Proverbs 6

I hope you had a chance to read Proverbs 6 yesterday?!  I was a great reminder to me that there are things that God approves of and there are things that he hates.  (Yes I said hate - see verse 16.)  I thought we would look at those things today - what does God hate? Let’s start with this:

1) "Arrogant, haughty eyes…"- people who look at others in disgust or in a way that says “i am better than you.”  God has created us equal in his eyes and he wants us to live like that with other people.  This is especially true of Christians who are called to "Love on another”.  Looking down on others in a proud or arrogant way isn’t love.  I had a friend tell me last week his story of how he came to Christ.  #1 reason he went from a good lutheran boy to a atheist was the arrogance and lack of love that people in his church showed him.  #1 reason he opened his heart to the gospel was a couple who decided to love him as Jesus loved them.  
2) "A Lying tongue…" - We don’t talk about this much, but lying is so addicting, and you need to keep doing it to cover up the lies you have already told.  I don’t believe we believe it is a “bad sin,” it’s just a little white lie.  But God hates lying.  Be people of the truth.
3) "Hands that shed innocent blood..." - that’s murder.  God created life and does not give us permission to snuff out a life that he has created.  The trail of pain left when the innocent is taken is sad.  Think o fate years that parents invested into growing up there child just to have the life snuffed out before it even got started.  Or think of the life that is most innocent, the unborn baby in the womb.  God hates murder in any form.  It was God who opened the womb to allow them to get pregnant in the first place, and to murder for convenience because your too young or because you are hiding a sin is wrong - and something God hates.
4) "A heart that devises wicked plans…" There is so much we could say here.  Don’t think of it as the master criminal, but think of it in terms of how you might be planning to cheat your neighbor, or how you are going to get back at your family members who have hurt you.  Beware of making plans that in the end devise wickedness and have evil intent.  Let God’s word check your motives before you begin.  How will you ever share the love of Christ to someone you have systematically chosen to cheat out of something?
5) "Feet that make haste to run to evil…" - Sin is fun! But sin robs us of true joy. The problem is we don’t see that while we are engaged in the practice of sinning.  People who choose sin and evil choose to be outside of the will of God.  And God hates the feet that choose to run to evil and sin.
6) “A false witness who breaths our lies…”  - I get the picture in my mind of a court room and a person who take the stand under oath and blatantly chooses to lie about the events he saw to protect a family member or friend.  In our court system we call it perjury but God calls it sin and it makes his to 7 lists of sins he hates.  As we have already said, lies must build on more lies and often creates a story or scenario that we wished would have happened but in reality, never ever happened.  Bearing a false testimony hurts other people.  Either the innocent who, by your testimony is found guilty, or the guilty who goes free and the innocent or injured are left holding a lifetime of grief and pain at their loss.  God hates this!  We sometimes categorize sins as one being more dangerous and hurtful than others.  I wonder where lying falls in your list?  Twice, in God’s top 7 things he hates, lying has been addressed. God takes this very seriously.
7) “one who sows discord.” - Discord is defined as 1) a unpleasant combination musical notes or 2) lack of agreement between people.  One who sows discord in this text deals with the lack of agreement between people.  God hates those that twist the situation to make it uncomfortable for others, or one who spreads lies and petty jealousy to get others to like them more.  Sadly, we do to much of this in the church.  Sister Francis or Brother Bob doesn’t like the new couple, so they sow discord just enough to run them out of the church and into some other place of worship.  God hates discord, and he hates discord in the church.

Proverbs 6  has much more to say - I hope you had a chance to read it for yourself.  Solomon addresses laziness, and adultery, and listening to the teachings of you parents.  If you missed it, take the five minutes to read it over and take some notes.

Tomorrow - Proverbs 7