Church Of The Lost Sheep

" Evil plans are an abomination to Jehovah, But pleasant words are pure." Proverbs 15:26 in the Recovery Version [This is the  11th lesson of  this series ] The old book of Proverbs (part of the Jewish Scriptures ) is a treasure chest for God's (Jehovah's) wisdom. It is 31 chapters long, and each one can be read in one sitting, just right for daily readings. In fact, we can read one chapter a day easily if we will just decide to do so. Many wise sayings out there has its origins in Scriptures , so why not go to the source. We might be surprised that many of the things we say or hear are in fact iterations of sayings which were taken from Scriptures. Series on Proverbs -  God's Wisdom Series Anyway, in Proverbs 18, it says: Life and death are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit. And like real fruit, the fruits of our words are both sweet and bitter. Well it can be sour as well. But eventually once our words go out, it is ha...

"Buy truth, and do not sell it; Get wisdom and instruction and understanding." Proverbs 23:23 in the Amplified Version [This is the 26th message in this series ] In this series of lessons we are highlighting two-liner verses from the Book of Proverbs. Jewish Scriptures The Book of Proverbs is a compilation of old sayings of the Old Testament Jewish people. So much of these pearls of wisdom has helped generations of people live good lives. It will be foolish of us not to study these or at least not read them. It is particularly unwise to make mistakes already committed by so many others in history plus not try to learn from their mistakes. So many students say why do they teach such subjects, courses and topics which will have no life application or things that we will not use in our daily life. Yes this is partly true, especially of a few courses of study. But schooling is important. Education is important. Reading is important. Learning is important. Christian Scri...

" Respect and obey the LORD! This is the beginning of knowledge. Only a fool rejects wisdom and good advice." Proverbs 1:7 [This is the 25th message in this series] In this series we are highlighting two-liner verses from the Book of Proverbs. Jewish Scriptures The Book of Proverbs is a compilation of old sayings of the Old Testament Jewish people. This book of old pearls of knowledge still is a great resource and good to read up on daily, as a source of advice and Godly wisdom. New Generation Each new generation is constantly reinventing the wheel so to speak, as they believe that they know more about everything than their parents and the generations past ever did. They may be right but what they are forgetting is that it is their parents and grandparents who invented the internet, texting, emailing, Google, Amazon, Apple, the computer, the microwave, cable TV, fastfood, the ATM, the airplane, the spaceship, the car, the telephone, the camera, cinema, television, ra...

A Mother's Warning "The words of King Lemuel, an oracle that his mother taught him: O my son, O son of my womb, O son of my vows, do not give your vigor to women, or your ways to what ruins kings." Proverbs 31:1-3 [This is the 24th message in this series] In this series we are highlighting two-liner verses from the Book of Proverbs. Motherly Advice This proverb is about a mother's warning to her son. Proverbs 31 is mostly about women, about a man's wife and the mother of his children. It's not Mother's Day, but it could be. It could be Mother's Day everyday if we want it to, but of course it's not. We Were A Child We normally didn't listen to our mothers growing up and sadly for many of us, when she's been long gone, that is the time when we remember her telling us things that we now realize we should have listened to. We were just a child then, but then again even now, we still find ourselves acting like children, some more...

" If you’re dumb enough to call attention to yourself     by offending people and making rude gestures, Don’t be surprised if someone bloodies your nose.     Churned milk turns into butter;     riled emotions turn into fist fights." Proverbs 30:32-33 MSG [This is the 23rd message in this series] In this series we are highlighting two-liner verses from the Book of Proverbs. Asking For It This proverb shouldn't even need to be said but then again, common sense is not really all that common. Calling attention to yourself by saying offensive words, rude gestures, bragging and planning malicious things are not really smart things to be doing. All these when sent out there have a way of 'boomeranging' back and hitting you squarely on the nose. And yes when it does, it will hurt. Butter Butter is traditionally made by churning milk. Meaning milk turns into butter by constant agitation. In the same way, when some...

" Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring." Proverbs 27:1 [This is the 22nd message in this series] In this series we are highlighting two-liner verses from the Book of Proverbs. Arrogant Scriptures tell us that pride goes before destruction. Arrogance comes from pride. And shame is not something in the vocabulary of the arrogant. They are shameless. A typical example is Pharaoh when he failed to acknowledge that the God who is with Moses is the One true God while that the spirits and the gods that his sorcerers and magicians call to are nothing but fakers, counterfeiters and copycats. We see this as well during the time of Jesus, when many teachers of the law and religious leaders who spend all of their time studying about God and the prophesied Messiah did not acknowledge Him when He arrived, He lived and He taught among them, and even as He suffered, died and rose again, just as how it was written and just as they have meticulously stu...

"When you run out of wood, the fire goes out;     when the gossip ends, the quarrel dies down." Proverbs 26:20 [This is the 21st message in this series] In this series we are highlighting two-liner verses from the Book of Proverbs. Busybodies Apostle Paul in one of his letters to the first church in the City of Thessalonica warned them like this: " We hear that some among you are idle and disruptive. They are not busy; they are busybodies." In those days some people have quit working, assuming the Lord was coming back very soon (even though Jesus have said many times that no one knows the day or the hour of His return). So with nothing to do, these people were doing things they ought not to be doing, like putting themselves in the middle of other people's business and gossipping about them. They were supposed to be busy doing God's work and not doing these. Nothing's Changed Times haven't changed one bit after thousands of years. As the w...

"If your enemy is hungry, give him food to eat;     if he is thirsty, give him water to drink." Proverbs 25:21 "In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head,     and the Lord will reward you." Proverbs 25:22 [This is the 20th message in this series] In this series we are highlighting two-liner verses from the Book of Proverbs. Two Two-Liners This is a two-fer, a two in one -- two couplets. We shouldn't separate them as they should go together. Besides, the second couplet doesn't mean anything without the one preceding it. Love Jesus taught His disciples to love their enemies and to pray for those who persecute them. This is the context of that first couplet, real love -- love in action. Anyone can love those who are good to them. It is in loving those who are unlovable is where we see what real love is --  this the very heart of God (God's love). God First Loved Us Loving our enemies is not as hard as...

"The rich and poor have a common bond; The Lord is the Maker of them all." Proverbs 22:2 [This is the 19th message in this series] In this series we are highlighting two-liner verses from the Book of Proverbs. Commonality There is only one race, the human race -- made in the image of God. This is why God looks at every human being the same way.  It does not matter how much or how little one has. God does not look at how much money one makes a year, it doesn't matter to Him what kind of profession one is in, God isn't looking at that or at age, gender, color, height, weight or place of birth. Equal Opportunity  God calls everyone to repentance and to receive His gift of eternal life. He doesn't look at our past or our present condition. He does not see what has been done but rather what could we become. We have talked about this in previous lessons in another series of messages.  It is not right to label Christians as prejudiced, bigots, racists, s...

" All a man’s ways seem right to him, but the LORD weighs the heart." Proverbs 21:2 [This is the 18th message in this series] In this series we are highlighting two-liner verses from the Book of Proverbs. Heart We touched on what's inside a man's heart in a previous lesson in this series. Studying the couplet above brings to mind that time when the Prophet Samuel went to Bethlehem, to Jesse's house to anoint the person chosen by God to be the next king. When Samuel got there, he was looking at the outward appearances of people and trying to guess who could it be that the Lord anointed king. Jewish Scriptures tell us: "But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7 Motives Again, God's ways are not man's ways. In the Message Paraphrase, this couplet...

" Lots of people claim to be loyal and loving,     but where on earth can you find one?' Proverbs 20:6 [This is the 17th message in this series] In this series we are highlighting two-liner verses from the Book of Proverbs. Loyalty In this world, everyone talks about how loyal or how faithful they are but can we really find someone who truly is? People have always been bogged down by worries, by fears, by insecurities, priorities and their own agenda. And even if we can find people who can be loyal, how can we really tell if they truly are? Disciples Jesus, when He started His earthly ministry, He called people to follow Him. And they did. They stayed with Him during the three years that He went up and down the Judean countryside. But when the going got tough, a lot of people left Him. During one of these rough patches, when many of His followers have just left, Jesus asked His 12 closest followers if they were going to leave Him too. Simon...

"Many are the plans in a person’s heart,     but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails." Proverbs 19:21 [This is the 16th message in this series] In this series we are highlighting two-liner verses from the Book of Proverbs. Plans We always seem to have great ideas but on the backend, we really have no clear idea how to make most of them to work. For some, they do have many great plans but really that's all they are, plans. The Lord knows what is in our hearts. And many of what are in there aren't really nice, many of which we wouldn't want to tell our grandmas about (or anyone else). Jeremiah 17:9-10 “The heart is hopelessly dark and deceitful,     a puzzle that no one can figure out. But I, God, search the heart     and examine the mind. I get to the heart of the human.     I get to the root of things. I treat them as they really are,     not as the...

"Congenial conversation—what a pleasure!     The right word at the right time—beautiful!" Proverbs 15:23 MSG [This is the 15th message in this series] In this series we are highlighting two-liner verses from the Book of Proverbs. Discerning In the previous lesson from this series, we have delved deep on discernment We shall continue on with this and look at this gift of the Holy Spirit in action. Words There is an old saying that goes like: Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me. This is actually a common day proverb. It has been around for a long time, but largely inaccurate. [It is human made] Our words have real and lasting power. Words have the ability to build up and the power to tear down. It is a tool and a weapon. What we are now or where we are at, are largely shaped by the words we have said in the past, or the words spoken by others. Joy A good word can encourage. It can lift people up. It can turn someone'...

"A scoffer seeks wisdom yet finds none, but knowledge is easy to the discerning." Proverbs 14:6 TLV [This is the 14th message in this series] In this series we are highlighting two-liner verses from the Book of Proverbs. Discerning In the previous lesson from this series, we touched on discernment. We shall segue right through and talk about this gift of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit of God comes to every believer bearing gifts. These wonderful gifts are available to those who have placed their faith in Christ. Discernment is one of those gifts from God. The second line of this couplet is telling us that knowledge comes easy to the discerning . Meaning Godly knowledge comes naturally, or effortlessly to those who have the Holy Spirit of God. Teachers of the Law Jesus showed us this fact during His clandestine conversation with Israel's teacher, Nicodemus. The great Nic, with all those years of studying Scriptures under his belt and the massive amount of ...

"The life of the godly is full of light and joy,      but the light of the wicked will be snuffed out." Proverbs 13:9 NLT [This is the 13th message in this series] In this series we are highlighting two-liner verses from the Book of Proverbs. Godly In the previous lesson from this series, we touched on joy. We shall segue right through and talk about light and joy. So the first line of this couplet talks to us about the light of the godly (in other translations it says light of the righteous). No one is really godly per se. There is one (Creator) God. Those who know God can be deemed godly to God (or righteous in His eyes), only when He sees the reflection of His Son when He looks at them.  God's Son who clothed Himself in humanity and lived as one of us is the Righteous One (the righteous human). The Son is godly as He is God Himself (God the Word who became flesh, the second person of the Holy Trinity). When believers put their trust on...

" Deceit is in the heart of those who plan evil,  but joy belongs to those who advise peace." Proverbs 12:20 [This is the 12th message in this series] In  this series  we are highlighting two-liner verses from the Book of Proverbs. Plotting Evil Most people do not just start planning to do evil. Some of them got swept into it or most evolved into someone who takes delight in it. Spawn Now people who do plot evil, normally wouldn't look anything like we watch in the movies. They wouldn't look like someone wearing an all black or scary outfit or are all tattoed up or have some other menacing appearance. Sometimes they would look and sound like anyone else, like a nicely dressed gentleman or a nice looking grandma.  But appearances aside, someone who is plotting evil always will be giving birth to deceit -- concealing or misrepresenting the truth. Peace On the other hand, those who advocate for peace or promote love, unity, camaraderie and solidarity has joy...