The Best Question Ever
The other day I read a story in the New York Post titled Sucker! A would-be bank robber walked into a Manhattan bank hoping for a sweet payday — but left with nothing but some hard candy when a quick-thinking teller gave him the runaround, law-enforcement sources told The Post.
The unidentified robber entered the branch at around 10 a.m. Friday and handed the teller a note that read, “I have a bomb. Give me some money now,” the sources said.
March 17, 2013
Eph 5:15-17, The Best Question Ever
Pastor Mary Scheer, Brewster Baptist Church
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But the bank employee was unfazed. “I do not read notes,” Melinda Lewis defiantly responded, and instead handed the thief a Chase withdrawal slip, according to the sources. So the bungling robber — who didn’t even bother to don a mask or gloves — repeated his threat, writing, “I have a bomb” on the slip, and then handed it back.
“Read the note again!” he ordered. But the coolheaded Lewis just instructed the crook to swipe his bank card at the counter, the sources said. Meanwhile, she told her colleague in Spanish that she was being robbed. That apparently was the last straw for the crook.
“Ma’am, I ain’t got no time for this,” the robber groaned, and then grabbed a handful of lollipops from a bowl and fled the scene, the sources said…” What a fool.
Sometimes we learn from our mistakes and other times we don’t.
Take the story of the Titanic. Remember how the builder said he built a ship that could not be sunk? But then it sank after it colliding with an iceberg. An Australian builder is making an exact replica of the Titanic, this time saying he wasn’t going to guarantee it wouldn’t sink. (just so it’s not part of the Carnival Cruise Line!)
We may not have a ship to sink, but we’ve all seen personal shipwreck’s in people’s lives.
Much of my ministry involves pastoral counseling and helping folks through difficult situations. Often we find ourselves in situations that we had no control over, but some of the problems we get ourselves in, involves things we did to ourselves.
This was true in biblical times as well.
There’s Eve of who made the foolish choice to take what wasn’t hers, and Adam of course for joining her. There are the people in Noah’s day who foolishly decided not to listen to his warning of a coming flood. There was Lot’s wife, who had to have one last look, ignoring the angels warning not to turn back. There was Balaam who spoke to his donkey, accusing the donkey of making a of making a fool out of him. (Num. 22:29) Matthew tells the story of foolish bridesmaids who when heading out into the dark night took their lamps with them, but no oil to light the lamps.
Then there was King Saul. (1 Sam. 9) The bible describes him as an impressive young man without equal, a head taller than any of the other. He became Israel’s first King when he turned 30 and reigned over Israel for 42 years. He did well for a long time. But then one day he and his Israelite army went out to war against the Philistines he was supposed to wait for God’s prophet Samuel to offer a sacrifice to God before they started. However, he didn’t and offered the sacrifice before Samuel got there. Because of his disobedience, none of his sons would follow him as king.
After a second disobedience, God also rejected him as king.
After this, the spirit of the Lord departed from Saul and an evil spirit tormented him. He was so distraught that he could not sleep. His attendants held auditions for a music therapist, who could play the harp well and make the king feel better and calm his nerves. Whenever things got bad for the king, he sent for David to come and play for him. And the bible says, “then relief would come to Saul and he would feel better.” (1Sam.16:15-23).
After David’s victory with Goliath, the king’s mental and emotional state deteriorated and jealousy got to him. He plotted to kill David and pursued him for the rest of his life. (1Sam. 18:9-27).
One day as the Philistine army was gathering to fight against Israel, terror filled Saul’s heart.
He tried to talk to God but his heart was blocked. He couldn’t go to the prophet Samuel because he had died. So, Saul told his attendants to get him a woman who is a medium. This was strictly forbidden but in a state of desperation he asked the medium if she would bring the prophet Samuel back from the dead because he needed advice.
The news he got wasn’t good and when the Philistines advanced against Israel they fled into the hills and caves. Saul’s sons were captured and put to death. When he saw they would come for him next, he fell upon his sword and died by his own hand, a foolish and tragic ending for a once noble king.
The next to become King was David, and after that, his son Solomon.
Solomon was described as the wisest man on earth!
He was young when he became king. He showed his love for the Lord by living according to God’s rules. Solomon went to a town to make an offering to God, and that night he had a dream in which God told him he could have whatever he wanted. What is it you want Solomon?
What would you say if God told you he would give you anything you wanted? How would you respond to God’s offer?
You know how when the lottery is going to be really big, you will hear folks talk about what they would do if they won the lottery? I wonder if people in Solomon’s day talked about what they would do if God asked them what they wanted…I would buy my family their own tent and a camel for everyone… How many people today if they were offered the choice between the lottery and wisdom from God would choose wisdom.
Solomon did. He said, “You have shown great kindness to your servant, my father David, because he was faithful to you and righteous and upright in heart. You have continued this great kindness to him and have given him a son to sit on his throne this very day.”
“Now, O Lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David. But, I am only a little child and do not know how to carry out my duties.” Your servant is here among the people you have chosen, a great people too numerous to count to number. So, give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of your?”
The Lord was pleased that Solomon had asked for this. So God said to him, “Since you have asked for this and not for long life, or wealth for yourself, nor have asked for the death of your enemies, but for discernment in administering justice, I will do what you have asked. I will give you a wise and discerning heart, so that there will never have been anyone like you, nor will there ever be. Moreover, I will give what you have not asked for – both riches and honor so that in your life time you will have no equal among kings. And if you walk in my ways and obey my statutes and commands as David your father did, I will give you a long life. Then Solomon awoke and he realized it had been a dream. (1Kings 3: 5-15)
“King Solomon was greater in riches and wisdom than all the other kings of the earth.
As we might imagine things went well for him…at least for the next 7 chapters until we get to 1 Kings 11. That’s where it happened.
He met a woman, or I should say “women”. It says King Solomon loved many foreign women. And they were women from lands that the Lord had told Israelites “you must not intermarry with them because they will surely turn your hearts after their gods. Nevertheless, Solomon held fast to them in love and his wives let him astray.”
“Then the Lord became angry with Solomon because his heart had turned away from the Lord, the God of Israel who had appeared to him twice and had forbidden him to follow other gods. Solomon did not keep the Lord’s commands. So, the Lord said to Solomon, since this is your attitude and you have not kept my covenant and my decrees, which I commanded you, I will most certainly tear the kingdom away from you and give it to one of your subordinates after you die.” (11: 9-12) “Then the Lord raised up against an enemy against Solomon.” (11:14)
No matter who we are, how great our position in life, humans are susceptible to foolishness.
Illustration: I was trying to think if I ever did anything foolish that I could tell you about. As my mind wandered backward, I suddenly realized I had a number of stories to choose from.
There was the time one summer when our family was camping at a cabin in Michigan, and I was out with my dad and my sister in a boat my dad had built. We left the cabin and went way out to a small island we could snorkel around. Once we anchored the boat, you could barely see the area of the shore where our cabin was. After a while, I was cold and got out the water and returned to the boat only to realize it had grown windy and cold. I sat in that boat and tried to decide if I should get back in the water and try to swim around and find my dad and sister, or, swim for shore. I had my lifeguard pin and was a strong swimmer. So, I thought, Oh heck, I’ll go for it. I grabbed a life jacket (I’m not completely stupid), and jumped into the water. I swam and swam. I swam until I was exhausted and had to stop and float. Every time I lifted my head out of the water, the cabin seemed like it got farther away. Remember when I said I wasn’t stupid? It didn’t last long. I made the second brilliant decision that day. I decided my lifejacket was dragging me down and causing me to work harder than I needed to and if I dumped it I could make it to shore faster. (You can’t blame me, you weren’t there, I was tired!). Well, you know what happened. I swam, I did the dead man float…I swam, I floated and continued fighting the wind and the waves for what seemed like hours. I don’t recall how long it actually was but I was in the water for a long, long time. By the time my dad and sister were done snorkeling and exploring the little island we were buoyed by, they realized with a missing life jacked that I swam for home. I did eventually reach shore, and never repeated that mistake again.
In Paul’s letter to the new Christians living in the city of Ephesus, he reminds them that they have a new identity. He told them they don’t have to make the same mistakes they once did. Every day is a new day with new chances to keep reaching to be better. Having been adopted, they are now part of the family of God and while that comes with many benefits, it also encourages us to live in a way that reflects the changes God made in our lives.
Sermon Scripture: This is why the Bible says, “So be careful how you live. Don’t live like fools, but like those who are wise. Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days. Don’t act thoughtlessly, but understand what the Lord wants you to do.”
The difference between foolishness and wisdom is a philosophy and perspective on life.
So, the scripture says, be careful how you live, pay close attention, look ahead to the end conclusion of where your choices will take you.
Ps 92:6 says, “Senseless people do not know, fools have no understanding.”
They live like fools, doing things that are rash, foolish or senseless, acting without reflecting on or gaining the full understanding their actions.
I recently read the best book on making decisions. The author said, many of us have done things we regret, things we wish we could forget. There’s money we wish we hadn’t spent…invitations we wish we hadn’t accepted, relationships we wish we had stayed out of, jobs we wish we had never taken… contracts we never should have signed, and more. He said, “If you are like me, you look back and wonder, How could I have been so dumb? So blind? So foolish?..Some of our bad decisions simply embarrass us. Others scar us. What’s obvious now wasn’t so obvious then… And we think back and wonder, Could I have possibly been that naive? That stubborn? That foolish? Yep.”
We are to, make the most out of every opportunity. It’s not talking about specific day to day time as such, but taking advantage of the times, occasions and seasons in our lives. One study from the Greek New Testament said we are to “see to it that our conduct is accurate with respect to the demands of the Word of God. It is like a motorist accurately following on the right side of the center line dividing traffic.”
Paul told the Ephesians to be careful “In these evil days”
I know that people who say it’s all relevant and that every generation has had its trials and temptations, but I think these days are particularly dangerous. I have never seen so many shows on tv that feature people in every possible destructively inappropriate scenario, doing things I cannot say in a sermon.
And the opportunity to watch, participate in and become destroyed by terrible things comes at people today from a much wider media and technology medium than ever before.
Job asks, “Where then does wisdom come from? Where does understanding dwell? (28:20)
Solomon answers that in Proverbs 2:6, “For the Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.” And says; “Blessed are those who find wisdom and those who gain understanding. (Prov. 3:13)
Where “the fool says in his heart, “there is no God.” (Ps. 14:1)
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” (Prov. 1:7)
James said, “If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. Who is wise among you? Show it by your good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. And how do you know if the wisdom you have is from God? James describes God’s wisdom as first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.” (from James 1:5; 3:13; 3:17)
So, how can we grow in wisdom and learn what the Lord’s will is for us?
By asking the “best question ever!”
The best question we can ask is, “What is the wise thing to do?”
That seems so simple right?
Think back to any choice you made that you later regretted. In light of this question, would you have done something different?
I saw a post on facebook recently where someone said they “want to live, not just survive.” Jesus wanted that for us too. He said in John 10:10 that he wants us to have an abundant life.
We can have that life by filtering our choices and decisions through this one great question, “what is the wise thing to do.”
And, we can ask it in different ways.
“In light of my current circumstances, what is the wise thing to do?”
We can look at our past and ask, “in light of my past experience, what is the wise thing to do?”
Or, “In light of my future hopes and dreams, what is the wise thing to do?”
Asking ourselves this question is a practical way to follow Pauls instructions on living wisely. It’s a way to help us to be careful in the way we live, as those who are wise, thoughtfully discerning and understanding the Lord’s will for us making the best choices of the seasons and opportunities in our lives.
What’s the best question ever? Let’s say it together. “What is the wise thing to do?”
Let’s Pray: Dear Lord, thank you for your words of instruction showing us how to help ourselves by letting your wisdom guide us. We pray for the times when we did things or made choices that were not so wise. There may have been times when foolishness cost us greatly, please help us in those areas. Help us to be grow in our orientation toward wisdom that we might have victory in areas where foolishness would threaten defeat, that we might grow in our faith and walk with you as we pursue your wisdom and your will for us in all the moments and opportunities in our lives. Help us to live as Paul encouraged being careful and understanding, living as those who are wise and making the most of the days you give us. In Jesus name. Amen.
Blessing: (Prov. 3:13-15 & an Irish Blessing for St. Patrick’s Day)
“Joyful is the person who finds wisdom, the one who gains understanding. For wisdom is more profitable than silver, and her wages are better than gold. Wisdom is more precious than rubies; nothing you desire can compare with her.” (Prov. 3:13-15)
May joy and peace surround you, Contentment latch your door, And happiness be with you now and bless you evermore