Verse by verse teaching - Proverbs 14:9 "The Favor of the Righteous"

We'll be in Proverbs chapter 14, verse 9 tonight. Proverbs chapter 14, verse 9. The title of the message is The Favor of the Righteous. The favor of the righteous. In tonight's proverb, we're going to learn more about the fool. In particular, we're going to learn about one certain characteristic of a fool, and I must say that I've had first-hand experience with this. Being a uh a pastor and being a Christian, I've had uh run into this characteristic. many times. So I'm very familiar with this very unpleasant characteristic of a fool. Of course I don't know any pleasant characteristic a fool has. But in particular, Solomon says, fools make a mock. Fools make a mock. Did I miss that, Brother Shepard? Did you happen to catch the praise report from Charlotte? Okay. I just I I I must have been thinking about something when you gave it. I missed it, but thank the Lord, Charlotte. So fools make a mock. It's the proud and rebellious nature of a fool to mock Repeat it again, it's the proud and rebellious nature of a fool to mock that which is wise. And in the context of our verse tonight, To mock is to make fun of what Christians do and believe. Suppose you were to be speaking to a lost person, you were to pour your heart out. to that person one day and you would lovingly tell them the gospel message and tell them about their need for Christ. And as you earnestly tell them about Jesus, they start laughing at you as if you're crazy. And they say, listen, I don't need you to tell me about the God you Christians invented. I don't need your Jesus. I stopped having make-believe friends when I was in grade school. I heard someone say that the other day, or I read them saying it. I quit having make-believe friends a long time ago, saying that Christians have make-believe friends. And they just look at you like you're so ignorant and so crazy. They talk to you like what they're saying is common knowledge that you should know and that you're well, let's see what's happening here. I've got battery. I've I've got Whoa. It's okay. It's all right. All right. How about that, Hannah? That's pretty good, huh? All right. It's kind of like NASCAR. You only watch NASCAR waiting for the wrecks. Well, you got your little wreck right there. Here we go. Something exciting to watch. But they look at you like what you're what they're saying is common knowledge and that what you believe about the gospel is superstition. that you're some kind of uneducated person to believe in the Bible. Last week I shared a song I wrote on Facebook and a scoffer laughed at it. He said the Christian quote, the Christian faith was invented by men to oppress other people. That was his The song I wrote is something to praise God about and to celebrate, and he's saying, well, Christian faith was invented by men to oppress other people. So he was mocking the faith I wrote about. He was laughing at what I believed and wrote about. And this is not the first time he's mocked something that I've said and I could block him. from my Facebook page, but in a weird way I almost like having him around because he he's a good example He's a good example of how foolish an atheist is. And as long as he's not being vulgar. Then I'm like, you know what? The people of my church, as they read this right here, it'll educate them about what they're learning in Proverbs. It's a good, good ex a real life example. But but why? Why did he mock? Why did he feel the need? I don't even know this man. Why did he feel the need to come to a pastor's Facebook page and mock that pastor's Christianity What could he possibly gain by mocking my faith? Solomon said fools make a mock. But why? Well, when a fool mocks, It's not so much about what he's trying to gain as much as what he's trying to destroy. A fool wants to destroy the light that wise men see by. Because a fool wants to remain in darkness. Remember what Jesus said? He said that light is coming to the world and men love darkness rather than light because their deeds are evil. They won't come to the light. And that's why a fool mocks the light. Mocking the light is a fool's vain attempt of trying to put the light out. You can't put the light out. But they try. Because truth is impossible to debate. You know, you can't debate against the truth. I remember when I used to go to court. They'd hire these big, expensive lawyers, and sometimes it was intimidating, but they'd hire these lawyers, these lawyers would come in from Dallas. But I always reminded myself, Richard, you have truth on your side. All you have to do is stand on the truth. You can't change the truth. And so that truth, truth can't be argued against, not successfully. And so because of that, sometimes the strongest argument, sometimes the only argument a fool can make against the truth is mocking it. There's an old saying in uh in the uh in the the around attorneys law school I had an attorney talking to me about it the other day on the elevator. He said, you know, there's an old saying. He says, if you have a good case, argue the case. If you have if you if you have if you have law on your side, argue the law. If you got the facts, argue the facts. But if you don't have anything, then argue really loudly. Stomp your feet. Brother, I guarantee you Brother Shepherd in court has been there when someone's trying to argue against the truth. And one of the one of the things that they do, they'll have the jury up there, and they'll stomp their feet, and they'll act like they're mad. And they'll be arguing with the officer, and then if the officer says something that really makes a lot of sense, they'll go and just throw their hands up and shake their head. Throwing your hands up and shaking your head doesn't dispute anything he says, but it's just a way of making everyone think. When they see this right here, making the jury think Yeah, he must be crazy. I mean, look at the way he responded. He must be crazy. Well, we'll do that too. Not guilty But that is an actual strategy that they teach in law school. I cleaned up the last part for you though. But it's a strategy that they teach in law school And that's what a mocker does. He doesn't have a case against Christ. He doesn't have facts on his side. So what he does, he argues loudly. He argues, throws his hands up, shakes his head, gets angry That's what a fool does. But specifically in our text tonight, Solomon says a fool makes a mock, look back in your text, at sin It's sin. Now Here's how we have to understand this. Why does a fool mock at sin? If sin exists, then there is a God who will hold that fool accountable for their behavior. And a fool hates the idea of being held accountable by God. They hate it. If sin exists, Then their lifestyle is bad. Their lifestyle is wrong. And the fool doesn't want anybody telling him that he's wrong. If sin exists Then somebody else is making up the rules for their life. Right? If sin exists, that means there's actual commandments that a creator in heaven made and God has given these rules. Put them in the Bible, and that somebody else, they have to live by somebody else's rules, and the only rules they want to live by are their own. And because of this, they mock the concept of sin, because they refuse to accept the reality of it for these reasons Now, if you mock the concept of sin, you must also mock the consequences of sin. You see, if sin exists, then you are to blame when you reap what you sow. What does society do? You notice what these liberals do? I saw a cartoon the other day. And uh this man was being stopped in a traffic stop by a social worker You know how they wanted to replace law enforcement with social workers in some of these liberal cities. And this man was being stopped by a social worker and the drivers behind the the the the the steering wheel here and the social workers out there talking to him and the social worker says well now let's start with your childhood And the driver said, you know, I liked it better when I just got a ticket. But that's what they do. Let's let's find the reason. Because you're not to blame for this. It must be something with your childhood. It must be the oppression. That somebody else is oppressing you. You didn't get a fair shake in life. You're not treated right or you you're not educated right or you don't have you don't live in the right environment. That's the reason you're stabbing people. on public transit. That's the reason you're setting people on fire. That's the reason you uh I saw where uh a set of six teenagers We're going to a championship game. Did y'all see that? And they went in and they all shoplifted before the game. They all got arrested. And because of that, they were arrested. They couldn't play the game, and their team lost the championship game. You can't play if you're in jail. You know, whose fault is that? Is it societies? Is it their parents? No, it's their fault. It's their fault. And if sin exists, you're to blame for what you've done, and you're to blame for the consequences of your actions. And that's what fools do not want. They hate the idea of being at fault. No, it's gotta be somebody else's fault. It can't be mine. If sin exists, then there really is a lake of fire that you will spend an eternity in. And we don't want to think about that either. So we make a mock at sin. Because not only do we hate the concept of sin, but we hate the idea of its consequences. Now, if you mock the concept of sin, then you mock the consequences of sin. But isn't it logical that if you mock the concept of sin, you must also mock the cure for sin? Of course. If you make a mock of sin, then you must also mock not only the consequences, but the cure of sin. How can you embrace sin's cure if you don't embrace the concept of sin altogether? The Hebrew word translated sin in the Bible is not only used to describe the transgression committed, but also the offering that was made for it. It's both the same word. The transgression committed, the offering that was made for it. So if you're making a mock at the transgression, You're also making a mock at the offering that was made for it A fool can't mock at the idea of sin without mocking the idea of the Savior who died for it. I read today where there was a high school in, I believe it was California. I know that surprises you. And the high school rented out their auditorium to the LGBTQ community. And they had a twin, they had it, it was uh an adult, they call it adult, we call it pervert, pervert, uh oriented business. They call it adult-oriented, it was a pervert-oriented business. And they rented out their auditorium for the high school to this perverted pornographic business where they filmed a show for 24 hours in that high school auditorium. An LGBTQ sexually perverted film. And there were two things, other than the drag show they had, in the high school auditorium. There were two things they did. One of them was they filmed each other licking one another's feet. Now that in and of itself would show you there's something really off in the head. Really, really off But you know what the other thing they filmed was? A mocking of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. That was in the headlines today. He had a picture of this man who I'm sure is a queer. Had a picture of him up there, you know, suffering and dying on the cross. Making fun of it. Why? Because uh fools make a mock at sin. Fools make a mock of the sin offering as well. You cannot mock at one without mocking the other. It is the same Hebrew word and it is. the same principle. To deny the sin is to deny the Savior who died for that sin. And you have to mock it if you're a fool. And they spent their time mocking it because it gave them pleasure to lick feet. And mock Jesus. How bizarre They say people invented Christianity to help weak people deal with the unrealistic concept of guilt In my Genesis of Jesus class Sunday We have people in there, again, that y'all y'all know have not been exposed to Bible teaching until they came to this class. Keep that in mind. They have not been exposed to Bible teaching until they came to this class. And I asked the class. Not all. Some of them have been exposed to Bible teaching, but there's a group, there's uh some in there who haven't. And I asked the class, and I always watch the hands of the people who've not had the exposure. I like to see how they respond. And I said, how many of you in here Have ever had something enter into your mind that you did not want to be there? Everybody raises their hand, including them. I said, you knew it didn't belong there? You knew it was wrong in it was in your mind. They raised their hand. I said, how many of y'all After it came into your mind and you didn't want it in your mind, tried to get it out of your mind, but it popped back in there anyway. Everybody raises their hand again. Do you know what that is? When they know there's something in their mind that they're thinking about and they know it's wrong and they're trying to get rid of it, you know what that is? That's the natural consciousness of guilt and shame And God's gospel has the remedy for shame and guilt. The moment Adam and Eve ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, do you know what happened? Two things entered into the human race, shame and fear. We heard your voice walking in the garden and we were afraid. So we hid ourselves because we were naked. Shame and fear. And fools do not accept the concept of shame and fear They mock the love of God who sent his son to die for that sin that gives us shame and fear on the cross. Years ago, a so-called artist with tax dollars. Dipped a crucifix in a jar of urine And put it on display in the museum. I assume it's still in that museum. How many of y'all seen that on display in the museum? Seen it? You you well I not that you've gone there, but you who has not seen it? I'm curious. The majority of people. Majority of people. It was the National Endowment for the Arts. Isn't that right, Brother Shepard? Yeah, we paid for that. We paid for that artwork We paid for someone to mock, to take the crucifix with Jesus on there and dip it in a jar of urine. And call it art. Only a fool mocks the great love that God's had for them, but one day they're going to wish they wouldn't have been so foolish. Now, if a fool is a mocker, then he's not a celebrator If you're mocking, you're not celebrating. I sometimes when when I'm on Facebook and I'm reading through the news and stuff I'll come across something with Senator Bernie Sanders in it. And you know what I do with sarcasm? Always write like I'm really serious in the comments. And I'll put something like Bernie's contagious smile and enthusiasm is always Always an inspiration, always an encouragement to me. I'm not sure what we're doing here tonight, but we keep going on and off. Maybe it'll pop back on here in a minute. Alright, I don't know. Let me go back up here. I don't think it's making a difference, but just in case. We'll go back up here. No. Turn on my pulpit mic, brother, I guess. We'll go off of that. I'll be like Brother Shepherd and speak off the pulpit. There we go. May it turn me up a little bit. So people online can hear me. I got my soft voice. I don't have that booming voice. Brother Shepherd, can y'all hear me okay? All right. Have y'all ever noticed something about Bernie Sanders? He's always upset about something. Always upset about something. He's got this. Look on his face all the time. Y'all notice that? If you're mocking, you're not celebrating. And that's the one thing about a fool. A fool is not a celebrator. A fool is a mocker. A fool has contempt for God. But a fool does not have peace with God. Hopefully my body mic will come on here in a little bit So we'll keep that up if you don't mind. So a a fool mocks at sin. Thank you, that's much, much better. A fool mocks at sin. Look back in your text as we begin to close. But among the righteous, there is favor. Underscore that word favor in your Bible. Favor. The righteous are those who acknowledge their sin and celebrate the salvation Jesus provides for it. And among those righteous people, who acknowledge their sin and accept the Savior God's given their favor. The Hebrew word translated favor It means pleasure, delight, goodwill, acceptance We'll say it again, pleasure, delight, goodwill, acceptance. Among the mockers there is contempt Anger, bitterness, wrath, strife, disappointment, discontentment, and hate That's what a mocker has. That's what a fool has. But among the righteous, there is pleasure. There's delight. There's goodwill. And there's acceptance. The man who told me that Christianity was invented to oppress people has no idea what kind of life Christians live. We are not oppressed people. We are victorious people. We are joyful people. We're people who live life with a purpose and we have a tremendous future that awaits us. Among the righteous there is favor. Meaning that we, the sinner, have found favor with God, the Creator. There's favor Among the righteous there is pleasure. Remember, favor means pleasure. But among the righteous there is pleasure. Why? Because God is pleased with us on account of Jesus his son. Among the righteous there is delight. Because God delights to call us his children. Among the righteous there is acceptance because the Bible says we are accepted in the beloved. Now listen to how this Hebrew word is used in Leviticus chapter 22, verses 19 and 20. Leviticus chapter 22, verses 19 through 20. And it's going to give us great insight into our verse tonight, and then we'll close. Speaking of the sacrificial offerings, the law of the offerings. God told Israel, Ye shall offer at your own will a male without blemish of the bees, of the sheep, or of the goats. But whatsoever hath a blemish, that shall ye not offer, for it shall not be acceptable for you. So I want you to notice the first seven words of verse 19. Ye shall offer at your own will. That is actually one Hebrew word. Seven English words. Used to translate one Hebrew word. And it's the same Hebrew word that we're studying tonight Favor. Translated favor. Favor in Proverbs, here in verse 19, is translated, you shall offer at your own will. God is literally saying, favor a male without blemish to me. Man, that's good. Favor. This is the law of the sacrifice. This is the law of the offerings. You Favor a male without blemish to me What does favor mean? It means acceptable. It means delight. Remember? He is saying, let it be acceptable to you to offer a mail without blemish to me. We're not like the Islamic people. We don't believe in forced conversions. If you don't think it's acceptable to offer God a sacrifice for your sin, that's up to you. But it's sure acceptable to me. I delight in it. I delight in it. So he says, let it be acceptable to you to offer a male without blemish to me. He's saying, be delighted to offer a male without blemish to me. Now let's continue with the verse. God said, Ye shall offer at your own will a mail without blemish of the bees, of the sheep, or of the goats. Verse 20 But whatsoever hath a blemish, that shall ye not offer, for it shall not be acceptable for you. Same Hebrew word. Transitive favor in the book of Proverbs The words translated ye shall offer at your own will in verse 19 is the same word translated acceptable in verse 20 If the male has a blemish, then it will not be acceptable for them. And thus they would not be accepted by God. But if they accepted the male without blemish, then God would accept them. You see how it works? If they delighted in the male without blemish, then God would be delighted in them. Do you see how it works? Among the righteous there is favor. Because they do not mock at sin. They do not mock the consequences of sin. But most of all, they do not mock the Savior who died for their sin. In fact, we delight in the sacrifice Jesus made. And because we delight in what Jesus did on the cross, God therefore delights in us. That's what that is telling us in the law of the Proverbs. You favor an unblemished male to God, God will in turn favor you. You delight in an unblemished male to God. God will in turn delight in you Of their own voluntary will, the righteous accept Jesus. And of God's own voluntary will, He accepts them. A fool makes a mock at sin, but among the righteous there is favor. With that, we'll go ahead and close tonight. Father, we thank you so much for your precious word Thank you, Father, for the favor. Among the righteous, there is voluntary will. We don't mock at sin. We, with our own voluntary will, accept the sacrifice Jesus made for it. Among the righteous, there is delight. Among the righteous. Another way that word favor is translated is goodwill. As the angels said, peace on earth, good will toward men, favor toward men. But that favor can only come one way, and that's to the sacrifice Jesus made. Thank you, Lord, that you have changed our hearts to not mock at sin, but to lament it And to not mock the Savior who died, but to delight in him. And therefore you delight in us. We give you thanks in Jesus' wonderful name. Now be with this precious church. Go with them, Lord, this week. Be with our health. Be with all the prayer requests. Help us, Lord, to walk in your spirit and your word the rest of this week and bring us back safely Sunday. As we celebrate your word, preach the gospel, edify the saints, and enjoy our fellowship together. In Jesus' name. Amen.