BIG WISDOM FROM SOME SMALL THINGS
Posted by Pastor Greg Allen on May 29, 2022 under 2022 |
Bethany Bible Church Sermon Message; May 29, 2022 from Proverbs 30:24-28
Theme: We learn some very important spiritual lessons through some very small creatures.
(All Scripture is taken from The New King James Version, unless otherwise indicated).
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All of Creation speaks of the wonders of our Creator. And we, as the highest of His created beings, have the privilege of learning about Him from what He has made.
Just think of what it tells us in Psalm 19:1-4; that …
The heavens declare the glory of God;
And the firmament shows His handiwork.
Day unto day utters speech,
And night unto night reveals knowledge.
There is no speech nor language
Where their voice is not heard.
Their line has gone out through all the earth,
And their words to the end of the world (Psalm 19:1-4a).
Or think of what it says in Psalms 111:2; that …
The works of the Lord are great,
Studied by all who have pleasure in them (Psalm 111:2).
Viewed reverently—and through the greater clarity of His written word, all of Creation is a school in which we can learn about our heavenly Father: what He is like, how we can get to know Him, and how we can prepare now for a blessed eternity in His presence. And with that in mind, I ask you to turn with me to Proverbs 30:24-28. It’s there that we find that God has some great lessons to teach us from even some of the smallest things in His created realm:
There are four things which are little on the earth,
But they are exceedingly wise:
The ants are a people not strong,
Yet they prepare their food in the summer;
The rock badgers are a feeble folk,
Yet they make their homes in the crags;
Yet they all advance in ranks;
The spider skillfully grasps with its hands,
And it is in kings’ palaces (Proverbs 30:24-28).
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These verses are among the sayings that God has preserved for us from a wise man named Agur. At the beginning of Proverbs 30, Agur said that he was not a wise man by nature. But clearly, God gave this humble man great wisdom as a gift of His grace. God has preserved his wise sayings for us in His Bible … and all so that we too would be given wisdom.
Look at how he begins in the words we’re looking at this morning. He says that there are four things which are “little on the earth”. That can be interpreted to mean that he’s speaking of things that are small in size. And certainly, some of the things he speaks of are very small. There aren’t too many things that we can see on a daily basis that are much smaller than ants. But the other things that he mentions are not “small” in that sense. And so; perhaps what he’s speaking of are things that are not necessarily “small” in size, but rather “small” in seeming-significance. They aren’t things that we would pay much attention to in daily life. They would ordinarily seem unimportant to us in the scheme of things.
But he then goes on to tell us that, in spite of either their small size or seeming-insignificance, they are “exceedingly wise” in their behavior. In fact, Agur uses an unusual way of stressing this to us. In the original language of this passage, he uses the Hebrew word for “wise” twice in a row. The kind of wisdom that he is speaking of is practical in nature—the kind of wisdom you would apply to daily living. And that of course is the whole theme of the Book of Proverbs. But Agur is literally saying that there are four creatures that are seemingly small and insignificant, but that are “wise, being wise” in their behavior. This is meant to accentuate their quality of wisdom in our minds—as if to say that, if you look closely at them, you find that they are ‘exceedingly wise’.
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ; God the Holy Spirit—through this man Agur—is calling us to look carefully at these four specific creatures. As small as these creatures may be—and as unimportant as they may appear to our notice—they have some crucial spiritual lessons to illustrate to us.
And if we pay careful attention to them, we too will become wise … even for eternal life.
* * * * * * * * * *
So first, Agur tells us in verse 25, “The ants are a people not strong, yet they prepare their food in the summer …” And so, here we find that the ants teach us to …
1. PREPARE FOR ETERNITY WHILE WE CAN.
When he calls them “a people”, he’s simply using a figure of speech to describe them as a large group—an assembly. But they are also “not strong”. One carelessly-placed footstep can bring an end to a whole army of them.
But in spite of their smallness and relative weakness, they are—nevertheless—exceedingly wise. Out where my wife and I live, we’re seeing a whole lot of them right now. And this is because they are using the warm season to gather their food before the cooler months. They aren’t lazy little creatures. And they aren’t dumb either. They’re using the present opportunity to make preparations for their future.
Now; in that respect, they have a very important and practical life lesson to teach us. It’s a lesson that King Solomon stressed in Proverbs 6:6-11;
Go to the ant, you sluggard!
Consider her ways and be wise,
Which, having no captain,
Overseer or ruler,
Provides her supplies in the summer,
And gathers her food in the harvest.
How long will you slumber, O sluggard?
When will you rise from your sleep?
A little sleep, a little slumber,
A little folding of the hands to sleep—
So shall your poverty come on you like a prowler,
And your need like an armed man (Proverbs 6:6-11).
I have to tell you a story. As a teenager, I memorized that passage. And I found that on Saturday mornings—when I was laying in bed—I’d roll over, look at the clock, and lazily mumble, “Just a little more sleep …” And then, I couldn’t help but go on to quote the rest of the passage in my mind! It made me jump out of bed in a hurry! I sure didn’t want my poverty to come on me like a prowler or my need like an armed man! I still think of that even today.
I’m sure that that’s one life lesson the ants are meant to teach us. But I also believe that Agur’s reflection on the ants is meant to teach something far more important than just that we ought to get out of bed and get to work. It’s meant to teach us about using the opportunities we have right now in life to wisely prepare for our eternal destiny.
First of all, now is the time to make sure that we have placed our whole faith in Jesus Christ and are ready to stand before God in righteousness through Him. Now is the summertime of His grace in this world; and this is the time for us to take full advantage of the salvation that He offers us through His Son Jesus. We must not let that opportunity slip away; because the day of grace will come to an end. The apostle Paul told the Corinthian believers;
We then, as workers together with Him also plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain. For He says:
“In an acceptable time I have heard you,
And in the day of salvation I have helped you.”
Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation (2 Corinthians 6:1-2).
So; this is not the time to put off ‘believing on Jesus’ until tomorrow. We, like the ants, are ‘a people not strong’. There’s no guarantee that we will even have a ‘tomorrow’. Now is the time to trust Christ as our Savior. And what’s more, having placed our trust in Jesus for our salvation, now is also the time to work hard to grow in that salvation—to build ourselves up in our most holy faith—to put away sin and to put on righteous conduct. As Paul said in Romans 13:11-14;
And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light. Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts (Romans 13:11-14).
Our lives right now are just a mere dot on the timeline of eternity. And it’s sobering to realize that what we do during this little ‘dot of time’ will determine where and how we will spend that eternity. It’d be very foolish to use up that brief time to make preparations for a brief future in this world, but to make no preparations whatsoever for our eternity. We must not wait until some other day to make our peace with God through Jesus, or to get rid of the sinful habits and practices that drag us down. Now is the time to prepare! Now is the time to get to work!
So; the next time you see some ants, thank God for the lesson we can learn from them; “a people not strong, yet they prepare their food in the summer”. May we follow their wise example; and rise up, get to work, and prepare for eternity while we can!
* * * * * * * * * *
Agur goes on to speak of another animal. In the translation that I’m using, it’s called a ‘rock badger’. In the King James Version, it’s translated “conie”; which is a kind of rabbit. But I suspect that what is meant by this is an animal that—in modern times—is called a ‘hyrax’. In verse 26, Agur says, “The rock badgers [or the hyrax] are a feeble folk, yet they make their homes in the crags …” And so, this creature called the hyrax teaches us to …
2. KEEP HIGH ON THE ROCK FOR SAFETY.
One year, one of my sons and I got to take a trip to Israel. We visited a place called En-Gedi; which is a wildlife reserve along the shores of the Dead Sea. And as you hike along this wildlife trail—if you keep your eyes open—sometimes, you can catch a fleeting glimpse of a hyrax. But usually only a fleeting one. They are small, furry, plump, groundhog-like animals that look a little like a rabbit that never quite got finished being made. They aren’t very strong. They can’t jump very high. They’re really quite vulnerable. And so, when they see someone coming, they scurry away and hide up in the holes and tunnels of the rocks and cliffs. They make their homes in the crags—high up and far away from danger. They’re wise.
And we can learn from their wisdom. Proverbs 22:3 tells us;
A prudent man foresees evil and hides himself,
But the simple pass on and are punished (Proverbs 22:3).
Just think of how many professing Christians have imagined themselves to be very strong—capable of exposing themselves to all kinds of questionable practices, and sins, and temptations, thinking that they’d never stumble or fall—thinking that they’ve got it all under their control—taking all kinds of horrible risks with their souls. And yet, they have often ended up sliding down into the grip of some sin, and bringing destruction to themselves—and even eternal loss to their souls. The truth is that we’re all just like the hyrax. When it comes to the dangers of sin, we’re a feeble folk—easily made to stumble into the devil’s traps, and easily falling victim to his temptations. A wise person will see those dangers coming well in advance … and will take measures to hide himself or herself from them.
And as believers, where do we go to hide? Where is our safe place? Well; just like the hyrax, we should run to the Rock! We should go directly to the Lord Jesus. The safest place to run to when temptation comes is directly to our Lord and Master, Jesus Christ. Just as King David once wrote in Psalm 27;
One thing I have desired of the Lord,
That will I seek:
That I may dwell in the house of the Lord
All the days of my life,
To behold the beauty of the Lord,
And to inquire in His temple.
For in the time of trouble
He shall hide me in His pavilion;
In the secret place of His tabernacle
He shall hide me;
He shall set me high upon a rock (Psalm 27:4-5).
When you’re in a time of trouble or temptation, where do you go? When you see danger coming to your soul, where do you hide? When disaster strikes, where do you turn? The place you go to for safety reveals where your real trust is. If you go to your own resources, then your protection won’t be any higher than you are. But like David prayed in Psalm 61;
From the end of the earth I will cry to You,
When my heart is overwhelmed;
Lead me to the rock that is higher than I (Psalm 61:2).
Can you think of any safer place to go in times of temptation or trouble than to Jesus Christ?—the Rock? Thank God for this lesson from these small creatures—“a feeble folk”; but wise enough to hide themselves in the rock when danger approaches. Let’s learn to be like them.
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A third kind of creature that Agur mentions are the locusts. He says in verse 27, “The locusts have no king, yet they all advance in ranks.” They are wise. And so, they teach us to …
3. SUBMIT TOGETHER TO THE LEADING OF THE MASTER.
My parents grew up in the Midwest. We moved to the Pacific Northwest from Kansas when I was only four-and-a-half years old. So I was never in one of the swarms of locusts that sometimes appear in that part of the country. But my mother was in one once. She told me that it was one of the most horrifying experiences of her life. She said that the sky became dark, and the noise was deafening—like a million flying lawnmowers running full throttle all around you—and there’s nothing you can do. You can swing sticks and rakes and brooms at them; but nothing drives them away. The fields are green with crops when they come; but just a few minutes later, every bit of growth is gone.
There’s a passage in the Old Testament book of Joel that describes an attacking army; and it uses the metaphor of locusts to describe their attack. It says;
Before them the people writhe in pain;
All faces are drained of color.
They run like mighty men,
They climb the wall like men of war;
Every one marches in formation,
And they do not break ranks.
They do not push one another;
Every one marches in his own column.
Though they lunge between the weapons,
They are not cut down (Joel 2:6-8).
Now; this describes how horrifying locusts are. But it also describes their orderly behavior. No one seems to be in charge of them; but they all seem to swarm together. A single, maverick locust wouldn’t make much difference at all. But when millions of them hold ranks, and fly and march and chew in an orderly way—as if by the orders of some unseen commander—the difference they make is very great indeed!
But here also is the lesson in the wisdom that they have to teach us; dear brothers and sisters in Christ. When we’re all by ourselves as believers—maverick Christians, as it were, who operate on our own authority and power—we really can’t make much of a difference in this world. When we fail to assemble ourselves together, we’re not very effective. But that’s not how we’re meant to operate. We are designed by our Lord to operate together—keeping ranks under divine His authority. The apostle Paul once wrote to the Corinthian Christians and told them;
Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment (1 Corinthians 1:10).
He had to tell them this, because they had been dividing themselves up from one another—separating themselves into their own different factions and cliques. He told them that they could not be effective as the church in this world when they behaved that way;
… for you are still carnal. For where there are envy, strife, and divisions among you, are you not carnal and behaving like mere men? (1 Corinthians 3:3).
We are individual believers—each one with unique talents and gifts. But we are meant to serve in union together in submission to one Master—bringing those individual gifts and talents to bear under His singular command. And when we do so, we truly behave like a body. The apostle Paul told the Corinthians;
For as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of that one body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ. For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and have all been made to drink into one Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:12-13).
When I am under the leading and direction of the Holy Spirit—using my unique gifts and abilities as He commands for your good, and when you are also under the leading and direction of the same Holy Spirit—also using your unique gifts and abilities as He commands for my good, then we are marching in ranks together. We are unified as one body.
So; here’s some wisdom from the locusts. Thank God for this lesson from them. We’re different from them in that—unlike them—we DO have a King! But let’s be like them in that we all advance in unified ranks under His command. Only then will we be able to meet together for mutual edification. Only then will we be able to make a difference in this world.
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And finally, Agur tells us about one more small creature. In verse 28, he said, “The spider skillfully grasps with its hands, and it is in kings’ palaces.” And so—as I put it—the lizard teaches us to …
4. SEEK THE WAY TO THE FATHER’S HOUSE.
Now wait a minute! The ‘lizard’? Well; here’s where we come to a problem in the translation. The word that’s used is meant to describe a small creature with remarkable hands that grasp things. For this reason, some of the older translations have this as a spider. But most modern translations have understood this word to refer to a kind of lizard. That just goes to show you that it’s hard sometimes for us modern readers to know just exactly what kind of animal ancient people meant by the names they used. But in the end—whether it is a lizard or a spider—the point is the same. They both are very diligent in making their way into homes.
When you see such a creature in your home, your first thought is, “How in the world did that get in?” Then, most likely, you grasp it up with your hand, open the door, and toss it out (or you might prefer to get someone else to do it). But you’ve got to watch out; because they’ll still figure out a way to get back in. They’re pretty much bound and determined to take up residence in the best homes. They’re wise in that way.
And in this, they have a great spiritual lesson to teach you and me. We too need to be bound and determined—and to put forth all our energies and efforts—to live in the best home of all. We’re a bit like a lizard (or a spider) in that we ordinarily don’t deserve to live in the best of all homes. We’re lowly creatures. How can we expect to live in the Father’s house? And yet, the Lord Jesus has died for us and has washed our sins away; and He has promised that we will—by faith in Him—dwell in His Father’s house. He once told His disciples;
“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also” (John 14:1-3).
Now; maybe lizards and spiders know how to get into our houses. But how could you and I possibly make our way into the Father’s house? Well; Jesus anticipated that we would ask that question. He said;
“And where I go you know, and the way you know.” Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me (vv. 4-6).
The way to the Father’s house—and the way to be welcomed as permanent residents of His household—is through a relationship with Jesus Christ. He is the way to the Father’s house—and there is no other way than Him. Through a relationship with Him by faith, we are whole-heartedly welcomed in—not as lizards or spiders who are intruders; but as fully-adopted sons and daughters who truly belong there … and who even have our own room in the house. As it says in Ephesians 2:11-13;
Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh—who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands—that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ (Ephesians 2:11-13).
Lizards—or spiders, as the case may be—are wise. Next time you see one (and are about to toss it out the door), remember that at least they know the way to get into the very best places to live. Do we? In fact, they’re pretty insistent on it. Are we?
* * * * * * * * * *
Here then are four creatures—small in size, and seemingly insignificant to our sight, and yet big in the lessons of wisdom that they teach us. Let’s learn from their example … and be wise for the cause of eternal life in Jesus.
AE
