Proverbs chapter 25. Part of the chapter I want to look at there
is in verse 11 when the Bible reads.
Proverbs 25 verse 11. A word fitly spoken is like
apples of gold and pictures of silver. As an earing of gold and an ornament of fine gold, so is a wise
reprover upon an obedient ear.
Now this talks a lot about here of course you've kind of seen a relationship here between
somebody that is speaking and somebody that is listening. And so there's kind of a conversation
that's taking place here in this passage. I mean somebody's doing some speaking and somebody's
listening, obviously that's a conversation. And what we can first kind of take away from this is
that, you know, our lives are full of conversation if you think about it. We do a lot of talking, you
know, we talk to our friends, we talk to our family, you know, we talk to people at work, we talk to
strangers. And many of the conversations that we have, you know, they're not necessarily sinful,
they're not, there's nothing wrong with them. But really if you were to be honest about it and get
down to it, they really don't have any internal value. And a lot of things that we talk about, we
just talked about during fellowship and, you know, we can think about several conversations that we
had today when we were out for lunch and out soloing. Good conversation, nothing wrong with them,
amusing, you know, past the time, getting to know people. But really those conversations, if we were
to look at them in the light of eternity, we would say, what value did they really add? And that's
not to say that they're wrong, not to say that we should not have those conversations. Those are
good conversations. You know, we could definitely learn things from other people and, you know,
that might not have eternal value. But what I'm trying to point out here is that the Bible does
say that there is a time when what's being spoken has more value than at other times. It's saying
here there are times when what is being said is of great importance. It's something that we have to
give heed to. It's something that we need to listen up and make sure that we take it in and
describes it there as a word fitly spoken. It's a word fitly spoken. So what does it mean there
when it says a word fitly spoken? It's saying that someone is saying something that is appropriate,
right? Someone is saying something that is proper. Someone is saying something in a
given situation that matters and it's something that we have to listen to. It's a word fitly
spoken. You might have heard somebody say something, you know, you might be speaking
to somebody and say, you know what, that's exactly what I needed to hear. What they heard was a word
fitly spoken. And it goes on here and it kind of gives us this picture of what it's like when
somebody comes to you and speaks a word to you that's fitly spoken. It says a word fitly spoken
is like apples of gold and pictures of silver. Now I've tried to figure out exactly what this
means. All right, I was asking some of the guys here today between services too, you know,
whenever I've read this verse it says pictures of silver like a picture, right? That's how the word
is spelled there. Whenever I've ever read it I've always imagined apples of gold in like a picture
or a bowl. I'm probably way off so I'm not going to delve into that but we can definitely still
glean some things about this analogy that's being put in here about what a word fitly spoken is like.
First of all, it's liking it under apples of gold, right? So we could say that it's very valuable,
right? It's something that's very desirable. It's something that we want. I mean it's somewhere
to give you an apple of gold. You'd say, yeah, I'll take that. Why? Because it's of gold. It's
something that's very valuable. And it's further illustrated in verse 12. If you look there in
verse 12 it says an earring of gold and an ornament of fine gold so is a wise reprover
upon an obedient ear. So you see again this earring, this ornament, this apple of gold.
What's being said is of great value. It's something that should be desired. It's something
that we should want. What's being said here, a word fitly spoken, is something that's very valuable.
Notice also that it's a conversation. It's saying that a word fitly spoken is being spoken
to somebody. It's like a reproof. So is a wise reprover of an obedient ear. So there's a
conversation, right? It's a word being spoken and it's upon an obedient ear. In both of these
illustrations we see that they're referring to a conversation that's taking place. And that's why
we have, when we look here it says in that last part of it says as an earring of gold and an
ornament of fine gold so is a wise reprover upon an obedient ear, right? Meaning that somebody's
being reproved. There's a reprover in this situation and that's why it says there hence,
you know, an obedient ear. And that's the title of the sermon this evening, an obedient ear.
It's very important that we have an obedient ear, not just an ear that's ready to hear but
actually an ear that's ready to listen and do what they're being instructed to do. You see it's
interesting here that he didn't say just any old ear. He said it was the obedient ear, right? The
obedient ear is the one that's going to get the earring of gold. It's the one that's going to get
the ornament of fine gold. It's only going to come upon the obedient ear. He didn't say it was going
to come upon just any old ear. It's got to be somebody who has an obedient ear. See, wise reproof
only benefits somebody or it only adorns somebody who has an obedient ear. Now I'm going to have you
keep a bookmark there but I want you to turn to two places in the book of Proverbs. Go to Proverbs
chapter 4 and Proverbs chapter 5. So what is the source of reproof? What is something that
we could, we should make sure that we have an obedient ear towards. If there's going to be,
if we're going to hear reproof somewhere, where are we going to hear it from? Well if you look,
first of all, there in Proverbs chapter 4, look at verse 20. Proverbs 4 20 it says,
my son attend to my words incline thine ear to unto my sayings. So he's saying there,
attend to my words. Those are the things that we're going to receive reproof from.
If you would look at Proverbs chapter 5, he kind of reiterates this another way.
Proverbs chapter 5 verse 1, attend unto my wisdom and bow thine ear to mine understanding. He's
saying incline thine ear, bow thine ear to what? To his words, to his wisdom. So we have here in
somebody that's receiving correction, receiving wisdom, receiving reproof, somebody who has wisdom.
He said there in these verses, notice also, that they were to attend to them. They were to attend
to my words. They were to attend unto my wisdom. Meaning this, like we could think, well attend,
what's another word that might remind of? Well attendance, right? You'd show up for school and
the teacher would take attendance. Here, not here, here, here, not here, right? So when he's
saying here, attend unto my words, attend unto my wisdom, it means don't be absent when it's being
spoken. Don't be absent when we're hearing reproof. Now what's one of the greatest sources
of reproof we'll ever hear from? The word of God. It's the Bible itself. So if we're going to hear
reproof from the Bible, from the preaching of words God, that means we have to be, we have to
attend to it knowing, meaning this, that we cannot be absent from it. When it's time to
read our Bible, you know, and roll call is taken, is it going to be here or not here? It needs to be
here. If we're going to have an obedient ear, if we're going to be somebody that has an ear that's
going to be adorned with wisdom and knowledge and instruction, then we have to make sure we're not
absent when it's time to read the Bible. We have to make sure we're not absent. We have to attend
when it's time to hear the preaching of God's word. That's why it's important to be in church,
so that we can hear the preaching of God's word. We also need to make sure that we're not absent
when reproof comes our way. You know, a lot of times we can be physically present when we're
getting chewed out or told what's wrong or getting straightened out on something. We can be there
physically, but our mind can be just a thousand miles away, you know. We can just start zoning out
and just not really listening to what's being said, and it turns into that teacher and Charlie
Brown, you know. That's all kids hear, right, when we're being reproved sometimes. Because we
just want to get it over with. You just want to get out of there. So we're already, you know,
we're already absent, you know, in mind when the reproof comes. Make sure you're not absent. Make
sure you attend, whether it's Bible reading, whether it's when we're in church, to be in
church to hear the preaching, or perhaps somebody in your life comes to you and says, hey, I want
to reprove you in this area. We need to make sure that we have an obedient ear, one that's
ready to listen and to hear what's being said. You see, it's the Word of God often that brings
reproof, and if you would turn over to Proverbs chapter 2. One of the greatest sources that we're
going to receive reproof from is the Word of God itself. And often even if somebody comes to us in
our life and an individual is speaking to us and they're reproving us, they're using the Word of
God to do it. Oftentimes when we come and sit in church and we're hearing and listening to the
preaching Word of God, we're going to be reproved because the Bible teaches things that sometimes
are contrary to our own nature. You know, we get involved in sin and there's something we aren't
doing that we should be doing, and the Bible gets preached, you know, and it's a source of reproof.
And we shouldn't get upset with the preacher or the individual that's coming to us to reprove us.
We shouldn't in fact get upset at all. But understand that if we have a problem with what's
being taught, if we have a problem with what's being said, we need to examine and understand
and realize something that this is what we have a problem with. Not this guy. You know, you have
a problem with the book, not the preacher. We have to understand something, it's the duty
of the preacher to deliver reproof. Are you there in 2 Timothy? 2 Timothy chapter 4.
2 Timothy chapter 4 and verse 2, the Bible reads, Preach the word, be instant, in season, out of
season, reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. So there here's Paul
telling Timothy the type of preaching that he ought to do. And he says you need to be instant,
in season, out of season, whether it's popular or not, whether people want to hear it or not,
you need to do this. And what is it he was supposed to do? Reprove, rebuke, and exhort.
Now there's a lot of churches out there today that got a third of that right. They got a lot
of exhorting going on. They can exhort people and make them feel good and pat them on the back
and just say, everything's fine. And there's very little reproof, if any at all, there's no rebuke.
But those are the first two things that we were instructed to do as preachers, to reprove and to
rebuke with all longsuffering and doctrine. We have to understand that often it's the duty of
someone, anyone who's getting up and preaching the word of God, or has any kind of authority in
someone's life to instruct from the word of God that it's their duty to do that, to deliver
reproof, not just exhortation, but to actually reprove and rebuke when necessary. Look at verse
one. He says, I charge thee before God and the Lord Jesus Christ. So this was a charge before
God and the Lord Jesus Christ that Paul put upon Timothy. This wasn't something, hey, this wasn't
just that maybe this would be a good idea. Here's a suggestion, Timothy. So this is a charge. This
is something you must do. And if we are people, you know, whether it's a preacher or a parent,
or if we're, you know, supervisors at work or whatever, we have some kind of authority,
it's our job to reprove people. It's something that we've been charged to do.
You know, not just preachers, but others in our lives as well. It's their job to reprove.
I mean, we think of parents, right? That's probably the biggest source of reproof that
we know of, is our parents. We spent so much time with them growing up and we could probably sit
here and just think about time and time again that we were approved or rebuked or, you know, exhorted
by our own parents, right? And that's right, and that's proper, and that's good, and that's the
way it ought to be. The Bible says, here are ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend
to no understanding. You know, that we should listen to our fathers. And thank God if you have
a father that will come to you and give you instruction. You know, that's a blessing, that
if you actually have a father that'll come and take the word of God and open it up and teach you
out of the word of God, and take the time to reprove, and take the time to rebuke, and take
the time to exhort. That's a blessing. Otherwise you end up having to learn a lot of things the
hard way. And it says, attend to no understanding. You might think of another source of somebody
that would bring reproof in our life. Well, that might be like an employer. Perhaps an employer
will come to us and say, hey, you need to get this right. You need to straighten this out. I don't
want to see this again. I mean, I've had that happen. It's not fun, but it's necessary. And what
happens is, you know, either we get it right or we get fired, right? What about other sources?
Friends and brothers in Christ, even. You know, often it's our own duty as a Christian,
just as a brother in Christ, if we see a brother committing sin, to go to him and say, hey, brother,
you know, this isn't right what you're doing. You need to get this right. You need to knock that
off. You need to start doing this. To reprove them, you know, one on one. The Bible says,
I'll read for you Leviticus 19, thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart. Thou shalt in
any wise rebuke thy neighbor and not suffer sin upon him. He says there, thou shalt not hate thy
brother. Then he goes on and says, thou shalt rebuke him, rebuke thy neighbor. So what he's
saying here is that if you don't go and rebuke, if you see your brother, your neighbor, somebody
that needs to be reproved, and you don't go reprove them, it's like you're hating them in
your heart. Thou shalt not hate thy brother in heart. Thou shalt in any wise rebuke them and not
suffer sin upon him. You know, if we see our own brothers and sisters in Christ committing sin,
you know, we should take the time to go to them and gently and rebuke them
and reprove them. And if need be, maybe more sternly, maybe more sharply.
What's another source of people that might reprove us, rebuke us, not just preachers,
not just parents, employees, friends, and brothers in Christ, but even maybe perhaps total strangers.
I've had this happen. A total stranger will see something wrong in a situation that we're
involved with and say, hey, you need to fix that. And, you know, that can be a real hard one to
receive. That can really be a hard one to have an obedient ear for because it's like, you know,
our first reaction is always, well, mind your own business, buddy. You know, who asked you, right?
So I always think about the time when I first moved to Phoenix and I was working two jobs
and I was going out late at night and, you know, working late into the early morning,
delivering pizzas for pizza. Real glamorous, right? And I was driving that Toyota Camry and I had
a taillight that had gone on. I can't remember, I think it was a brake light or it was a,
just one of the taillights that stay on when your headlights are on. And I was delivering pizza to
this kind of a nicer hotel. And I get there and there's all these young guys and they must have
been from out of town because they're all dressed like cowboys. You know, they all got the Wranglers
and the belt buckles and their shirts are tucked in and the cowboy hats and the boots and there
was some big convention that I guess a bunch of cowboys need to come to. I don't know what's going
on. But I pulled up and there was a big circle of them standing up there. I pulled up and I parked
and I was getting out of the car and one of them said, hey buddy, your brake lights out or your
running lights is out. And I knew it. I already knew it was. Like it was something I've been
meaning to get fixed. And I don't know what I said or didn't say or something like that. I must have
given him a look. He's a younger guy. He's younger than me and I'm kind of like, you know, like
everyone's instant reaction. Who asked you? You know, but he was just trying to help me out. You
know, he was just reproving me saying, hey, you got a brake light out, you know. And I don't know
what it was that I did, but he said, hey, you know what, normally when someone does that, you say
thank you. He reproved me for that. He says, you know, thank you is what you say in that situation.
He said something to that effect. And I was like, you know what, you're right. Thanks. Appreciate it.
But it took a minute. It took a minute for me. I had to stop and go, you know what, I'm being a
jerk. This guy's right. So we can see that reproof can come at all sorts, you know, from all different
sources. It might not just come from parents. It might not just come from a preacher. It might not
just come from the word of God. It might come even from somebody like some cowboy standing out front
of a hotel somewhere. You know, you never know where it's going to come from. But if we have an
obedient ear, if we have one that's ready, you know, that's humble and willing to receive the
rebuke when it comes. The Bible says it will be like an ornament of fine gold upon us.
You see receiving rebuke is likened unto being adorned with valuable jewelry. Isn't that what
we read there? He said it was as an earring of fine gold, you know, it was an ornament of fine
gold upon an obedient ear. He's saying like when you receive rebuke, when you're one who can
actually take it, it's like somebody's decorating you with fine jewelry. Now I'm sure a lot of you
guys probably wouldn't object if I pulled out a big gold chain right now and said, hey, I want to
put this around your neck, it's yours, right? No, you might not keep it there after service,
right? I certainly hope you wouldn't let me put an earring on you, right? But you know what,
this is the illustration, obviously. But if I were to come out and just start decking you with gold,
man, you'd be like, hey, all right, start slipping the fingers off, put a grill on you,
you'd be happy, right? You'd be like, this is pretty cool, man. He's loading me up. I got
some riches, you know, I can go pawn this stuff and buy something I really want when we get a
gun or something, right? But do we have that same attitude when reproof comes? Do we have that same
attitude when a rebuke comes from the pulpit, from a parent, from an employer, from a stranger
even, or from a brother and sister in Christ? We should, because the Bible's saying that it'd be
the same thing. You know, receiving that rebuke would just be like me walking up and putting a
big fat gold ring around your finger, or anybody else for that matter. You see, receiving a rebuke
is like it done being adorned with valuable jewelry. Now if somebody's wearing some bling,
right? They got some bling on them, right? It's easy to see. You don't have to look very hard.
You know, usually it stands out and it's very obvious. It's visible to others, right?
And here's the thing, we all know a fool when we see one. It's really easy to tell when there's
somebody that won't receive rebuke. It's really easy to tell when there's somebody that doesn't
have no meaning here, because they don't look that good. Their life is a mess. You know, they're not
adorned with any fine ordinance. You know, they're walking around figuratively and just like rags.
You know, they're all disheveled, they're out of order. You know, their life is just a mess.
And we've probably all known people like this. I mean, I know I've worked in places and worked
alongside guys and I thought to myself, he needs to start doing this, he needs to quit doing that,
he needs to start thinking about this. And I just, I don't say anything to that individual,
because I already know from what I've seen in that person, they can't take it. And we're living
in a generation and we're coming up with people nowadays that are being raised that can just not
take any criticism. It's not even the slightest rebuke. I mean, they just, they, you say something
and they just, they look like a little hurt puppy. You know, and they just, they get offended.
You know, that's not the way it was. And I'll be honest, when I first got saved and got in church,
I mean, I brought a lot of baggage with me. And my pastor, man, I don't know how many times I had to
have him come down on me and say some things and straighten me out in some areas. And really,
I gotta be honest with you. You know, I'm not trying to say that I'm all that in a bag of
chips today. You know, I've certainly got a long way to go. No one's perfect. But really,
when I first started out, my only redeeming quality was that I could take rebuke.
And that was it. That was like the only thing I had going for me, is that at least he can admit
when he's wrong. And he's wrong a lot, you know. So I got, you know, I was able to get some things
right just because of the fact that I was, one, able to admit that I was wrong. You see, it's
saying here that receiving rebuke is like being adorned. It's very visible. The Bible says in
Proverbs 26, Seeest thou a man wise in his own conceit? You can see him. Do you see a man that's
wise in his own conceit? There's more hope of a fool than him. When we see a guy who's so puffed
up and so arrogant and can't be told anything, there's more hope of a fool than him. There's
more hope of a guy that has no idea how to do anything than the guy who thinks he knows how
to do everything. And what is conceit? It's just excessive pride in oneself. It's just someone
who thinks they're just it. They've got it all figured out. It's really just excessive
pride. That's actually the definition of conceit. Because here's the thing, it takes humility to
receive correction. It takes humility to do that. It takes humility to let a cowboy straighten you
out in the parking lot and tell you you've got a brake light out. It takes humility to receive
correction from the pulpit. It takes humility to receive correction from a parent or a brother
and sister in Christ. That's why the Bible says in Proverbs 23, Speak not in the ears of a fool,
for he will despise the wisdom of thy words. It doesn't do you any good to sit there and speak in
the ear of a fool. Speak in the ear of somebody who does not have an obedient ear. You might as
well just speak into the wind. You might as well just talk to the wall. And it goes on and says
they will even despise the wisdom of thy words. They'll even despise what's being said to them.
You know, this is something that we could really apply how soul winning.
When we start to see a fool start to reply, you know, to not speak into his ears, just to move
along as quickly as can. You know, the better we get at that, the better soul winners will be. The
more people that will get saved. I mean, I remember just this last couple, you know,
a week or two ago, I was out soul winning with somebody and I love it when they say they're not
interested and then they want to start telling you why they're not interested, right? But here's the
thing, like, I'm less interested than you are. I'm less interested in hearing why you're not
interested than you are interested in what I have to say. Does that make sense? I hope that makes
sense. But I would be like, say I'm not interested and let me tell you why. And I'm just like,
I don't want to hear why. Have a nice day. You know, I'm not going to sit there and listen and
start reasoning with them. Well, you know, maybe you shouldn't feel that way about this,
that and try to apologize for something happened to their path. I don't know what, because you're
speaking the ears of a fool. And what they'll do is they'll despise the wisdom that's being given
them. You know, it takes real humility to receive correction. It takes an obedient ear.
Now think about this. I love the picture that the Bible uses here about being like someone
putting an earring on you. I've never had an earring, all right? I never plan to get one.
But from what I understand, if you were to go get your ear pierced and have someone put an earring
in, you have to hold very still, right? I mean, you can't just be like flopping around on the
chair like this and the other guy got the gun. I mean, who knows where you end up with an earring?
You know, you can have one. Maybe that's what happens to people today. They have one here,
here, here, here. They have just like, you know, they look like they got in a fight with a BB gun
and lost. It's because, you know, they've been flopping around the chair. No, if you want to
get a piercing right here, you got to hold still and let them do it, right? You have to hold still
and let somebody put that earring on you. That takes submission. That takes humility. That takes
somebody who has an obedient ear. I mean, when we refuse, it sounds like, well, who in the right
mind would refuse any of this? Who in the right mind would refuse an ornament of gold? You know,
who would refuse, you know, fine gold being given to them? I should have had to stay there
in 2 Timothy, but if you're still there, go back to 2 Timothy chapter 4. Well, the Bible is very
clear that there's going to come a time when people are going to refuse this ornament of gold,
when people are going to refuse fine gold. Well, they will not have an obedient ear. They'll have
a different kind of ear. The Bible says in 2 Timothy verse 4, look at verse 3,
for the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but after their own lust shall
they give themselves teachers having what? Itching ears. Not obedient ears. Ears that they want
scratched. They don't care about the fine gold. They just want you to kind of give them a little
earlobe massage and tell them everything's fine, everything's good, God loves you, God's not angry
with you, don't worry about your sin, don't worry about having to get it right, you know,
everyone's going to heaven, hell's really cold, you know, everyone makes it, you know, and so
there's many paths that people out there just they just want that little ear massage, they don't want
somebody putting an earring in it. People only want to hear often what they want to hear. You'd
say, oh that's crazy, who would refuse such a thing? But the Bible makes it very clear
that there will come a time, and I believe we're there, you know, and we've probably been there,
you know, for some time when people just are refusing sound doctrine. You know, I wonder
how many other churches tonight on a Sunday night are packed to the brim right now, or were packed
the brim this morning, and all they did was wave their arms in the air and sing Kumbaya a thousand
times, you know, for like a half hour, you know, the preacher got up and talked about the grace of
God for the 300th time, you know, in a row. Why? Because they have itching ears. They don't want
to come somewhere where someone might actually stand up with the Bible and recruit them and
rebuke them and say you need to get right, you need to get the sin out, you need to get this straight
out in your life. But there are people like that, aren't they? They refuse the gift. They say, no
thanks, I don't want this ornament of fine gold. I don't want the rebuke. I'm not going to have
no beating here. I don't want it. They would be like, it'd be like this, like say if you're married,
you know, and you buy, it's your, you know, your 10th wedding anniversary or whatever,
you buy your wife a real nice expensive piece of jewelry, and you're going to give it to her,
and you give it to your wife, and she opens it up, and it's just glimmering, and she just threw it,
you know. Eh, just threw it in the trash. Didn't want it. They'd say, we'd go crazy. They'd say,
what's wrong with this woman? You know, there's something wrong here. What's, you know, that's
not the proper reaction to have when someone's going to give you a nice gift like that.
But that's the same thing that happens with people when they refuse
correction, when they fuse instruction, when they refuse reproof and rebuke,
when they turn their ear away from it, say, I don't want you to adore me because they're too
prideful. You see, the person who can't take correction is apparent to others. As I said
earlier, it's apparent. You know, we can see it. We can see a man wise in his own conceit.
It's, it's, it's obvious to everybody else but them, and eventually it does catch up with them.
I mean, if we go throughout our lives just refusing instruction, refusing rebuke,
refusing, you know, reproof, just not having an obedient ear, doing things our own way,
not listening to the instruction that's given unto us, not listening to the wisdom that's being
taught us, it all catches up to us. Are you in Proverbs still? If I had you go back there,
but Proverbs chapter 5. Look what it says in Proverbs chapter 5 verse 11. This is when it's
catching up with a guy who didn't want to hear instruction. Verse 11, and thou mourn at the last
when thy flesh and thy body are consumed, and say, how have I hated instruction? He hated instruction
and what happened? His flesh and his body were consumed. Amen. I hated instruction and my heart
despised reproof. Now in the context he's talking about going after a strange woman, and we could
talk about if we were to go into the junior high today, what if after they had their, you know,
their, I don't want to use the word, you know, but, you know, they have their education, you know,
SCX education where they go in there and they teach them how to do this and that and the other
thing, and how to do everything safely, what if we were to have a Baptist preacher follow that up
and go in there and say, hey, it's a sin, it's wicked, God will judge you for it. We'd get laughed
out of there by that class. Those kids would call us a fuddy-duddy or whatever, probably something
a lot worse than that. They wouldn't even let us into school, and people, and even if we got in
there, there'd be kids in there that would scorn at that, they would mock at it. They'd think, are you crazy?
But it catches up to them at the end, doesn't it? And, you know, I've known people, and I'm sure others
have also, that it's caught up to them, and you know what, it's quite literal that their flesh
and their body are consumed, or their life is just a mess just because of that one sin
of fornication. And thou mourn at thy last when thy flesh and thy body are consumed and say, how have I hated
instruction? It's not that somebody wasn't there warning them, it wasn't there that somebody was
trying to teach them and instruct them, it's that they hated it and their heart despised reproof,
and have not obeyed the voice of my teachers, nor inclined my ears to them that instructed me. They
mourn at the last, after the sin, after refusing reproof, that's when the morning comes.
For those that do, a person who can take correction is also apparent to others, isn't it? I mean, we're
going to say, hey, if that guy, we would know if a guy had an ornament of gold upon his ear, you know,
in his Baptist, we would tell him to take it off, right? But, you know, as far as the illustration goes,
we would know if somebody walked in here and they were adorned,
right? Well, just same way, if we see a guy who does have no meaning here,
someone who does receive instruction, somebody who does listen to their teachers, you know,
it's going to be obvious there too, it's going to be very apparent.
One way to tell that that person is the fact that they keep good company.
I mean, you can tell by the people that they run with that these are people that,
you know, they receive instruction, they receive reproof, they have an obedient ear.
The Bible says in Proverbs 15, the ear that heareth, the reproof of life, abideth among the
wise. The one that hears the reproof of the wise, he doesn't abide among fools, he abides among the
wise. He abides among people who have wisdom, he has an obedient ear, he wants to hear instruction,
he goes to the source of it and listens, he abides among the wise, the wise so that he himself can
become wise. Another way we can tell that somebody has an obedient ear or is one who
can receive correction is not only from the company that they keep, but also from the fact
that they have gained knowledge. They're intelligent, they're not stupid. The Bible says,
he that refuseth instruction despises his own soul, but he that heareth reproof getteth
understanding. When we receive reproof, when we receive instruction, we have an obedient ear.
What happens is we get smarter, we get wiser, we learn things without having to learn them
the hard way. So we can tell somebody often if they're the type of person who can receive
reproof because they have at least some level probably of wisdom. They're not making a mess
out of life, they are doing things the right way and they have something that they could
probably teach others as well. You see, people that have become wise that can reprove others,
when they see somebody who's got to a place in their life that can take the Word of God
and come to an individual and reprove another and say, let me show you why you're wrong,
why you need to get this right, why you need to work on this area in your life,
it's more than likely because they themselves have been reproved. It's more than likely because
somebody in their past came to them and said, hey, let me show you where you're wrong and what
you need to get right. That's the person that becomes wise. That's the person who gets
understanding. You see, wisdom is something that comes over time, it's something that is
a cure, it's something that is developed and before it comes and before we can get to that
place where we've got enough wisdom not only, you know, to, you know, as fathers, especially
when those of us that are dads, if we're going to get to the place where we can instruct our own
children, you know, in the meantime we have to be those that are willing to receive reproof.
We have to be people that are willing to receive correction. If we ever want to get to the place
where we can instruct another, where we can reprove another, where we can help another,
we have to be in the meantime willing to receive correction.
And, you know, sometimes it seems like it might be the only thing we have going for us,
as I said earlier about myself. That's really, you know, that's the only thing I had going,
could receive reproof. I didn't feel good, but you know what? Like I said, I haven't gotten to
the place where I'm beyond being reproved by another or straightened out or I can't receive
instruction even today, but I feel like I've got a place now where I can instruct my children,
where I can help another brother or sister out in Christ, help them to learn a lesson,
help them to say, hey, this is where, this is something you need to work on, this is an area
of your life that you need to fix. Why? Because somebody came to me and did the same thing.
And that's the same for all of us. If we're ever going to get to that place in our life,
we have to be willing in the meantime to receive the correction.
If you would, go and turn over to Luke chapter 6, and we were here ready to wrap up in a minute,
but go over to Luke chapter 6. You see, it says there that the ornament of gold,
the fine gold that's put on an ear, that it's an obedient ear. Now, an obedient ear isn't somebody
that just hears. An obedient ear is somebody that takes action. I mean, what good is it to
receive reproof, to receive instruction, if you don't put it into practice? If you don't put those
things that you've learned and been taught, if you don't put them into practice, they won't benefit
you. You have to take action with what you've been taught. Look at Luke chapter 6, look at verse 46.
Jesus said, and why call ye me Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say? Whosoever cometh to me
heareth my sayings, and doeth them. He said, yeah, it's great that you're here to hear them,
but it's a guy that's going to do them. I will show you to whom he is like. He is like a man
which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock. And when the flood arose,
and the stream beat vehemently upon the house, and could not shake it, for it was founded upon a rock.
But he that heareth, and doeth not. The same guy heard. There's two guys here. One heard,
they both heard, but one did and one didn't. So you have to take action. It's not enough just to
hear it, it's not enough just to know it. You have to put it into practice in your life. He said,
and doeth it not is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth,
against which the stream that beat vehemently and immediately fell, it fell, and the ruin of that
house was great. And it's interesting there that what he's talking about is the foundation.
You know, having obedience, having a willingness to receive correction, that is a huge foundation
in the Christian life. The person that can receive correction is going to go places. The person that
can receive correction and put that thing and put it into place, that's the person that's going to
make it. That's the person that's going to be around for decades. That's the person that is
going to accomplish something for the Lord and with their life. Because they're not just going
to get offended one day and cop out, you know, have their spiritual cop out, which is what always
happens with people eventually if they don't have this kind of an attitude. They just sit and they
wait until they have an opportunity to bow out and they usually try to blame somebody else so
that they can look spiritual while doing it. But what we have to do is we have to allow that to
take place. We have to have that foundation of being able to receive correction and to
put it into practice and build that foundation. It's interesting there, he said, call, he said,
call me Lord. It's those that doeth them, those that doeth the things that he said. And what did
he say the doing was when it came to building the house, right? He said build. You know, that's a lot
of work. That's action. Anybody's ever built a house. Anybody's ever done any framing. Anybody's
ever put up a roof on a house or put siding on a house or laid down flooring or set trusses.
That's not easy. That's a lot of work. You know, we had a brother, you were telling us this
afternoon about going out and digging holes for light poles or something like that. That sounds
like hard work, right? It's a lot of digging. It's a lot of laying a foundation. These things are
actions. That's what he likens it unto, like building a house. Digging, laying the foundation,
these are things that require action. And a lot of times I think that people, the reason why people
refuse your proof is because they're being told to do something hard. Because they realize when
somebody comes and says this is where you're wrong, this is what you need to get right,
it's not easy. And that's why they refuse it. Because what they're being asked to do,
what they're being told to do is not easy. It's difficult. It's hard. It's building. It's digging.
It's laying a foundation. It's difficult. They're being told to do something hard and often that's
why people refuse correction, refuse instruction. But people that are willing to do something hard,
people that are willing to take correction, they're saying, you know what, I'm not against
building. I'm all for digging. I'm all for laying a foundation. I'll do whatever it takes.
Someone comes to them and says, this is what you need to do. And they do it. You know, that person
is going to be founded upon a rock. That person is going to have an ornament of fine gold put upon
their ear. You see, an obedient ear, the obedient one, he hears and he does the things that he is
told, right? And what happens? He comes out looking pretty good. People take a look at him and say,
that guy's turned out pretty good. He's got an ornament of gold in his life. He's got an earring
of gold in his life. He's looking pretty good. Why? Because he was obedient ear. Because he
heard the things that he was supposed to do, the things he was supposed to get right,
and then he went out and he did them. Let's go ahead and pray.