The Older Women Training the Younger, Part 2

Book Recommendations for Christian Growth and Stewardship

0:03 This Adult Sunday School class was held on December 4th, 1988 at the Trinity Baptist Church in Montville, New Jersey. Now for any who may be visiting among us, I think it is in your best interest that I just state that we regard our Adult Sunday School class as a classroom more than as a formal meeting for worship of the people of God and therefore there are certain things we do in the manner of our instruction and sometimes in the substance of it that we believe are appropriate for this context that would not be appropriate in the context of the stated worship. And one of those things is from time to time we take a few minutes in this class to recommend certain books to you as the Lord's people and we believe this is in your interest as those who are desirous of growing in the knowledge of the Word of God and also in the knowledge of the Word of God. And so at this time of the year when many of you engage in the exchanging of gifts and we regard that whole matter as a matter of Christian liberty, you will not hear anyone say that as a Christian you must celebrate the so-called Christmas season and enter into its activities, nor you will hear from this pulpit that it is wicked to do so.

1:26 It comes into the realm of Christian liberty in the realm of regarding certain days. As of peculiar significance and regarding them as unto the Lord or not regarding them. And within that framework of the exercise of your liberty we know that a number of you seek to be good stewards, conscious that even though it is your liberty to exchange gifts with loved ones and children that you must do so as a good steward. And so it is for that reason at this particular time that I have been asked to recommend some books that may help you to be a good steward.

2:02 That may help guide you in seeking to be a good steward of gifts that you may purchase. And if you choose not to remember this season in that way, these books would be of great help to many of you in terms of your own personal growth and development or perhaps just as an expression of Christian concern to one of your brothers or sisters. Now I don't know how to couch my language in more guarded terms so that none of you feels we are pressuring you. Your conscience to be a gift giver at Christmas.

2:36 And there are five books that I want to recommend this morning taking a little more time than I normally do. And the first is what I would call, I've tried to put them in some kind of category, a book of general biblical and historical knowledge. I don't know anything quite like it that I've ever seen called Christian Handbook, a straightforward guide to the Bible, church history, and Christian doctrine. And the author is Peter Jeffery, a servant of Christ who labors in the United Kingdom.

3:09 And in the foreword to this book, there is what I think is the most helpful bit of information given by Professor Douglas Macmillan, who is a dear personal friend of mine, a Scot, who labors in the work of training men for the ministry at the Free Church College in Edinburgh in Scotland. And he writes saying, And he writes saying, And he writes saying, And he writes saying, And he writes saying, This is his latest book and is well fitted to achieve the same aim. The book is unusual, and I concur heartily, in that it combines a brief survey of the Bible and its teaching

4:16 with a short history of the church and an outline of the leading doctrines of the Christian faith. In attempting as much as this, the author set himself a daunting task, but he has accomplished it well. He has given...

4:32 He has given us a work which will be useful, not just to the new Christian convert, but to the student and scholar as well. And it is in those three areas that Mr. Jeffery has written. The first section is on our Bible, how the Bible was written.

4:51 And he deals with the doctrine of inspiration and the transmission of the text, even gives you some lovely photographs here. Here is a picture of a text. Here is a text of the New Testament that dates way back to the 4th century. You'll get an idea of what the copyist had to do.

5:10 And here you'll see the Greek written in what we would call all capital letters with no punctuation. And it has interesting pictures along the way. The second chapter under the Bible, how the Bible was compiled. Very helpful breaking down of the Bible into its major categories.

5:30 From Genesis... to Revelation, the kind of material that will strengthen the faith and understanding of a mature believer as well as help a young believer.

5:41 Then the second major section in which we have an overview of the church. And you really have a thumbnail sketch of church history starting from the apostolic period right down to modern church history. And again, interspersed with some lovely pictures. I've been privileged to stand before that very imposing Reformers' Wall in Geneva, where four of the great men whom God raised up in the Reformation are carved in stone.

6:14 And these kind of photographs are found, or pictures all the way through. Very helpful. And then the last section deals with 16 major biblical doctrines, all the way from God through to regeneration, reconciliation, and the Second Coming. And as I say, I don't know of any book that contains within two covers such a breadth of material.

6:40 There's an excellent thumbnail sketch of church history and S.M. Houghton's sketches of church history. But that's just church history along with interesting photographs.

6:50 On the other hand, you have Bible handbooks that will give you the information in section one. But then they won't give you the basic doctrines in section three. And another very helpful thing is that the Bible has two chapters. And one of the features is, at the end of each major section, he gives a bibliography of four or five of the best works in that area for the average layman.

7:11 And they are all written within a solid evangelical and Reformed perspective. I cannot recommend this book too highly. It would be the kind of thing that some of you, wondering what to do with your children who have been blessed with instruction in the Christian home, the Christian school, a solid Christian church and Sunday school, this is the kind of material, when they get up into their pre-teens, it would be well to have a copy for every member of the household and to work through this in your family devotions. As I say, I just cannot say enough about that book and would highly recommend it.

Doctrinal Book Recommendations: Gospel and Sovereignty

7:45 Then the next two books are what we would call doctrinal books. One dealing with the question, what is the gospel? And the second one, what is the implication of the sovereignty of God to the real nitty-gritty disappointments, frustrations and seeming meaninglessness of the events in our lives at times? And the first is the book by Pastor John MacArthur, The Gospel According to Jesus.

8:14 And basically what Dr. MacArthur has done is to take the teaching of our Lord as found throughout the gospel records and then in his appendix showing that this is consistent with the teaching in the letters of the New Testament, in the epistles, and demonstrates that any notion that saving faith involves merely accepting the facts concerning Christ's redemptive work for sinners, without any submission of the will to Christ, without any subsequent evidence of attachment to Christ, obedience to Christ, that that so-called doctrine of easy believism is nothing short of a perversion of the gospel and the basis of the delusion of the gospel. It is a delusion of multitudes. And for some of you who have been wondering what you could give to relatives who name the name of Christ, who go to churches built on this horrible doctrine, I do not know of anything that I could recommend with greater enthusiasm than this book by Pastor John MacArthur. And it's an excellent book not only because it is so true to the word of God and laid out so clearly, but because John MacArthur...

9:30 John MacArthur is well-known, particularly through his Word of Grace radio broadcast ministry. He has credibility with a number of people in broad evangelicalism, and it would make them disposed to at least consider what he says. Listen to just a few of the titles. Jesus heralds his gospel.

9:51 He calls for new birth. He demands true worship. He seeks and saves the lost. Jesus illustrates his gospel.

10:00 And then he goes through the parable of the soils and of the wheat and the tares. Jesus qualifies his gospel. The call to repentance. The cost of discipleship.

10:11 The lordship of Christ. Tremendously helpful material, and I highly commend it as a means that God may use to help you get the true gospel into the hands of some who are ignorant of that gospel. And then we, as a people, unashamedly, confess our confidence in the doctrine of God's absolute sovereignty. And I have not encountered a book which both establishes that truth more thoroughly from the scriptures and then relates it so practically to the nitty-gritty of life than the most recent book by Jerry Bridges, who works with the Navigators, called Trusting God Even When Life Hurts.

10:56 And his chapter headings. Can you trust God? Can you trust God? Is God in control?

11:03 And then he demonstrates the sovereignty of God in general, and then he breaks it down and demonstrates from passage after passage, particularly using the Old Testament with tremendous insight, God's sovereignty over people, God's rule over the nations, God's power over nature, and then he tackles the whole question of God's sovereignty even over the evil acts of men, while holding men responsible for those evil acts. And then, having laid that solid foundation of God's total, unqualified, absolute sovereignty, he then begins to apply it to where we live. Trusting God for who you are, growing through adversity, choosing to trust God, giving thanks to God always. And it comes out of the crucible, not only of someone concerned to be accurate with the scriptures, but as he indicates, it comes out of some personal wrestlings in recent years. During the time of the study, which actually covered a period of four years, I encountered other believers who were struggling with some of the same issues I was. Does God actually control the circumstances of our lives, or do bad things just happen to us because we live in a sin-cursed world?

12:27 The book then was born out of the results of addressing needs in my own life. And that's what gives it such a very intense pastoral dimension from beginning to end. So those are the two doctrinal books that I would highly commend to you. And then, two books especially for youth, but not kids.

Book Recommendations for Youth: Christian Manhood and General Counsel

12:52 It's very interesting when you take up these two books by Sprague, who was a preacher in the 19th century, in the 1800s. You realize that the educational framework of those days was much more solid than of our days. And these letters to young men ought to be underlined, young men. It's not letters to boys, 7 or 8 or 10 or 11 years old, unless they are unusually precocious.

13:27 But rather, it is letters to men on the threshold of their manhood, underscoring some very, very vital things. And one of the concerns that will be in sharp focus with us as a church, in the special meetings with Pastor McDiarmid that begin on Friday night, is this whole matter of the profile of Christian manhood. And at this particular time, I would urge the men of the church to purchase this book and to begin to read it. The danger from excessive piracy, from excessive parental indulgence, dangers from injurious treatment, the danger of living away from home, danger from living in a corrupt state of society, danger from being suddenly cast into adversity, dangers coming from falling into the possession of great wealth. So those are the great dangers of young men. Then he deals with the character traits that young men ought to pursue. Integrity.

14:26 Integrity in this day? That's like talking about going out and buying a Model A Ford. You might do it if you were collecting cars for museum's sake or an investment, but surely not to be your everyday car. Integrity?

14:41 What's that? Everybody knows that every man's got his price. Every man talks out of three or four sides of his mouth at once. Nobody believes our politicians and their promises.

14:52 Integrity. What's that? Well, it's a vital ingredient of true godliness. Diligence.

14:57 Some of you need desperately this third chapter. Economy. The wise management of our funds. He's talking primarily to single men.

15:05 Laying up in the time of your singleness those patterns of the use of money that will stand you in good stead when you bear the burden of supporting a wife and a family. Another word, just almost laughed at in our day. Dignity. Dignity?

15:23 I mean, this is the blue-jean cult of the ugly day. Dignity? You don't talk about it. Dignity?

15:30 Well, yes, you do. We're image-bearers of God. And that at once demands dignity of any man who is conscious of his identity as an image-bearer of God. And if the whole world wants to thumb its nose at its true identity and join the cult of the ugly, the child of God cannot do it, who is being consistent with his identity.

15:52 Excellent materials and then rewards that crown our glory. A virtuous course. And then he lays out from the scriptures the rewards that come as we pursue those graces and avoid the dangers. Wonderful material.

16:07 I highly recommend it to all of you men. It's the kind of thing that a father having special devotional times with his son, and I hope you fathers do this when your sons especially stand on the threshold of puberty and enter into young manhood, that in addition to family worship, you have special times with your son when you can say, my son, my son, my son, and bare your heart. You could do many things that would not equal the benefit of reading through these letters to your son with him and discussing their contents. And then this is lectures to young people in general.

16:46 And here is advice and counsel given to young men and women as well. And again, it lays out dangers, the danger of evil company, and then the dangers of evil instruction. Obviously written with a view to young men and women going away to college and what they would be exposed to. Excellent material.

17:09 And then he goes on to underscore the danger of living a life of pleasure. Ecclesiastes 11.5 is his basic text. And then there is some powerful evangelistic preaching to young men and women.

17:23 And why they ought to close with Christ early in their life history. And then it goes on to give very helpful counsels to what we would call the believer and his growth in grace. Grow in grace. Let us do good unto all men.

17:41 And a marvelous chapter on what he calls Christian decision. David Simpson is printing this up in tract form. And the word decision is used as a synonym for resolution. Christian resolution.

17:57 And he takes as his text from the three Hebrew children. Be it known unto the old king that we will not serve thy gods nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up. And it is a thrilling exposition and application of that text. And then the final category is what I would call a very specialized book for special people.

Specialized Book Recommendation: Ministry to the Disabled

18:19 And because God has given us as a church in a very special way a stewardship with special people. I would recommend that at least you borrow someone else's copy and read it if you don't purchase it for yourself. It is Johnny Erickson Tada's latest book, Friendship Unlimited. Subtitle, How You Can Help a Disabled Friend.

18:42 And out of her experience of, it hardly seems possible now, almost just about 20 years. Of being a Christian. Of being a quadriplegic. Johnny Erickson Tada writes.

18:53 Laying out very, very practical and helpful guidelines. For how to relate to those special people that God brings into our path who have special needs. And you could sense all the way through the book. She's throwing out the normal terms used.

19:13 She uses in the title disabled. But she's not too comfortable even with that. And as I tried to think of other terms. I said, well, I think the best one is just to say that God has given us some very special friends.

19:27 And special stewardships of people who have special needs. And she's not afraid to tell on herself. She mentions the very humorous incident on one occasion where she was speaking in a given place. As she was about to be wheeled out onto the platform.

19:44 She was chewing on some bubble gum. And she has these leather braces around her hands. And she had to put her bubble gum somewhere quickly. And she has strength in her upper arm.

19:55 But none in her lower arms. And she's able to pull this up with her bicep. And so she pulled up and just stuck her bubble gum on her leather strap. She said, however, in the midst of speaking.

20:07 As she was gesturing a little bit. Suddenly a bunch of giggles began to come from the people in the auditorium. And then when she stopped to consider what they were hearing. To consider what they were giggling at.

20:17 She noticed that she was tied up in a web of bubble gum. That her gum had stuck on her face on a wheelchair. And then she goes on to speak of what is she going to do to get untangled. Well, someone had to help her in that situation.

20:32 And very, very, very helpful material. Many of us, I'm sure, have felt the awkwardness at times of wanting to help. But will my help be considered condescending? How do I offer it in a way that's not condescending?

20:44 She gives specific directions that were both confirming to me. And also helpful in giving me fresh ideas. So I would highly recommend this in the light of the fact that God has given us the stewardship of our special ed class. And trusted us as a congregation with more than an ordinary number of special people with special needs.

21:06 And I've been challenged by her book to pray that God will give us an even greater outreach to those in our community. With those special needs. Who in many situations are just shunted to one side. And people feel uncomfortable with them.

21:22 And just all fingers and thumbs. And this book is most helpful in addressing the ways in which we can be both helpful at the practical level and the spiritual level as well. Well, as I say, we normally don't take that much time. But I spent a number of hours going through these books.

21:43 And even collating what I would say and how I would say it. So I wouldn't take all of the time. And I hope this will help guide you in your general purchase of books. And guide you at this particular time when you may be purchasing more books than you normally would.

Prayer and Rebuke from a Blind Woman's Devotion

21:59 Now then, let us pray and ask the Lord to bless the remainder of our time as we turn to the scriptures. Let us pray. Our Father, we thank you for the privileges that are ours. That are ours living in this part of the world.

22:18 With the tremendous heritage of Christian literature in our own language. Freely printed. Freely distributed. Made available to us at reasonable cost.

22:29 And we pray that this stewardship may be well administered by each one of us. That you would guide us particularly at this time of the year when there are very natural opportunities. To put books into the hands of people as a gift. When they would receive it simply because of the season.

22:49 When in any other time of the year they would be suspicious of it. Help us, O Lord, to seize these opportunities. To be wise as serpents. Harmless as doves.

23:00 Lead us by your Holy Spirit. And then we pray for your blessing upon the remainder of our class time this morning. That you by the Spirit will teach us out of the scriptures. We ask in Jesus' name.

23:14 Amen. In thinking of our privileges, my mind went back to an incident in Johnny's book that greatly rebuked me. She tells of one of her blind friends. Or she heard of a blind person.

23:33 Who so hungered for the word of God that this blind person developed calluses on the fingertips from reading her Braille Bible. Well, when that happened, she began to tear the calluses off. To make the skin more sensitive to the little bumps. You know how people read with Braille.

23:52 They're just little bumps. It's amazing how fast they can read. Then she developed an incurable skin problem. Through tearing off the skin to be able to read the word of God.

24:03 The day came when she was going to give up her Braille Bible. And as she kissed it. To give it up. She discovered she could get the bumps, the impressions on her lips.

24:14 And now she reads her Bible with her lips. And I thought of the expressions of hunger and thirst in the 119th Psalm. And that dear blind soul knew something of it. How many of us even get half a tired eye reading our Bibles.

24:34 To whom much is given, of him shall much be required. So that's why I choose to use the term special people. Because often God gives special grace that rebukes those of us who have many more of our faculties. Well, now we've got to come around.

Recap of Male and Female Roles and the Woman's Primary Sphere

24:50 Full circle to where we left off last week. For you who are visiting with us. We've been studying for some 26 weeks. In the general area of crucial issues facing the people of God in our day.

25:06 And we have focused upon the first of those crucial issues. Namely the issue of male and female roles, relationships, identity, functions, etc. And we have really, I believe, examined. All of the major passages in the Word of God.

25:23 Which in opening them up together have convinced us, I trust. That there is on the broad basis of equality as image bearers. Equality in the fall of Adam. Equality in redemptive privilege.

25:39 There is on that broad basis nonetheless a divinely established male hierarchy. Clearly and succinctly stated in 1 Corinthians. 1 Corinthians 11 and verse 3. And then we have seen that that hierarchy is defined expression in the family.

25:58 Ephesians 5, 1 Peter 3, Colossians 3 and many other subsidiary passages. It's defined expression in the church. 1 Timothy 2, 1 Corinthians 14 and other secondary passages. And in general appearance, demeanor and bearing.

26:16 And that found us back in 1 Corinthians 11 primarily. And then we dealt with the many objections to this teaching. Objections that come from the world. And from within the professing church of Jesus Christ.

26:29 And then after having done that. We have come back to focus upon this issue. Is a woman's place in the home? Is it accurate to say that under ordinary circumstances.

26:43 The primary sphere within which a woman is to glorify God. And to fulfill her calling. Is the domestic. And in answer to that question.

26:54 We have studied the pivotal passages in the word of God. Titus chapter 2. We've looked at 1 Timothy chapter 5 and 6. And then again we have looked at some subsidiary passages.

27:09 1 Timothy the end of chapter 2 and verse 15. And several other portions of the word. And now we are concluding our study of this particular area. By addressing two questions that I promised we would address.

Dangers of a Single Older Woman as a 'Guru' or 'Elderess'

27:23 We took up one of them last week. Namely the question. What is the way or the manner in which. The older women are to train the younger women.

27:35 And as we opened our. She gives her counsel. That in your situation. I think a reasonable schedule would be.

27:44 That you rise at a certain time. And go to bed at a certain time. Now then the danger is. That this woman will say.

27:50 Oh well so and so. And you begin to absolutize the application of the principle. And that's one of the great dangers. If too much of the influence comes from one individual.

28:00 All right. Did someone else have another one. Yes Ken. In some way.

28:05 It might begin to undermine. What the words that come from the pulpit. Because if one woman goes to another. They may see themselves as women.

28:14 And saying well. The pastor may not point out. The pastor may not quite understand. Because I'm a woman.

28:19 But you understand. And begin to say. Well I'll check with that woman. All right.

28:23 This woman then can begin to subtly become an elderess. Who undermines the legitimate authority. Of those whom God has set over his people. And that's not hypothetical.

28:35 I have seen that kind of a situation. And what happens is. People would never say. Well I'm not going to take what the apostle Paul says.

28:42 Because he's a man. Because they have enough respect for apostolic authority. But they'll say. I'm not going to listen to what my elders say.

28:48 They're just men. What do they know? It's a little easier to reject the authority of non-apostles. It doesn't matter of course.

28:56 That they're expounding apostolic doctrine. So you see. It's back again to that recognition. Of the application and exposition of the word of God.

29:06 Through one sent by God. Is the only way in which the Lord is going to confront you. With his son. And with his authority.

29:13 And with his word. And of course. Apart from your actual reading of that word yourself. All right.

29:20 So there's the danger. All right. Any other danger that you can think of. Way on the back row.

29:24 All right. Nate.

29:38 All right. Excellent point. Our brother Nate has said. That in the multitude of counselors.

29:43 There is safety. And as God has chosen to guide his church. By a plurality of elders. And if that wisdom is needed.

29:52 In the guidance of the affairs of the church. Then certainly by. Arguing from analogy. From a parallel situation.

30:00 In the multitude of counselors. There is wisdom. And to just get locked into one person. As our own personal guru.

30:08 Is to cut ourselves off. From that benefit. That is so clearly underscored in the scriptures. Now did someone else have his hand raised.

30:16 Yes Norman. Yes. All right. Insecurity and discouragement.

30:24 Even if the woman were a very eminently godly woman. There's always a danger. If one gets too much perhaps of one example. Of seeing one's own lesser attainments in grace.

30:28 And becoming discouraged. I think that may be particularly troubling for wives. Who need to remember to look. To their husband for approval.

30:32 And not be constantly comparing the amount of dust. On parts of their house. To this other woman. Yes.

30:36 Very good point. I think that's a danger. Yes. Yes.

30:40 Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.

30:44 Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.

30:48 Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.

30:52 Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.

30:56 Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.

31:00 Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.

31:04 Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.

31:08 Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.

31:12 Yes. Yes. Very good point. That she should not be assessing.

31:16 Whether or not she is fulfilling her role. By comparing herself. With another woman. Primarily.

31:20 But under the guidance and tutelage. Of a godly wise realistic husband. in terms of the pride that he has to show that this woman has become an idol. Okay.

31:31 And women basically are rather emotional creatures. And if they should lose their idol, they're all going to turn to the spoke of woman. Okay. All right.

31:40 That there can come a kind of sinful dependence upon this person, and that leaves them vulnerable to a subtle form of idolatry. Let me just mention one other, because I don't want to beat this too thin, but just enough to let you know why we have discouraged this. And it's not been because there hasn't been the desire. There have been younger women who have come to emulate some of the older women in our church, and they have wondered why we as elders didn't put them forward into a more prominent role of giving guidance.

32:14 Well, there are reasons, and you see you're coming up with the reasons. I haven't had to articulate one, though the ones I wrote you have here. And one you didn't, though, was there is then the great danger of disclosing confidences that ought not to be disclosed. That when there is this deep emotional bond with this authority figure, it's very, very easy then to start disclosing confidences in a way that's indiscreet.

32:39 And that can undermine then the husband's confidence in his, we'll see in Proverbs 31, one of the paramount marks of the virtuous woman, the heart of her husband trusts in her. He has confidence. He has confidence that she is not going to be disclosing things that she ought not to people that really have no right to know certain details of that relationship. All right, so I think we've done enough mopping up on that.

Introduction to Proverbs 31 and Interpretive Challenges

33:06 Now let's at least begin to fulfill the second promise, and then I have good news for you. However your appetite is whetted, in the kind providence of God, Pastor Nichols, in his regular series of preaching, is going to be preaching in the morning worship hour, and his main theme, his main text, is going to be Proverbs 31. All right? So I hope I can do two things.

33:28 Save him some introductory work, and then whet your appetite, and then he'll get all the credit for preaching a good sermon. All right?

33:39 All right, Proverbs chapter 31.

33:44 Now, last week I gave you a homework assignment, and the homework assignment was to attempt to find what at least is one of the keys, if not the key, to a responsible handling, of the Proverbs 31 description of the virtuous woman, which begins with verse 10, and continues all the way to the end of the chapter. Now, did anyone think that he or she discovered that key?

34:14 If so, would you be so bold and venturesome as to hold the key up for the rest of us?

34:22 No one discovered the key. All right, Rob? On the surface of it, it seems to me that it's following a pattern that we discussed last week, in the sense that it is the words of King Lemuel, the prophecy that his mother taught him, in that sense, so that maybe that on the surface of it may have some indication of...

34:43 Of what?

34:48 Of what may be a key to opening up the passage. All right. Maybe someone will want to carry on. He's being very safe and guarded.

34:56 He doesn't want to alienate anyone, because he's going to sell you any one of those books you come back with.

35:03 All right. No one? As a matter of fact, these are the words which Lemuel's mother taught him, and so right on the face of it, you can't make the text say something about the way a woman is supposed to express and use her gifts that would make it impossible for her to be giving this kind of careful, in-depth, practical instruction to her children, because that would contradict it on the face of things. King Lemuel's mother is not going to say, look for a woman who won't instruct you the way I'm instructing you.

35:38 I think that whatever we find in the text, we've got to make sure we don't have this woman out and about so much that she can't be teaching her son the way his mom did. You see what he's saying? Whatever we do, we don't want to come up with an idea of the virtuous woman that would preclude her doing the very thing that Lemuel's mother did. And that's certainly true, though that's not the key that I was looking for last week.

36:03 All right, Pastor Nichols? I feel I should say something about this. At this time, the reason being that Proverbs 31 is not going to be the main text. Oh, it isn't?

36:22 Oh. That was my impression when we talked yesterday. Did you change your mind or did I get the wrong impression? Wrong impression.

36:28 Oh, okay. All right. But to say this about the king, Yes. because Proverbs 31 is one of the things, one of the concerns.

36:37 It seems that what his mother is doing is giving him guidance and advice with reference to the exercise. It's kingdom. Because it's king, Lemuel. And she gives a mother's three rules for her son.

36:56 He's to avoid womanizing. He's to avoid drunkenness. And he's to be an advocate for the helpless. And I've thought more than once how good it would be if the rulers of our country would take these things to heart and follow this mother's rules and not be womanizing.

37:14 But then she describes the type of wife that a king should see. And in so doing, she describes this woman in the context of exercising her womanly role and her domestic role in the palace as a queen. And so you have to take the things that she says in the context of the womanizing. And so you have to take the things that a king's wife with the station and responsibilities that the woman has as described in Proverbs 31.

37:51 That's my understanding of the approach that should be taken. All right. You all hear that? Now let's look at the passage.

Exegetical Nuances of Proverbs 31: Authorship and Context

37:58 And had I been dealing with it last week, I would have said amen and gone headlong into it. But the trouble is I did some more reading and it's not quite as airtight as that, though I still lean in that direction. Look at the first words. The words of King Lemuel, the oracle or the burden or possibly, and there's a big debate among exegetes, the whole thing could be translated, the words of Lemuel, king of Massa, which his mother taught him.

38:31 So there's no question that in these opening verses you have what most of the commentators call appendix number two to the Proverbs of Solomon. Appendix number one is chapter 30. The words of Agur, the son of Jaca, the oracle or Jaca of Massa. Now, when you've read everything you can read on the subject, you come up saying we just don't know who Agur was.

38:59 But because this was part of the body of the Old Testament canon existing at the time of our Lord and of the apostles and they put their imprimatur upon this that was included in the Jewish canon of Scripture, we know this is God. Agreed Scripture. And we know it upon the authority of our Lord and his apostles. But in this first appendix then we have chapter 30 and then some commentators call appendix B are the words of King Lemuel, the oracle which his mother taught him and then at verse 10 they speak of appendix C.

39:39 And the reason they do this is that the literary form is radically different beginning with, in verse 10, in that you have what is called an acrostic as each of the sections of Psalm 119 begins with one of the Hebrew letters or letters of the Hebrew alphabet Aleph, Bet, Gimel, Dalet, He, right down through. So these 22 verses starting in verse 10 begin with a different letter in the Hebrew alphabet going right from Aleph all the way down to the end. And, whether that was done as an aid for memory, as a poetic device, so some commentators suggest that what we have in verses 10 to the end of the chapter is a section of wisdom literature the author of which we're not certain who it is. And it may not be that this is an extension of the counsel of Lemuel's mother. But on the other hand, it may well be that it is an extension of her instruction whereas, I'm just not quite as ready to be as dogmatic as I was last week as I read more and more and all commentators who have absolute confidence in the integrity of scripture. I don't read liberal commentators unless there's some real necessity to do so.

41:04 So we're talking about men who have the highest view of scripture. And Pastor Nichols has accurately summarized the initial counsel and it's very clear that she is saying what my son and what O son, my son of my womb and son of my vows, give not thy strength unto women. As she was preparing him for his responsibility as a king, she warns him against the dangers to womanizing which are peculiar to men in places of high-profile political leadership. She warns him about that horrible danger.

41:40 Then she warns about the danger of excessive indulgence in drink. And the selfishness, the self-centeredness that is connected with it. So that's why she says it's not for kings, O Lemuel, not for kings to drink wine nor for princes to say where is strong drink lest they drink and forget the law. Then in verses 6 and 7 rather than sitting around a self-indulgent ruler getting yourself drunk or having a continual buzz with booze be sensitive to those who have a real need for strong drink.

42:16 Namely, those who are ready to die and in great affliction. In other words, be concerned not to use your position for self-indulgence but for service to others. And then the third prong of exhortation is her exhortation for justice, particularly for the helpless. Open your mouth for the dumb, people who don't have a mouth, to speak for their own cause.

42:41 You be their mouth. In the cause of all as are left desolate, open your mouth. Judge righteously. Minister justice to the poor and needy.

42:50 Now that direction is not given to individuals as such. It is given to a man who is a king. So you beware of people who use this verse to justify civil disobedience in the matter of abortion.

43:05 This is one of their favorite texts. It's spoken to a king who has legitimate authority. Now I'm not going into the whole question whether civil disobedience is right for a Christian with regard to abortion. What I'm saying is it's not right to use this text.

43:20 This is not written primarily to ordinary believers as followers of their appointed leaders. It's written to a king. You see that in the context. And it could well be that what we have then in verses 10 to 31 is indeed then the counsels of a mother distilled into poetic form concerning what this man Lemuel is to look for internally.

43:48 In terms of a virtuous woman who will be found in this unique relationship. She is the wife of a king and she lives in a so that the particular virtues are not dealt with so much in abstraction though some of them are isolated and articulated as what we would call generic virtues, honesty, industry. But as the Bible so often does it takes the virtue and it fleshes it out in terms of the context in which that virtue is to be exercised. For example, when Jesus was teaching that his followers are not to have the spirit of saying I'll just do up to the measure of what I'm expected to do and no more. But he says your attitude should be that as a believer you're going to show that you're animated and driven by motives that the world knows nothing about. He doesn't teach that spirit in general terms saying do more than you're asked to do but how did he teach it in the Sermon on the Mount? He says he that would compel you to go one mile go with him two.

45:07 Now what was the context? Well the context was the occupation of the Roman army. And a Roman soldier had the right to conscript anyone as his porter. So at any time a Roman soldier could say to you hey Mac, come here carry my sack for a mile.

45:24 Instead of gritting your teeth and saying one mile let's measure it out and when we come up to the inch that's it. He said you show that you're animated by a totally different spirit. He says carry it one mile and expect you to grit your teeth and curse teeth and curse and instead you say sure soldier I'll carry it two miles. He then looks at you and says what makes you different from the rest of these Jews?

45:47 They hate the fact that they can be conscripted for portals. Well do you really want to know what makes me different? I've come in contact with the rabbi out of Nazareth Jesus and he has done something in my heart and he taught us. Then Jesus says you are what?

46:04 The light of the world the city set on the hill. You see what he did though? He didn't talk in abstractions he took the principle and fleshed it out in the concrete situation. Now it would appear if this is indeed the counsel of his mother distilled into poetic form that what we have is that counsel with peculiar application to the wife of a king who's going to live in a palace.

46:32 And certainly if we don't have that we certainly do have the wife of a woman who is married to a man of some eminence. He is not a commoner or an artisan for we read in verse 23 her husband is known in the gates when he sits among the elders of the people. So here is a man whose ordinary social intercourse is with the leaders of the land so it could well be the king sitting amidst the leaders seeking their counsel and their input or it could be a man of some eminence who is himself a leader an elder in the land who is sitting among his peers. But there are very clear indications in the context if it is not exclusively exclusively the counsel of a mother to her son about seeking a virtuous wife in the context of being wife of a king and living in a palace it is someone in not only that particular cultural context but in a context where we would say she was coming from the upper crust of society and therefore the counsel has to do with what he is to seek what this what this person is to seek in terms of a wife fittingly for that particular setting. Well we've got two minutes to go

Homework Questions for Studying the Virtuous Woman in Proverbs 31

47:59 well let me give you the questions then and if Pastor Nichols doesn't answer any of these in whatever way he uses Proverbs 31 this morning God willing we'll take them up and answer them two weeks from now we have Pastor McDiarmid taking the class next Lord's Day here are the questions question number one what is the foundational virtue of the virtuous woman? When you read through verses 10 to 21 if you had to say what makes this woman a virtuous woman as to the foundation of all the other virtues what is that foundational virtue? Don't answer now but discover it in the passage. Second question what is the dominant sphere of her activity? What is the dominant sphere of her activity?

48:55 And look for the clues in the passage they are right on the surface. Third question who are the people with whom she is unashamedly identified and who rise up to praise her?

49:13 Who are the people with whom she is unashamedly identified and who rise up and praise her?

49:24 Is it the business world? Is it the merchants of sashes or girdles? Is it the local real estate cartel? Or is it the state of her children and her husband?

49:38 You look for the clues. And then fourth question what are the major characteristics of her life? If you had to go through now and say what are the virtues that are described not in abstracts but in concrete duties when it says that she puts her hand to the distaff and to the spinning wheel? What virtue is being highlighted when it says that she stretches out her hand to the needy?

50:05 What virtue is being highlighted? Ask yourself the question what are the major characteristics or virtues of her life? So I leave you with those four questions and hopefully they will help you to go through the passage and to understand its teaching and then you will see I trust that it is perfectly consistent with everything else we have seen in our study of the word of God concerning the distinct roles and responsibilities of men and of women. Let us pray together.

Closing Prayer for Understanding and Application

50:46 Our Father we thank you that we have your word as a lamp unto our feet and a light to our pathway. We thank you that there is much in your word that goes beyond our present understanding that none of us can ever coast and think that we know it all. Lord continue to give us light. Undress our eyes that we may behold wondrous things out of your law and we pray that as we read this passage this week and seek to reflect upon those questions that your spirit will give us understanding and when understanding is given may the same spirit give grace to embrace your ways and to walk in them out of love to the Lord Jesus. Continue then to guide us continue to instruct us we ask these mercies in Jesus name Amen.