the text, there's a few things we need to be reminded of when we approach the book of Proverbs on how we should read and what are the major themes of Proverbs. So I'm going to deal first with the principles of reading Proverbs or studying Proverbs. And the first one is that Proverbs is wisdom, not law. The expectation of Proverbs is that when it speaks, you will understand the use of the saying by the context of the phrasing of the saying. What you are not getting is didactic teaching, which you would get in the epistles, for instance. where rules are laid out before you or doctrine is explicitly taught to you. A good example of this is, like one who takes a dog by the ears, is he who passes by and meddles in strife not belonging to him. This passage does not tell you, do not meddle in strife that doesn't belong to you. What this passage is telling you is that if you do, you're like the guy who grabs a dog by the ears. You're probably going to get bit. The meaning is clear, but there are no rules in this passage. The second principle is that Proverbs is full of indicatives, not imperatives. Indicatives are those things which indicate, not tell. They're meant to show us how things operate, how they should operate, or simply demonstrate how they are. They are not imperatives or explicit commands. So when we read the passage of this morning, hear my son, your father's instruction, and do not forsake your mother's teaching, this command is not to us. This is a command from Solomon to his son, Lemuel. This distinction is important because his instruction is as much of an indicative to the father as it is to the son. I'll cover this in detail, but when Solomon is commanding his son to listen, He is setting an example for a father on how to instruct his son, and implying, through the command to his own son, that a son should obey his father. They are indications on how we are to act, a standard that we should seek to be like, even if we are not an exact copy of them. And the third principle here is that Christ is the point of Proverbs. In some sense, this goes without saying, because all of scripture is about Proverbs. But in a more specific sense, Proverbs is teaching us to think the way that God thinks. It intends to teach us the ways of the world in light of Christ as our King. Solomon rests all wisdom on the fear of the Lord. And likewise, Paul in Colossians tells us of Christ. He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, both in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible. Whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities, all things have been created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. He is also the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he himself will come to have first place in everything. For it was the father's good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in him, and through him to reconcile all things to himself, having made peace to the blood of his cross. Through him, I say, whether things on heaven or on earth. We must remember that all things exist in such a way that the very operation relies on Christ as its creator, sustainer, and ultimate end. All of nature was made to point to Christ. So when nature instructs us on how to act, no matter how small that may look, we must look to the fulfillment of that action in Christ. The fear of the Lord, then, is a recognition that Christ is the source of all things, the sustainer of all things, the standard for all things, and the ultimate end of all things, as well as an attitude of thankfulness to him for all things. And this is what Solomon concludes with in his introduction to the book. This is the first table of God's law given to us in Exodus 20, rephrased to demonstrate a true love of wisdom. And in my last sermon on Proverbs, I focused on what I call a true philosophy. Philosophy as a term is a combination of two Greek words, phallos and Sophia. Phallos meaning a love or a love of and Sophia meaning wisdom. I believe that this is a great term to describe the core teaching of Proverbs because it directly tells us to love wisdom. Proverbs does. But also, I believe that this philosophy is true because God gave it to us in his word and indeed gave us an entire book dedicated to teaching us these principles. And this true philosophy, as I understand Proverbs is teaching us, is summarized in four points. Fear the Lord. This is the beginning of all knowledge and wisdom. Second is to seek wisdom. Many times Solomon urges his son to do this directly. Solomon himself was gifted with great wisdom, and he wanted that for his son. The third is to honor your parents. This is not just a command from scripture, but this is something that is practically useful. The teachings of your father and mother operate not only to adorn you and to make you beautiful, but are also a shield against evil and a protection from sin. The obligation of children to honor their parents is meant to be a means of transmitting not only biblical truths, but also the ways of your father and mother so that your people will have a lasting presence where God has placed you. This is the first commandment with a promise. And the fourth principle is to teach your children. This is the reciprocal responsibility of honoring your parents. And it is the primary means that God has decided to use to transmit his law and word down the generations. You are not only violating God's law by not teaching your children, you're a fool. As we can see later on, if we harm our children out of neglect, we hate them. Hatred of our children is hatred of ourselves, because harming our children is a harm to ourselves. And so the book of Proverbs is broken up into sections, and each have their intended purpose. From chapter 1, verse 8, to the end of chapter 9, there are a series of treatises that Solomon provides to his son. By my count, there are 10 in total, and I make this distinction based on this introduction that he gives. So while this section of Proverbs can be broken down in a number of ways, all of which I think have their uses, I am counting based on that introduction, which is a pattern that begins with, listen to me and don't turn away from my wisdom, which is sometimes followed with a form of promise or reward that will come from that obedience. This command is the same kind of command that we find in Deuteronomy 6. I'll cover that in a bit. And so this first treatise, which begins in Proverbs 1, verse 8, continues to the end of the chapter. And it's broken down into three main sections. The first section is verses 8 and 9, which is Solomon's introduction. This is his appeal to his son to listen to the words that he is about to give him, saying that they will be a wreath about his head. The second section, Solomon instructs his son on the ways of the wicked. In verses 10 through 15, he tells his son the kind of enticement the wicked will use against him and warns him against joining them. He then demonstrates in verses 16 through 19 why their way is foolish and how their own evil will destroy them. And the third and final section gives us a picture of the character of Lady Wisdom, both in her grace and in her severity. Verses 20 through 21 tells us where wisdom can be found. In verses 22 and 23, he gives us a summation of her call to join her. From verses 24 to 32, wisdom warns us through Solomon how she will punish the wicked for rejecting her. And in verse 33, she promises blessings for obeying her. So today I'm going to be covering this first section of the treatise and touch on the second a bit. I'm going to be pulling from the rest of Proverbs so we can get a clearer picture of what God intends us to understand from the book of Proverbs. So the last two sermons covered the topic of teaching and why we must do it. But here, I want to speak to the wider scope of both honoring your parents and teaching your children and what that means in light of Proverbs. As we will see, honoring your parents is not just obedience. And the relationship of a father to his children is the exact specie of relationship that we are to have with God. In his gospel, John, after resting all of creation on and in Christ, says, There was the true light, which, coming into the world, enlightens every man. He was in the world, and the world was made through him. And the world did not know him. He came to his own, and those who were his own did not receive him. But as many as received him, he gave them the right to become sons of God. The NASB actually does a poor job of expressing the intent of this passage. We are all sons of God because we are all called to an inheritance in Christ. And the word directly, a literal translation is children, but it's used in a certain context where it's very clear it's talking about sons. And this principle is not something that only Solomon and John recognized, but something that even Paul in the scriptures acknowledged that the Greeks already knew. In his sermon on Mars Hill, Paul quotes the Greek poet Eratos by saying, for we are all his children. Whereas Eratos attributes this to Zeus, since Zeus was the greatest of the Greek pantheon, Paul attributes this saying, we are all his children, to the triune God. Matthew Henry, when dealing with Proverbs 1, 7 through 9, opens his commentary with the following. Solomon, having undertaken to teach a young man knowledge and discretion, here lays two general rules to be observed in order thereunto, and those are to fear God and honor his parents, which two fundamental laws of morality Pythagoras begins his golden verses with, but the former of them in a wretchedly corrupted state. And Pythagoras says, first, worship the immortal gods and honor your parents. Matthew Henry continues, to make young men such as they, to make young people such as they should be. Let them have regard to God as their supreme and their parents as their superiors. He lays down this truth, that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. It is the principal part of knowledge. And to confirm this truth, that an eye to God must both direct and quicken all our pursuits of knowledge, he observes that fools, atheists who have no regard to God, despise wisdom and instruction. He takes it for granted that parents will, with all the wisdom they have, instruct their children, and with all authority they have, give law to them for their good. And he charges children both to receive and to retain the good lessons and laws of their parents, that their parents give them with readiness and resolution. What I'm trying to make clear here is that it is not just a Christian principle that recognizes the correlation between a child's relationship to their father and our relationship to God. But it is something that God has embedded so deeply into the human being that the fall could not destroy it, only warp it. Even warped as it is, it is plain to those who even reject God. What Solomon is teaching us about honoring our fathers is also an indicative of how we should honor God. There's a direct correlation between the command to have no other gods before you and to honor your parents. And just as God is the good father to us, we fathers are to be good fathers to our children. Just as children are commanded to honor their fathers and mothers, we are to honor God. So when Solomon begins this treatise with, here, my son, your father's instruction and do not forsake your mother's teaching. Indeed, they are a graceful wreath to your head and ornaments about your neck. Not only is he providing us with an example on how to fulfill the commandment of Deuteronomy six to teach our children, but he is teaching us about our responsibility to God through the relationship of the father and son. God in his providence has not only given us the scriptures, but has also revealed himself through nature, which Paul recognizes as giving us moral responsibility before him. He says in Romans, I'm sorry, yes, in Romans, for since the creation of the world, his invisible attributes, his eternal power and divine nature have been clearly seen, being understood through that which was made so that they are without excuse. And even in this very treatise, we see that wisdom itself is the most conspicuous character. She is shouting at the top of her lungs, from the street, the town square, at the heads of the streets, and even at the entrance of the city gates. Her presence is unavoidable, and her cries are very clear, even through the daily clamor of life. So just as Solomon is teaching his son here, God is also teaching us. We as fathers are to teach God's commands diligently to our sons and talk of them when we sit in our house and when we walk by the way and when we lie down and when we rise up. I understand Solomon's format of teaching not as a formula that we're supposed to follow every time, but as a mindset that we're supposed to have towards teaching our children. There are certainly times, especially when children are exceptionally stubborn, when you should warn them against rejecting your teaching. I have to do this quite often sometimes. And there are also times when a child just doesn't understand what you're saying. And in those times, the child should just trust your judgment. Our approach to our children should be to take the wisdom of our parents Add to it the wisdom we have gained in our own lives and experiences, and communicate that to our children, with the end goal of our children learning true wisdom and becoming wise in their own right. This one passage is not the only time Solomon appeals to his son in this way. As I mentioned, each of these treatises throughout the first nine chapters of Proverbs starts with this kind of appeal. In chapter one, we just read, hear my son your father's instruction and do not forsake your mother's teaching. Indeed, they are a graceful wreath to your head and ornaments about your neck. Chapter two, verses one through two, my son, if you receive my words and treasure my commandments within you, make your ear attentive to wisdom, incline your heart to understanding. Chapter three, verses one through four. My son, do not forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments for length of days and years of life and peace they will add to you. Do not let kindness and truth leave you. Bind them around your neck. Write them on the tablet of your hearts so that you will find favor and good repute in the sight of God and man. Chapter 4, verses 1 through 5, hear, O sons, the instruction of a father, and give attention that you may gain understanding. For I give you sound teaching. Do not abandon my instruction. When I was a son to my father, tender and the only son in the sight of my mother, he taught me and said to me, let your heart hold fast my words. Keep my commandments and live. Acquire wisdom. Acquire understanding. Do not forget nor turn away from the words of my mouth. In verses 10 through 13, hear my son and accept my sayings and the years of your life will be many. I have directed you in the way of wisdom. I have led you in the upright paths. When you walk, your steps will not be impeded. And if you run, you will not stumble. Take hold of instruction and do not let it go. Verses 20 through 22, my son, give attention to my words. Incline your ear to my sayings. Do not let them depart from your sight. Keep them in the midst of your heart, for they are life to those who find them and health to all their body. Chapter five, verses one through two, my son, give attention to my wisdom. Incline your ear to my understanding. That you may observe discretion and your lips may reserve knowledge. In verse 7, now then, my sons, listen to me and do not depart from the words of my mouth. Chapter 6, 20 through 24, my son, observe the commandment of your father and do not forsake the teaching of your mother. Bind them continually in your heart. Tie them around your neck. When you walk about, they will guide you. When you sleep, they will watch over you. When you awake, they will talk to you. For the commandment is a lamp and the teaching is a light. And reproofs for discipline are the way of life to keep you from the evil woman, from the smooth tongue of the adulterous. In chapter 7, verses 1 through 3, my son, keep my words and treasure my commandments within you. Keep my commandments and live. And my teaching as the apple of your eye, bind them on your fingers, write them on the table of your heart. So if we take all these commandments that Solomon is giving to his son, and we synchronize them together, we see that children are to receive their father's instructions. Do not forget it. Pay attention that you can learn. Keep your father's commandments. Don't forsake the teaching of your mother. Pay attention to wisdom and open your heart to understanding. These wisdom, these teachings, the wisdom of your father and mother, will adorn you like jewelry. They'll make you beautiful. Wear your parents' instructions, kindness and truth, like ornaments. Pass those teachings onto your own children. Be near kindness and truth. Acquire craftsmanship, wisdom, and understanding, and do not let them go. They will guide you and watch over you. They will give light to your path. They will give you a long life. They will give you good health. They will give you peace. You will find favor and good repute in the sight of God and man. You will not be hindered or stumbled, and you will be kept from evil people. But as I mentioned before, honoring your parents is not just obeying them. And the book of Proverbs has much more to say in regards to how this relationship should work. Honoring your parents is a much more holistic and complete idea. And so I take from the assorted sayings as the following. Chapter 10, verse 1, a wise son makes a father glad, and a foolish son is a grief to his mother. Verse five, he who gathers in the summer is a son who acts wisely, but he who sleeps in harvest is a son who acts shamefully. Chapter 13, verse one, a wise son accepts his father's discipline, but he who regards reproof is sensible. Chapter 15, verse 20. I'm sorry. Chapter 13, verse 1, a wise son accepts his father's discipline, but a scoffer does not listen to a rebuke. Chapter 15, verse 5, a fool rejects his father's discipline, but he who regards reproof as sensible. Chapter 15, verse 20, a wise son makes a father glad, a foolish man despises his mother. Chapter 17, verse 6, grandchildren are the crown of an old man, and the glory of the sons is their father's. Chapter 17 verse 21 he who sires a fool does so to his sorrow and the father of a fool has no joy. Chapter 19 verse 13 a foolish son is destruction to his father. Chapter 19 verses 26 through 27 he who assaults his father and drives his mother away is a shameful and disgraceful son. Cease listening my son to discipline and you will stray far from the words of knowledge. Chapter 20, verse 20, he who curses his father or mother, his lap will go out in time of darkness. Chapter 23, verses 24 and 25, the father of the righteous will greatly rejoice, and he who sires a wise son will be glad in him. Let your father and your mother be glad, and let her rejoice who gave you birth to you. In chapter 28, verse 7, he who keeps the law is a discerning son, but he who is a companion to gluttons humiliates his father. So Proverbs is teaching us that the way in which you live your life is either a shame or a blessing to your parents. You are not independent from them. To live a terrible life is dishonoring to your parents. To be a fool is dishonoring to your parents. To lack discipline dishonors your parents. And to separate from your parents or to attack them dishonors your parents. And the opposite of these things is true as well. Honoring your parents includes living a good life, being wise, having discipline, being with them and obeying them. Your life is a reflection on those who raised you. This is also true of our relationship with God. How you act reflects on what you think of God. And the scriptures even say that when you sin, you make God a liar. If we act as if he does not exist. We by living by our own rules, we are acting like an atheist, and that is what that that song is talking about when it says the fool has said in his heart, there is no God. He's not talking about an actual atheist. He's talking about the God who act the guy who acts by his own rules. So what are the responsibilities of a father then? Well, Proverbs has much to say about this as well. A good man leaves an inheritance to his children's children. Chapter 13, verse 24, he who withholds his rod hates his son, but he who loves him disciplines him diligently. Chapter 19, verse 18, discipline your son while there is hope and do not desire his death. Chapter 20, verse 7, a righteous man who walks with integrity. How blessed are his sons after him? Chapter 22, verse 6, train up a child in the way he should go. Even when he is old, he will not depart from it. Chapter 22, verse 15, foolishness is bound up in the heart of a child. The rod of discipline will remove it far from him. 23 chapter 23 verses 13 and 14 do not hold back discipline for a child from a child Although you strike him with the rod. He will not die You will strike him with the rod and you will rescue his soul from shale Chapter 29 verse 15 the rod and reproof give discipline to a child who get his own way The rod and the rod and reproof give wisdom to a child but a child who gets his own way brings shame to his mother Chapter 29, verse 17, correct your son and he will give you comfort. He will also delight your soul. Of all these admonitions that we see here. And in Solomon's example, all but two of these examples are about discipline. And those two include inheritance that you give to your children's children and how your own conduct reflects on your children. So the overwhelming obligation of fathers is to teach our children, according to Proverbs. This responsibility weighs on Solomon, and so his constant refrain is to appeal to his son to listen and heed his wisdom. So, as we know, to do so is a form of obedience to Deuteronomy 6 and the second table of the law as given to Moses. Solomon was honoring David by teaching Lemuel, his son. Solomon acted as the channel of wisdom from one generation to the other, carrying on God's law and God's commands, despite his own sins and weaknesses. Solomon was not sinless. And in some way, Solomon was a poor father. But Solomon is the man whom God chose to write the book on wisdom. The guy who obeyed his wives and raised altars to the gods of his wives is the guy that God chose to give us wisdom. Your sins are not so great as you cannot be a good father. And in honoring David, Solomon was also honoring God, his greater father. And this was also an act of love for his son, the act of passing on wisdom to him. Because in doing so, he was transmitting light and life and peace and health. Here Solomon gives Lemuel, and through scripture us, his first admonition, my son, if sinners entice you, do not consent. Solomon here is carrying on the wisdom of his father before him. David wrote most of the Psalms, and as much of that book is a warning against sin and being in league with the wicked. In fact, much of David's woe that we hear about in the Psalm was because he was in conflict with the wicked. The opening Psalm in that book, the book of Psalms, is remarkably similar to the opening of Proverbs. And to be clear, David is not identified as the author of Psalm 1. But even if he was not the author, he would have still given the song to his son. This was transmitted knowledge. This was transmitted wisdom. And Psalm 1 and Proverbs 1 warn against the same sentence, but in a different way. What Solomon warns his son against, the Psalms sings of. How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stand in the path of sinners, nor sit in the seat of scoffers. And what is most notable, what is the most notable characteristic of the man who does not associate with the wicked? His delight is the law of the Lord. And in God's law, he meditates day and night. This is in contrast to the wicked, as Paul recounts in Romans, that even though they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give him thanks. And the blessed man will have life and health and peace, because he will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. And in whatever he does, he prospers. In Proverbs, Solomon tells us how the wicked will be undone by their own deeds. He tells his son, they lie in wait for their own blood. They ambush their own lives. So are the ways of everyone who gains by violence. It takes away the life of its possessors. And this is true of how God made the world to operate. As Paul says, again in Romans, they became futile in their speculations and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures. Psalm 1 tells us of the wicked. While the righteous will prosper and have health in life, the wicked are not so. They are but like chaff, which the wind drives away. Therefore, the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. For the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked shall perish. And again, Paul, he says, just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind to do those things which are not proper, being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil, full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice, They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, without understanding, untrustworthy, unloving, unmerciful. And although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but give hearty approval to those who practice them. This unity between father and son is so much like the relationship to God that the sign of God's opening the heavens again was the return of the hearts of their fathers to their children. As prophesied by Malachi, John went as the forerunner before him in the spirit and power of Elijah to turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children and the disobedient to the attitude of the righteous. So as to make a people ready for the Lord. We see that Paul included those who are disobedient to parents with all of the evil reprobates who hate God in Romans 1. And to prepare the people of Christ, God undid that evil through a specifically appointed preacher. And so scripture through songs and sayings of the Father begins with a very direct framing. You are either on God's side or you are not. You will either have life or death. You will either be wise or you will be a fool. And this is the framing that we are to understand and it is the framing that we are to give to our children. That the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. But the way of the wicked is death. My next sermon, I'm going to get into the enticement of the wicked and how that destroys them. But know that the wicked will play on your desire for wealth and for life and for friendship. These are good things in and of themselves. And Proverbs says so. But the wicked are offering a false hope. Wisdom itself is worth more than the riches. Truth is more desirable than life. And the fear of the Lord is better than the company of the wicked. And what is the greatest commandment? To love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength. And the second is like unto it, to love your neighbor as yourself. And the weight that God has given to us fathers is to teach wisdom to our sons as our nearest neighbors. So that our sons will have life and health and peace. The duty of parents is to honor, the duty to our parents is to honor and obey them. And the duty to our children is to teach them and to discipline them. We have fathers because God is our father. This is a common misconception. People think that God was playing off the idea that we have fathers by calling himself a father. That's quite the opposite. We have fathers because God is our father. And God, the father represented himself through through a man to guide a family. Too often do people who claim Christ in our current age find excuses to fail at fatherhood or at sonhood. There are hordes of men today who are starved for fathers. You see them out there everywhere, and they're looking in all the wrong places for a good father figure. And we see today, as in the book of Malachi, God's law is not honored today. Sacraments are not respected. The scriptures are not taught. Instead of scriptures, we have sermons meant to tickle the ears of the people. Divorce is rampant. You have men who are stealing donations meant for God's kingdom and making themselves wealthy. We are told that people who do evil are good in the sight of the Lord. But unlike the days of Malachi, we are not looking for the Messiah to come because he's already come. We're looking for him to return. Our future is no longer of the Messiah to come, but to return. And we are told to be ready. What should our response be to these things? Fear the Lord, love wisdom, honor your parents, and teach your children. God's law does not change, and Proverbs gives us valuable insight into what God expects of us. And here we find ourselves back to what I'm calling true philosophy. True philosophy, a true love of wisdom, requires us to have more than ourselves. It requires us to know more than mere facts. It expects of us to seek wisdom in the fear of the Lord and to pass that on to the next generation. And it expects of the next generation to take that all that we give to them and improve on it. To take out the imperfections that we give them because of our own sinfulness and to not repeat it. Just as we are expected not to repeat the sins of the past. so that down the generations our sons and daughters might know God and fear Him and love Him, so that they would seek His wisdom and His law, and that we, with all our children after us, might meet God together when He calls us all home, and to worship Him into eternity to come. help the sword to go out.