Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Adult Sunday School Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/bb/bb20110424.htm

THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION
Proverbs: Motivating Teens And Adults To Align With God's Fixed Moral Order
Part II: Explaining The Value Of Heeding God's Fixed Moral Order, Proverbs 1:8-9:18
D. Applying God's Fixed Moral Order To Manage Our Intangible Valuables For Fulfillment
(Proverbs 3:1-12)
  1. Introduction
    1. Key challenging issues people in our nation and world face today are high unemployment, war, health care costs, high taxes, limited income and a host of interpersonal challenges at the local level.
    2. Accordingly, the maturing youth and often the adult can be tempted to think that such complex, draining sets of problems coupled with his own limitations of talent, intelligence, finances and background will hinder him from ever attaining fulfilling success in his life.
    3. However, nothing could be further from the truth! Proverbs 3:1-12, the fourth in a series of a sixteen-part section of Solomon's Egyptian sboyet format that aims to spur maturing youths to heed God's fixed moral order, teaches that comprehensive fulfillment in life is attained by those who manage well the intangible valuables they already have, valuables often not recognized as such by youths or adults (as follows):
  2. Applying God's Fixed Moral Order To Manage Our Intangible Valuables For Fulfillment.
    1. If a maturing youth does not forget the intangible resource of his parents' teaching, but keeps their commands in his heart, to that degree will the youth enjoy a long and peaceful life, Proverbs 3:1-2 NIV.
    2. If a youth does not let the intangible resources of loyal love (hesed) and faithfulness [dependability] (emet) leave him in relating to others, but rather makes them an integral part of his relationships (literally binding them around his neck and writing them on the tablet of his heart), he will win "favor" particularly from superiors who he can not control (the main meaning of hen) and a good reputation (name) in the estimation (figuratively the eyes) of both God and man, Proverbs 3:3-4 NIV. (Kittel, Biblia Hebraica, p. 1157; Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament, 1980, vol. I, p. 305-307, 52-53 and 303 respectively)
    3. If a maturing youth (1) trusts the intangible resource of the Lord with all his inner man versus (2) making his own ideas his final source for determining reality, and (3) if he submits to and fellowships with God in all of his life's paths, (4) God will "clear obstructions and enable" him "to go forward" toward his desired goals in all those pathways, Proverbs 3:5-6; Ryrie Study Bible, KJV, 1978, ftn. to Proverbs 3:6.
    4. If a maturing youth chooses not to view himself as being wise in his own estimation, but rather reveres the intangible resource of the Lord's insight and turns from what is evil as Scripture defines it, this will bring healing (Ibid., Ryrie, ftn. to Prov, 3:8) to his umbilical chord (Ibid., T. W. O. T., vol. II, p. 957) and marrow to his bones, Proverbs 3:7-8. The umbilical chord is the source of physical life for a fetus, and the marrow is in the bones of a developed body. Thus, revering God and turning from evil as He defines it versus heeding one's own ideas will correct the bad and keep one's health good through one's lifetime.
    5. If a maturing youth continually honors the intangible resource of God in giving of his wealth to God's interests, God will fill his wealth storage continually (new wine) with sufficient bounty, Proverbs 3:9-10.
    6. A maturing youth should choose not to despise the intangible resource of God's discipline and not resent His rebukes for his own wrongs, for God disciplines those He loves as a father does the son in whom he delights, Proverbs 3:11-12. In other words, a youth needs to realize that God's disciplines and rebukes are expressions of loving delight, that they are necessary to heed for protection from continuing on the current path for which he is facing God's discipline if he would hope to be successful in that path of endeavor!
    7. In summary, the converse of all of these claims is equally true: failing to heed the intangible resources of one's parents, of loyal love and dependability in relating to others, of trusting God's Word over one's own ideas, of giving of one's income to God's interests and heeding God's discipline will yield a life of failure and unhappiness in every way!
Lesson: Regardless what difficulties we face, to the degree we manage well the invaluable intangible resources we have in our parents' instruction, our opportunities to show loyal love and dependability, our access to Scripture, our capacities to give to God's interests and God's discipline will we be blessed.

Application: (1) May we heed Proverbs 3:1-12, and (2) may we urge maturing youths to heed its instruction that they might enjoy God's richest blessing no matter what challenges they face in life.