Turn with me in your scriptures to the book of Proverbs. We are in Proverbs chapter 1. And remember what the Holy Spirit is doing here in introducing the study and pursuit of wisdom Solomon is laying out how that wisdom is pursued and acquired, and he's training us to be fit for acquiring that wisdom and living out that wisdom. We have made our way through a portion of that introduction in Chapter 1. We are in Verses eight through 19, so if you'll stand with me, I'll read those verses in your hearing. And we'll examine the portion before us this afternoon. This is God's very word, holy, infallible, and errant in all its parts. Let us hear and heed. Proverbs chapter one at verse eight. My son, Hear the instruction of your father and do not forsake the law of your mother, for they will be a graceful ornament on your head and chains about your neck. My son, if sinners entice you, do not consent. If they say, come with us, let us lie in wait to shed blood. Let us lurk secretly for the innocent without cause. Let us swallow them alive like shell and whole like those who go down to the pit. We shall find all kinds of precious possessions. We shall fill our houses with spoil. Cast in your lot among us. Let us all have one purse. My son, do not walk in the way with them. Keep your foot from their path, for their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed blood. Surely in vain the net is spread in the sight of any bird, but they lie in wait for their own blood. They lurk secretly for their own lives. So are the ways of everyone who is greedy for gain. It takes away the life of its owners. Let us ask God's blessing on the ministry of his word. Great God and merciful Father, we pray that our ears may be opened, that our eyes may be given spiritual sight, that you would nurture and nourish us on this, your holy word, for the glory and honor of Christ our Savior, we pray. Amen. You may be seated. As we have considered the verses before us, we worked our way through verse 14 last week, considering the enticement of sinners. Remember that the context set by Solomon for the acquisition of wisdom first begins with familial language, fathers and mothers. are described as those dispensing wisdom to children who should attend, who should hear and heed. And of course, we expanded that description not only from the natural family as a center where God has designed the order for an ideal acquisition of wisdom, but we spread that into the familial context of the family of God and the way that the Lord ministers wisdom to us from his word in the place where his word is ministered, in the family of God. there are rewards held out for the acquisition of wisdom. And they remember they were in the symbols of graceful ornaments on the head and chains about the neck, tokens of honor, esteem, and privilege. And moving from the rewards of wisdom then to warnings that the father gives. We find at verse 10, Solomon describing the father teaching the child to avoid the way that the sinners entice and draw in, if they might, those who are unwary, those who are simple. Remember those enticements. Hold before the unwary a proposal for all sorts of supposed benefits. These sinners entice in a description that Matthew Henry describes as the high women, those who are not at all productive in themselves, but rather make their living, as it were, feeding upon the productivity of others. And they lay out all of the delights and enticements they hope will persuade others to join with them in that sinful form of exploitation. There are implications held out here. We discussed how the highwayman, that predator, is inherently unproductive and feeding on the productivity of others. This holds out to us the way of wisdom in being personally productive, quite the opposite of those sinners and their enticements towards an easy gain. They hold out the promise of camaraderie and fraternity. They are consumed with selfishness and invite others to come with them in the pursuit of having much through no labor of their own, simply to devour the unsuspecting who have some form of productivity and sustenance that they may consume. The language used is remarkable. They describe it as a kind of fraternity, a brotherhood, a teamwork, come with us, let us do this, let us do that, let us swallow them alive. The suggestion is, here you may have a a true companionship. Here you may have a brotherhood. They also make sport of the wickedness of bloodshed. They suggest that they will indeed have power without penalty, that they may pursue these wicked ends and there will be no consequences involved for them. So, As they entice, as they hold out promises of popularity, of fraternity, of power, of wealth, camaraderie and fraternity, great wealth with great ease, the father warns the son against these enticements. describes then his warning in the verses before us this afternoon. He says, as we take up at verse 15, again returning to that language of the family, my son, do not walk in the way with them. Keep your foot from their path. As the father has held out the warnings against their enticements, and then takes up that intimate language, guiding his son away from it. Remember, we saw those two paths set before us, a common scriptural metaphor. And I want to remind you of Derek Kidner's insightful comment, the contrast that's perhaps subtle if we don't attend to it, is an important contrast. The way that the sinners entice is in a remarkable way different from what the father holds out. Kidner says, the first way, the way that the father first invited the son to come to the path of wisdom, to attend and receive wisdom, has none of the flashy appeal of what the sinners hold out in their enticements, in that second way. That first way, the way of the invitation of the Father to the path of wisdom, offers nothing material, only the hard-won beauty and authority of goodness. What a remarkable contrast. We need to be tuned into that. What is contrasted brilliantly by the spirit through, as it were, the pen of Solomon, is that the way of that enticement is full of worldly gain, flashy, showy excitement that has nothing in common with the quiet and calm, non-material way of the family. Indeed, the contrast here is also between those natural connections the Lord establishes for the relationships of wisdom and something substituted, as we touched on those last week, in pseudo-communities. The Lord has established communities in which we grow in the character of wisdom, in the image of Christ wrought within, the natural family and our duties there, the spiritual family and our duties there. Sinners entice us away to an egalitarian pseudo-community full of all sorts of promise that it can't deliver. We should note the difference. The one is flashy, showy, and promises much of materiality. The other is nothing like that. It is the calm and diligent pursuit of what is truly beautiful, the pursuit of a true goodness in those ways established by God himself. That enticement of sinners is full of promises of popularity, power, and wealth. Not so the way that the father holds out as he warns the son away. He gives here authoritative guidance. Verse 15, do not walk in the way with them. Do not take these sinners as your companions. Don't put your foot on that path. Do not walk in the same paths with them. Do not take up their customs or their patterns of life. Our core commitments will be expressed in lifestyle choices that have to do with our manner of life. Our customs and behaviors, our cultural expressions will have something to do with the path that we're on. And we need to be tuned in to the warning that the father gives here in his authoritative guidance. Not every lifestyle choice, not every pattern of life is neutral. They're not all simply up for grabs. Some patterns of life, some choices, are in fact putting the foot on the path of those on that path who are in fact wickedly pursuing ungodly ends. We need to hear and heed. This is not popular in the evangelical world in our day, but there are certain manners of living, certain patterns of life, that are associated with the wicked pursuits of the enticements of sinners. There are recognizable paths. It's no help to us in the pursuit of wisdom and godliness to pretend that all of those are neutral and up for grabs. There are certain ways that we might attire ourselves that speak of a particular path where there are the enticements of sinners who would destroy our souls. We need to be attuned to that. There are certain manners of living, certain patterns of life that naturally flow from the wholesome paths established by God and ordered by his word. We do ourselves no favor in the pursuit of wisdom and godliness if we ignore that. and take up supposed delights that are on the paths of those who pursue wicked ends. We don't have to declare loudly and make judgments against every choice that everyone makes. That's not what's being called for here. But we should not give ourselves leave to be lazy. in those personal responsibilities of choices we make with regard to those patterns of life, those things associated with those paths. We want to choose the things that are associated with those paths that are recognizably ordered according to God's Word. wholesome in the pursuit of his ends, cultivating a natural disposition for wisdom. There is a recognizable difference. And so that makes sense of the father's authoritative guidance, his warning away. Wisdom will avoid taking up patterns of life, customs and behaviors that fit well in the wrong path. precisely because they are naturally expressive of and readily conducive to a wrong heart. They cultivate a wrong walk. They're recognizably a part of a disordered path. And so the father warns, keep your foot from their path. Be so far from walking in this way that you never take the first step on that path. Again, that's a very unpopular view in our day. I'll highlight one obvious and recognizable place where you see, I think, misjudgments, and that's in what's known as CCM, Contemporary Christian Music. It may be fading away in our day, but there seems to be an intentional blindness with regard to what's described here, as though everything found in the disordered realm of destruction in the world of rock and roll is up for grabs. We may adopt all of those accoutrements, all of that way of living, we'll just stop shy of certain express and explicit prohibitions. That seems utterly foolish in light of the guidance that is given to us here from the words of a wise father. Be so far from it because it's recognizable. What takes place on that path is recognizable. Don't even set your foot there. What a contrast to our day. We unthinkingly immerse ourselves in the ways of sinners, admiring their ways, even perhaps envying their popularity, their power, and their wealth. Rather, we should be diligent to keep the foot from the path so that we won't emulate their walk." And the father goes on to give an authoritative explanation. He's given authoritative guidance warning away from the path, he's going to explain why. He's going to give an authoritative explanation, reasons, warning of the danger found on that path. Look at beginning at verse 16, for their feet run to evil and they make haste to shed blood. He has several reasons to be warned away. This is the first and most important. What they do on that path is obviously evil. The first and most important appeal is to the heart that loves what is good. You see what is evil there, don't even put your foot there. Because you see what it is, turn away your foot. And so we should ask ourselves in light of that warning, You see what they do there. Don't even put your foot there. Are we cultivating a heart that so loathes evil that it is enough to warn us away simply to say, this way leads to sin? Man, I won't even put my foot there. Is that the disposition of the heart? As we desire wisdom, this must be the disposition of our heart. That realized sin, I won't take the first step. The Father says they're rushing into this evil on that path. They're pursuing evil with great energy, with vigor. All evil is dangerous, but the more vigorously it is pursued, the more dangerous. The contrast is dramatic. It is enough for the wise to be warned away simply by pointing out the direction this takes the one on that path. If it heads towards sin, then we must certainly flee from it. But he doesn't end his guidance there. He gives a delightful description of the absurdity of the evil on that path. Listen to what he goes on to say at verse 17. Surely in vain the net is spread in the sight of any bird. Now, this is a hunting illustration where a snare is used for capturing birds. And commentators have noted that the poetic statement is open to a couple of ways of interpreting what is being said. Is the vanity involved here? related to the bird or to the hunter? When the snare is laid out in the sight of the bird, is the instruction here highlighting the fact that the bird is so stupid he's going to get snared anyway? I don't think that's what's being said, though that's one way of interpreting the language there. I think rather, there's a different point being made. While that would work as an illustration of the foolishness of those who should know better because they see the consequences of their actions, but continue on anyway, the bird seeing the snare and yet continues to be snared, that would work. But I think it misses the whole scope of the illustration. Rather, I think that what Solomon is pressing by the inspiration of the spirit is the vanity for the hunter. It's an illustration of how foolish it would be for a hunter to set a snare in plain view of the birds he's trying to capture. The birds, seeing the activity, will fly away or avoid the trap. The application in our text brings a great impact. Hear how this is applied. These sinners are plotting, but they are not so powerful as they might think. He says, surely in vain the net is spread in the sight of any bird, but they lie in wait for their own blood. They lurk secretly for their own lives. They've set a snare for themselves, and they're so stupid, they go into the snare and are captured, despite the fact that it's obvious what they've done. They've dug for themselves a pit, and yet they will fall into it. He goes on to say, So are the ways of everyone who is greedy for gain. It takes away the life of its owner. The sinners are plotting, but they are not so powerful as they might think. Solomon explains that they are plainly setting themselves up for destruction. The snares that they set are ultimately targeting themselves, and this should be so obvious that they stop, but they don't. He's displaying the absurdity of evil. It destroys the one pursuing it. Any bird that saw the snare would fly away and avoid it. These continue on and trap themselves, effectively scheming for their own demise. We see the parallel in that next text. If they say, as it says in verse 11, if they say, come with us, let us lie in wait to shed blood, let us lurk secretly for the innocent without cause. Verse 18 gives the contrast. They lie in wait for their own blood. They lurk secretly for their own lives. They think they'll have all of their designs. All they're doing is destroying themselves. They're bringing down this destruction on themselves. They have been so violently committed to a self-serving cause, one would think this same selfishness would cause them to preserve their own lives, to take note of the destruction that they're setting out for themselves. Instead, this violent pursuit blinds them to their own self-destruction. No wonder the father warns away his loved son. And there are plenty of examples of this absurdity of evil in our own day. The most obvious examples can be found in relation to the breaking of the seventh commandment, God's law concerning sexual purity. We were once wickedly assured that medical science was resolving all those undesirable consequences that would arise from a wanton breach of God's laws concerning sexual purity. No need to question the lifestyle of promiscuity, we were assured. But those diseases are on the rise again in the US, dramatically rising. And in many cases, those diseases are no longer treatable with the drugs that we're assured to thwart God's law and judgment. But the assurance continues. Even though the consequences are becoming more and more severe, the assurances continue this way to blessedness. This way we'll have every desire of our heart come with us and pursue this path. Do we hear the pursuit of wickedness and the laying of the snare that will in fact end up destroying the ones pursuing those wicked ends? The plague of pornography is corrupting and rewiring the God-designed pathways of the brain with awful consequences for personal relationships and for society. This plague is actually destroying natural relationships and proper function, and contributing to population decline around the developed world. This has been examined as a plague in Japan and other parts of the world. This sickness of sin is considered normal. And the wholesome design of God of preserving soul and body and faithfulness to one's spouse is mocked, is backwards and repressive. Society insists on turning a blind eye and even promoting this plague, even while it drives social disorder, violence, and even human trafficking. Many other examples could be provided. Drunkenness, drug abuse, and so on. There are many paths set out as a desirable path. Come with us. We'll have everything we can imagine desirable. And indeed, what they're doing is setting a snare for their own self-destruction. We can see all around us in various ways the promotion of such sinful ills. Even if it's in measured amounts, the same warnings apply, the same concern of the father to warn his beloved son. With such dramatic examples readily at hand, and even discussed here in the Proverbs, it is surprising the direction Solomon takes, he refocuses the attention on the source of destruction here. And it is a telling sin. See how he brings this to a powerful and impactful conclusion. He concludes his explanation of the dangerous self-destruction and such enticements of sinners in verse 19. Remember, these have set a snare thinking that they'll trap what they're after when in fact they're just destroying themselves. Solomon says, so are the ways of everyone who is greedy for gain. It takes away the life of its owners. Oh, how easily we forget that sin is so destructive and far more subtle than we imagined. He goes right to the heart. We find it easy to see the danger and destruction in what we consider big sins. And certainly, those are dangerous and destructive. But we must never give ourselves leave to disregard the source of all sin in the heart. That's right where the Father draws the attention. Look back at the source of those enticements that I described to you and I said that you should flee. This arose in the hearts of those desiring. gain without productivity. They had a money lust. It was a heart problem before it was breaking out into bloodthirsty and violent means. We must never give ourselves leave to disregard the source of all sin in the heart. God highlights this in the 10th commandment when he forbids covetousness. He helps us see that his commands reach right to the heart. They're not only concerned with the outward and grossest form of that sin. All of those sins find their origin in the sinfulness of the heart. And here we see just how dangerous greed is. The love of money, the hunger for wealth. It is easy for us to neglect the heart discipline of putting such a sin to death. But, This is a perennial pursuit of those who would have wisdom. They'll keep close account of heart sickness. Here, what Paul says to Timothy, those who desire to be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and harmful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness and pierced themselves through with many sorrows." 1 Timothy chapter 6, verse 9 and following. Again, did you hear the snare set and the self-destruction? This exemplar of that should tune us in the warning of the loving Father to attend to heart's sins. As we avoid putting the foot to that path, do so with an eye towards what it cultivates in the heart. We must desire in the heart the wholesome goodness of the pursuit of godliness in the place and path God has appointed. Greed drove these murderous aims as described, but it spreads from every heart sin. We must give no place to such heart sins. The warning of the loving Father helps move us from avoiding what we see in the outward display to the source in the heart. We must have that fear of God which was described in that thematic verse seven. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Why? Because it dreads any offense against the Holy God, even in the heart, especially in the heart, to avoid putting the foot to the wicked path. Let us beg God such an attention to the heart and to the hand, as it were. Let's pray. Most Holy Father, we pray that we should heed diligently the loving words of the Father to the Son in guarding the heart from the destruction of the enticements of sinners. May we see clearly the source in the heart of such destruction. May we love what is wholesome and good and guard the heart in the fear that is a reverence and a desire for you. Preserve us then with a wise view to avoid the path, even putting the foot to the path that we see is abundant with destruction. May we be wise as we've been guided. May we be nowhere near setting such snares, not even in the heart. Oh, preserve us that we may grow in wisdom. Loving Father, we pray this in Christ's name. Amen.