693. We Should Live our Lives in the Present - November 27, 2024

[00:00:06] Welcome to Wisdom Today. My name is Bill Kelley and I'll be your host. In this podcast we will be exploring the book of Proverbs.

[00:00:21] Let's open in prayer. Father God, I thank you for anyone listening to this podcast today. Lord, I pray that you open everyone's ears to hear and heart to receive everything you have in store for them through this particular podcast. I ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.

[00:00:40] This is Proverb 27 beginning in verse 1.

[00:01:40] Let's read this in verse 1.

[00:01:50] Verse 1.

[00:01:51] Do not forsake your own friend or your father's friend, nor go to your brother's house in the day of your calamity.

[00:02:02] Better is a neighbor nearby than a brother far away.

[00:02:07] My son, be wise and make my heart glad that I may answer him who reproaches me.

[00:02:15] A prudent man foresees evil and hides himself. The simple pass on and are punished.

[00:02:24] Take the garment of him who is surety for a stranger and hold it in pledge when he is surety for a seductress.

[00:02:33] He who blesses his friend with a loud voice rising early in the morning, it will be counted a curse to him.

[00:02:42] A continual dripping on a very rainy day and a contentious woman are alike.

[00:02:49] Whoever restrains her restrains the wind and grasps oil with his right hand.

[00:02:57] As iron sharpens iron, so a man sharpens the countenance of his friend.

[00:03:04] Whoever keeps the fig tree will eat its fruit. So he who waits on his master will be honored.

[00:03:11] As in water, face reflects face. So a man's heart reveals the man.

[00:03:19] Hell and destruction are never full. So the eyes of man are never satisfied.

[00:03:26] The refining pot is for silver and the furnace for gold.

[00:03:32] And a man is valued by what others say of him.

[00:03:36] Though you grind a fool in a mortar with a pestle along with crushed grain,

[00:03:43] yet his foolishness will not depart from him.

[00:03:47] Be diligent to know the state of your flocks and attend to your herds.

[00:03:53] For riches are not forever, nor does the crown endure to all generations.

[00:04:00] When the hay is removed, all the tender grass shows itself.

[00:04:06] And the herbs of the mountains are gathered in.

[00:04:10] The lambs will provide your clothing and the gates the price of a field.

[00:04:16] You shall have enough goat's milk for your food,

[00:04:19] for the food of your household and the nourishment of your maidservants.

[00:04:25] Friends, today what I'd like to do is go over three of my favorite verses in Proverb 27.

[00:04:34] And it's very difficult to pick out three verses in this proverb.

[00:04:39] I could go over almost every single one of these verses

[00:04:43] and speak for 10 or 15 minutes on each one.

[00:04:47] So I'm just going to give a brief thought and my own commentary for these three verses.

[00:04:56] First of all, I'd like to begin with Proverb 27 verse 1.

[00:05:02] Now I am reading out of the Nelson Study Bible,

[00:05:06] and what I'd like to do is go over the commentary for this verse.

[00:05:11] It says,

[00:05:13] Do not boast about tomorrow,

[00:05:15] for you do not know what a day may bring forth.

[00:05:21] This is the commentary.

[00:05:23] As Jesus did in his teaching,

[00:05:26] the wise of ancient Israel warned about a concern for tomorrow

[00:05:32] that overshadows the needs of today.

[00:05:36] Now I am going to add my own commentary,

[00:05:40] because I believe many people in our world today

[00:05:44] do not live in the present.

[00:05:47] So my first point of today I'd like to bring up

[00:05:52] is we should live our lives in the present.

[00:05:57] Now many people live their lives in the past.

[00:06:03] They have made mistakes in their past.

[00:06:06] It has cost them jobs.

[00:06:08] It has cost them relationships.

[00:06:12] It has cost them heartache.

[00:06:14] And a lot of times that heartache

[00:06:16] actually has affected their physical health.

[00:06:20] And it's brought sickness upon their body.

[00:06:23] And a lot of people sometimes overlook the fact

[00:06:27] that if you worry and are full of anxiety or worry,

[00:06:32] it will literally affect your body.

[00:06:35] But a lot of people have made mistakes

[00:06:39] and they will never forgive themselves.

[00:06:41] And they live their lives in the past

[00:06:45] and they live their lives with regret.

[00:06:49] And I am here to encourage those of you

[00:06:53] that do that to stop doing it.

[00:06:57] You do not have to live in the past.

[00:07:01] I believe that your past does not predict your future.

[00:07:07] You can turn it around by snapping your fingers

[00:07:11] and just believing from here on out

[00:07:14] things are going to be different.

[00:07:16] Now, I think if you flip the coin,

[00:07:20] many people do the opposite.

[00:07:23] And they don't live their lives in the past,

[00:07:26] but they live their lives in the future.

[00:07:30] A lot of people now, when they are working

[00:07:33] and they're raising their children,

[00:07:35] they say this,

[00:07:37] one day I will do this.

[00:07:40] One day I will go traveling.

[00:07:43] One day I will do this.

[00:07:46] And so they plan for their future.

[00:07:48] They have a 403B.

[00:07:51] They save money.

[00:07:52] But friends, I'm here to tell you

[00:07:54] that life is too short to do that.

[00:07:58] You should enjoy life in the moment.

[00:08:03] Live life as though today is the very last day

[00:08:07] you will be on earth.

[00:08:08] And your life, I believe, will be more productive.

[00:08:11] And I believe you will be much happier.

[00:08:15] Now, the second verse I'd like to bring up

[00:08:18] is verse 7.

[00:08:20] Verse 7 says,

[00:08:31] Now listen to the commentary of my Bible.

[00:08:35] Those who are full do not appreciate what they have,

[00:08:41] while to those who are hungry,

[00:08:44] anything tastes good.

[00:08:46] So friends, today,

[00:08:48] the second point I would like to bring up

[00:08:51] is a satisfied soul loathes the honeycomb.

[00:08:57] Now, as I'm reading this verse,

[00:08:59] I am reminded of the great Apostle Paul,

[00:09:03] who wrote one of the best little letters of the Bible.

[00:09:09] It's called Philippians.

[00:09:11] And if you go to chapter 4,

[00:09:14] let's begin in verse 10.

[00:09:16] This is talking about Philippian generosity.

[00:09:21] But I rejoiced in the Lord greatly,

[00:09:25] that now, at last,

[00:09:27] your care for me has flourished again,

[00:09:31] though you surely did care,

[00:09:33] but you lacked opportunity.

[00:09:36] Not that I speak in regard to need,

[00:09:39] for I have learned in whatever state I am,

[00:09:44] to be content.

[00:09:46] I know how to be abased,

[00:09:49] and I know how to abound.

[00:09:52] Everywhere and in all things,

[00:09:55] I have learned both to be full

[00:09:58] and to be hungry,

[00:10:00] both to abound and to suffer need.

[00:10:04] I can do all things through Christ,

[00:10:09] who strengthens me.

[00:10:12] Now, what I'd like to do

[00:10:14] is to break that down a little bit.

[00:10:18] Now, many people do not know this,

[00:10:20] but this entire letter of the Philippians

[00:10:25] that Paul wrote to the church there.

[00:10:28] Now, he wrote this along with his protege,

[00:10:32] Timothy, a young man.

[00:10:34] But the entire book was written

[00:10:37] while Paul was in a prison cell.

[00:10:40] I want you to think about that.

[00:10:42] Because he had such a positive attitude,

[00:10:45] it is hard for us to relate

[00:10:48] to what Paul is telling us today.

[00:10:51] But I think what I'd like to do

[00:10:53] is reread this verse one more time.

[00:10:56] And it says,

[00:10:57] A satisfied soul loathes the honeycomb,

[00:11:01] but to a hungry soul,

[00:11:03] every bitter thing is sweet.

[00:11:06] And friends, I think,

[00:11:08] as we live our lives,

[00:11:10] a lot of times we are satisfied.

[00:11:12] Things are going well in our life.

[00:11:15] And when this happens,

[00:11:18] it seems like things at work are going well.

[00:11:21] Everyone in the family is healthy.

[00:11:24] No one's having any issues.

[00:11:26] Money doesn't seem to be tight.

[00:11:28] We're rolling along.

[00:11:30] And a lot of times we can get in

[00:11:33] to a moment of satisfaction.

[00:11:38] And a lot of times during this time,

[00:11:40] we might forget about the goodness of God

[00:11:44] and how God is there with us all the time,

[00:11:49] helping us and making sure

[00:11:51] that everything that we have need of

[00:11:54] is being met.

[00:11:56] And what I suggest you do,

[00:11:59] that whether you are having a difficult time,

[00:12:03] as Paul said in those four verses we just read,

[00:12:07] and if you're hungry,

[00:12:10] well, you need to pray to God

[00:12:12] and ask God to supply you with food that you need.

[00:12:17] On the other hand,

[00:12:19] if you are full,

[00:12:22] you still need to be grateful

[00:12:25] and thankful to God

[00:12:27] and recognize that God is our source.

[00:12:33] It's not our job.

[00:12:34] It's not what we do with our hands.

[00:12:37] We do the work

[00:12:38] and God is going to bring the supply

[00:12:42] and meet our needs.

[00:12:44] And let's close with verse 17,

[00:12:48] one of my favorite verses of the entire Bible.

[00:12:51] And Proverb 27, verse 17 says this,

[00:12:55] As iron sharpens iron,

[00:12:58] so a man sharpens the countenance of his friend.

[00:13:03] Let's look at the commentary in my Bible.

[00:13:07] A famous proverb.

[00:13:09] This verse may also be translated

[00:13:13] as applying to the will.

[00:13:15] Let iron sharpen iron,

[00:13:18] and so let a person sharpen his friend.

[00:13:23] The idea is that people grow

[00:13:26] from interaction with one another.

[00:13:31] And friends,

[00:13:32] on this podcast,

[00:13:34] I often talk about the importance

[00:13:38] of having at least one

[00:13:40] and preferably two or three

[00:13:44] close friends

[00:13:46] that you can go to

[00:13:48] in your time of need,

[00:13:49] that you can hold yourself accountable to.

[00:13:54] If you're having an issue,

[00:13:56] go to them.

[00:13:58] Let them pray for you.

[00:14:00] And likewise,

[00:14:01] have them come to you

[00:14:04] and you can pray for them.

[00:14:07] It's so important

[00:14:09] that we surround ourselves

[00:14:11] with like-minded individuals

[00:14:15] and preferably

[00:14:16] these people

[00:14:18] are going to be solid Christians.

[00:14:20] They're going to be people

[00:14:21] that you know

[00:14:22] read the Bible

[00:14:24] on a frequent basis

[00:14:27] and they have a strong

[00:14:29] personal relationship

[00:14:31] with both God

[00:14:33] and his son Jesus.

[00:14:35] They are aware of them

[00:14:37] and they pray to them

[00:14:39] on a regular basis

[00:14:40] and you know

[00:14:42] that they are tight

[00:14:44] with God.

[00:14:46] Friends,

[00:14:47] those are the type of people

[00:14:48] that we should be interacting with.

[00:14:50] Now,

[00:14:51] we also need

[00:14:52] to make a connection

[00:14:54] with people

[00:14:54] that don't know God.

[00:14:55] But those people,

[00:14:57] we're to minister

[00:14:58] to them.

[00:14:59] We are not

[00:15:00] to seek counsel

[00:15:02] from them.

[00:15:02] And if you read

[00:15:03] the first Psalm,

[00:15:05] it tells you

[00:15:06] of what can happen

[00:15:08] if you try

[00:15:10] to seek counsel

[00:15:12] from ungodly people.

[00:15:14] It's not going

[00:15:16] to benefit you.

[00:15:18] They may

[00:15:19] lead you

[00:15:20] astray.

[00:15:22] So,

[00:15:22] friends,

[00:15:23] my call to action

[00:15:25] today is

[00:15:26] let's review

[00:15:27] the three points

[00:15:28] today.

[00:15:29] We should live

[00:15:30] our lives

[00:15:31] in the present.

[00:15:33] Reminder,

[00:15:34] live

[00:15:35] your life

[00:15:36] today

[00:15:37] as though

[00:15:38] today

[00:15:39] is the last

[00:15:40] day

[00:15:40] you will spend

[00:15:41] on earth.

[00:15:42] Don't worry

[00:15:43] about your past

[00:15:44] because you cannot

[00:15:46] change it.

[00:15:46] Don't worry

[00:15:47] about the future

[00:15:49] because you may

[00:15:50] never see it.

[00:15:52] Number two,

[00:15:53] a satisfied soul

[00:15:55] loathes

[00:15:56] the honeycomb.

[00:15:57] Friends,

[00:15:58] be grateful

[00:15:59] for the food

[00:16:00] that you have.

[00:16:01] be grateful

[00:16:02] for it

[00:16:03] and if you have

[00:16:04] to go a day

[00:16:05] or two

[00:16:06] without eating,

[00:16:08] pray.

[00:16:09] It's an opportunity

[00:16:10] for you to fast

[00:16:12] and to pray

[00:16:13] to God

[00:16:14] and thank him

[00:16:16] for all

[00:16:17] that you do have

[00:16:18] even if you have

[00:16:19] to go a day

[00:16:20] or two

[00:16:21] without food.

[00:16:22] And number three,

[00:16:24] as iron

[00:16:24] sharpens

[00:16:25] iron,

[00:16:26] so a man

[00:16:28] sharpens

[00:16:29] the countenance

[00:16:30] of his friend.

[00:16:31] Friends,

[00:16:32] it is vitally

[00:16:33] important

[00:16:34] that you have

[00:16:35] one or two

[00:16:37] people in your life

[00:16:38] that you can go to

[00:16:40] and have

[00:16:41] counsel

[00:16:42] and ask them

[00:16:44] to pray for you.

[00:16:45] Let them know

[00:16:46] you're having

[00:16:47] a difficult time

[00:16:48] for something

[00:16:48] in your life

[00:16:49] and they

[00:16:51] will

[00:16:51] be happy

[00:16:52] to do it.

[00:16:53] And conversely,

[00:16:55] it's important

[00:16:55] that you do that

[00:16:57] for people

[00:16:58] as well

[00:16:59] when they come

[00:17:00] to you.

[00:17:01] Friends,

[00:17:02] I will never

[00:17:03] end a podcast

[00:17:04] without giving

[00:17:05] anyone

[00:17:06] an opportunity

[00:17:07] to receive

[00:17:08] Jesus

[00:17:08] as their

[00:17:09] Lord

[00:17:10] and Savior.

[00:17:11] If you have

[00:17:12] enjoyed

[00:17:13] listening to this

[00:17:14] podcast today

[00:17:15] and recognize

[00:17:16] that you're

[00:17:17] missing something

[00:17:18] in their life

[00:17:19] and if you're

[00:17:20] sitting there

[00:17:20] saying,

[00:17:21] wow,

[00:17:22] he seems to

[00:17:23] have it all

[00:17:23] going on.

[00:17:24] And friends,

[00:17:25] let me know.

[00:17:26] I still

[00:17:28] make mistakes.

[00:17:29] I haven't

[00:17:29] reached the

[00:17:30] pinnacle.

[00:17:31] I am on

[00:17:32] a journey

[00:17:33] just as

[00:17:35] each one

[00:17:35] listening to

[00:17:36] this podcast

[00:17:37] is on a

[00:17:38] journey.

[00:17:39] I know

[00:17:40] I need

[00:17:42] God

[00:17:42] in my life

[00:17:43] and

[00:17:44] a lot

[00:17:45] of you

[00:17:46] should

[00:17:47] hopefully

[00:17:48] feel the

[00:17:49] same way.

[00:17:50] So if there's

[00:17:51] anyone listening

[00:17:52] today and you've

[00:17:52] never taken

[00:17:53] that step,

[00:17:54] I invite you

[00:17:55] to repeat

[00:17:56] a simple

[00:17:57] prayer after

[00:17:58] me today.

[00:17:59] Jesus,

[00:18:00] I recognize

[00:18:00] that I

[00:18:01] am a

[00:18:02] sinner

[00:18:02] and in

[00:18:03] need of

[00:18:03] a Savior.

[00:18:04] I believe

[00:18:06] that you

[00:18:06] are the

[00:18:07] Son of

[00:18:07] God.

[00:18:08] I believe

[00:18:08] that you

[00:18:09] came to

[00:18:09] earth

[00:18:10] and died

[00:18:10] on a

[00:18:11] cross

[00:18:11] for everyone

[00:18:12] listening to

[00:18:13] this podcast

[00:18:14] today.

[00:18:14] I ask

[00:18:15] that you

[00:18:16] come into

[00:18:17] my heart.

[00:18:18] I ask

[00:18:18] that you

[00:18:19] lead me

[00:18:20] and guide

[00:18:21] me from

[00:18:21] this point

[00:18:22] forward

[00:18:22] in my

[00:18:23] life.

[00:18:23] I make

[00:18:24] you

[00:18:25] my

[00:18:25] Lord

[00:18:26] and

[00:18:26] Savior.

[00:18:27] Friends,

[00:18:28] now,

[00:18:29] may the

[00:18:30] Lord bless

[00:18:31] you and

[00:18:32] keep you.

[00:18:32] The Lord

[00:18:33] make his face

[00:18:34] shine upon

[00:18:35] you and

[00:18:36] be gracious

[00:18:36] to you.

[00:18:37] The Lord

[00:18:37] lift up

[00:18:38] his countenance

[00:18:39] upon you

[00:18:40] and give

[00:18:41] you peace.

[00:18:42] Friends,

[00:18:43] please join

[00:18:43] both Judy

[00:18:45] and I

[00:18:45] tomorrow

[00:18:46] as we

[00:18:46] celebrate

[00:18:47] Thanksgiving

[00:18:48] and we

[00:18:49] have a

[00:18:50] special

[00:18:50] Thanksgiving

[00:18:51] episode

[00:18:52] just

[00:18:53] for you.

[00:18:54] Until

[00:18:55] then,

[00:18:55] God bless

[00:18:56] you,

[00:18:57] see you

[00:18:57] tomorrow.

[00:18:58] Wisdom

[00:18:59] today.