The Rise and Fall

Text:

Proverbs 24:16:

For a just man falleth seven times, and riseth up again: but the wicked shall fall into mischief.

 

Theme:

The Rise and Fall

 

Introduction:

Proverbs is one of the books of poetry written by Solomon, son of David and King of Israel…the man, who when praying to God and requesting additional resources, asked for WISDOM. One result of this request was believed to be three thousand proverbs written by Solomon of which the book of Proverbs is an excerpt or portion.

• The book, Stanley’s Jewish Church, explains well the book of Proverbs,

“philosophy of practical life. It is the sign to us that the Bible does not despise common sense and discretion. It impresses upon us in the most forcible manner the value of intelligence and prudence and of a good education… It deals, too, in that refined, discriminating, careful view of the finer shades of human character so often overlooked by theologians, but so necessary to any true estimate of human life”

• Proverbs deals with the reality of life
  • As the Master said in John 17:11, “And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.”
  • We have to be in the world, but we must not be OF IT!
• Solomon captures this very reality in our text as he explores a common turmoil in the life of the believer…making mistakes and suffering.
  • The believer finds three conditions that characterize the situation of our text:
    • Fatigue – “Lord, I’m tired!”
    • Frustration – “Lord, I’m sick and tired!”
    • Futility – “Lord, why even bother!”

 

Body:

• Let us look closely at our text:
• “just man”
  • Justification is the judicial act of God, by which he pardons all the sins of those who believe in Christ, and accounts, accepts, and treats them as righteous in the eye of the law.
    • Romans 3:23-24 says, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:”
  • Just for clarity, the Bible explains justification to greater depth:
    • You are not better than God, Job 4:17, “Shall mortal man be more just than God? shall a man be more pure than his maker?”
    • You are not God, Job 9:2, “I know it is so of a truth: but how should man be just with God?”
    • We can’t justify ourselves or each other, Job 9:20, “If I justify myself, mine own mouth shall condemn me: if I say, I am perfect, it shall also prove me perverse.”
    • We live as just people by faith, Romans 1:17, “For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith.”
  • What is good about being a “just man”?
    • Proverbs 20:7, “The just man walketh in his integrity: his children are blessed after him.”
• “falleth”
  • Original Sin – Guilty by association
    • Romans 5:12, “Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:”
  • Sin of Intention – the desire to do it
    • Galatians 5:17, “For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.”
  • Sin of Commission – what you did
    • Romans 3:23, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;”
  • Sin of Omission – what you did not do
    • Luke 6:46, “And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?”
  • Affliction vs. Sin
    • The sinner falls into sin. However, the justified believer in God falls into the affliction of sin.
    • Semantics…perspective…viewpoint…orientation à Regardless, it is critical to the life of the child of God.
      • If we fall into sin, then we are never truly free from sin.
      • If we fall into affliction, then we are merely haunted by our previous doom
        • What use to seal our doom, now tries our acquired victory
• “seven times”
  • Remember the seventh day of Creation, Genesis 2:3, “And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.”
  • Remember the walls of Jericho, Joshua 6:4, “And seven priests shall bear before the ark seven trumpets of rams’ horns: and the seventh day ye shall compass the city seven times, and the priests shall blow with the trumpets.”
  • Remember Elisha’s directions to Naaman to cure his leprosy, 2Kings 5:10, “And Elisha sent a messenger unto him, saying, Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come again to thee, and thou shalt be clean.”
  • Seven denotes perfection and wholeness, Psalms 12:6, “The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.”
  • Remember forgiveness, Luke 17:4, “And if he trespass against thee seven times in a day, and seven times in a day turn again to thee, saying, I repent; thou shalt forgive him.”

“riseth up again”

• A man from the palsy, Mark 2:11, “I say unto thee, Arise, and take up thy bed, and go thy way into thine house.”
• A little girl from the dead, Matthew 5:41, “And he took the damsel by the hand, and said unto her, Talitha cumi; which is, being interpreted, Damsel, I say unto thee, arise.”
• Jesus from the dead, Matthew 28:7, “And go quickly, and tell his disciples that he is risen from the dead”
• Lame man, Acts 3:6, “Then Peter said, Silver and gold have I none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk”
• What about us? – Acts 26:16, “But rise, and stand upon thy feet”

Conclusion:

• Then, why did we ever worry anyway? The Bible gives us our security and comfort!
  • Psalms 46:1 says, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.”
  • John 10:29 says, “My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand.”
  • James 5:16 says, “Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.”
• After we have allowed God to change our life, save our soul, and write our name on the Lamb’s book of life, we can’t stay down when we fall.
  • We realize that God has spared our life at every juncture
    • 2Corinthians 4:8-9 says, “We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed;
  • We realize that we have a charge to keep!
    • 2Corinthians 4:10 says, “Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body.”
    • “A charge to keep I have…a God to glorify…who gave His Son my soul to save… and fitted for the sky”
    • “To serve this present age…my calling to fulfill…may it all my power engage…to do my Master’s will”
  • We realize that we have some risings and some fallings in our life.
    • As Paul said in Philippians 4:12, “I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: every where and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need.”
  • We realize that it all works out for the good!!
    • Romans 8:28, “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.”
• So get up!!!

#119