Prayer

Dear Lord, I thank you and praise you for this new day. In this world with devils filled, which threatens to undo me, I cast myself upon you O Lord. You are my rock, my salvation, my only hope. You are my strength, and you are my Saviour. Rescue me, O Lord, from the mighty waters. Please forgive me for my many sins, and lead me in the way everlasting. Please make me to walk in the way of your commands, and to utterly forsake sin. Deliver me, I pray, from this body of death. My soul looks up to you, please feed me now with the daily food of your word. Give us this day our daily bread, give us Christ. I pray in Jesus’ mighty name, Amen.

Reading

Prov 1:10 - “My son, if sinners entice you, do not consent.”

Meditation

Proverbs 1:10 is also a warning against worldly enticements. “My son, if sinners entice you, do not consent.” First question: What does it mean to entice? For a sinner to entice us means, in the words of Pastor Al Martin, that they attempt to lead us into sin by persuasion or subtlety. It means that they will attempt to attract you into sin by offering the hope of reward or pleasure. Satan in the garden of Eden is the original example of this. God had said: “Do not eat of the tree”. As 1 John teaches us, sin is lawlessness, and so Satan tried to entice her to disobey God. He persuaded her, he used subtlety to hide the danger. He made sin look attractive through deception. When a sinner seeks to entice a believer, it always follows the same Satanic pattern. Sin, which is destructive, is made to look attractive – that’s an enticement.

Let me put it this way: enticement is a piece of chocolate mud cake filled with rat poison. We need to be aware of this danger. We live in a world where sinners will try to entice us, and they will not be passive, they will be actively trying to entice us to sin. Solomon knows this, and he warns his son in advance. Expect to face temptations. Be on the look out for them, and especially be aware of the points in your life where you engage with unbelievers.

Be ye doers of the word…

What times during your week are you engaging with unbelievers? Hold those times in your mind now, then consider this follow up question: Do they tempt me to sin? Do my colleagues lead me in to conversations about things that I shouldn’t talk about? Do my school mates lead me into bullying or lazy behaviour? Do my online conversations draw me into sin? Am I having private text messages with anyone leading me into temptation? Do conversations with my unbelieving neighbour entice me into gossiping?

I think that one of the biggest sources of worldly enticement that we face today comes through entertainment media. The movies we watch, the books we read, articles, games, apps, social media contacts, and the list goes on. As a simple word of warning: be careful about what you consume when it comes to entertainment media. Now maybe you don’t see the connection here. Why am I warning you about what to watch when verse ten is talking about sinners enticing us? If we’re watching a movie, we’re not being enticed, we’re just watching a movie, aren’t we? We’re in the privacy of our own home!

In response to that objection, we need to realise that face to face contact is not the only form of communication or influence. When we watch or read something, we are communing in a sense with that person. We are being exposed to the way they think and feel about the world. You read a book by the puritans and, in a sense, you’re taking the puritans to be your companions. You watch a tv series written and produced by unbelievers and, in the same way, you’re inviting those people into your mind and heart. Entertainment media is a powerful tool for the world to use to entice us. As we soak up hours of Netflix, it’s having an effect on us, there’s no question about it.

But what kind of effect is it having? (I hear you ask). Well let me put it this way: Is it helping you to be godly? Hollywood will entice us if it can, and it does shape culture. So, what kind of entertainment media are you allowing into your life today? How much time in our week is it taking up? Does it pass the Philippians 4:8 test? “...whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”

Parents, prepare your children for worldly temptations. That’s what Solomon is doing here, and that’s what we are called to do with our own children, grandchildren, and as we engage with the children in the church as well. Here are a few specific directives for preparing our children for worldly temptations. First, keep the lines of communication open. In our verse, the father is talking to the son. We need to talk with our children. Tedd Tripp has some great material on this in his book “Shepherding a Child’s Heart.” I commend it to you. Secondly, disciple them in the use of the means of grace. Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. Proverbs comes as part of the word of God, and the word is necessary for spiritual development. We must lead our children in family worship, personal devotion, and train them in the diligent use of the public means of grace. Third, use the book of proverbs regularly in discipling children. This book has a special place in the instruction of the young, we ought not to neglect it. Fourth, instruct them to avoid making close friends of sinners. If nothing else, that much is very plain in this passage. SDG.

Prayer of Confession & Consecration

Almighty God, you are worthy to be exalted and glorified. Please forgive me for following after the world’s enticements. On many an occasion, I have simply allowed myself to be led into sinful patterns of thought, speech, and behaviour. Lord God, please forgive me for defiling my own heart, wash me and cleanse me I pray through the blood of the Lord Jesus. And Lord, as I repent, please help me to abide in your word day and night inconstant meditation and thanksgiving. Thank you for your tender loving mercies. Thank you that you have us grace upon grace through our Lord Jesus Christ. I commit my soul into your care, I commit this day unto you, and I ask for your leading and guidance. I pray that you would help me always to see worldly enticements for what they are, and that I would no longer give my consent again. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

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