Proverbs 2:16-19

¹⁶Wisdom will save you also from the adulterous woman, from the wayward woman with her seductive words, ¹⁷who has left the partner of her youth and ignored the covenant she made before God. ¹⁸Surely her house leads down to death and her paths to the spirits of the dead. ¹⁹None who go to her return or attain the paths of life.

Ilokano Proverb

There’s an Ilokano proverb that says, “Ti mangan ti sili, magasangan.” It’s literally translated, “He who eats hot chili gets burned, scorched, seared, seared or singed.”

The one who eats chili feels fiery scorching burn—like effect. Extremely spicy hot chilies are fiery pungent, and not everyone would dare to eat or even touch them.

When they say, “He ate hot chili, and he got chili burn,” implicitly, they pertain to offenders provoked or agitated by rebukes on offenses they did. “A topic about laziness may offend lazy people, sermons on gambling may upset gamblers, lawbreakers may not appreciate it when submission to authorities is mentioned, a reproof on cheating may irritate cheaters, and an admonition on adultery may embarrass the adulterous.”

What sermon topic do you find it hard to swallow or appreciate? Topical sermons could be very useful to address problems among Christians. Well, everyone has iniquity. Our Lord Jesus Christ had declared in Matthew 15:19, ¹⁹For out of the heart come evil thoughts—murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. 

Naturally, the sinful heart is wayward. The advancement of high technology may stimulate or worsen an adulterous heart. Be very careful and prayerful. You may have heard of stories or news articles about pastors who were disillusioned and victimized by greed, adultery and sexual immorality. No one is exempted from sin. Anyone can be disillusioned and victimized by evil deeds: greed, adultery or sexual immorality.

What should we do? We need godly wisdom. We ask Christ for help. He is Lord of all; his will is best for us. We must let him do his will in us; he empowers us to overcome pressure from sin. When his godly wisdom functions in us, we follow a righteous lifestyle for our betterment. Remember, Christ is the wisdom of God to all disciples he called.

1.  Remember

¹⁶Wisdom will save you also from the adulterous woman, from the wayward woman with her seductive words, ¹⁷who has left the partner of her youth and ignored the covenant she made before God.

Adultery is very seductive temptation; it should not be taken for granted at all. Adultery has blemished and stained the great reputation of King David, pastors and church leaders included. Be prayerful and remember that God is always watching every activity we make. It says in Psalm 53:2-3, ²God looks down from heaven on all mankind to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God. ³Everyone has turned away, all have become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one.

Christ has saved us from the penalty of sin; he can save us before sin controls us.

Can you accept that godly wisdom is practical manifestation of Christ at work in the life of believers? If Christ has saved us from eternal punishment, he can save us from falling into temptation; he can easily save us from the pressure and influence of sin.

But why is it that evil thought can still confuse believers somehow?

Sin can still manipulate us every now and then. Why? It’s because we’re limited in all our faculties. Most often, we forget to be compliant and submissive to Christ as Lord.

How often do you really pray? Do you pray every hour, every meal time?

Praying helps us remember and depend upon Christ as Savior from control of sin.

Wickedness won’t give warnings. The evil won’t say, “Hey, I’ll put you in trouble!”

Sin is attractive to the sinful human. It’s not human instinct to readily reject sin.

We need to always remember and trust Christ as Lord. Do you desire to follow godly instructions mindfully? If so, godly wisdom is functional in your life, somehow!

Best Pastor

Who do you consider as the greatest pastor and teacher? Jesus Christ is the best and greatest pastor and teacher. Can you agree with that? It says in Matthew 27:3: ³When Judas, who had betrayed him, saw that Jesus was condemned, he was seized with remorse and returned the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders.

Many individuals are concerned if Judas was saved or not; but, they may have missed the greater lesson why Judas betrayed Christ. Someone posted in social media: “Judas had the greatest pastor and teacher yet, greed has controlled him.”

Every believer can fall into similar trap of evil deeds—greed, immorality, adultery. Truly, we’re very limited in our memory; hence, we forget to follow Christ always. When we follow our natural instinct, our human mindset prevails, and we disregard our Lord.

Did God forgive Judas after he was seized with remorse? We will find it out when we reach heaven, our eternal destination. So, instead of wondering about his destiny, the tragic end of Judas should serve as reminder to be concerned of our circumstances.

Are you certain that you’ll enter heaven? Do you follow the path to eternal life?

Jesus Christ is the way—the path to eternal life. Learn to follow him prayerfully.

As we submit to his Holy Spirit, he empowers us to live in godly righteousness. We have to eternally rely upon Christ until we reach our eternal destination.

2.  Reach

¹⁸Surely her house leads down to death and her paths to the spirits of the dead. ¹⁹None who go to her return or attain the paths of life.

Adultery is opposed to righteous path of life; it steals joy of salvation and hinders spiritual growth. Enticement to adultery is worldly lifestyle and disregard of God’s grace.

            Reflect on this: In our generation, addiction to pornography has been stimulated by easy access to internet. People addicted to pornography gratify their human sinful instinct. Can you accept that Christ can free them from such addiction? Of course!

If you know someone addicted to pornography, pray that they may trust Christ.

Addiction to pornography or any other kind of bad vices is tangible evidence that sin is influential and manipulative. We should be very aware and mindful that we are not immune to wickedness. As we wait for Christ to bring us into his heaven, we can still fall into sin anytime anywhere. We should always pray wisdom and understanding; that Christ enables us to faithfully follow his instructions in all that we think, decide or do.

Have you ever wished for a better place where you want to live for the rest of your life? Do you prepare for that wish to happen? King David testified in Psalm 84:10:

¹⁰Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked.

Was a doorkeeper in the house of the Lord more desirable to King David than a luxurious life of a king? As king of Israel, David had all luxuries of life he can ask for. King David personally experienced that the Lord sustained his needs so that he had praised and thanked God all the days of his life. The Book of Psalm recorded words of prayers, praises and expressions of gratitude that David had toward the Lord.

Well, no generation can escape difficult struggles. Whether we like it or not, we all face practical or spiritual problems. Everyone has unique personal struggle. Social media had regularly exposed loneliness, confusion or frustration of many individuals.

Loneliness exposes the need for love and joy, confusion exposes the absence of peace, and frustration exposes the need of patience and self-control. Actually, all our needs for love, joy, peace, patience and self-control are readily available in Jesus Christ.

We only need to personally submit and follow his instruction for our betterment.

When Christ actively performs his authority over us—thoughts, desires, passions, decisions and activities – , it results to thankfulness and praise in our hearts, so that, we testify about him. King David personally testified in Psalm 40:1-5, ¹I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry. ²He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. ³He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear the Lord and put their trust in him. ⁴Blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord.

Some scholars suggest that David may have repented remorsefully and waited for the forgiveness of God. When he sensed God’s forgiveness, he praised him.

When we diligently follow Christ—the Way, the Truth, and the Life, we praise and thank God as result; and, that’s a very practical proof that Christ has transformed us.

><((‘> .. ><((‘> … ><(((“> tmec\2022 <‘)))>< … <‘))>< .. <‘))><