Proverbs 9:16 (Mini Sermon)

Click here for the Entire Series and the Outline.

Click here for previous sermon.

Click here for next sermon.

1.      Pro 9:16 – “Whoso is simple, let him turn in hither: and as for him that wanteth understanding, she saith to him,”

1. The message of the foolish woman, who is symbolic of Satan and his religion, begins identically to the message of wisdom who is symbolic of Jesus Christ and His church (Pro 9:4 c/w Pro 9:16).
   1. Satan wants to be like God (Isa 14:14).
   2. Therefore, his message must sound similar to God’s message.
      1. Satan appears as an angel of light and his ministers appear as ministers of righteousness (2Co 11:14-15).
      2. They are deceitful workers (2Co 11:13).
         • Deceitful adj. – Full of deceit; given to deceiving or cheating; misleading, false, fallacious. (As said of things often = deceptive.)
         • Deceit n. – 1. The action or practice of deceiving; concealment of the truth in order to mislead; deception, fraud, cheating, false dealing.
      3. They creep into churches unnoticed because they sound like God’s ministers (Jud 1:4; Gal 2:4).
      4. They steal God’s words and use them to make it sound like they are preaching the word of God to cause God’s people to err (Jer 23:30-32).
      5. As it was with the foolish woman in Pro 9:16, sometimes part of a false prophet’s message is completely true (Act 16:17).
      6. A man with discernment will be able to recognize the spirit behind a false teacher and reject his teaching, even if part of what he says is completely true (Act 16:18).

• Though their message sounds true, there will always be a twist if one listens closely and long enough (Pro 9:17).

1. Let this be a warning that just because one or even a number of sermons of a preacher sound good and true, it doesn’t mean that he is teaching the whole truth.
   1. Satan’s method is to mix truth with error in order to deceive (Mat 4:6).
      • False teachers lie in wait to deceive using sleight and cunning craftiness (Eph 4:14).
        1. Sleight n. – 1. Craft or cunning employed so as to deceive; deceitful, subtle, or wily dealing or policy; artifice, strategy, trickery.
        2. Cunning n. – 5. Now usually in bad sense: Skill employed in a secret or underhand manner, or for purposes of deceit; skilful deceit, craft, artifice.
        3. Craftiness – 1. Skilfulness, cleverness; aptitude in a handicraft. Obs. 2. Artfulness in deceiving or overreaching.
      • They use good words and fair speeches to deceive the hearts of the simple (Rom 16:18).
      • Those “good words” are often the words of scripture taken out of context.
        1. The fact that a man quotes a Bible verse to support his teaching or idea means nothing if he is misinterpreting or misapplying that verse.
        2. Use discernment! Don’t believe everything you hear just because someone quotes a Bible verse!

1. When listening to a teacher, listen to a large sampling of his teaching, and listen carefully for error.
2. Rat poison is mostly edible food with a very small amount of deadly poison mixed in.
3. Satan’s doctrine is often the same way.

1. It is also necessary to examine the fruit (manner of life and conduct) of a teacher, not merely his message, to discern if he is of God (Mat 7:15-20).

1. Whoso is simple, let him turn in hither:
   1. Like wisdom, the foolish woman calls the simple to come into her church.
   2. Simple – B. absol. or as n. a. As pl. Persons in a humble or ordinary condition of life.  2. a. As pl. Those who are unlearned, ignorant, easily misled, unsuspecting, etc.  b. As sing. An ignorant or foolish person.

• The simple are easy targets for deception because they don’t know anything and are foolish.
  1. It’s very easy to deceive the ignorant because they don’t have the knowledge of the truth to recognize when an error is being taught to them.
  2. It’s very easy to deceive the foolish because they don’t the intelligence, sense, and judgment to discern between truth and error.

1. The simple are deceived by slick-talkers which use good words and fair speeches (Rom 16:18).
2. The simple believe everything they hear (Pro 14:15), and are therefore prime targets for false teachers and cult leaders.

1. and as for him that wanteth understanding, she saith to him,
   1. Satan and his ministers target those who lack understanding.
      1. Want v. – 1. a. intr. To be lacking or missing; not to exist; not to be forthcoming; to be deficient in quantity or degree. a. trans. Not to have; to be without, to lack; to have too little of; to be destitute of, or deficient in; to fail to have, or get.
      2. Understanding n . – 1. a. (Without article.) Power or ability to understand; intellect, intelligence. of understanding, intelligent, capable of judging with knowledge. Similarly of some, of no, understanding.
   2. Those who lack intelligence will not recognize when a lie is being taught to them.

• They are also much easier to control once they are part of an organization because they can’t think critically and question things.

1. It is for these reasons that the foolish woman calls out to the simple who lack understanding.
2. This is another reason why it’s so important to get wisdom and understanding (Pro 4:5-6) from the word of God so as to not be deceived by Satan and his ministers.