Wisdom and innocence dance together.

Steve Brown:
Wisdom and innocence dance together. Let’s talk about it, on Key Life.

Matthew Porter:
If you’re sick of guilt and manipulation, and if you’re looking for an honest and thoughtful presentation of Biblical truth, you’ve come to the right place. This is Key Life, with the founder of Key Life Network, Steve Brown. Keep listening for teaching that will make you free.

Steve Brown:
Thank you Matthew. I introduced this subject, in yesterday’s podcast. We’re going to talk a lot more about it today. Proverbs 21:14

A gift in secret pacifies anger, and a bribe behind the back, strong wrath.

This is a hard place of Scripture and quite surprising. Jesus did that too when he talked about the dishonest steward and seemed to commend him. Do you remember that? It’s in Luke the 16th chapter and the 8th verse.

So the master commended the unjust steward because he had dealt shrewdly. For the sons of this world are more shrewd in their generation than the sons of light.

Now, if that doesn’t confuse you a bit, go read that 8th chapter, no, the 16th chapter of Luke again, and you will be confused. And you’ll have questions, is Jesus praising dishonesty? Is he upholding sin? Is he affirming people who do wrong things? No, he’s not. And neither is Proverbs. They’re saying, and Jesus said it too.

Be as wise as a serpent and as innocent as a dove.

Those two sisters hold hands and dance together. All right, let me show you another passage in Proverbs. And then we’ll talk about it a bit. Proverbs 25:8 through 12.

Do not go hastily to court, for what will you do in the end, when your neighbor has put you to shame? Debate your case with your neighbor, and do not disclose the secret to another, lest he who hears it expose your shame, and your reputation be ruined.

My, that’s just common sense. That’s just plain old common sense. It’s the common sense that your mother taught you. It’s the common sense that everybody knows. And frankly, we have a lack of common sense in our culture today. Things that were once right, and good, and helpful, are no longer taught as being right, and good, and helpful. And people who know, the normal person, the person who has to go to work 9 to 5, the normal person says profoundly, what? Because it betrays something that is a part of the natural revelation of God to human beings. Some things are good, and some things are not. Some things are helpful, and some things are not. And that’s why Jesus says.

Be as sly as a serpent, and be as innocent as a dove.

Not because everything will work out alright and just fine if you do that, but because that is the wise way to operate. Use the common sense that God gave you. One of my mother’s favorite phrases was.

He doesn’t have enough sense to get out of a pouring rain.

Well, Christians should. And the Book of Proverbs is a book to make us as sly as serpents. That means being street-smart. And at the same time, innocent as a lamb. Let me move on to another subject. It’s Proverbs 23:4 through 5. And it’s good.

Do not overwork to be rich; because of your own understanding cease. Will you set your eyes on that which is not, for riches certainly make themselves wings, they fly away like an eagle to heaven.

Now, what does that mean? Well, it’s a simple statement of wisdom again that it’s possible to pay too much for your whistle. One time Mark Twain was talking to a group of businessmen, I may have told you this before, and he said to them.

Gentlemen, someday you’re going to meet somebody who has nothing. Who is not rich, not famous, not wise, and who’s happy. And when you meet that person, you will realize that you have paid too much for your whistle.

You can’t see it, but I’m sitting in a studio with lots of different pictures and sayings, and sometimes we do video here, and sometimes we do audio here. There are pictures of, all the staff of a talk show, a morning show that we did for a long time. There’s a logo for the talk show that we do. There’s a picture of Johnny Cash, my son in law gave me because he loves me a lot. But to my right, there is a man who is a bum, he doesn’t have any teeth, he’s obviously a drunk, and he’s laughing. Sometimes I look at that picture, and I think of Proverbs 23:4 through 5. Don’t pay too much for your whistle. Don’t spend your life building a big house that you’re going to have to live in with regrets. Don’t think that putting a dollar sign on your tombstone is a good thing. The writer of Proverbs and Jesus himself says, don’t pay too much for your whistle. It’s simply not worth it. Okay. Just some wise counsel for me and you. You think about that. Amen.

Matthew Porter:
Wisdom and innocence dance together. Thank you Steve for those insights about the necessity of being shrewd and the real source of happiness. More riches from Proverbs tomorrow. Make sure you join us. John Lennon saying all you need is love. And in a weird way, when you remember that I John 4:8 tells us that God is love, Lennon was right. The fact is, one of the biggest things we can do for our world is simply love each other. Steve spoke about this in a powerful sermon called All the World Needs is Love. Take a listen to part of that sermon, then I’ll be back to tell you about a special free offer. Here’s Steve.

Steve Brown:
You’ve probably heard, and there’s truth in it, that the best thing you can do for your kids is to love your wife, or to love your husband. Let me tell you something else that’s true. If you care, if you really care for those outside the church, and we’re here for them, by the way. The reason we’re not taken to heaven the day we come into a relationship with Christ is there’s work to do, and the work to do are the people out there. And if you, if you care for them, you know the best thing you can do for them? You can love me. I know that’s not always easy, but I don’t care. That’s what you do for pagans. You love Steve Brown. And not only that, if I care about them, if I care for their souls and I haven’t always. A number of years ago, I was in a church in Atlanta and I said, millions of people are going to hell and I don’t give a rip. And then I stopped and said, that’s not bragging, that’s confessing. I don’t know their names. I don’t know their children’s names or what they do. But because I don’t care, that means you have to pray for me. And those dear people did that. And the result of their prayers, is a broken heart for the people, for them, for those outside the church. And the best thing I can do for them is to love you. And you’re not that easy to love either, as a matter of fact. It really does sound crazy and counterintuitive, but I didn’t say it, Jesus said it, so it must be true. I’m not sure what love is. Oh, I know the Greek word that C.S. Lewis made famous, Eros. Yeah, that’s about sex. Phileas, Philadelphia, brotherly love. Stogie, the way I love my pipe. And Agape, disinterested love. But that describes it. It doesn’t tell what it is. I think you’ve got to feel it in order to know it. You know, we don’t love very well. Did you, well, I’m sure you have if you’ve been around very long. You’ve either seen the movie or the play, South Pacific. You remember when the lieutenant is in love with a Polynesian lady? And there are obvious problems with that in the culture and the racist nature of it. And he sings a song that if you think about it can be really sad. You know what he sings? You’ve got to be taught to hate. You got to be taught. No you don’t. Who told him that? You don’t have to be taught to hate. It comes natural. We hate easily. It comes with mother’s milk. It’s a part of who we are. It’s called the fall and it goes deep. And it’s selfish and it’s dark. That’s why Jesus had to go first. Jesus had to go first, as I have loved you. I’ve taught you this before, but you never listen.

You can’t love until you’ve been loved. And then you can only love to the degree to which you have been loved.

Matthew Porter:
This is a tremendous sermon about love, what it is, how it’s expressed, and the life changing impact it has. Get it on CD for free by calling us right now at 1-800-KEY-LIFE that’s 1-800-539-5433. You can also e-mail [email protected] to ask for that CD. To mail your request, go to keylife.org/contact to find our mailing addresses for the U.S. and Canada. Just ask for the CD called All the World Needs is Love. And speaking of love, we would love for you to partner with Key Life through your giving. It’s easy, just charge a gift on your credit card or include a gift in your envelope. Or pick up your phone and text Key Life to 28950 to give safely and securely. Again, that’s Key Life, one word, two words. It doesn’t matter. Text that to 28950. KEYLIFE is a member of ECFA in the States and CCCC in Canada. And we are a listener supported production of Key Life Network.