Proverbs on Wealth Part 4: Enjoying It Baxter T. Exum (#1745) Four Lakes Church of Christ Madison, Wisconsin July 14, 2024 Good morning and welcome to the Four Lakes Church of Christ! If you are visiting this morning or joining us online or on the phone, we are glad to have you with us, and we’d like to ask that you fill out a visitor card – online if you can, or if you are here in person, you can use one of the cards from the pew in front of you and give that to me on your way out this morning. We would love to hear from you, and we invite you to pass along any questions or prayer concerns. We are here this morning to worship preach the good news that God loves us and has made a way for us to be saved. We know from scripture that Jesus died on the cross, he was buried, but he was raised up on the first day of the week. This is the good news, and we obey this good news through faith, repentance, and baptism (an immersion in water for the forgiveness of sins). And this morning we are sharing some good news from Madagascar. Madagascar is the large island about 250 miles east of southern Africa, and Eliakim Monista is a native of Madagascar who was taught to surf by a native of Australia and then started to teach surfing lessons himself. When Eliakim was in high school, back in 2011, he started taking a Bible correspondence course through World English Institute, and his teacher for that course was Vicki Murphy, a member of the Lord’s church in Milport, Alabama. The goal of that course is to teach English using the Bible and to introduce people to the Lord in the process. Well, in the course of study, he asked to be baptized, arrangements were made, and according to the article I read in the Christian Chronicle, he apparently “came up out of the ocean teaching others.” As a surfing instructor, he now ends every session with a seaside Bible study. The article explains that many people in southern Madagascar may claim to be Christian, but they mix in elements of animism and ancestor worship. And by insisting that they worship God exclusively, Eliakim stirred up some opposition. Nevertheless, he baptized several others, they started meeting in a high school classroom before moving to a rented house, and he has gone on to establish four congregations in Madagascar. Eliakim is pictured baptizing someone in the upper left up here. He’s pictured with his Bible correspondence course teacher in the upper right (she now travels to Madagascar with her husband to follow up on some of her students). One of the congregations is pictured in the lower left. And several members are pictured in the lower right, holding the sign for the congregation that is painted on a surfboard. So, good news from Madagascar this morning! We’re also sharing some good news from the South Anchorage congregation up in Alaska. This is where Bill Clary preached at one time (Bill grew up here in Baraboo), and we worshiped here as well as at the Debarr Road congregation on our trip to Alaska several years ago. But they posted a video several days ago saying, “Welcome our new sister in Christ to the kingdom!” I took a few screenshots from the video, but what I appreciate is that they included her confession, saying it out loud that she believes that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. I also love the scripture they have on the wall behind the baptistery (Acts 22:16), where Ananias says to Saul, “And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord.” So good to see it! There are many more we could have shared this week, but we’ll share one more, this one coming to us from Lviv, Ukraine, where they say, “Two eternal souls—buried with Christ for the remission of all sins. There’s no better way to begin a day!” Amen to that! Good news from Ukraine this week. And we share these pictures as part of our invitation to you: If you would like to do what these people have done, or if you would like to learn more, let us know. We invite you to get in touch using the contact information on the wall up here, or if you are joining us on the phone, you can send a text or give me a call at 608-224-0274. This morning, we are headed back to the book of Proverbs! In the big picture, we are on the 30-year plan through Proverbs, and we are covering the book very sporadically (to say the least), and as of this moment we have now covered 370 of the 915 Proverbs, or right at 40%. So, last week we flipped 7 of the Proverbs from white to red, and we are still at 40%. No satisfaction whatsoever! Last week we rounded up to 40%, and this week we round down to 40%. Nevertheless, in this series within a series, we are now looking at everything King Solomon says about WEALTH. So, I have scoured the book for any references to wealth or money or riches or treasure, and there have been so many that we’ve been arranging these by sub-topic. Several weeks ago, we started with Solomon’s advice on GETTING wealth. Then we moved along by taking a look at how to LOSE your wealth (and some of the pitfalls of being wealthy). We had a song and scripture service on the a fifth Sunday in June. And last week and this week we are taking a look at the idea of ENJOYING OUR WEALTH. I’ll be away for two weeks, and if the Lord wills, we’ll take a look at the value of GIVING our wealth to others (on the first Sunday in August), and we will close this series with some bonus verses on LAZINESS on August 11. So, this is where we’ve been, where we are, and where we are heading. Last week, though, we started looking at what King Solomon had to say about ENJOYING our wealth. And we started by looked at Solomon’s warning about the danger of greed. It’s hard to enjoy what we have if we are constantly focused on getting more and more. And then we looked at the value of spending conservatively. When we hold ourselves back from spending absolutely everything, we have some left over to save, which also allows us to truly enjoy what we have right now. I. Today, then, let’s continue looking at how to ENJOY our wealth by taking a look at the value of CONTENTMENT. And certainly this overlaps with some of what we studied last week, but contentment is the idea of being satisfied with what we have right now, and there are seven of the Proverbs that seem to fall in this category... A. ...starting with Proverbs 13:25, where King Solomon says that, “The righteous has enough to satisfy his appetite, but the stomach of the wicked is in need.” Here at the beginning, we need to remind ourselves that this is a PROVERB, a statement that is generally true, but may not always be true in every circumstance. Most proverbs have exceptions. Sometimes, for example, the righteous may go hungry, and sometimes the wicked may have plenty. As king, Solomon was surely aware of some righteous people in need, and as king, Solomon was almost certainly aware of some wicked men who had more than enough. Generally speaking, though, the righteous are satisfied with what they have, and the wicked never seem to have enough. And again, this could easily fit in several categories, but I’m including it here because of this idea of being “satisfied.” According to Solomon, “The righteous has enough to satisfy his appetite.” That right there is what it means to be content. Regardless of how much we have, what we have is enough. The attitude we have about our stuff is more important than the stuff itself. And this is what Paul was talking about over in 1 Timothy 6 (in our scripture reading this morning). He warns about false teachers who“suppose that godliness is a means of gain.” And then he clarifies and says (in 1 Timothy 6:6), “But godliness actually is a means of great gain when accompanied by contentment. For we have brought nothing into the world, so we cannot take anything out of it either. If we have food and covering, with these we shall be content.” And yes, this is what Paul taught, but he also lived it. Over in Philippians 4, in a passage that’s ripped completely out of context more than just about any other, he’s pretty much asking for continued financial support, and he says, “Not that I speak from want, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am. I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity; in any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry, both of having abundance and suffering need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. Nevertheless, you have done well to share with me in my affliction” (Philippians 4:11-14). So, as we have discussed before, “I can do all things through Him who strengthens me” is not primarily about dunking a ball or making a touchdown. No! It’s talking about being poor or being rich and being content regardless of our circumstances. So, back to Solomon: No matter what he has, the righteous man has enough to be satisfied; and so also, no matter what he has, the wicked man will never have enough. The wicked will gorge themselves, constantly wishing for more. One is content, and the other is constantly frustrated. B. Looking at these in the order they occur in scripture, the next three come right in a row, in Proverbs 15:15-17, where King Solomon says (starting in verse 15), “All the days of the afflicted are bad, but a cheerful heart has a continual feast.” So, on one hand, there are some people who seem to have all bad days all the time. Continual badness! Something terrible is always happening. But then on the other hand, Solomon has observed that there are other people, those with a “cheerful heart” who have a “continual feast.” And the way he words this, it seems that this second person is feasting, not because he or she only had good things happen, but because this second person has a “cheerful heart.” And that’s why we are studying this passage with the others on contentment. The “continual feast” in this passage is seen as a feast, because the heart is cheerful. And I don’t think he’s talking about a literal feast, a 24-hour buffet, but he’s talking about an outlook on life, the way we see things. On the other hand, then, those who do not have this contentment will be miserable no matter what happens. Nothing has a bright side. Everything is terrible. Life itself is the opposite of a “continual feast.” Everything is bad. And King Solomon is trying to get his sons to see this. Often, our outlook on life is based on what we make of it. Are we satisfied, or is everything always terrible? According to scripture, our attitude does not depend on what’s going on around us. I’m thinking, specifically, of something said by Habakkuk in Habakkuk 3:17-19. As the prophet thinks about the harsh conditions brought on by the disobedience of the nation (and particularly a lack of food), listen to what he says, Though the fig tree should not blossom And there be no fruit on the vines, Though the yield of the olive should fail And the fields produce no food, Though the flock should be cut off from the fold And there be no cattle in the stalls, Yet I will exult in the Lord, I will rejoice in the God of my salvation. The Lord God is my strength, And He has made my feet like hinds’ feet, And makes me walk on my high places. So again, “a cheerful heart has a continual feast,” regardless of what may be happening around us. That is contentment. C. This next one comes to us in the very next verse (in Proverbs 15:16), where King Solomon continues by saying, “Better is a little with the fear of the Lord than great treasure and turmoil with it.” This is one of at least twenty “better-than” passages in the Proverbs. As we have learned over the past several years, one of King Solomon’s objectives in writing the book of Proverbs is to encourage his sons to make wise decisions. And a decision implies a choice. We come to a fork in the road, so to speak, and we have to go in one of several directions. And sometimes it’s hard to know what to do. My dad taught me to make tough decisions by drawing a line down the middle of a piece of paper and making a list of the good and the bad. On one side: The good things that may happen as a result of making this decision. And on the other side: The bad things that may happen as a result of making this decision. And perhaps that’s the picture King Solomon is painting for us here. On one hand, we have a little with the fear of the Lord, and on the other hand we have great treasure, but we may have turmoil with it. King Solomon is saying: If this is your choice, then go for the little with the fear of the Lord! And as we’ve learned throughout this study of wealth, there is no special blessing that automatically comes from being poor, so the emphasis here has to be on “the fear of the Lord.” Whatever you do, come down on the side of fearing the Lord. This way is so much better than the alternative. And I think most of us understand, from a practical point of view, that some of our best memories in this life are not necessarily tied to a bunch of stuff. Sometimes the most simple of meals will be the meal that we remember for the rest of our lives. I think of hiking Mount Storm King with my sister back in September of 2021. This was a challenging hike up a mountain out near Port Angeles, Washington, and it was tough. There were ropes involved. We did some passing of our own on the trail, but at one point we were passed by a spandex-clad young woman who said to me (I think), “Wow! I hope I can still do stuff like this when I’m as old as you are!” Ouch! That hurt! But, at some point along the trail, we sat on a couple of rocks off to the side and whipped out what we brought for lunch that day. We were traveling light due to the nature of the hike, but we enjoyed a packet of smoked salmon, on naan (an Indian flatbread), covered in some homemade jelly that my sister had brought. It was simple, it was something I would never be eating under normal circumstances, but it was one of the most memorable meals I have ever had. As we ate and held on for dear life, we actually got to look DOWN on several bald eagles that were soaring BENEATH us that day. It’s not a perfect illustration, but I think it does show that a little can be better than a lot, depending on the circumstances and depending on our attitude. In this case, “Better is a little with the fear of the Lord than great treasure and turmoil with it.” If this is the decision you’re facing, this way is better than that way. And some have made some terrible choices in this regard. In the Old, we think of Lot, and Achan, and Gehazi (Elisha’s servant). In the new, we think of Ananias, and Sapphira, and Demas. These all chose wealth over fearing God. And as Jesus once asked (in Matthew 16:26-27), “For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul? For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and WILL THEN REPAY EVERY MAN ACCORDING TO HIS DEEDS.” Sometimes less can be better, which is why we are studying this one under the heading of contentment. D. This next one is similar and comes to us in the next verse (in Proverbs 15:17), where King Solomon continues by saying, “Better is a dish of vegetables where love is than a fattened ox served with hatred.” Just a moment ago, I mentioned that there are more than 20 “better-than” passages in the Proverbs, but I should also point out that there are at least 40 references to food and eating in Proverbs. Like most of us, King Solomon loved eating, and he illustrated these life lessons to his sons by using food to teach some important lessons! In this case, he presents a choice somewhat similar to the last one. On one hand, we have a dish of vegetables, and on the other hand we have a fattened ox. Now, all things being equal, most of us would prefer the nice, juicy steak over the salad. When I go out to eat, I would prefer the dish that I may not be able to do too well at home, and I can do vegetables at home! I have squash in my garden, but I do not have a steak in my garden. The same goes for bacon. So, we have a choice between vegetables and steak. Most of us would prefer the steak. However (and this is a big however), the salad is served with love, and the steak is served with hatred. That changes things! And haven’t we been there? There are some situations where we sit down for a meal, and there’s just a good spirit in the room. I’m thinking Taco Tuesday with Gary and Sara. And it’s not about the food itself. The meal may be simple and not even expensive or overly complicated, but most of us really appreciate a meal where we can let down our guard and be ourselves. There’s laughter at the table; people enjoy being together; the meal is a pleasant relief from the stress of living. But on the other hand, we have this steak served with hatred. And maybe you have been there as well. And once again, it’s not about the food itself, but it’s about the atmosphere. There’s a sense of doom and gloom in the room. People are tense and afraid to say anything. Perhaps there is a critical spirit. Something is off, and it’s awful. Haven’t most of us experienced that? This is what Solomon is warning about. And we are looking at this Proverb under the heading of contentment, because a simple meal shared in love is enough. We know from experience that we can be satisfied with less if it’s accompanied by love. And that’s what contentment is. The poor man’s meal can be even more enjoyable that the rich man’s feast, if those vegetables are served with love. And Solomon explains that this is a choice. One is “better” than the other. So, as his sons are standing at that fork in the road, choose love, regardless of how simple or how lavish the meal might be, because sometimes less is actually more. Read the fine print, because sometimes the expensive dinner comes with some strings attached. The steak may look good, but make sure you know what comes with it. And again, it’s not about the food. We might say the same thing about a promotion at work. It looks good, but what comes along with it? We might say the same thing about getting a full ride scholarship to the school where my friends are going, but is there a spiritual cost to it? We think of Lot who came to a fork in the road and when it came to choosing the desert or the lush valley, Lot chose what appeared to be best for him financially, but he lost his family in the end. Or we might think of a family vacation where everybody’s mad at each other. It’s miserable! A simple picnic with a spirit of love may be better than the expensive cruise where everybody’s angry. Often, then, love (or some other spiritual benefit) may make up for what is lacking financially. As I was preparing today’s lesson, I kept thinking about something that I seem to remember from the Little House on the Prairie books (or it might have been the television series). Let me know if you remember this or if I’m remembering it incorrectly, but I thought I remember a time when they either could not afford sugar or sugar was simply not available, but Ma made something (a pie, or cornbread, or something), and instead of sugar she put her thumbprint in it, and for Pa, that was all the sweetener it needed. Let me know if you remember this as well, but that’s the idea here: A simple meal served with love is better than the meat buffet served with hatred. And before we move on from this, let’s realize that it might be easy to dismiss this if it had been written by a poor guy! Well, sure, of course a poor man would write something like this! But no! This Proverb comes to us from one of the wealthiest men to ever live. Do we think King Solomon might have had some fancy dinners in his time? Absolutely. And do we think that some of those fancy dinners might have been miserable due to hatred and conflict? Yes. So, he knew from experience that a simple meal served in love is better than an expensive steak served with hatred. Unfortunately, some families become all too familiar with conflict, and this hatred becomes a family tradition, even to the point where they no longer see any other way. The critical spirit becomes normal. Solomon, though, reminds us that we do have a choice. E. Our next Proverb is similar (the third better-than in a row), and comes to us (in Proverbs 16:8), where King Solomon says, “Better is a little with righteousness than great income with injustice.” So again, he presents a choice “a little” vs. “great income,” but the difference is that the “little” comes with “righteousness,” and the “great income” comes with “injustice.” We face this personally. We also face this choice as a nation, all the time. We often have a choice between making the right choice that’ll cost us, or economic prosperity with some “injustice” thrown in here and there. As with the others, Solomon is not glorifying being poor, but he’s suggesting that if the choice is between poverty with righteousness or great income with injustice, choose righteousness. And again, we’ve put this with the contentment passages, because there are certainly times when “a little” can be better than “great income.” This gets back to Paul’s reasoning in Philippians 4, that he had learned to be content in all circumstances. What’s important is righteousness. We should be careful, though, not to suggest that anybody with a “great income” is earning that income through “injustice.” So also, not all people with “little” are righteous. That’s not the point. You can be poor and wicked, just as you can be wealthy and righteous. So, Solomon is presenting a hypothetical scenario here. If you must choose between righteousness and injustice, choose righteousness, even if you end up with “little” as opposed to much. F. Our next Proverb (in Proverbs 17:1) is similar to those we had back in Chapter 15, where King Solomon now says, “Better is a dry morsel and quietness with it than a house full of feasting with strife.” The word “morsel” here apparently implies that this is only a piece of bread, perhaps a crumb – what we might find when we empty out that little tray under the toaster. On the other hand, we have “a house full of feasting.” Some translations might refer to a house full of “sacrifices.” And if that’s the case, we have the picture of a family taking the best of the best to the temple to sacrifice, and the law would then allow them to take some of that home for a huge celebration. In fact, over in Deuteronomy 14:22-27, God commanded his people to bring in the best of the best to eat a huge meal as a celebration before the Lord. However, God also said that if they lived too far away to come in for a feast, they could exchange their sacrifice for money, and they could then use that money “for whatever your heart desires: for oxen, or sheep, or wine, or strong drink, or whatever your heart desires; and there you shall eat in the presence of the Lord your God and rejoice, you and your household.” And then God adds, “Also you shall not neglect the Levite who is in your town, for he has no portion or inheritance among you.” So, when you feast with your sacrifices and your strong drink, don’t forget the Levites! Now imagine, though, that as they do this they are surrounded by “strife” for some reason. Imagine eating with your family after church and getting in a fight over dinner. As we noted previously: Not good! In fact, it would be better to eat those crumbs from the toaster in “quietness” as opposed to feasting in “strife.” And here’s why I’ve included this one in our study of contentment: There’s a danger when we compare our “dry morsel” to the “feasting” done by our neighbors. We may see their feast on social media, but we may not see the “strife,” and it’s easy for us to be discontent, even jealous. We may want what they have, without realizing that we’re just seeing the best of it. Behind closed doors, they may, in fact, be miserable. Let’s think about King Solomon for just a moment: Do we think King Solomon enjoyed peaceful meals most of his life? He most certainly ate better food than just about anybody else in the ancient world, but was King Solomon at peace in his personal life? Let me remind you that this man had 700 wives and 300 concubines. Did Solomon eat his meals in peace? Not only that, but think about Solomon’s family as he was growing up. When he was very young, his older half-brother Amnon rapes his half-sister Tamar. Two years later, Tamar’s brother Abasalom murders Amnon and flees into exile. Three years after that, Absalom’s great-uncle Joab persuades David to let Absalom come back. Two years later, Absalom sends servants to burn Joab’s field, so that Joab would help him reconcile with King David. Absalom then begins plotting and carries out a successful coup against his own father, King David. Now David flees into exile, and in the civil war that follows, David replaces Joab with Absalom’s general Amasa, but uncle Joab kills cousin Amasa. Then, just before Solomon becomes king, Adonijah, another half brother, tries a coup of his own, but fails when David suddenly makes Solomon the king instead. What kind of family dinners do we think Solomon might have had growing up? And now he warns his own sons,“Better is a dry morsel and quietness with it than a house full of feasting with strife.” Absolutely! Before craving that house full of feasting, be content with a dry morsel that you can eat in peace and quiet. F. We have one more, and this last one doesn’t seem to match quite as nicely as the others, but I think we can fit it in here, because in Proverbs 28:11 King Solomon now says, “The rich man is wise in his own eyes, but the poor who has understanding sees through him.” And this isn’t so much contentment as it is: Understanding is better than wealth (and that’s why I’m including it here). One of the dangers of wealth is that we tend to assume that the wealthy are perhaps smarter than the rest of us. It’s this guy’s wisdom that caused him to be wealthy. And there may be some truth in that, but it may lead to arrogance on the part of those who are wealthy, Solomon seems to say here, “The rich man is wise in his own eyes.” If I’m rich, I may have the ability to pay a bunch of people to tell me how smart I am. However, Solomon also indicates that the poor who have understanding can see right through the rich man. So, it’s this discussion we had last week: Would we rather be rich and foolish or poor and wise? Wisdom comes first. And that’s why I’ve put this in with contentment. Do not envy the rich man, because he may not be too wise after all. Conclusion: This morning we have continued looking at King Solomon’s advice on ENJOYING WEALTH. We started with a warning about the DANGER OF GREED. If we are always looking for more, we may miss out on enjoying what we have right now. Then we looked at the importance of SPENDING CONSERVATIVELY (spending less than we make, allowing us to save). And this week, we’ve focused in on the importance of being CONTENT with what God has given to us. I don’t know whether we realize this, but we’ve just heard some words from one of the wisest and richest men to ever live. King Solomon was the Elon Musk or the Warren Buffet of his time. In terms of going to him as a financial advisor, nobody in this room could afford an hour of this man’s time, and yet here we are! And King Solomon’s advice (when he boils it all down) is to beware of greed, to spend less than you make, and to be content, to be satisfied, with what we have. I am looking forward to being back with you in three weeks, if the Lord wills, as we take a look at sharing our wealth with others. As we close our study this morning, let’s go to God in prayer: Our Father in Heaven, You are the God of all riches and wealth, and you have given us everything we have. This morning, we are thankful for the good words from King Solomon, and today we pray for wisdom, that we will use our wealth wisely, not selfishly, but in a way that honors you in every way. We ask that you give us a spirit of contentment. Help us to realize that everything we have is a gift from you, and help us to understand that you are what we truly need above all else. We continue to pray for Jane as she recovers. We pray for others who are struggling with their health. We pray for strength to make good and wise decisions. Forgive us, Father, when we fall short. Father, you have told us to pray for kings and for those in positions of authority, so that we as your people might be able to live tranquil and quiet lives in all godliness and dignity. This, Father, is our prayer today. We ask your blessing on those who lead our nation. We come to you this morning in Jesus’ name. AMEN. To comment on this lesson: fourlakeschurch@gmail.com