Sanam Doctrinam

I want to first let everyone know, that my intent when I started this blog, was to be on top of it and present topics that deal with “sound doctrine” hence the name.

The reality is, that the blog is the last on the list of my priorities (I should be running right now!) Since my job transition and since there have been many avenues of “important stuff’” that have come up in the last few months, it has been hard to keep up with it.

With that said, this is not a goodbye from the land of Sanam, but only a note to let you know, I hope the absence is short lived.

Thanks for your patience.

As the door turns on its hinges,
So does the sluggard on his bed.

Proverbs 26:14

Last week we looked at the book of fools. This week, I’d like to turn our attention to another character presented in the book of Proverbs: the sluggard.

The sluggard, as his name suggests, is portrayed by Solomon as so lazy, it borders on the comical. Today, as we did last Monday, I’d like us to consider some characteristics of this person highlighted by Solomon.

The first thing we notice about the sluggard is he uses caution as an excuse. There is nothing wrong with being cautious. To exercise caution simply is not to take an unnecessary risk. Caution, however, is not to be employed as a means of shirking responsibility. This is precisely what the sluggard does. Solomon writes in 26:13, “The sluggard says, ‘There is a lion in the road! A lion is in the open square!’” The implication is that the sluggard uses the unknown as an excuse to protect him from work. The sluggard avoids industry because he’s lazy. He makes excuses, but they are just that: excuses. The connection to us is that we must never make excuses for laziness. There is no excuse for laziness. If we are unwilling to put forth effort in the things we ought and use potential risk as an excuse, we are laying squarely in the sluggard’s hammock.

The second thing we note about the sluggard is he is the epitome of inactivity. The sluggard doesn’t do anything. He may have enormous potential, but he never translates it into action. Darrell Royal, the University of Texas coaching legend, aptly described the sluggard when he said, “Potential just means you ain’t done it yet.” The sluggard certainly “ain’t done it yet.” And, as Solomon describes this individual, he’s not likely to get around to doing it anytime soon. There is something in Scripture to be said for those who patiently wait on the Lord for His timing, but the sluggard isn’t waiting for anything. He is simply inactive. Solomon describes him with these words: “As the door turns on its hinges, so does the sluggard on his bed” (v. 14). The sluggard is hinged on his bed: He moves but goes nowhere.

I need to hasten to add that there is nothing wrong with leisure in the life of a believer in Christ. The Savior called to His followers, in Mark 6:31, “Come away by yourselves to a secluded place and rest a while.” I think it was Lewis Chafer who said something to the effect of, “Sometimes the most spiritual thing we can do is to take a nap” (words I’ve claimed time and again!). In our culture of indolence and self-service, however, our greatest danger is likely not too little leisure, but too much. Assessing the time we spend in a given week on ourselves might be a sobering wakeup call to many of us.

Third, a sluggard does not see a task to completion. Solomon writes in verse 15, “The sluggard buries his hand in the dish; he is weary of bringing it to his mouth again.” The image Solomon creates again is comedic: The sluggard gets the bowl, fills it with food, but then doesn’t put forth the effort even needed to feed himself. He won’t raise his hand, weighted by the food before him, to his mouth.

It’s important as believers in Christ that we avoid this characteristic of the sluggard. Part of faithfulness in the Christian life is finishing what we start. It’s tragic when Christians stop ministering simply because of sloth. They throw in the towel and attempt a retirement from the Christian life out of sheer laziness. May we not be counted among those who bury their hands in the dish!

Finally, a sluggard is slothful in his thinking. When we think of the character of a sluggard, we are drawn to his stubborn refusal to engage in physical labor. While this is often the case, there is another type of sloth that is perhaps more easily concealed: intellectual sloth. That is precisely the sort of person Solomon has in mind in verse 16: “The sluggard is wiser in his own eyes than seven men who can give a discreet answer.” A sluggard makes up his mind and is comfortable with his conclusions. He never bothers to reassess his position or to admit new information into his consideration. Further thought is not his concern. He is perfectly happy with his opinions and will stick to them, without regard for the convoluted thinking that lies behind them.

Intellectual laziness is inexcusable for a people whose Lord called them to love the Lord their God with all their mind (Matthew 22:37). It’s vital we avoid the trap of slothful thinking the sluggard so vividly demonstrates.

The sluggard is a character we certainly must not imitate as followers of Christ. Are there areas in our lives where we have proven to be sluggards? Shake off the sloth and join in the joy of following Christ wholeheartedly!

Like the legs which are useless to the lame,
So is a proverb in the mouth of fools.

Proverbs 26:7

We’ve met the fool before in the pages of Proverbs. His problem is not primarily an intellectual one; it is a moral one. The fool is someone who lives his or her life without any regard for God and His will.

The opening verses of Proverbs, chapter 26 compose what one commentator has called the “Book of Fools.” That’s an apt description. For today’s Monday Musing I would like for us to carefully regard the characteristics of fools Solomon provides in these verses, and, as a result, encourage us to do a bit of soul searching. Do we evince any of the characteristics of the fool in our lives? This might be a great time for looking into the mirror of God’s Word in order for us to see our true condition.

The first characteristic of fools we observe is this: Fools only learn the hard way. We find this in verse 3, where we read, “A whip is for the horse, a bridle for the donkey, and a rod for the back of fools.” The fool, who lives a life of God-opposition, does not take heed to God’s Word. Instead, she must discover through her own tragic mistakes the folly of her lifestyle. She sins against God, and consequently enters what has been called “The School of Hard Knocks.” She refuses to respond appropriately to God’s instruction. The results of her insensate spirituality are the numerous hardships she must endure as a result of her foolish ways. Are we guilty of only learning the hard way or do we quickly hear and heed God’s instruction?

Second, sometimes fools must not be answered. Verse 4 says, “Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you will also be like him.” Some things a fool says are so morally repugnant or so trivial, to respond would be to lower oneself to his level. In these instances, it is best to ignore the fool’s words. If a fool’s words do not deserve a reply, we ought not provide one. Are we guilty of saying things to which a wise person could not rightly respond?

Third, sometimes fools must be answered. We read in verse 5, “Answer a fool as his folly deserves, that he not be wise in his own eyes.” The apparent contradiction in verses four and five was fully intended. Different things a fool says require different responses. When a fool’s words are particularly harmful because he makes a damaging and sincere assertion, we must speak that he not think that he was right because we remain taciturn. Do we say things that, though we speak them in sincerity, stand in stark contrast to the clear instruction of Scripture?

Fourth, fools are unreliable. Verse 6 warns, “He cuts off his own feet and drinks violence who sends a message by the hand of a fool.” If you depend on a fool, you will certainly be disappointed. When fools are entrusted with responsibility, they shirk it. Fools are not where they need to be, when they need to be doing what they should be doing. Could it be that we fall into this category?

Fifth, even right words are useless and maybe even damaging when spoken by a fool. Verse 7 is instructive on this point: “Like the legs which are useless to the lame, so is a proverb in the mouth of fools.” At best a fool limply recites some choice phrases from wise people. Like lame legs, even the most solid statements droop limply from the fool’s mouth. Why? What transforms these otherwise wonderful truths into meaningless platitudes is that the fool’s character negates what he has said. His behavior neutralizes even words of truth. Few things are as sickening as a Bible verse quoted by a hypocrite. Worse things are possible for a fool, however. Verse 9 tells us, “Like a thorn which falls into the hand of a drunkard, so is a proverb in the mouth of fools.” The only thing worse than words of truth lamely uttered from a person misspending her life is a person who misapplies truth. Solomon says the misapplication of truth is as dangerous as thorns in a drunk man’s hand. Like a drunken man with a dangerous weapon, raging and staggering, a fool damages others with misapplied truth. Have we done this, even with the good words of Scripture?

We’ve covered a lot of ground today, but such texts with their warnings and insights into the nature of fools demand we consider ourselves with regard to how much foolishness has seeped into our lives. May we avoid the pitfalls of this one about whom our Lord speaks so clearly.

Like a trampled spring and a polluted well
Is a righteous man who gives way before the wicked.

Proverbs 25:26

Can you imagine a day without water? That’s difficult for us in America, but in some parts of the world, it is reality. Water is so interwoven into our lives, we don’t give it a second thought. We use it frequently.

The convenience with which we get our water and the purity of the water itself are great blessings we enjoy in the western world. At the time the Solomon penned Proverbs, getting water was a much more challenging task. It required one of two things: Either you drew water from a source where water naturally flowed or you dug a well and drew water from inside of it. There were no filtering processes. You were dependent on the purity of the source for the purity of the product when it came to getting water for yourself and your household.

Solomon had the challenges of every day water acquisition when he wrote today’s proverb. A trampled spring or a polluted well were community disasters, and he offered a ready comparison to a spiritual reality in our world today.

Solomon’s metaphor involves a “righteous” person. Righteousness in Scripture has to do with the idea of conformation to a standard, specifically, God’s. A righteous person is one who lives his or her life in a way that is in line with God’s character and will.

This righteous person in today’s verse, however, is tragically removed from her righteous position.

Solomon laments the person who, though rightly related to the God of Israel, lets people with an orientation totally opposed to God have their way.

Moral compromise is ubiquitous in our world, and we might add, in the church. Wicked influences abound. One of the great enemies of our souls—the world system—is constantly seeking to squeeze us into a mold of conformity with itself (Romans 12:2). It is precisely at the moment that worldly perspectives confront us that we come up against the choice mentioned in today’s passage. We can either choose to give way, or to stand our ground.

There is more here, however. Choosing to give way before the influence of people promulgating unbiblical philosophies and activities has a polluting effect. Where we might have been a source of clear, pure spiritual help to someone, we find ourselves instead offering only tainted refreshment. As a result of this compromise, the believing community—the church of Jesus Christ—is in a small way poisoned.

What, then, is the call Solomon utters in the words of this verse? We might characterize Solomon’s words as “have a little backbone”! When we come up against the things in our lives that may poison others, how will we respond? Will we choose to have our minds transformed by God’s powerful Word, or will we swing wide like a gate to those who would challenge God’s perspective on life? That’s a question each of us have to answer. We have to answer it in the realm of our church, our society, and certainly in our individual lives.

It’s for us to decide whether we will be a polluted water source or a pure, life-giving stream.