Hooded figure facing a digital city labeled POWER, PLEASURE, WEALTH, and KNOWLEDGE

A Path that Never Ends Well

“At the window of my house I looked through my lattice. I saw among the inexperienced, I noticed among the youths, a young man lacking sense. Crossing the street near her corner, he strolled down the road to her house at twilight, in the evening, in the dark of the night. A woman came to meet him dressed like a prostitute, having a hidden agenda. . .She seduces him with her persistent pleading; she lures with her flattering talk. He follows her impulsively like an ox going to the slaughter, like a deer bounding toward a trap until an arrow pierces its liver, like a bird darting into a snare—he doesn’t know it will cost him his life. Now, sons, listen to me, and pay attention to the words from my mouth. Don’t let your heart turn aside to her ways; don’t stray onto her paths. For she has brought many down to death; her victims are countless. Her house is the road to Sheol, descending to the chambers of death.” (Proverbs‬ ‭7‬:‭6‬-‭10‬, ‭21‬-‭27‬ ‭CSB‬‬ – Read the chapter)

The Internet changed pornography forever. It made not only incredibly easily available, but it made it anonymous. Used to you had to go somewhere disreputable in order to gain access, risking being seen and outed for what you were doing. Now you have access to it anywhere at anytime. Solomon couldn’t have imagined the world we live in. But just because he couldn’t have imagined it doesn’t make his wisdom any less sound. In fact, it makes his warnings against getting involved with anything related to it all the more important to heed. Let’s take a look at his longest reflection on it.

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Older man placing hand on younger man's shoulder while walking on city street at night

Dancing on Hot Coals Will Burn Your Feet

“They will protect you from an evil woman, from the flattering tongue of a wayward woman. Don’t lust in your heart for her beauty or let her captivate you with her eyelashes. For a prostitute’s fee is only a loaf of bread, but the wife of another man goes after a precious life. Can a man embrace fire and his clothes not be burned? Can a man walk on burning coals without scorching his feet? So it is with the one who sleeps with another man’s wife; no one who touches her will go unpunished. People don’t despise the thief if he steals to satisfy himself when he is hungry. Still, if caught, he must pay seven times as much; he must give up all the wealth in his house. The one who commits adultery lacks sense; whoever does so destroys himself. He will get a beating and dishonor, and his disgrace will never be removed. For jealousy enrages a husband, and he will show no mercy when he takes revenge. He will not be appeased by anything or be persuaded by lavish bribes.” (Proverbs‬ ‭6‬:‭24‬-‭35‬ ‭CSB‬‬ – Read the chapter)

Our culture is pretty approving of sex in just about any circumstance. Relationships today are just assumed to involve physical intimacy. No one even imagines two people being in a relationship and not having sex. There is one situation, however, that in spite of our actively liberalizing views and tolerances on the subject, we still largely do not support. This is the case even in spite of a determined effort by some parts of our culture to normalize it. I’m talking about cheating. That doesn’t mean it isn’t still terribly common, but we don’t like it. Ingrained godly wisdom helps to explain why. Let’s talk about it.

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Older woman and man walking with young girl hand in hand on a forest path at sunset

The Worth of Wise Counsel

“My son, keep your father’s command, and don’t reject your mother’s teaching. Always bind them to your heart; tie them around your neck. When you walk here and there, they will guide you; when you lie down, they will watch over you; when you wake up, they will talk to you. For a command is a lamp, teaching is a light, and corrective discipline is the way to life.” (Proverbs‬ ‭6‬:‭20‬-‭23‬ ‭CSB‬‬ – Read the chapter)

I once saw a magnet on somebody’s fridge that made me chuckle. It said, “Ask a teenager while they still know everything.” The idea is one that is certainly familiar to anybody who has navigated the journey of parenting. The confidence of ignorance that youth invites is a potent draught. Nobody at that age wants to listen to the counsel of their parents. Even as we grow, though, we don’t get much better at taking sound advice. To do that means acknowledging that we don’t know everything, and for most of us we are loathe to do that. Solomon’s wisdom here is something all of us could benefit from. Let’s talk about it.

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Open Bible with broken chains on wooden table at a rural forked path with sunset

The Fast Road to Nowhere

“My son, pay attention to my wisdom; listen closely to my understanding so that you may maintain discretion and your lips safeguard knowledge. Though the lips of the forbidden woman drip honey and her words are smoother than oil, in the end she’s as bitter as wormwood and as sharp as a double-edged sword. Her feet go down to death; her steps head straight for Sheol. She doesn’t consider the path of life; she doesn’t know that her ways are unstable.” (Proverbs‬ ‭5‬:‭1‬-‭6‬ ‭CSB‬‬ – Read the chapter)

When Paul was warning the Corinthian church about sexual immorality, one of the things he observed to them was that sexual sins hurt ourselves. Most sin hurts other people when we do it. Sexual sin hurts us. It may hurt others too, but it definitely hurts us. Why would anyone do something they knew to be damaging to their body? It just doesn’t make a lot of sense. But unfortunately, folly in this particular area is frightfully hard to resist. We need the kind of wisdom Solomon calls us to here. Let’s talk about it.

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Woman sitting on couch reading book with laptop, phone, televisions, and magazines around

Guard Your Heart

“My son, pay attention to my words; listen closely to my sayings. Don’t lose sight of them; keep them within your heart. For they are life to those who find them, and health to one’s whole body. Guard your heart above all else, for it is the source of life. Don’t let your mouth speak dishonestly, and don’t let your lips talk deviously. Let your eyes look forward; fix your gaze straight ahead. Carefully consider the path for your feet, and all your ways will be established. Don’t turn to the right or to the left; keep your feet away from evil.” (Proverbs‬ ‭4‬:‭20‬-‭27‬ ‭CSB‬‬ – Read the chapter)

Jesus once got in trouble with the religious authorities of His day because His disciples weren’t washing their hands the right way before eating. That seems like a terribly petty thing to us, but if your relationship with God depended on getting the rules right and there was a rule about washing your hands properly before eating, it would seem like a much bigger deal to you. In response, Jesus told His critics that what goes into the body is not what interrupts our relationship with God, but what comes out of it, and specifically out of our hearts. That means we need to watch what is coming into and out of our heart pretty closely. Solomon agrees. Let’s talk about it.

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