 So let's begin at chapter 21 here, Proverbs. We'll read verses one through five and get into our study. Proverbs chapter 21, beginning at verse one, reading to verse five, then moving verse by verse. The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord. Like the rivers of water, he turns it wherever he wishes. Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the hearts. To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice. A haughty look, a proud heart, and the plowing of the wicked are sin. The plans of the diligent lead surely to plenty, but those of everyone who is hasty surely to poverty. And so as we begin, notice how he says, the king's heart is in the hand of the Lord. I memorized this scripture in the King James many years ago, over 30 plus years ago, the king's heart is in the Lord's hand, like rivers of water, he turned it that whether so ever he will, that's the King James. And so this has been a scripture in my heart for 30, 40 years now, and it's simply speaking, concerning the way the Lord directs the affairs of man. He says, the king's heart is in the hand of the Lord, like the rivers of water, he turns it. So notice how he says, like the rivers of waters. This speaks, when he says the rivers of water, that speaks of what we would call a channel, a water course, and we know that channels are used to regulate the flow and direction of water. And so he's simply saying, even as the channels direct the flow of water, God directs the hearts of kings. He's saying the decisions of the king are under God's control, and he directs the king as it pleases him. So that brings us to the awareness that no human ruler is ultimately supreme. It reveals to us, God is supreme because God is sovereign. When you read your Bible, you read Daniel, in the book of Daniel in chapter four, verse 35. It reads all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing. He does according to his will in the army of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth. No one can restrain his hand or say to him, what have you done? Nobody calls God into their office to question him concerning how he runs the universe. And so the decisions that kings make are really under the sovereign authority of God himself. Even as we already read in Proverbs chapter 16, verse nine, a man's heart plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps. And so the king's heart is in the hand of the Lord, like the rivers of water, he turns it wherever he wishes. And that's one of the reasons why we do what we should do. I think there are certain responsibilities in the hands of men. God has given to us certain things that we're to be faithful in doing. But ultimately, I trust the Lord to do what is right. And I know that if I pray and I do what is necessary, what I have here in the United States, which includes voting and all of that, I know that I did my part. And I trust the Lord that he is obviously gonna be faithful to do his part. And I trust the Lord in all of those things. Verse two, every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the hearts. Now this proverb is similar to one that we saw in chapter 16. Remember in Proverbs 16 verse two, how it says people may be pure in their own eyes, but the Lord examines their motives. Well, we know this through experience. People defend their way of living. And they make excuses for their sin. Many people as a matter of fact, the average person, I would go so far as to say all human beings really believe themselves to be better than they really are. If you don't think so, you're not very old yet. Because as you grow, you begin to see that. And eventually, and this actually led to my own salvation, eventually you may even come to realize that you're not as good as you think you are. We have a tendency, especially today, I won't go into a long talk about this, but it's true. And there are those who are what they call social commentators. Social commentators who will speak concerning society, how it's gotten to the place that it is in all. And I happen to enjoy reading some of the things that those who are commentators of society say. And many years ago, somebody was writing concerning why the United States has gone in the direction it has and has arrived at where it has. And this was years ago. And they said something I found very interesting. They said, part of the reason that we as the United States have gotten to where we are is due to, and this was years ago that this, I'm talking 30 years ago that I read this. He said, this writer said, it's due to in many ways it's due to Freudian psychology, which I found interesting. And many of you may or may not know that when I was in college, one of my majors was psychology. So I was always interested in theories of human development and things of that nature. That was part of what I spent some time studying in. A lot of the early books that I read, even as a new believer, were books related to counseling and psychological theory. That was what I was interested at a certain point. And as a matter of fact, when I was the assisting pastor of another Calvary Chapel, the senior pastor told me that I was really not a called pastor, but rather a counselor, because they did most of the counseling. As a matter of fact, almost all the counseling in the church, that's what I did. And so I was very interested in human development, the development of morals, ethics, how does that happen from a perspective of psychology? And so that was just where I was. I have since moved away from that quite obviously, but that's what I was interested in. And I was reading, and this individual was saying that Freudian psychology really had a lot to do with where we're at. And at that point it was because he said, it's because through Freudian psychology, people in the United States have learned to blame everybody else for their problems. That's really true. That's very true. There have been studies where people have spoken to people who were imprisoned for murder, or whatever, some terrible crime. But because that person who is the criminal and who's spending years, or perhaps the rest of his life in prison, because they spend time in the library, many of them are able to analyze themselves, or at least come up with what we call now cycle bowel. They come up with words to describe why they do what they do, but they don't take personal responsibility for their own actions. And so when you learn to excuse away your behavior, you'll never get well. You'll never get well. There's a phrase some of you may be familiar with, it's Latin, mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa. How many of you know what that phrase means? Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa. My fault, my fault, my most grievous fault. Those of you who are raised in the Catholic Church know exactly that's a tridentine mass, and we had it in Latin. I learned that phrase when I was seven years old. Mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa. My fault, my fault, my most grievous fault. Well, guess what? There's truth to that. It isn't God's fault, it's my fault. And when I come to realize that, instead of blaming my mom for not being kind, or my dad for not providing, when I stop blaming where I lived and my lack of education, or perhaps the abundance of it, when I begin to realize that I'm messed up, I am, and you have to say amen, but I know you're thinking it. I see your eyes. When you finally say that and realize it, I am a mess. My life is not what it's supposed to be. I don't treat people the way they deserve. I don't know how to love. I'm not kind. I'm addicted to alcohol. I love my drugs. When you finally admit that and say, God help me, that's the step towards salvation. But the bottom line is, and the problem is that Solomon is so right. Every way of a man is right in his own eyes. We can explain and explain and explain, but what I had to do is I had to come to realize it's my fault. I'm responding. It's my human nature, and I had to stop making excuses for every bad thing that I've done. People believe they're better than they really are. Proverbs 30, verse 12 says there's a generation that is pure in its own eyes, yet is not washed from its filthiness. That's this generation we're living in right now. Without the Spirit's conviction, we would never understand our lost condition. We may think that the good things that we do come from pure motives, but God is the one who weighs the heart. God is the one who understands and sees our real motives. In the book of Genesis, the first book of the Bible, in chapter six, verse five, Moses writes concerning what God saw. It says in Genesis six, verse five, the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. That's the unregenerate human heart. Every thought is evil and how I can succeed in accomplishing my evil desires. Jeremiah 17, 9 and 10 says the heart is deceitful above all things, desperately wicked. Who can know it? I the Lord search the heart. I test the mind even to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings. And so every way of a man is writing his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the heart. Verse three, to do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice. There's a scripture found in first Samuel chapter 15 verse 22 and Samuel is saying this and Samuel says, does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the Lord? To obey is better than sacrifice. To heed is better than the fad of rams. God wants obedience, not outward demonstrations. It comes from the heart. Obedience from the heart is acceptable. It's not the outer works in other words. It's the motives of the heart that reveals true faith. And God never teaches in his word that works alone save a person. Good works distinguish the life of a believer, but do not create a spiritual life. God commands believers to live properly because of obedience and gratitude as well as faith. There are millions attending churches throughout the world who are lost. I was reading this just yesterday. Somebody was writing and actually there's a message that was given by somebody, a guest speaker and a fellow should be as well known. I just can't remember his name at the moment, but he was preaching and he was pointing out and this is true. I can tell you this is absolutely true that there are in the United States, there are over 500,000 Protestant churches. I don't know if you know that number or not. Over 500,000 Protestant churches. That's a good amount of churches. There are quite a number of people who attend churches, not necessarily midweeks. That's kind of unusual that there are those that were saying that midweek services are going the way of the dinosaur. That people don't wanna go to midweek services and there's a lot of truth to that I must admit. But many people will show up on a Sunday and they will especially show up for special occasions. We know that on Easter, you have to bring out extra chairs because people will come for special occasions. They'll come for weddings, they'll go for a funeral, say they will go to church and when they are asked, are you a believer in Christ? Oh yes, of course. And they will say that the answer even to this day are continuing to answer surveys that they are Christians. Now, many of them are changing and referring to themselves as being spiritual. They're not claiming a religion. They're not saying I'm a Christian. They'll say, well, I'm a spiritual person and you'll read that a lot and perhaps you have friends who will refer to themselves as spiritual people, meaning that they believe there's something out there. But those who refer to themselves as being spiritual very often are more agnostic than people with any real faith. Over 80%, some surveys point out that 83% of Americans still profess to be Christian. But if 83% of the United States is Christian, who's doing all the crime? 17%. So we know that that's just an inflated figure, a bloated figure because somebody doesn't even know what it means to be a Christian and there have been conversations I've had and others have had where people will say, well, I'm not a Christian according to your definition. Have you ever had that conversation? I have. So I'm not a Christian according to your definition. And then so I say, Jesus said, unless a man is born again, he cannot enter into the kingdom of heaven. That's his definition. Are you evangelicals? Are you born-againers? We didn't create the term born again. That isn't something we invented. That's something Jesus himself said, unless you're born again. Well, they believe that they get saved by going to church. You know that. So millions and millions of Americans are self-deceived. They're self-deceived. And millions and millions of professing Christians, this is heavy, are going to hell. They're gonna be the ones that will stand before Jesus. As Jesus says in Matthew 7, 21 through 23, they're gonna be the ones who say, but I cast out demons in your name in your name, I did many works in your name. And Jesus is gonna say, I never knew you. You see, it's not the profession in the sense of just openly saying, it's the conviction of the heart, a heart that's been transformed by the Lord. And millions attending churches throughout the world are lost and they do think their good works are sufficient. But they may do good things on occasion, but they're not righteous because they haven't been washed by the blood of Christ and as a result, they're self-deceived. So to do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice. In other words, to have a life that's been transformed so that righteousness and just living is the earmark of your life because of the regeneration and the born again experience you've had. Well, that is acceptable to the Lord more than just religious works or things that are done on the outside or sacrifice. Verse four, a haughty look, a proud heart, the plowing of the wicked, our sin. Erogance and pride in this scripture are pictured as seeds that are being planted. So he's saying the fruit of arrogance and pride, the fruit of arrogance and pride will always be sin. Verse five, the plans of the diligent lead surely to plenty, but those of everyone who's hasty surely to poverty. So plans and patience will pay higher dividends than quick decisions. Long range plans with patience is necessary. If you only wait for it to produce, but when you just don't have patience then you don't reap the benefit. When Marie and I got married, my wife and I got married. We didn't have two nickels to rub together like many people. We brought nothing into our marriage. You didn't even have a bed. We had one of those sofa beds that you open up and then close and that was our bed. And Marie, when she was pregnant, sleeping on that sofa bed was very uncomfortable for her. And so we went to try and find a bed and some of you have taken ancient history and you remember when there was a period in America where they had water beds. You remember the water beds? Yeah, some of you do. So I went to buy our water bed and we got a water bed and I still remember Marie the first day we slept in it. It's like you're sleeping on the ocean. I didn't fill it up right and it just, and Marie's tummy was already, you know, good size and I felt her moving because she had to get up to go to work, let me sleep. And she had to go to work and our bedroom was just barely bigger than a queen size bed. We had a very small bedroom and I felt the bed moving and it was Marie trying to get up without waking me up and the bed, I was like I was on the ocean moving back and forth. I still remember watching her as she slowly put her legs over the edge of the bed and it had a railing and if you get close to the edge, you start going down. Some of you know that, you start going down and so I'm laying on my side watching her. This is very entertaining. Why didn't I help her? Don't ask. I just was, I still remember doing that and thinking, how am I gonna get out of bed? I'm watching her. She starts to roll back and forth like this and as she's going back and forth, she's building up momentum and then she jumps and it was one step, less than a step and she hits the wall. I still remember her splatting kind of like Wiley Coyote in one of those Roadrunner cartoons. So we didn't have any money, that was a big investment, that was a $20 a month payment that we made. We didn't have any money and because we didn't have money, Marie had, I forget it was stock of some sort in Sears because she used to work for Sears. She had $1,000 and we pulled that $1,000 out and we used it to pay our bills. But she and I have talked about it. We said if she'd have left that $1,000 in there all these years later, we'd have a little bit of a nest egg. You know we would, but we were hasty. We didn't think, we thought we just need this now. So we just pulled it out and that $1,000 over 40 plus years ago now in Sears would have accumulated. If you get a savings account and you put $100 a month away over the course of like 18 years getting some consistent interest, you can have as much as $80,000 saved up in that account in 18 years, did you know that? A lot of people don't, a lot of people don't invest. A lot of people take their money that they're making and just spend it and they're hasty in that. And so it's really wise for us to be careful about making long-range plans and having patience. There are those who rely on their credit cards and their bonuses to pay off certain things. I've learned that's unwise to take things like we did. There are those who refinance homes so that they can pay for a wedding or even college and refinancing your home for things like that, that should be avoided. And that can be avoided by proper planning. There are times when I've spoken to people who are planning and getting married and the average cost of a wedding is now between $30,000 and $40,000. That's what they give me to do the wedding and then no, no it's between $30,000 and $40,000. Some of you already know that but that's what it is. And there are times I've spoken to young people who wanna get married and they'll say, what are you planning on spending? Oh, $20, $25,000 and I'll just shake my head. I'll go please. I'm not gonna make your mind up for you. Do what you want. It's your wedding. I'm not gonna tell you what to do with it. I'll just think you're an idiot. No, I'll just say, I'm teasing. I'll just say, let's see. I can spend $25,000 for one event that's gonna take one day or I could put money on a house or we can have an incredible honeymoon. We can go wherever we want to go, Spain, you know, Italy, Catalina. I mean, we can go in. I mean, be wise. Be wise in how you spend your money. Be wise in how you plan. You know, I've had people say, I wanna buy such and so car and it's an expensive car and I'll say there's a beautiful car. And some cars are like, to me, are like artwork. You know, I would never wanna own a Ferrari. I wouldn't ever wanna own one because can you imagine going into a parking lot and seeing a car come chasing after your car and smashing. See, I don't wanna ever have that kind of tension over a car but even if I could afford it, I wouldn't have it. I wouldn't have something like that. Why, it's a piece of art but it's certainly not practical. And not only that, but you have to change the oil and something like that or you have to rotate the tires or not rotate, buy new tires. No, and I've told people, I've said, listen, when you wanna buy a luxury vehicle, you will pay luxury prices. Keep that in mind. Those are simple things you learn over time that some people don't really think about. No, I want it now. That's a nice this and I can, yeah, but you're gonna pay for it longer than it works. That's the truth. Be wise. And that's basically just some practical, practical advice that you get. The plans of the diligent lead to plenty. Those of everyone who's hasty to poverty, long range planning is a good thing. Verse six, getting treasures by a lying tongue is a fleeting fantasy of those who seek death. Finances gained deceitfully never will bring total satisfaction. Ultimately, very often those who are committing fraud will be caught and penalties can be severe. So getting treasures by a lying tongue is a fleeting fantasy of those who seek death. Verse seven, the violence of the wicked will destroy them because they refuse to do justice. What they've done to others shall return upon their own heads basically. And if they have refused to do justly for others, they will reap the consequences. Verse eight, the way of a guilty man is perverse or twisted or crooked. But as for the pure, his work is right. So ungodly men do things to make a profit, but godly men do things with integrity. Verse nine, one of my favorite scriptures, better to dwell in a corner of a house top than in a house shared with a contentious woman. I didn't make that up. It's funny. It's better to dwell in the corner of a house top. When you look at houses in Israel, very often the houses had rooftops that were flat. And it's interesting, I was reading about this just today, how that they would use their rooftop for various things. Did you know, I didn't know, I never thought about it, but they would use their rooftop for a variety of things, including exercise. They would go to the roof and they would exercise. When it was warm because there was nothing to cool the house down, they would sleep on the roof simply because it was cooler for them to do that. Many would do their devotions on the roof. It was a quiet place, a solitary place. It's interesting when you read the book of Acts in chapter 10, how it speaks concerning the apostle Peter who was on a rooftop and he was praying and he had a, it went into a trance and had a vision. And it's very clear he was on top of a roof having his devotions as per time and the Lord spoke to him in that way. And so roofs were flat and they were used for a variety of things. And it's interesting how he's simply saying, hiding in the corner of a roof is better than being in a house that's filled with anger. Well, we all would agree that that's true, of course. It's interesting how he uses as the example what he calls a contentious woman. The word contentious, to be contentious is to be argumentative. He says, it's better to go up in your roof and hide in a corner, is what he's saying literally, than to be downstairs in a big house with somebody who just wants to argue all the time. Proverbs 27, verses 15 and 16, says a continual dripping on a very rainy day and a contentious woman are alike. Whoever restrains her restrains the wind and grasps oil with his right hand, which is interesting. You know, when we're going through Proverbs, we're gonna come to the concluding chapter, chapter 31. And you'll find this, I'll share this again when we get there, but in chapter 31 of Proverbs, it has a Proverbs of someone who's referred to as Lemuel. It says, these are the words of King Lemuel. And there's discussion concerning who wrote chapter 31 because it says these are the words of King Lemuel. And so Christian and Jewish scholars many agreed that that was just another title for King Solomon. And so when you read that, it speaks of the fact that his mother had given him words of wisdom. And again, we'll see that in chapter 31. So the mother of Solomon was none other than Bathsheba. And we'll see this because I'm gonna spend time looking at Proverbs 31, the Proverbs 31 woman, the virtuous woman. And I find that amazing that the advice that Solomon receives concerning a virtuous woman was advice he received from his mother who had committed sexual sin with King David. Isn't that interesting? And that is such a word of hope to sinners. How that we can fail and yet God can restore us. And we can actually learn some lessons that we learn aren't necessarily and are not, God is not an author of sin. But at the same time, he can take our failures and he can train us in lessons that cause us to be able to give wisdom through experience. And that's what Bathsheba's able to do. And she speaks to her son about what a virtuous woman is. And she says in Proverbs 31, 26, that the virtuous woman opens her mouth with wisdom and on her tongue is the law of kindness. So in contrast to what Solomon is saying here in verse nine about an argumentative woman, all the contrast would be one who has the law of kindness on her tongue. And that obviously is a beautiful thing to have. Verse 10, the soul of the wicked desires evil. His neighbor finds no favor in his eyes. So a wicked person's heart is set on doing evil and he has no concern for other people. They may see something happening in a neighborhood. They mind their own business. They don't get involved and they don't care to help others. His neighbor finds no favor in his eyes. He doesn't help. Verse 11, when the scoffer is punished, the simple is made wise. But when the wise is instructed, he receives knowledge. Now this is interesting. I'll spend a couple of moments developing this with you. People learn what is right in various ways. And people do what is right for various reasons. You can do something good, but not because your heart is good, but simply because it's something you do. And people may judge you simply on what you're doing and think that internally you're good when in fact, you're probably or very often, not you personally, but a person can very often be doing the good for a variety of reasons. And I wanna develop that, it'll just take a moment. But I wanna develop that with you for just a moment because I think it's an interesting thing to do. And I want you to see this. Verse 11, again, when the scoffer is punished, the simple is made wise. That means that a simple person, a naive person, sees penalty that somebody is paying the scoffer for the things that he did. And this simple person is watching what happened to this other person and is being warned by the punishment the other person is going through. And that can cause the simple person to not do the same thing because he saw what happens when somebody does that. There are people who do what is right because of personal benefit. There are people who do what is right because it's right in society. They do what is right because they wanna be considered to be a good person. There are those who do what is legal because they say, well, if it's legal, it is also moral. We have that in the United States. If the law allows it, it's okay to do it. You will have people argue that way. If it's legal, who are you to say we can't do that? And that's why you should keep that in mind when you see the laws that are being passed because the surest way to change the morals of society is to do it through the laws because if it's legal, then it's moral. Many people, and they will argue for things that you and I as believers would say, no, that's wrong to do. Issues that relate to getting loaded now, legalized pot. Well, if it's legal, it's moral. Abortion, that's how it crept into the United States. It's a law and thus we will defend the law. That's what happens. And so if it's legal for many people, it's moral. Others think that they wanna do something good because they have an altruism. They wanna do it because it benefits other people. But what's interesting here in this proverb is Solomon points out that some people do good to avoid punishment. And that would be the lowest on the rung of ethics. That would be the lowest rung. Little kids see punishment as punishment reward as being the motivator for lifestyles. I won't do this because it gets spanked. I will do this because I get rewarded. It's called punishment reward and that's real true. But there are those who's to grow up and always think that way. They never go to a higher level of ethics, see the highest level of ethics is I do something because it's right to do from a moral perspective because the word of God states thus and so, thus I'm gonna do those things because the Bible teaches me to do what is right. That's the highest standard. Even secular thinkers will point out that when people do something that is right based on their religious faith, that's the highest standard that they have. Colberg and his theories of moral development brought that out. Some of you are aware of Colberg and his studies. But that's what Colberg brought out in his six stages of moral development is if somebody does it for ethical reasons, for religious faith reasons, that's a highest standard. And so when you look at this scripture, it's an interesting scripture because he's saying when the scoffer is punished, the simple's made wise, but when the wise is instructed, he receives knowledge. He's saying, it would seem he's saying some people learn from how others are punished, but that doesn't necessarily make them good people. A truly genuinely righteous person does things for the right reason when the wise is instructed, he receives knowledge simply because he has a foundation that is built on the word of God and the things that are proper. And so he is gonna grow in a different way because it's not just exterior behavior, but it comes from the heart. You're transformed because God's word has been written on the tablet of your heart. So there are some people who won't do something simply because they saw what happens to others who do it. And then there are others who won't do something simply because God says you shouldn't do that and therefore I won't with no argument and really with no question, if God's word says it, then that's what I'm gonna believe and that's what I'm gonna do. Anyway, we'll go on. Verse 12, the righteous God wisely considers, the righteous God wisely considers the house of the wicked overthrowing the wicked for their wickedness. God is the righteous God. God is the righteous judge and he ultimately will judge wickedness. Verse 13, whoever shuts his ears to the cry of the poor will also cry himself and not be heard. The principle of this, and this is interesting principle, the principle of this is very simple. Those who have received mercy in turn will be merciful. And so if God has given mercy to me and he's provided for me, when I see someone in need, I am gonna be more prone to help that person in their time of need. And so those who have received mercy are merciful. If you've been helped, you have a tendency of helping others. In the Old Testament book of Zechariah, chapter seven, verse nine, thus says the Lord of hosts, execute true justice, show mercy and compassion, everyone to his brother. There was a time when the apostle Peter was, speaking to Jesus, it's found in Matthew 18, verses 21 and 22, Peter came to him and said, "'Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me "'and I forgive him up to seven times?' "'And Jesus said to him, "'I do not say to you up to seven times, "'but up to 70 times seven.'" And so the question is really this, how far am I supposed to go? What if I have somebody who habitually sins against me? How much mercy am I supposed to show somebody like that? It's interesting how he asked the question up to seven times. Why would he say up to seven times? Well, because if he says seven times, that's intended to reveal great mercy on his part. Seven times represents more than twice the amount required by Jewish tradition. You see in Amos chapter one, verse three, it reads, "'This is what the Lord says, "'For three sins of Damascus, even for four, "'I will not turn back my wrath, "'because she thrashed Gilead with sledges, "'having iron teeth.'" So the rabbi's reasoned, if God only forgives three times and punishes on the fourth, it would be arrogant for man to forgive more than God. And so when he speaks to Jesus and says, "'Shall I forgive, well, I'll just go seven?" That's really showing an exorbitant amount of mercy. God says, Jesus says, "'No, listen, if you've received mercy, "'here's your practical application, "'then you show mercy to other people.'" I was speaking to somebody recently who's going through a lot of pain, a lot of pain. And I'm trying to find a way to say this practically. He'd been sinned against and anybody in this room, if they heard the sin that had been committed against him, anybody in this room would say that his response of pain and hurt and difficulty in forgiving is truly understandable. And I've been walking him through this for a while, I and others. And I spoke to him recently and he said that the Spirit of God has spoken to him and said to him this, "'I forgave you everything. "'Who are you to not forgive the one who hurt you?' I have to tell you, that's absolutely true. That's what the Bible teaches, right? That's what the Bible teaches. If you've been forgiven, you forgive others, right? If you don't forgive others, you really don't understand what forgiveness is. That's what the Bible teaches. But how many believers carry grudges and unforgiveness every day of their lives? And then get mad at people like me when I say, but the word says, you will forgive even as you have been forgiven. Forgive us our debts, even as we forgive our debtors. We all know that prayer, but we can legitimize the anger by simply saying, you don't know how that hurt me. And what we've done once again is we've given ourselves permission to hold on to pain. We've given ourselves permission to do that. But Jesus gave a parable of the debt collector. And there was a man who owed somebody something, a great sum of money, a great sum. That was really something he couldn't ever pay in many lifetimes, but the person he owed the sum to said, I forgive you, but that person who had owed that great sum of money, while somebody owed him a lesser sum, that was payable, and said, forgive me, give me some time, and I'll pay you back everything I owe you. But what that man did, who had been forgiven that great sum, threw that man, that other man, into a debtor's prison, it's found in Matthew 18, threw him in the debtor's prison, and he was gonna keep him there until every cent was paid off. And Jesus, using a parable, said the one who had been forgiven so much should have been very quick to forgive the other who had done less, but he wouldn't do it. And what happened to the one who refused to forgive as he was put into a debtor's prison, and Jesus said, he's not gonna be let out until he pays every cent. And what is he saying? He's saying he's gonna be in constant turmoil and constant torment and constant imprisonment by his lack of forgiveness. Did you know that the word forgive speaks of releasing? To forgive is to release a debt. You forgive debts, that's why Jesus said, we forgive our debtors, because there's a debt involved. And yet many of us are debt collectors. We hold on to a, it's almost like a pet that we carry in our pocket. And every once in a while, when someone says, you know, have you released it yet? We pull it out of our pocket, bring it out of that dirty napkin, and we show it to people, and we say, no, no, this is what they did. And we put it back in our pocket, and we're more and more crippled every day because we won't release the debt. So if I've been forgiven, I ought to be willing to forgive others, to release them of their debts. So you may not see that in this scripture. It's speaking of mercy in verse 13. Whoever shuts his ears to the cry of the poor will also cry himself and not be heard. It's speaking of mercy. If we've been provided for and mercy has been shown to us, shouldn't we show it to other people? Verse 14, a gift in secret pacifies anger and a bribe behind the back, strong wrath. A gift in secret can make someone live at peace, something like a peace offering, but a bribe can also cause someone to look the other way by being bought off. And that's basically what he's saying. Verse 15, it's a joy for the just to do justice, but destruction will come to the workers of iniquity, serving the Lord is a joy, while avoiding living life's pleasing to him will end up in judgment. It's a joy to serve the Lord. In first John chapter five, verse three, this is love for God to obey his commands. His commands are not burdensome. In Psalm 40 verse eight, I delight to do your will, oh my God, your law is within my heart. So it's serving the Lord is a joy to our heart. It's not like, oh man, I could be out right now doing so many bad things, and here I am in a Bible study. It's not like that at all. Verse 16, a man who wanders from the way of understanding will rest in the assembly of the dead. In other words, it's possible to cut your life short. Errant man, it's been said, will destroy himself before his time. And it's possible, of course, it's possible to destroy yourself before your time. You wander away from understanding. I'll give you one quick example. I knew of a fellow many years ago, many years ago, who had been going to a particular church, and his wife and he, and he walked away from the Lord. He began to get more involved in alcohol, then he got involved in alcohol and drugs. He walked completely away from the Lord as he walked away from the Lord one day. He climbed in his car, and he was going down the freeway, he was traveling in excessive speed. He was under the influence, crashed into a bridge, and he died. It is possible to move in a way that destroys your life, and it does destroy your life. So a man who wanders from the way of understanding will rest in the assembly of the dead. Verse 17, he who loves pleasure will be a poor man. He who loves wine and oil will not be rich. He who loves pleasure will be a poor man. Spending your money on excessive luxuries reveals a carnal heart. Okay, here's something quick, I'll say it quick, and I've only got 10 minutes, but I don't care. No. Okay, some of you may be aware of this, and I wanna rush, because I actually really do wanna finish this chapter, and I will. But do you know what I was reading today? I was reading about a hotel restaurant. It was a restaurant. It's in New York City. It's called the Ainsworth. The Ainsworth has chicken wings. How many of you like chicken wings? I like chicken wings. A thousand dollars. Thousand dollars for 50 chicken wings. They dust it with $200 worth of gold dust, and then they give you an expensive bottle of champagne. And so for a thousand dollars, you can have 50 chicken wings. He who loves pleasure will be a poor man. He who loves wine and oil will not be rich. I mean, we see it to this day. That's called a greedy lifestyle. That's what he's speaking about, a greedy lifestyle. Spending your money on excessive luxuries reveals a carnal heart. It's a greedy lifestyle. And I have to say it, it's just true. Louisiana televangelist, Jesse Duplantis, is asking his followers to donate $54 million so he can buy a private jet to help him preach the gospel to the world. His ministry has already paid for three others. I really believe that if the Lord Jesus Christ was physically on the earth today, he wouldn't be riding a donkey, Duplantis said. He'd be in an airplane flying all over the world. So anyway, I need a plane. No, let me hasten to say something. It isn't a sin to be financially prosperous. Never equate money in and of itself with sinfulness. Don't do that, don't go there. That's wrong. Greed is a sin, but envy is too. And sometimes when you may see somebody well off, you may have a covetous heart and envious spirit. That's not right either. If the Lord allows someone, or blesses someone with finances, praise the Lord. If they love Jesus Christ and they use their finances for the kingdom and use it and enjoy it, I have no sermon against that. I have no sermon against that. I'm not jealous of their success. I don't covet what they have. I don't. My contentment's in Jesus Christ. And they stand before the Lord. Be careful not to fall into that trap of envy and then looking at it as a virtue, but that's not. And if somebody works hard and he invests and she invests wisely and they're able to reap the dividends and the generous of what they get, God bless them. God bless them as they do that. The richest man in the United States was a man by the name of John D. Rockefeller. And he would make Bill Gates look like a poor person. The amount of money he was worth on personal assets because he had so much was, I believe the number that he had was somewhere around 360 billion dollars. So that makes Bill Gates look like he's standing in a street corner begging for bread. But you know what he would do? He went to his church and he would clean toilets. He served the Lord. He was just a believer. You know, I think it'd be wonderful to have a John D. Rockefeller type in our fellowship if he tied. I'd get that plain. So be careful not to get caught up with that because that's just wrong. What is being spoken about is somebody who just seeks to satisfy their sensual desires and that is wrong. A one who loves pleasure will be a poor man. He who loves wine and oil will not be rich because there are things that make you rich that are beyond the money. You won't have those things. Verse 18, the wicked shall be a ransom for the righteous and the unfaithful, the upright. God will cause to fall on their own heads that which is intended against the just. And he does this by delivering the just and putting the wicked person in their place. Verse 19, better to dwell in the wilderness than with a contentious and angry woman. Nuff said, he must have been having a problem with one of his thousand wives. Verse 20, there is desirable treasure and oil in the dwelling of the wise but a foolish man squanders it. Again, a wise person prepares for the future carefully planning how to live comfortably but fools use up whatever resources they have and ultimately are left with nothing. 21, he who follows righteousness and mercy finds life, righteousness and honor. Virtue has its own rewards. When you love others, they in turn will love and bless your life. Verse 22, a wise man scales the city of the mighty, brings down the trusted stronghold. The walls are what inhabitants were trusting in to keep the enemy out but a wise man will plan properly and because he plans properly, he will have victory. Verse 23, whoever guards his mouth and tongue keeps his soul from troubles. Oh, that's a good one, isn't it? Learn to be quiet, resist the temptation to speak back, resist the temptation to have to have the last word. Guard your mouth. There are times that it's just wiser just to just leave it alone. And so many arguments would end if one of the people in the argument would stop arguing and just leave it alone. Verse 24, a proud and haughty man, scoffer is his name, he acts with arrogant pride. A scoffer is an irreligious man and an irreligious man denies the God who bought him and lives in self-righteous pride. Verse 25 and 26, the desire of the lazy man kills him. For his hands refuse to labor, he cubits greedily all day long but the righteous gives and does not spare. A lazy person comes to ruin because they're always looking for the easy way out. But on the other hand, a righteous person actually thinks of giving rather than only getting. It's like what it says in Luke 6.38, given it will be given to you, good measure pressed down, shaken together, running over will be put into your bosom for with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you. Verse 27, the sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination, how much more when he brings it with evil or wicked intent. Someone still bent on being wicked yet pretending to worship God is an abomination, sacrifice of the wicked. Years ago, we had somebody in this fellowship who donated electronic equipment and asked for a receipt at the end of the year and he said, I gave this equipment for the sound ministry and all. And later on, he came and confessed that he had stolen that equipment from his company and donated it to the church and received a tax donation for it. Do you think the Lord was happy with that sacrifice? No, the sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination. So we didn't give it back to him. No. I don't remember what we did, it's been over 30 years. Verse 28, a false witness shall perish, but the man who hears him will speak endlessly. That's an interesting thing. Well, obviously the first part, liars are judged. A false witness shall perish, liars are judged. But the second part, the man who listens carefully, it would be the one who's listening carefully and repeating accurately is speaking what is true. And his words will continue on into the future because they are true. He doesn't contradict himself, he always affirms the same thing. Listen, if you tell the truth, you never have to remember what you said. Liars have a problem because, okay, what did I say? You know, liars will do that, what did I say? Hey, didn't you say, oh, did I say that? Because they lied, you know? But if you tell the truth, it's always the same story. So you never have to think of a second part. And then finally, a wicked man hardens his face, but as for the upright, he establishes his way. A wicked man hardens his face is another way of saying he puts up a bold front, but that's all. Because hardened faces will reveal a hardened heart. But the upright establishes his way. In other words, he orders his steps properly, doesn't turn to the left or the right, he honors God. Verse 30, there is no wisdom or understanding or counsel against the Lord. And that's quite obvious. And Job 5.13 says, he catches the wise and their craftiness, the schemes of the wily are swept away. You can't argue against God or counsel against God. God is victorious. And then finally, the horse is prepared for the day of battle. Deliverance is up the Lord. Now that success comes from God, not just our plans. We need to be prepared. This is something that actually I could teach at a pastor's conference, it's got a lot of truth to it and I'm just gonna close with a couple of thoughts and we'll pray. He who fails to plan, plans to fail. Keep that in mind. You don't go through life haphazardly, just kind of like, you know, the term serendipity. No, there are proper plans that you make for life. But your plans aren't necessarily his. That's why you yield your plans to the Lord. My plan was this, and then I'll give you a couple thoughts and pray. My plan was this, I'm gonna go to college, which I did. I'm gonna get five, takes five years at that time to get my degree. Then I'm gonna go for two, maybe three, and I'm gonna get my masters. And then I may pursue beyond that doctorate. So my plan was to go to college for up to 11 to 13 years. And then I was hoping that at the end of my master's program that I would be able to campaign for, candidate for a church and begin to work in the church, that was my plan. And so what the Lord did with my plan, my goal was to do what I'm doing right now. My plan was to go to college for five, then three, and then possibly beyond. I didn't graduate. God put me in the ministry without that degree. Because God's plans are the right ones. It doesn't mean that I didn't establish goals, I did. And in this church, I wanna see the Lord do things. I don't just go into my office, take a nap, and then write a few things and come in. I have staff, I have staff devotions, I have staff meetings, I impart vision. I do these things because it's necessary in the church for us to move in the same direction. But we leave all this room open, what God do you want to do? Because I may want to do this, but if you don't then I want nothing to do with it. It's not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, sayeth the Lord of hosts. It's God who directs our footsteps to complete the tasks that he has before us. What we do is we say, Lord, here I am, I want to do this as I've been looking at and scouting now, remember how God sent the 12 spies, or the 12 spies through Moses went into the land and came back and remember the report 10 of them gave? They said, you know what, the grapes are so huge and it's an amazing, it's filled with abundances land, but there are giants in the land and we are like grasshoppers in their site and then they go on to say, and we are like grasshoppers in our own site. So that's when you begin to look at the eyes of flesh and you say, this is insurmountable, they see us for this and we see ourselves in this way and then you have Joshua and Caleb and Joshua and Caleb say, let us, let us Adam, God is on our side, they're gonna be nothing. And then the 10 get upset at the two and a riot begins to break out because Joshua and Caleb saw with the eyes of faith and knew that God that they served was bigger than any giant that land had. See, so if you get into the carnal planning of things and you begin to weigh things through when you do your demographic studies and you begin to do all the things that I can teach you about, because I know about and I never talk about, it's simply because God is bigger than my plans. And so I prepare for war, but I trust God for the victory and I know that the Lord gives victory because God never loses. And when you're on his side, you're on the winning side always. And so the horse is prepared for the day of battle but deliverance is from the Lord. And that's how it works in the kingdom of God. Amen, amen. Amen.