Tips for Reading the Book of Proverbs
I’m working on outlining my morning devotions from Proverbs today, and I’m reminded that as I present these Proverbs to our church each day, I’m not just presenting a moral code or a few life hacks. The book of Proverbs is not for us just a religious version of some website with tips for happy living. Jesus is the true Word and Wisdom of God (in a capital “W” sense). Jesus is the embodiment of the book of Proverbs and the wisdom of God. Isaiah 11 comes to mind… Isaiah 11:1–2 | Then a shoot will grow from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots will bear fruit. The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him— a Spirit of wisdom and understanding, a Spirit of counsel and strength, a Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord. (CSB) AND, IN JESUS ARE HIDDEN ALL THE TREASURES OF WISDOM AND KNOWLEDGE! Colossians 2:3 | In him are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. (CSB) So, Jesus should be a significant part of our study of Proverbs. Our study should look different than what could be found in a common Bible commentary on the book of Proverbs. Those resources are about defining words and explaining sentences. That has value. But we are studying God’s word as Christians, saved by the work of Christ and the grace of God. We come to the book of Proverbs not as commentators but as heralds of the gospel seeking to see the full picture, the real truth, the truth that can truly change lives. There are a number of ways we see Jesus and the gospel in Proverbs… The moral instructions in Proverbs function much like the Laws seen earlier in the Old Testament. Romans 7:7 | What should we say then? Is the law sin? Absolutely not! But, I would not have known sin if it were not for the law. For example, I would not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, Do not covet. (CSB) Romans 3:20 | For no one will be justified in his sight by the works of the law, because the knowledge of sin comes through the law. (CSB) Galatians 3:24–25 | The law, then, was our guardian until Christ, so that we could be justified by faith. But since that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, (CSB) The only hope we have of following the wisdom found within Proverbs is Jesus. (By the way, most of Proverbs came through the mind of Solomon who definitely did not live out most of what he knew and said. So, we aren’t just trying to be educated to his level.) 2 Peter 1:2–4 | May grace and peace be multiplied to you through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. His divine power has given us everything required for life and godliness through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. By these he has given us very great and precious promises, so that through them you may share in the divine nature, escaping the corruption that is in the world because of evil desire. (CSB Philippians 4:13 | I am able to do all things through him who strengthens me. (CSB) Titus 2:11–12 | For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, instructing us to deny godlessness and worldly lusts and to live in a sensible, righteous, and godly way in the present age, (CSB) If we are successful at motivating and equipping ourselves and others to be more disciplined, more moral, more ethical, and more financially and relationally responsible without Jesus, then we have just created Pharisees (who were very very good at “the Proverbs”). Philippians 3:4–7 | Although I have reasons for confidence in the flesh. If anyone else thinks he has grounds for confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised the eighth day; of the nation of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born of Hebrews; regarding the law, a Pharisee; regarding zeal, persecuting the church; regarding the righteousness that is in the law, blameless. But everything that was a gain to me, I have considered to be a loss because of Christ. (CSB) Acts 10:2 | He was a devout man and feared God along with his whole household. He did many charitable deeds for the Jewish people and always prayed to God. (CSB) And then the rest of Cornelius’s story… As I go through Proverbs in the next couple weeks preparing these devotions, I’ll come up with additional and more specific Jesus connections, and I’ll share those each day in my daily devotion video as I do.
2024 Southern Baptist Convention & Women in Ministry
Greetings Nacogdoches! Each year, representatives from many churches across the country gather for two or three days for something called The Southern Baptist Convention. At that gathering, representatives (called messengers) review reports, make decisions, and express opinions on wide-ranging subjects. News headlines with varying degrees of accuracy emerge from each gathering, and the most recent gathering, June 2024 in Indianapolis, was no exception. Since that gathering, as is often the case, we’ve heard questions and received media inquiries. So, I thought it might be helpful to our church and community to write a brief article and address some of the questions. I’ll have more to say as our church gathers for worship through the next weeks and months, but my goal is to answer some of the often asked questions here. Of course, if any of our church members have detailed questions, I would be happy to try to answer those more directly. Most questions I’ve heard seem to center on actions the messengers took concerning women serving as pastors. Let me focus our attention there… First, this is not any issue of controversy at First Baptist Church of Nacogdoches. It isn’t now, and it never has been. Just to make certain we had full clarity on this issue, I preached an extensive message and provided an in-depth biblical analysis of the question about a year ago (June 25, 2023). I’ll provide links below to both the video of that message and to a full manuscript of my remarks. In my view, and in accordance with the historical Christian understanding, the Bible always speaks of pastors as men. It does so consistently in both its teachings and in its examples. I won’t repeat here the full biblical analysis I referenced before (please click those links for further information), but that is my firm conviction and understanding of what the Bible clearly teaches. How does that play itself out at First Baptist Church of Nacogdoches? At FBC Nacogdoches, we celebrate, value, and depend heavily on women, their leadership, wisdom, and industry. Our church has many leaders serving in many ways. Both men and women are represented in all areas of our church and church leadership, with the exception of pastor. We have two female ministers on our church staff (and they may very well be the most effective ministers we have). We have basically three leadership teams that help manage the business of our church (finances, personnel, buildings and property). And while I’ve not counted, and we don’t have any kind of quota system, I’m sure at least half of the people on those committees are women. We have a half dozen or more ministry teams that provide guidance and make decisions about many major areas of ministry. Except for the men’s ministry team, those teams are filled with capable and qualified women. Having said that, let me be clear… Our pastor (me) and our three associate pastors (who assist me with my pastoral duties) are men. This isn’t a new feature of our church. This isn’t something we are debating. This isn’t something we believe we can reconsider. We believe it is biblically prescribed. (Again, please visit the links below for a full biblical case.) Further, though… We aren’t mad about this. We aren’t mad at another church. We aren’t looking to argue with anyone about this matter. That is not our focus. We are here to communicate the gospel of Jesus Christ. We are here to love our community with the love of Christ. We are here to honor Christ in the things we say and do. And the Lord has blessed. We are a strong, healthy, growing church that the Lord is using to make an impact for him in families, with college students, and with a growing number of people in the county of Nacogdoches and surrounding areas. We have a strong and growing ministry across racial groups and with those of all ethnicities. What about the actions of the Southern Baptist Convention? It is important to understand that Baptist churches are all independent. We aren’t technically a part of a denomination. The First Baptist Church of Nacogdoches (and all Baptist churches) is an independent church. We own our property. We choose our pastor and staff. We set our budget. We create our calendar. We design our ministries. At FBC Nac, we happily partner with other Baptist churches through the Southern Baptist Convention primarily for the purpose of sending missionaries around the world and supporting graduate schools (seminaries) for the training of ministers. A Baptist church can choose to believe whatever it chooses to believe. A Baptist church can embrace whatever doctrines and convictions it wants to embrace. However, Baptist churches that come together for missions and theological education require a basic set of agreed-upon beliefs to facilitate cooperation. No church wants to send its resources to support missionaries or graduate schools that teach something absolutely contrary to what it believes and teaches. So, when the Southern Baptist Convention comes together each year, their votes do not determine what any church will believe or do. Their votes simply determine the basis of cooperation that churches can expect when they voluntarily send money to be shared for the purposes of missions and education. Each Baptist church can then decide on its own if it desires to cooperate or not cooperate with the other churches for joint mission efforts and theological education. One of the issues that sort of came before the convention this year is the question of whether the Bible’s mandate that pastors be qualified men should be a point of cooperation. I say “sort of” because this has really been a settled issue with the Southern Baptist Convention from the beginning of the convention (150+ years ago). It is clearly stated in the convention’s Statement of Faith. It has been consistently supported and practiced by an overwhelming percentage of churches cooperating with the convention since its inception. And while it is true that over the
