Wise Living - The Path of Gradual Destruction (Proverbs Ch 6:1-19)

Dear brother or sister in Christ, greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. We are continuing our journey through the divine wisdom found in the book of Proverbs, focusing on Pastor Sam Merigala’s powerful "Wise Living" sermon series. Let us delve deeply into the counsel provided by Pastor Merigala in his powerful sermon on Proverbs, "The Path of Folly and Death." Having already seen how sin leads to deep disappointment (Proverbs 5), we now turn to the next level of decline Proverbs Chapter 6. This divine instruction addresses three critical areas where we, as God’s people, are prone to stumble, thereby jeopardizing our financial, physical, moral, and spiritual standing.

Pastor Sam Merigala established that the wisdom literature guides us toward growth and change, revealing both the nature of God and the nature of ourselves, step by step, through God's extreme grace. Proverbs 6:1–19, provides us with an “extreme makeover” fueled by God’s grace, calling us to take steps of faith and repentance in three critical areas of life: responsibility, opportunity, and unity. 

To lead us into positive wisdom the wise father-figure in Proverbs 6 guides us through three negative examples, progressing from a bad example (irresponsible money) to a worse example (laziness) to the worst example (sowing discord). Thus Pastor Sam Merigala reveals that Proverbs 6 deals with three distinct enemies that possess the power to destroy a person financially, physically, morally, or spiritually. It is often the case, tragically, that laziness and lust are tragically linked.

I. The Call to Responsibility: Handling Money (Proverbs 6:1–5)

The first area of life God speaks into is how we handle money, which Pastor Sam Merigala frames as a call to responsibility. The faithful Father begins by addressing his son, cautioning him about the dangers of unwise financial commitments.

The Danger of Surety: "Putting up security" or "giving your pledge" involves the treacherous act of cosigning a loan, putting oneself up as collateral, or underwriting another person’s speculative risk. If the son has already taken this step, he is not merely in danger of becoming ensnared; Pastor Sam Merigala notes that the wisdom of the Scriptures declares, "you’re already ensnared". Even secular organizations warn that the co-signer may have to pay the full debt, including late fees and collection costs, and the creditor may move against the co-signer before attempting to collect from the borrower. If an individual qualified for credit on their own, they would not need the backing of another.

We must recognize that while God commands a culture of generosity, as shown in the Old Testament’s command to loan freely to the poor and cancel debts every seven years (Deuteronomy 15:1–12), God simultaneously does not wish for us to gamble. Furthermore, the Apostle Paul’s action of covering Onesimus’s past debts was not a promise to cover his future debts, which underscores the warning against putting up security for a neighbor in Proverbs 6. When we place our financial future into the hands of someone the banks deem a bad risk, we are acting irresponsibly ourselves and encouraging irresponsibility in the other party.

The Urgent Command for Freedom: The urgency of verses 3–5 demands decisive action to escape the obligation before it is too late. The wise counsel is to grant "no sleep" to the eyes or "slumber" to the eyelids, but rather to save oneself "like a gazelle from the hand of the hunter". Pastor Sam Merigala explained that the Hebrew verb translated "humble yourself" in verse 3 suggests getting down on the ground, allowing the other person to trample over you, admitting foolishness, and enduring humiliation—all to secure freedom. The command to "plead urgently" means to "pester, to badger" until release is obtained.

The Ultimate Surety: Ultimately, the sermon reminded us that every believer is a "bad risk" before God. We rely on Christ, our ultimate surety. As Job cried out, "Be my surety … for who else will pledge himself for me?" (Job 17:3, REB). Through the cross, Jesus not only wrote "Paid in full" across our debt record but also destroyed the ledger in which future debts could be written, setting us eternally "free and clear with God forever" (Colossians 2:14).

II. The Call to Opportunity: Disciplining Ourselves (Proverbs 6:6–11)

The second area of life God addresses is self-discipline, framed in the sermon as an opportunity for action and repentance. Here, the focus shifts to the "sluggard," a person who is sluggish, slow, and hesitant when they ought to be active and forthright. It is notable that the father addresses the sluggard directly but no longer uses the term "son".

The Character of the Sluggard: The sluggard makes the soft choice consistently, forfeiting one opportunity after another until their life becomes wasted. His attitude is encapsulated by the motto, "Don’t rush me." Pastor Sam Merigala identified three characteristics of this type of person, who sadly resides deep inside each of us:

1. Indecision: The sluggard fails to make up his mind, avoiding the direct question, "How long will you lie there? When will you arise from your sleep?" Instead of an honest refusal, he deceives himself by indulging in "an endless sequence of little compromises".
2. Incompletion: When the sluggard occasionally finds motivation, the task proves too much, and the impulse dies. He is so shallow that "it wears him out to bring [his hand] back to his mouth" after burying it in the dish (Proverbs 26:15). He is a shallow person, incapable of sticking with a task through to a strong finish.
3. Excuses: Rather than embracing the challenges of life, the sluggard invents reasons to avoid work. He creates elaborate excuses to avoid reality, claiming, "There is a lion outside! I shall be killed in the streets!" (Proverbs 22:13), when what is actually out there is a life, a job, and a mission for Christ.

Learning from the Ant: The remedy for the sluggard is humiliating: "Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise". The believer, created to rule over creation, must humble himself and learn life from an ant.

Pastor Sam Merigala instructs us on three lessons the ant teaches:

1. Inner Motivation: The ant works "Without having any chief, officer, or ruler". She is self-motivated, with all the drive necessary to make something of her life, and she never ceases.
2. Hard Work: The ant "prepares her bread in summer". She gets the job done without complaint, seeming to love hard work.
3. Future Preparation: She "gathers her food in harvest". The ant works today for tomorrow, getting ahead of the next season of life. We must ask ourselves if we are exploiting today’s opportunities to prepare wisely for the inevitable "winter blast" that is coming our way.

If the sluggard continues to indulge in "A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest," poverty and want will crash into his life with inescapable force, coming upon him "like a robber, and want like an armed man". Pastor Sam Merigala exhorted the congregation to stop making excuses and settling for mediocrity, instead recognize the "huge advantage" they possess in Jesus Christ to accomplish great things for Him.

III. The Call to Unity: Building Community (Proverbs 6:12–19)

The third area of life God addresses is how we build community, which Pastor Sam Merigala presents as the call to unity. This wisdom literature section deals with the most serious bad example - the community-destroyer. As we gain traction in wisdom and diligence, we must anticipate the counterattack of the Devil, whose favorite strategy is to disrupt the unity of the church.

The Worthless Person and Aggressive Sin: The Bible refers to the sneaky, disruptive person as "worthless" (beliyyacal) in verse 12, a Hebrew term meaning "without benefit or profit". This word is used in the New Testament to name the devil himself (Belial). While all believers sin stupidly, this passage condemns those church people who sin aggressively. This individual is a community-destroyer.

This aggressive sin manifests in small, non-verbal ways with huge impact. The worthless person goes about with "crooked speech," "winks with his eyes, signals with his feet, points with his finger," and continually sows discord. These acts—like rolling eyes in disdain toward a leader—are subtle methods used to disrupt fellowship. God views this behavior with intense seriousness, stating that "calamity will come upon him suddenly; in a moment he will be broken beyond healing" (v. 15). Pastor Sam Merigala stresses that God will punish this divisive behavior intensely because "His Son died to bring you together in unity!".

The Abomination of Discord: God’s abhorrence for discord is formalized in verses 16–19, listing six things the LORD hates, and seven that are an abomination to Him. Pastor Sam Merigala explained that when the Old Testament uses the literary device of six // seven, the final item holds the utmost significance.

1. Haughty eyes
2. A lying tongue
3. Hands that shed innocent blood
4. A heart that devises wicked plans
5. Feet that make haste to run to evil
6. A false witness who breathes out lies
7. One who sows discord among brothers

The seventh thing the Lord hates, "one who sows discord among brothers," is the key to understanding the preceding six. God hates haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, etc., because their underlying effect is to sow discord among brothers. "Abomination" means God hates all discord with a passion; it turns His stomach.

Conversely, God delights in unity, for "how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!" (Psalm 133:1). Our unity is prophetic, demonstrating to the world that Jesus is Lord, and that He brings us together in strong and joyous fellowship.