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Episode 576: In this episode, we delve into Proverbs chapter 22, where we read and discuss the first 29 verses. We highlight key themes such as the value of a good reputation over wealth, the importance of directing children onto the right path, and the consequences of debt. Chris emphasizes that Solomon's wisdom is timeless, offering practical advice that resonates with our lives today.
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You're listening to The Bible Guys, a podcast where a couple of friends talk about the Bible in fun in practical ways. Good morning, good morning, we talk do good moaning, good moan to. You and you and you. Wow. Hey, that's a way to kick off on Monday. That is fantastic. I mean, what better way to start the week? You know what? I was just I'm wondering if there is one, Jeff. I don't think there is. I don't think there is. That is fabulous, fabulous, fabulous. Well, today we are, first of all, welcome to the Bible Guys, and today we're going to kick off with a segment the Desirae has been. By the way, this I. Think is my favorite segment is I think so really I look forward to it, you know how, like you wonder if it? Well, let me ask you this, would you rather do it? Would you rather? Or what made Chris mad this week? I think I would rather do it? Would you rather? Okay? Wow? Yeah, Well there's there's an going for you. I'm feeling magnanimous and generous. By the way, the end of this week, it is U make christmad this week and I'm already ready it happened days early. You're ready, ready and rare in to go. Okay, well here we go. All right, So would you rather I'll go the first one. Would you rather rock an ugly Christmas sweater or wear a company matching holiday pajamas for your family Christmas gathering? Family Christmas gathering? Is this extended family or. Oh yeah, that's a great question. So maybe maybe it'll apply to your traditional family gathering. So if you if you always get together with your extended apply it to that. Well, then I would rock an ugly Christmas sweater because. That's what you do, you get together with your extended family. Yeah, yeah, so I would rather do the pajamas. Yeah, I would imagine, Well, because it's because you're not doing the extended family. You're doing the no no. No, no, no, we go home? You'd rather do we do like sixty people? Okay, it's huge, but yeah, I would not rather do pajamas. Okay. Would you rather build a snowman or have a snowball fight? Do you want to build a Hey? I was in that village? Were the village that that frozen was modeled after? Yeah? Yeah, yeah, yeah, it's Hallstat in Austria. No, way. Yeah, there's a little town square that's kind of off kilter, it's not a square, you know, off kilter, and there's a little statue in the middle and all this kind of stuff and yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, okay, so everybody wanted to get a picture. Yeah, and all the girls were singing, do you want to be a snowman? Of course they were, of course they were, yeah, and probably let it go and yep, yeah, okay. So would you rather build a snowman or have a snowball fight? That really depends on the company, right, yeah, but I'm going to go for snowman. Wow. And here's the reason why, because it's it's been a while since I've had a legitimate snowball fight. And obviously when you're you know, Grandpa age, you know, it's what you know, what's more. You know, snowmatter sweet. You take the pictures, right, the memories, the whole thing, snowball fight. You're like, Okay, I gotta, I gotta, I gotta take my advil. Yep, right, I got a gear up for this. So I would choose aball snowball fight ten times to one overbuilding a snowman. So really, yeah, so my middle son, David, is that the artistry in me? Like I like I probably to crafting, Yeah, crafting, and I'm not a crafter, but I do like the violence of a snowball fight. So my middle son, David, he's an adult, grown up now, but he was maybe a tween eleven, twelve, thirteen years old somewhere in there, and he was kind of sick. He isn't feeling well. Yeah, and we were walking into a restaurant. I'm trying to cheer him up, and he's all sad, he's not feeling great. And so I just made a slushy snowball and say hey David and through it, just expecting to dodge. He didn't dutch all right in the face. I hit it hurt. It wasn't a hard snowball, but yeah, yeah, still it just makes everything worse. Last snow man. Oh wow, you got to show it? Oh can you can you see that? Yes? For those of you who are how wonderful on TV? Can you put Zach go to just me, go to the camera where it's just me? Can you do that right there? Yeah? Right, so if you're watching there it is, look how big it istory? Good job, Chris yeah, it's easily seven feet tall. Yeah. Yeah, yeah, and that was that was awesome. Yeah, good memories. It's fabulous. Yeah. Well, hitting your kid in the face with the snowball. Is also memories, right, I'm sure. Okay, would you rather go I'm sorry, I'm skipping ahead. Would you rather go Christmas carolling or half people Christmas carol at your house for an extended period? For an extended period? That's the vague, that's the thing extended. Well, so, so you know more than the first verse, the field extended. There's only one thing worse than no Christmas carollers. You know, let's bad Christmas care. That's true. That's right, that's true. So Christmas kalers are wonderful if they're awesome. Really okay, have you ever had Christmas. Kalers at your house? Sure, when you were a kid, but nobody Christmas carols anymore? No? Yeah, that's so sad, isn't it? What happened? Some things just need to move on, stay off my lawn. Yeah, I like Christmas carollers, like at Greenfield Village or something, you know, old time village. Did you just say some things have to move on? Yeah? Yeah, it's just you know what is wrong with what's. Christmas carolers meant something? When you know you didn't have all the records and now you've got iTunes, you could just play like good music in your house. That's why you think Christmas Carolyn came about because limited access to music? Yeah? Yeah, I think so. Oh my goodness, how about this? How about holiday cheer? How about like goodwill toward man? Well, I like holidays? How about how about all the goodness that? By the way, I just talked about this. When I as a kid, I remember counting the number of houses that didn't have lights as opposed to every ten houses that are dark. You have one house that's litten nowtches. Yes, yeah, and so dude, that has nothing to do with access to lighting. Okay, I'm not saying it's okay. You want to know what make Christmas this week? That it's that just a lack of fondness for Christmas Caroling. I like Christmas Carol, so don't get me wrong. I like Christmas Carols. Just have somebody show up on my porch and sing it me for twenty minutes is weird? Anyways, Let's keep going. Okay, Okay, number number four. Would you rather drink hot cocoa or drink egg noo cocoa? Yeah, there's no doubt. Would you rather have a white Christmas or get away and enjoy a tropical Christmas? Oh you're gonna have to go tropical. Here's the reason why, because it's not the tropical that I like over the white. I like the white better, but it is the getaway part. It says would you rather get away and enjoy? So that implies like. I'd rather get away the day after Christmas? Oh, and just have Christmas at home. So you're definitely choosing Christmas. Dream. Yeah, I like to get away part. I see, I did it one year. Actually, I actually traveled on Christmas Day and went down to Florida last year and we did the Christmas with the Cranks. I mentioned it I think before, and uh, it was wonderful. So if you did that, would you take your kids with you? Oh? Yeah, well that's perfect because this passage we're about to read talks about directing your children on the right path. Nice and by the way, that wasn't even cheesy. I should have tried that was maybe maybe So we should do is try try for some quality on this show. Maybe maybe hey, imagine that new concept. Yeah, okay, well, hey, we are in Proverbs chapter twenty two. We're continuing on with the wisdom of Solomon. One of the reasons is Proverbs is my favorite book. And the other reason is because death why And one of the other reason is because desire just keeps assigning Proverbs to us. That's the main reason why. It's just that you don't mind it, because it's it. I love it. You're like, I love it. Yea. So we're going to read the first twenty nine verses in Proverbs chapter twenty two, which is there's more than twenty nine verses. No, we're just gonna read the first twenty nine and the only there's only twenty nine verses. Yes, So here you go. It says, choose a good reputation over great riches. Being held in high esteem is better than silver or gold. The rich and poor have this in common. The Lord made them both. A prudent person foresees danger and takes precautions. The simple goes blindly on and suffers the consequences. True humility and fear of the Lord lead to riches, honor, and long life. Corrupt people walk a thorny, treacherous road. Whoever values life will avoid it. Direct your children onto the right path, and when they are older, they'll not leave it. There you go seek, yeah, there. It is just as the rich rule the poor, so the borrower is servant to the lender. Those who plant injustice will harvest disaster, and their reign of terror will come to an end. Blessed are those who are generous, because they feed the poor. Throw out the mocker, and fighting goes too. Corals and insults will disappear. Whoever loves a pure heart and gracious speech will have the King as a friend. The Lord preserves those whose knowledge are with knowledge, but he ruins the plans of the treacherous. The lazy person claims there's a lion out there. If I go outside, I might be killed. The mouth of an immoral woman is a dangerous trap. Those who make the Lord angry will fall into it. A youngster's heart is filled with foolishness, but physical de discipline will drive it far away. A person who gets ahead by oppressing the poor or by showering gifts on the rich, will end in poverty. Listen to the words of the wise, apply your heart to my instruction, for it is good to keep these sayings in your heart and always ready on your lips. I am teaching you today, Yes you, so you will trust in the Lord. I've written thirty sayings for you, filled with advice and knowledge. In this way you may know the truth and take an accurate report of those who sent you. Don't rob the poor just because you can, or exploit the needy in court, for the Lord is their defender. He will ruin anyone who ruins them. Don't befriend angry people or associate with hot tempered people, or you will learn to be like them and endanger your soul. Don't agree to guarantee another person's debt or put up security for someone else. If you can't pay it, even your bed will be snatched from under you. Don't cheat your neighbor by moving the ancient boundary markers set up by previous generations. Do you see any truly competent workers. They will serve kings rather than working for ordinary people. Well, there you. Go, there you go, and there's a lot of random, seemingly I mean, there's there's yeah there short of I guess the biggest thing would be the rich over reputation, right, would. You say that's the strongest them in the reputation? Yeah, I mean he talks about uh yeah. The first couple of verses there, well. Yeah, and then also even later on here he talks about even the long life. You know, isn't it interesting? How have you ever seen the old Westerns? Yes, where it seems like everybody who you know is corrupt or does bad business or is shady. They never make it past thirty years old, right, they just don't because they're constantly in conflict. And back then, you know, people just used to slay each other. Yeah, yeah, right, And I would imagine that back here, say slay man slaughter, and so I would imagine I would imagine that. Back then that was really probably true. Like if you were known to be a person who was getting riches by what by corruptible ways? Yes, I would. I would guess that there would be a reputation like, oh, that guy's not going to live long. That guy's not gonna live past his thirties, right, because he's gonna one day he's going to come across another guy who's going to double cross, and then his life's going to end in the streets and guess what, it's going to be justified, and people are going to witness it and just let it happen because that's the way. That things happen back then. Well, the you know, people hustling on the street. It's not surprising when you hear of gang warfare, gang fighting, right, somebody trying to take over territory, shooting and killing over crime. If you're around if you're doing crime, you're going to be around criminals. That's that's what happens, right, right, And bad guys do bad things, and I don't know if you heard right, flash right, and that's what happens. So yeah, that's a part of that I think is if you're slashing and killing, you're probably around the kind of person who's slashing and killing to get ahead. And so it's going to come back to you too. Yeah. And so so he talks about riches. He says, uh, you know, the humility and the fear of the lord lead to riches, honor, and a long life. I think that's what the nod is too, I really do. And then also a good reputation has chosen. Over riches, right, and and the poor and the rich have both this in common. The Lord made them both. And so what God is trying to say is he's you know, he's trying to say, choose life over over wealth. Yeah, right, choose true life. And here's another thing too, choose a good life, a good life. And when I say good life, not the good life, but choose to live a good life. The life. Yeah, that's right. Yeah, and and uh, and also think about this as well, So what's it all for? You know, think about like the writer. Obviously at Solomon, right, so he's has tremendous wisdom. But when I always think of like, if you're the wisest man who ever lives, then then that means the things that you write are as wise, and in this case, wiser than somebody who's on their deathbed. Somebody's on their deathbed. Is the person who's got all figured out? Right, the other person who says, now I know it's really important in life. All the things I used to pursue those are all vanity, you know, you know, it's a waste of time. Now I've really got to figure it out. And that's really what Solomon is writing. He's writing this advice and he's saying, hey, listen, when you look at your life. Here's the perspective you need to have overall. And we go through different seasons. Remember when we were first married and we not we, not you and me. But when we married our spouses, when we married our spouse respective spouses. Yes, and remember like we could afford to buy much right, right, And that's the way that most you know newly weds are. I can't remember Bonnie and I were so that this is this is shocking. Bonnie and I got married. We were twenty one. Yeah, I was going to college, so most of my money was going to pay for college, and we paid rent. We had a car that we didn't have to pay for, but we were paying for insurance. Uh. And we didn't have enough money for gas for the whole week, right, So we found a place where we could sell plasma. Yes, I did that, and we'd sell our blood. I did that in college, and that would give us enough money. So we'd sell our blood and that would give us enough money to fill our gas tank and then we would have enough money left over for a pizza and a VHS movie. We could run a movie and that would be date night. So we go sell our blood. We always either every Friday, and we would be able to get a five dollar pizza in a movie and yeah, that was science. And that gave us enough gas for the week to go to work. Yeah, so. That's poor, by the way, that's that's you're struggling at that point when you're selling your blood. Yes, right, So when we when we left Youngstown, Ohio, we went to Baptist Broble Colleges, were went to college and uh, and it was myself, my best friend Jeff Miller, and our other best friend, Norm who's since then passed away. It was sort of us who were the three Musketeers and Norman and. I got a real job, okay, but Jeff Miller, so plaza plus that's all he did, right and so. And so literally they get. Like sixty bucks, forty bucks sixty yes, right, and he. Got to the point. And by the way, Jeff listens to the Bible, guys. Yeah, so my best job, Jeff. My best my best buddy's listening right now. And so Jeff listen, so your two best jeffs Yeah, that's right, my best Jeff well Miller. Sorry, Jones gave Jones, right, Jonesy. Miller gave so much plasma that he had permanent marks of. Oh, I do too, I do too. I make fine about that. Sometimes. I'm probably one of the one of the few pastors that have tracks on his arms. But I've never taken Druss right. Right, So here's what happened. This is the fun I'm leading into this. So we would all get together at noon and we would all eat in the cafeteria, all of us, and then Norman I would head to work, right, and then and then Jeff would head to the plasma place and we'd say, okay, Jeff, you had no work, work Jeff, and. He just kicked back on the couch, drink orange juice. Yes, that's what he would do. And he did that for gas money, and that was it. So but Norman I had real jobs. I love you, buddy, I love you, Jeff. That's awesome. But yeah, that was funny. Yeah. So there's there's another theme that keeps coming up. This is I think the third or fourth time where he says, don't guarantee another person's debt. Yeah, how often does he bring this up? I mean, because you remember most of these he's talking to his son, right, isn't that what he says? He's always talking to like, Hey, listen to me, Listen to the words of the wise, Listen my son. Right, So you kind of have a sense that a lot of the proverbs he's writing for his family, that that's what he's right, He's trying to pass it on to the next thing, right, pass on his wisdom. And so this is like the fourth time he's like, don't be a co signer. And then later on he goes, don't be a co signer, and then he says, don't be a co signer. And then here at the very end it says, if you can't pay it, even your bed will be snatched from one to you. He always has like this little thing that goes, if you do this is what might happen. Right, You're gonna even lose your bed. They're gonna take your bed from you. Hey, will you do me a favorite? Will you shay hi to my cousin Denay Adams, Hi, Denay Adams. Yeah. So the last time I told this story about my grandpa co signing that for that one guy, she emailed me and she said, listening to the Bible guys this morning, And I never knew the story about Grandpa co signing for that car and then paying it off for the guy's window or widow. I love all those little extra nuggets that you throw in. It gives me pieces of my family history that I never knew. I listen every day. Keep up the good one. That's so nice. Yeah. And she lives in another state and she listens every every day. Yeah. Now, so your grandfather co signed in that situation, he had the resources that if it went sideways, he could cover it. Yes. So there are a lot of places in the Bible, in the Book of Proverbs that will say when you loan something, don't just loan it, just give it right right in your heart right. So if they can pay it back, that's fine. If they can't pay it back, that's fine too. And so that's what happened is your grandfather had a lot of margin, and so he was able to co sign on a car knowing that, hey, if they fall apart, I can just pay it. And that's what he did for that widow, is he just paid even though because he had the margin. What happens is a lot of times people who are personally struggling have compassion on somebody else who's struggling, and then they go, well, you know, I've got a five, I have a six forty credit score. I'll go ahead and sign right, And then they sign and then the other person slips into catastrophe, and then it causes catastrophe for both families rather than just just the one right. And so a lot of times when you're struggling, you have a lot of compassion for the other people who are struggling. But what Solomon is saying is don't don't, you know, drill a hole in your own boat just because somebody else's boat is sinking, right, right, That's what that's literally what he's warning about all the time. Don't do it. And then I wanted to highlight one other one is direct your children under the right path and when they're older, you know they'll not leave it. We talk a lot about parenting and those kinds of things. I mean, we're both parents, and this is not a promise that, hey, if you teach your kids right thing, they'll never do the wrong thing. But big picture is, you don't go You don't fall very far from the tree, do you. The apple doesn't fall very far from the tree. You raise up your kids in the right way, and they will know the right thing to do is what the Bible is talking about there. And I just think that there's something about that, because there seems to be a big push in our culture today, don't you know, try to push your kids towards following Christ. Just let them choose on their own, don't whatever. And I would say it's exactly the opposite. You train them in the way they should go. That's what it says, train your children on the right path. King James says, train up your child and the way he should go, and when he's old he won't depart from it. There's a right way and a wrong way. And if you found the right way, you should lead your children in the right way, right and not just hope they also find it. Yeah, and didn't we just did. We just talk We had a conversation just recently about the formative years, uh, and how and how when a child is indoctrinated with the right things during their formative years that it actually sticks with them long into their adult life, right, right, And and so yeah, it is a it is great advice way beyond just to just to you know, seemingly surfaced nugget piece of advice. This is this is. In depth well thought out rules for life kind of things, which is why I said it's like deathbed kind of advice where it's like, you know, he's you know, for instance, he says the the the borrower is servant to the lender. Yeah. Sometimes people don't learn that until their fifties, and then and then they go, oh, yeah, I've I've. Given most of my funds away to MasterCard, right yeah, or I've given most of my funds a way to you know, and and and it's just it just ends up, you know. Yeah, where's that verse. The top of page six fifty nine, verse uver seven oh seven. Yeah, just as Richard, so the bower is serving to the lenders. So many people are enslaved, they're trapped. I know so many good people that are in their hearts generous, but they financed their couch and their car and their TV and their school and their clothes, and they finance restaurant meals and they find finance all the same thing saying, you know, you're paying all this interest and you know you're just spending on thousand dollars a month in interest, and you feel trapped right in there because you're a slave to now MasterCard you're a slave to Visa, you're a slave to American Express or whatever. You're a slave to something you consumed before. Right, And so he says, you know, if you don't want to be enslaved, don't get in debt. That's really the thing. It's hard. That's a hard, hard thing to learn. Yeah, well it's and it's a hard My wife and I learned it. Yeah. I was gonna say it's a hard thing to do too, right, because when you're young, it's hard. Hence giving plasma exactly. We weren't carrying any debt back then. We didn't have any debt back then. But yeah, we were just telling. Yeah, yeah, yeah, and then the debt came later. Yes, all right, well, hey, that looks like it's our time. There was a lot of great nuggets in there that we didn't get time to get to. But we'll continue in Proverbs, so hopefully we'll see tomorrow on the bibble, guys,