Life Academy Chapel: The Way of the Wise
by Dan MacLeod
February 21, 2025 · New Life Terre Haute (New Life Fellowship)
Kind: teaching
Scripture: Proverbs 7:7, Proverbs 14:15, Proverbs 22:3, Proverbs 9:4-6, Proverbs 9:13-16, Proverbs 18:2, Proverbs 29:11, Proverbs 12:15, Proverbs 26:3, Proverbs 17:12, Proverbs 9:10, Psalm 19:7, Psalm 119:130, Proverbs 2:10-11, James 1:5, Proverbs 13:20

Source: https://acts238.life/repository/sermons/dan-macleod--the-way-of-the-wise
Published by Acts 2:38 Life from the sermon transcript on that page.
Free to copy and share with attribution.

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Amen, let's give the Lord a hand clap of praise Jesus. We love you We thank you Man you can return to your seats. What's a good day to be in chapel. Amen Amen, and I'm honored to be here with you this morning and we're gonna Jump right in I've got a lot of scripture that I'm gonna read this morning And so we're gonna jump jump right in I want to talk to you today about the way of the wise and It comes from the book of Proverbs I For many years now I've made a practice. I read one chapter of the book of Proverbs every day and So, you know, I'll read the book of Proverbs generally 13 times a year And in my reading over the past a couple weeks I've been drawn by these verses that I'm gonna share with you this morning

And so there's three types of people that we're gonna consider today that come from the book of Proverbs The first one is the wise Won't you say that say the wise Second is the simple And the third is the fool All right, so we're gonna talk about the way of the wise Well, let's let's talk about the simple person first because this is where we all begin So I want you to look at your neighbor and tell him you're simple Now look at your other neighbor and tell them you're simple Now look back at the person who told you that you were simple and say yeah, but you're simple, too This is what Proverbs 7 and 7 says and beheld among the simple ones I discerned among the youths a young man void of understanding This means that you are simple because you are young

The simple person according to the Bible is naive for this reason. It's because they lack experience So you were simple today by virtue of your age If you if you attend life Academy if if you were a student if you were in the Sunday school or the youth group of this church Congratulations, you're simple It's not because there's anything wrong with you necessarily. It's just because you're young and because you're young you're naive And here's the thing about simple people Proverbs 14 and 15 The Bible says that the simple believe every word But the prudent or the wise man looketh well to his going This means that simple people are easily Influenced they believe everything Proverbs 22 and 3 a Prudent man a wise man for seeeth evil and hideeth himself But the simple pass on and are punished The simple person of which lucky you you are

The simple is often short-sighted They lack discernment They don't have awareness of all that is happening around them or how their decisions may impact them in the long-term The Bible said the simple just pass on with no consideration of the evil that is around them The simple person is not wise, but they're not a fool either The outcome of the simple person will be determined by their decisions In Proverbs 9 the Bible shows us that there are two different voices that speak to the simple person verse number four This is talking about the call of wisdom The Bible says who so is simple let him turn and hither and ask for him that wants understanding She speaking of wisdom Wisdom says to him come and eat my bread and drink of the wine which I've mingled and Forsake the foolish and live and go in the way of understanding

Now this would be really easy to do if this was the only voice that called to us But just a few verses later in Proverbs 9 and 13 The Bible speaks of another voice that calls to the simple It says a foolish woman is clamorous She is simple and no with nothing For she sitteth at the door of her house on a seat in the high place of the city She calls the passengers who go right on their way Who so is simple? See the foolish voice also calls out to the simple and it says Let him come in hither and ask for him that wants understanding She says to him and so today if this is what we're certain of Everybody here is simple and we know that there are two voices Calling for our attention one is wisdom and one is the voice of the fool

the question today is this Because Every simple person is a follower The question is who are you following? Are you following the voice of wisdom or are you following the voice of the fool? What's so unique if you were to look up these words in the book of Proverbs if you were to look up the simple the fool and the wise there are Literally dozens and dozens and dozens of verses that speak of these three people There is a fourth the scorn or which we will not consider today But here's what's amazing to me nowhere in the book of Proverbs not one verse Are the simple ever credited as speaking wisdom speaks Foolishness speaks, but the simple never speak Why is this? It's not that the simple do not have a voice it is not that they cannot speak It's that God was trying to communicate to the simple the lesson for you to learn is you must learn to listen

The simple must listen more than they speak and so I say to the simple You must learn to listen more than you speak Let's consider here for a moment these voices that speak to us first the fool The fool was once simple to But is no longer simple because the fool has made some poor choices The fool has rejected wisdom and listened to the wrong voice They're not a fool because they had a poor grade on a test They are a fool because of their attitude towards God and his word The fool knows the difference between right and wrong, but they do not care Here's some scripture for you Proverbs 18 and 2 Fools find no pleasure in understanding, but delight in airing their own opinions a Fool loves to speak but not to listen Or what about this Proverbs 29 and 11? The Bible says a fool uttereth all his mind, but a wise man

Keepeth it in until afterwards This means that the characteristic of a fool is The fool has no filter. They just say whatever they want. They have no self-restraint How many have met people like that before? Yeah, you know you have They have no filter. Whatever comes in their head. They speak That is the trademark of a fool. They uttereth whatever speak what is in their mind Proverbs 12 and 15 The Bible says the way of a fool is right in his own eyes But he the harkeneth under counsel is wise This means a fool is unteachable a Fool is a frustrating person to deal with because they think they know everything and In spite of your experience and your wise counsel They don't listen. They reject advice because the way of a fool is right in his own eyes Proverbs 26 and 3 The Bible says a whip for a horse a bridle for the donkey and a rod for the back of fools

This means that fools always need correction Just as a whip is needed to drive a horse and a bridle to control a donkey The only way you can deal with a fool is to constantly correct them over and over and over and over Now you got to ask yourself how often am I having to be corrected in my life? How often do I speak without restraint? How often am I willing to say what I think but not listen to what somebody else has to say? Am I teachable? Proverbs has so much more we can't read them all because we don't we don't have time today. It would take your entire Friday Here's a few more things the Proverbs say about the fool a Fool spreads slander They speak with the intent to Damage somebody else's character or reputation a fool enjoys doing wrong a fool flaunts themselves a

Fool is reckless in their behavior. They are deceitful in their actions a fool is argumentative ouch Proverbs 13 and 10 20 and 3 27 and 3 a fool is argumentative and Proverbs 15 and 5 a fool rejects discipline and these are but a few of the Dozens of verses that God would give us in the Proverbs to speak of this one who is a fool Again, they are not a fool because they got a bad test grade They are a fool because of their attitude towards God his word and the authority in their lives And so because of this and many more the Bible teaches us that the way Of the fool is dangerous Proverbs 17 and 12 Let a bear robbed of her welps meet a man rather than a fool in his folly This means that it would be better for you to meet a mother bear looking for her cubs

Than to then to meet a fool tangled up in their foolishness And I know you think well that that seems crazy It's a dangerous thing to get between a mother bear and her cubs it is But God said it's even more dangerous for you to allow a fool and their foolishness to influence you So I say who are you following? What voice are you listening to? Hopefully not a fool Because there is another voice we've we've read it already. It's the voice of wisdom It's the voice of wisdom that calls to us and the question is where does wisdom come from? Well, wisdom comes from God and it comes from his word Proverbs 9 and 10 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of Wisdom and the knowledge of the holy is understanding Wisdom according to the Bible Doesn't begin with your textbook though. That's important

this kind of wisdom Begins with an acknowledgement of fear and honor that we have towards the Lord Psalms 19 and 7 the law of the Lord is perfect Converting the soul the testimony of the Lord is sure making wise the simple Do you catch that the word of the Lord makes wise the simple now? Remember what look back at your neighbor. This is where you need to remind them. You're simple So what do you need you need the word of God? Because it is the word of God that makes the simple wise Psalm 119 verse 130 the entrance of thy words giveth light it giveth understanding unto the simple Wisdom comes from the word of God the only way that The simple become wise is By submitting to the word of God learning from the word of God in living the word of God The wise person according to the scripture practices discretion

Proverbs 2 and 10 When wisdom enters into thine heart and knowledge is pleasant under thy soul Verse 11 it says discretion shall preserve thee and understanding shall keep thee Discretion simply means that you live with a caution or an awareness You have a consideration that the decision you make right now Will produce an outcome in your life how I act today will determine what my tomorrow looks like What I say has consequences This is what it means to practice discretion and the Bible says that Discretion comes when Wisdom enters into our heart in wisdom only gets in our heart when the word of God gets in our heart This is why David said thy word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against thee What he meant was it's the word that gives me wisdom so I may walk in the way of the wise

This thing called discretion is the difference between the wise and the foolish It is the thing that helps us know what to do and what not to do how to act and how not to act what to say And what not to say but we must Get wisdom The wise person makes godly decisions because they know what the scripture says In the thing about wisdom James says in James chapter 1 He said if any of you lack wisdom that you can ask it of God and he'll give it liberally This is the prayer request that God will always answer. He won't always Give you more stuff or better stuff, but if you ask for wisdom, he will always give you wisdom And he gives it to you by his word So let's clarify this because to be wise doesn't mean you know everything You are not wise because you know a lot of facts

You are not wise because you scored well on a test though these things do matter Wisdom according to the scripture is not a matter of the mind. It's a matter of the heart It is about your heart being turned toward God and open to his word And so I say today we must consider Because we're simple Not because there's anything wrong with us, but just because we're young You're naive and you lack experience You are simple and as the simple person there are two voices Calling for your attention and competing for your loyalty One is the voice of the fool and one is the voice of the wise and the question today is which voice Are you listening to? Who are you walking with because Proverbs 13 and 20 says? He that walketh with the wise men shall be wise But a companion of fools shall be

Destroyed the simple the fool and the wise I want you to stand with me You three come up here. Help me real quick. Now. I can pick on you because you're my son So you get to be the fool today? I You're not in real life, but Now who wants to be the simple all right you be the simple you get to be the wise one Leave it to the quiz or so this this is the simple I'm over here in the middle bit space a little bit more in the ends go that way a little bit Carson So this is where all of you are not because there's anything wrong with you. Just because you're young You lack experience and there's two voices in your life and in the world On this side there there's the voice of wisdom. It's the word of God

But it's communicated to you through a pastor through leaders through teachers through parents And I listen I know I Know you don't like to hear it sometimes And what do you do you get? argumentative and You have an answer for everything and you don't want to listen to what they have to say because you have something to say But you know what those tendencies are the Bible says those kind of attributes is the voice of the fool and So as we live our lives, there's these voices and if we're not careful We can allow The voice of the fool to pull us this way But the Bible said that the end of this The end of the company of fools is destruction Remember it would be better for you to get between a bear and her cubs Than to hang out with fools and do that foolish stuff

And the bad thing is is that you don't find God over here You find God Over here you find God over here in in the company of the wise now If if you want to be wise the Bible said you have to walk with the wise So you have to consider Who are my influences? What am I listening to what what do I watch? Who do I admire? Paul said it like this He said I'm not the servant of Men but of God and if I serve men, then I don't really serve God What he means is I refuse to be influenced by people. I Will be influenced by God because if I allow my life to be influenced by people that are Unwise and ungodly then I'm not a servant of God So the thing today that I want to probe you to consider is the direction of your life

Which way are you walking if if if we consider the scriptures that we have read today and how we act and How do you respond to a teacher that corrects you about not doing your homework and how do you respond to a parent that? That is challenging you about an an area of discipline or behavior in your life How do you respond when when brother Connor or pastor Andrew or pastor challenges you with the word of God? What do you? Do you have a response and do you get upset and do you have a better opinion and do you want to get argumentative? That's the fool or do you say no? I I know I'm naive I'm simple and what I need is to surround myself with the company of the wise I want to walk with the wise so I too can be wise

So which direction are? You going? Now these voices can come through classmates. They can come through family. They can come through friends They can come through movies. They can come through songs. The question today is this Which voice are? You listening to? Because the Bible said as the simple it's just he's just walking down the street the simple It's just coming to life academy the simple just just coming a new life fellowship The simple is just hanging out with friends as the simple is living as the simple does the Bible says first The voice of wisdom calls out So called out to us cause the hell over here over here come come to my house But but you're calling it, but but the fool the foolish voice is calling out too. So you're calling out I know you guys can be louder than that. Come on

Louder come on louder louder. Come on now Louder you guys are weak so When you have these voices competing for your attention, what do you do? You have to Silence the negative voices And give more space to the positive voices So I want you to want you to consider this now. What what or who? Who are the people? What are the things that the enemy uses as a negative voice of influence in my life? And I want to cut those off Because the only way I can deliver myself from that temptation And that struggle between two voices is to silence the voice As for me I want to listen to the voice of wisdom I want to walk with those who are wise. So I may be wise. Thank you And so I remind you I'm going to read it one more time to the simple

They believe every word But to the wise man he looks to where he is going The wise man perceives the evil and hides himself, but the simple just pass on they're naive They're short-sighted, and they're very gullible This is why it is imperative That as a young person As a child That you walk with those who are wise You let those with more life experience more knowledge more wisdom Guide you and direct you. This is the way of the wise Let's close our eyes. Would you lift your hands right now? Lord Jesus, I thank you for each one that's here today I thank you for their life and how you're moving In them and through them, and I thank you for how they're growing and the knowledge of you and your word But I pray today Lord that the word would cause us to consider the influences of our lives

And our response to the voices of wisdom that you have set in our world I pray Lord that you would help us consider our actions and attitude towards parents and teachers and pastor and leaders that that you use as voices of wisdom to guide us and to direct us and to shape us I pray today Lord that you would deliver us from the way of the fool That you would deliver us from the voice of the fool I pray that you would help us to learn that in this season of our lives We are to listen For it is as we listen We learn And as we learn we grow I pray God that you would raise up through this school and this church an army of young men and women Who are righteous? Who are godly? Who know you and walk with you? I pray that they would be a light in a dark world

I pray they would grow up to be men and women whose lives are Powerfully used for the kingdom of God. I pray they would be bible study teachers and prayer warriors I pray they would be Sunday school teachers. I pray that there would be pastors and missionaries and evangelists that come out of this school And this church god. They are here now But in order that we might know that outcome we must set our lives to walk in the way of the wise So I pray today god that your word Would cause us to consider ourselves That we may walk with those who are wise that we too Can be wise In jesus name And everybody said amen I'm going to give you this list real quick to remind you and then i'm done pastor andrew can come remember The fool loves to speak but not to listen

The fool says whatever they think because they have no filter The fool is unteachable The fool always needs correction The fool is argumentative. They reject discipline. They're careless. They're prideful. They enjoy doing wrong. They talk about other people And the fool His outcome is dangerous So as you go about your friday and the weekend comes And you're hanging out tonight and tomorrow and sunday and when you're at school next week If you find yourself Acting like a fool I hope you remember this this little lesson because that means you are not walking in the way of the wise the wise Do not live like that Now I hope you studied. I hope you get a good test grade, but this is not about your mind It's about your heart It's your attitude towards god. The fool is a fool not because they didn't know they knew but they did not obey

But this is not who you are. It's not who we are This school Our church these leaders Are about setting your life in the direction that you may walk in the way Of the wise amen. Let's give the lord a hand clap of praise