The Sweetness of Wisdom
Proverbs 24.13-14
13 Eat honey, my son, for it is good; honey from the comb is sweet to your taste.
14 Know also that wisdom is sweet to your soul; if you find it, there is a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off.
Life can be sweet or it can be bitter. There are some areas where it is bittersweet. We all have them. But we are experiencing sweetness or bitterness in the decisions we have made and the consequences that follow. If you do not like what you are reaping then change what you have been sowing.
We reap what we sow. Some of this is direct. From our hand to the soil and then up comes what we planted. For example a person who is generous will himself be watered. Some of it is indirect. It is God working quietly. He keeps accounts. He keeps the books. This law has an interesting way of working.
We are told to eat honey. Take it in! It is good!
1. Have some honey in your life! v.13
*Honey may be “your Honey”!
If you are married.
It can be a blessing!
Proverbs 18.22 He who finds a wife finds what is good and receives favor from the LORD.
Proverbs 20.6 a faithful man who can find?
Ladies If you have a husband who is a faithful man then you are blessed... so much to be thankful for!
Men if you have a good wife you are blessed beyond measure.
*Literal Honey-
For at least 2700 years, honey has been used to treat a variety of ailments through topical application, but only recently have the antiseptic and antibacterial properties of honey been chemically explained. Wound Gels that contain antibacterial honey and have regulatory approval for wound care are now available to help conventional medicine in the battle against drug resistant strains of bacteria MRSA. As an antimicrobial agent honey may have the potential for treating a variety of ailments. One New Zealand researcher says a particular type of honey may be useful in treating MRSA infections. Honey may also be used to alleviate the effects of a sore throat. It is mixed with lemon juice and consumed. The mixture coats the throat alleviating discomfort, and the antibacterial, antiseptic properties are good for the throat as well.
*Honey as Sweet Things In Life:
*Food to eat
Clothes to wear be content! (I Timothy 6.8)
*God’s blessings of Christian fellowship are sweet.
Good thing- to be together in one place with God’s people worshiping Him
Holy Thing- to be of one accord Acts 2.1 with one mind, with one accord, with one passion
Homothumadon is a compound of two words meaning to "rush along" and "in unison". The image is almost musical; a number of notes are sounded which, while different, harmonize in pitch and tone. As the instruments of a great concert under the direction of a concert master, so the Holy Spirit blends together the lives of members of Christ's church.
Needed Thing (Hebrews 10.25)
*God’s Word is sweet Psalm 19.9-10
The ordinances of the LORD are sure and altogether righteous.10 They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold; they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the comb.
Not a set of rules but a way of freedom from the bad things in this life. Having wisdom is like honey in it keeps us from many avoidable bitter experiences in life. When we are wise in God’s Word we can see trouble coming and avoid it. Proverbs 22.3 A prudent man sees danger and takes refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it.
More than a freedom to love, a freedom to serve, A freedom to live. When we enter the path of wisdom we are entering life.
*God’s creation- all free and right in your own backyard or front porch or window! So sweet!
Take a little honey for the journey! Genesis 43.11 Dr. Jenkins Fall 1984 message to Pastors Speculator NY. We need to be thankful for the sweet things. There are sweet things in our life. We need to carry good memories of wonderful things with us. I used to keep scrap books- now I write in my journals.
We need to praise the LORD for answers to prayer.
*God’s Presence- How sweet to trust in Him and walk with Him each day!
Deuteronomy 26.9 He brought us to this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey. This can be the experience of God’s people today in the Spirit filled Life. You can have an overflowing experience with Jesus.
2. Wisdom is Sweet to Your Soul v.14
It will keep you from the most destructive things.
Wrong sexual relationships. It can be a wonderful thing within marriage and it can be a devastating thing outside of it. We are warned about this in Proverbs. To be in a monogamous marital relationship in order to enjoy it is a sign of wisdom.
Pursuing dishonest gain. Many people see nothing wrong with this as long as they do not et caught but Proverbs tells us that it take away the very lives of those who go after ill gotten gain.
Bad “friendships”.
Do not be friends-
With a gossip! Proverbs 11.13 A gossip betrays a confidence, but a trustworthy man keeps a secret.
An angry person Proverbs 22.24 Do not make friends with a hot-tempered man, do not associate with one easily angered, 25 or you may learn his ways and get yourself ensnared.
A stingy man Proverbs 23.7 he is the kind of man who is always thinking about the cost.
"Eat and drink," he says to you, but his heart is not with you.
It will keep you on the good path.
Proverbs 2.8 Then you will understand what is right and just and fair—every good path.
Blessing of righteous living.
Fellowship with Jesus and other believers.
3. Wisdom Gives You a Future Hope
It will not be cut off.
Wisdom gives us the hope of heaven. There is a future- a wonderful one - an indescribable one for those are wise unto salvation.
One of the things that make wisdom so sweet is the benefits and blessings that come to us in this life- in this present age.
One of the other sweet things about wisdom is the blessings that are literally out of his world and in the age to come.
Proverbs 11.7 When a wicked man dies, his hope perishes; all he expected from his power comes to nothing. 8 The righteous man is rescued from trouble, and it comes on the wicked instead.
Eat honey, my son, for it is good; honey from the comb is sweet to your taste.
Know also that wisdom is sweet to your soul;
if you find it, there is a future hope for you, and your hope will not be cut off.
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