Episode Transcript
Proverbs 12, verse 13 tonight.
The title of the message tonight is "A Matter of the Lips."
A matter of the lips.
The Bible starts off with the words "the wicked."
The wicked.
The Hebrew word translated "wicked" here comes from the root word that means "to break in pieces."
That's something we don't always look at.
But it means to break in pieces.
Now you look at that terrorist attack in New Orleans today.
Take a vehicle in the name of God and drive it into people and just run them over.
Shoot at law enforcement.
Just murder people in the name of God.
When the Bible says "thou shalt not kill."
That's the wicked.
The wicked break in pieces.
They're very destructive, aren't they?
They're destructive.
Look what the devil's done to our world.
Look what sin has done to our world.
The wicked are to God's creation what a bull is to a china shop.
That's what they are.
They ruin what God created.
You put the wicked in charge, they make a mess out of things.
They just destroy it.
And they do so by their ungodly conduct and their ungodly thinking.
So when you think of the wicked tonight, think of a bull in a china shop behaving completely inappropriate in that shop.
Why?
Because they have no comprehension of the value of the merchandise that they're destroying with their reckless behavior.
They don't value it.
The bull is the ungodly.
The bull is the wicked.
The china is God's wonderful design for us.
And the shop is the world that God has set that design in.
Wicked people are destructive people.
They destroy societies.
They destroy churches.
They destroy homes by walking contrary to God's Word.
And Solomon says tonight that the wicked, this destructive person, look in your text, is snared.
Is snared.
Their wicked life causes them to be snared.
And the word snared here literally means a noose.
So if you were to have a piece of rope and you make a noose out of it and you have the stick for the tension and some steps in it and then the stick goes like that and that noose tightens up around their foot and snares them.
So that's what the word snare here means.
The wicked get ensnared in a noose.
And here's the irony of it.
The wicked, they think that by being wicked they're being free.
This always markets itself as freedom.
While the wicked are the ones who are being snared.
And the righteous are the ones that get set free.
It's completely opposite of what reality is.
The wicked want freedom from all the religious restrictions.
They want freedom from all those no fun commandments in the Bible.
We want to be free from it all.
And they think freedom is being free from God.
But the freer you get from God, the tighter your noose becomes.
God is liberty.
Wickedness is a deceptive snare.
And the wicked, Solomon says, is snared, look back in your text, by the transgression.
By the transgression.
So the wicked person is snared, he's caught in this noose by the transgression.
And the word transgression here literally means the act of revolting.
If you're taking notes.
Revolting.
The Hebrew word that's translated transgression has the idea of separation.
Separation.
In its root form, it has the idea of swelling up.
In the sense of making space between you and something else.
And so this transgression here is the act of revolting.
It's the act of separating yourself from God.
That's the great transgression.
When Lucifer revolted in heaven, he separated himself from God.
He broke away from God.
He went out on his own solo career to go in another direction, to do his own thing.
And when a wicked person revolts from God's righteous authority, he is snared by his separation from God.
Just like an animal being caught in a trap that was set for him.
Now when Lucifer revolted in heaven, it's very fascinating because God described Lucifer's revolt according to Lucifer's words and not according to Lucifer's actions.
Very fascinating.
God is a God of words and he described his revolt by his words rather than his actions.
Isaiah 14 verses 12 through 13a.
Isaiah 14, 12 through 13a.
Listen to this.
"How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning?
How art thou cut down to the ground which did weaken the nations?"
Why?
"For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven.
I will exalt my throne above the stars of God."
God's tracing his failure back to his revolt, back to his words that he said in his heart.
A revolt always starts in the heart and then out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.
So the wicked is snared by the transgression, that revolt, that separation from God which comes, look back in your text, of his lips.
Of his lips.
The words that he speaks.
And this doesn't have to mean the lips of his mouth but also the lips of his heart.
"Thou hast said in thine heart, I will do this and the other."
That's what God said to Lucifer.
So they're ensnared by the transgression of their lips.
The prince of Tyrus was snared by the transgression of his lips.
Ezekiel chapter 28 verses 1 and 2.
Ezekiel 28, 1 and 2.
"The word of the Lord came again unto me saying, Son of man, say unto the prince of Tyrus, thus saith the Lord God, listen now, because thine heart is lifted up and thou hast said, I am a God.
I sit in the seat of God."
Now is that very close to what Lucifer said?
Yes.
I am a God.
I sit in the seat of God.
Do you see the similarity in that concerning a revolt being taking place here?
A separation.
I am a God.
I sit in the seat of God.
This is a man who's flying solo.
Who's separated himself from God's authority.
When an atheist says there is no God, they are saying I am a God.
I sit in the seat of God.
There is no God over me.
That's the transgression of their lips.
It's a revolt.
A very maddening revolt at that.
In the midst of the seas, yet thou art a man and not God, God tells him, though thou set thine heart as the heart of God.
Zephaniah chapter 2 verse 15b, God said he would destroy the city of Nineveh because she quote said in her heart, I am and there is none beside me.
Does that also not coincide with what Lucifer said, I'll be like the most high.
Also what the prince of Tyre said, I am a God or Tyrus rather, I am a God.
I sit in the seat of God and now the people of Nineveh, I am and there is none beside me.
That's what an atheist does too.
There's nobody over me.
There's nobody but us.
We are and there's no one beside us.
There is no God.
All you people just make that stuff up.
They're declaring themselves independent of God.
And here these people are saying I am and there is none beside me.
But you know what God says, I am the Lord, there is none beside me.
So by their words, they're discounting God's words.
Only God has the right to say I am and there is none beside me.
I am, I exist in and of myself.
I am the one true God.
In Acts chapter 12 verses 22 and 23, King Herod was waxing eloquent one day, speaking to the people of Tyre and Sidon.
And boy, when he got through speaking, the Bible says in Acts 12, 22, "And the people gave a shout, saying," here's words again, "saying, It is the voice of a God and not of a man."
Boy, I bet Herod loved that.
He got through speaking, "It's the voice of a God and not of man."
And old Herod's heart lifted up in pride and he thought, "Yes, I am and there is none beside me."
And the Bible says in verse 23, Acts 12, 23, "And immediately the angel of the Lord smote him because he gave not God the glory.
And he was eaten of worms and gave up the ghost."
They said one night in a concert, someone had a sign at an Elvis Presley concert, had a sign that said, "Elvis is the King."
And they said, he said, "No, Jesus is King."
Now I don't believe Elvis.
If he was a believer, he had some big problems.
But you know what, at least if that story is true, at least he had the humility to say that.
Herod, nah, he just let them call him a God and God smote him immediately because he didn't give that attribute to God.
In each case that we just went over, the transgressors spoke words, whether with their lips or with their hearts or embracing the words of others that set themselves independent of God, that revolt, that separation from God.
And again in Herod's case, he heard words that celebrated him as a God, but because he didn't correct those words, he gladly embraced the words and thus he was ensnared by those words of their lips.
In every case, God brought these people to destruction.
And it's very sad, but God brought them to destruction on account of their revolting words.
End 1 Let's talk about the just.
Look back in your text, Solomon says, but the just are the ones who are just.
You can't have a just without a just.
You can't have a just without a just without a just without a just without a just.
And so, I think that's a really important lesson to learn.
I think that's a really important lesson to learn.
And I think that's a really important lesson to learn.
And I think that's a really important lesson to learn.
And I think that's a really important lesson to learn.
Let's talk about the just.
Look back in your text, Solomon says, but the just, and the just and not the wicked who separate themselves from God.
This is the one who does the exact opposite.
One person revolts that separation.
The other person receives, and that's union.
Revolts, separate yourself from God's word, receive, embrace God's word.
And the people who embrace God's word, they are the just.
And they shall not be snared by the transgression of their lips, but instead shall rather, what?
Look in your text, shall come out.
Now, when you step into a snare, you're stepping in a snare.
You're caught in a snare.
You're never caught out a snare.
You're caught in a snare.
But we're born trapped by our sin.
And the just, by not revolting from God's word, but by receiving God's word, they're brought out.
Shall come out means shall be brought out, shall be delivered out.
And so it's the opposite here.
They're going to be delivered out, particularly out of what?
Look back in your text, out of trouble.
Out of trouble.
The wicked are snared in trouble.
And by the way, the Bible says, in the New Testament, Paul said to the Thessalonian church, he described Christ's coming as a day of trouble for the wicked people.
That Jesus would bring tribulation to them that trouble you, and to you who are troubled, rest.
And so the trouble's going to be reversed.
The people who were troubled would get rest.
The people who were troubling would get tribulation.
In other words, he's going to bring them trouble.
They're going to be in trouble.
And so the just come out of trouble.
The wicked are snared in trouble by the words of their lips, but the just are delivered from trouble by the words of their lips.
It's the opposite.
And once again, it's whether by the lips of the mouth or the lips of the heart.
In Romans chapter 10, verse 9 and 10, we're going to look at an example.
We've seen an example of the wicked being snared by the transgression of their lips, by revolting from God's word.
Now we're going to look at an example of the just being delivered out of trouble by receiving God's word, by the righteousness of their lips.
In Romans 10, 9 and 10, it says that if thou shalt confess with thy mouth, not revolt with your mouth.
What's the difference?
Confessing with the mouth is the difference between revolting against God's word or receiving God's word.
To confess with your mouth is to say with your mouth what God says with his mouth.
It's a confession.
Homo lego.
To say the same thing.
And when we confess with our mouth, what?
The Lord Jesus.
And shall believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
We're talking about a confession of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
That we confess with our mouth what God says with his mouth concerning his son.
Not to revolt and say I'm God, I sit in the seat of God, I need no deliverance from God, I want to be free from God, in so doing I'm in trouble, I'm snared.
Realizing that I'm already in trouble because of my sin, I don't revolt against God, I receive God, I believe his word, and with my mouth I say what he says with his mouth.
I come into agreement with God.
That's confession.
Into agreement with God.
And so he says, "For with the heart man believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation."
The just don't transgress the word of God, they confess it.
They don't say in their heart like the people of Nineveh, I am and there is none beside me.
They say in their heart God is and there is none beside him.
They say in their heart I am a sinner.
But God sent the Lord Jesus Christ to die for my sin.
To raise him up from the dead the third day to put my sin away forever.
That's them receiving God's word, not revolting against it.
When the wicked revolt, you know what that is?
It's unbelief.
You can't say I am and there is none beside me, and at the same time believe God is and there is none beside him.
You can't say there is no God and at the same time believe God.
To transgress with your lips is just an act of unbelief.
It's out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaking.
That's all it is.
We are saved by our faith in Christ.
We are condemned by our unbelief.
Jesus said this is the condemnation.
That light is coming to the world and men love darkness rather than light.
They reject God's word.
He says he that believes on him is not condemned, but he that believes not is condemned already.
It's all a matter of our faith or our unbelief in the gospel of Jesus Christ.
And so when the wicked revolt, it's unbelief.
When the just confess, it's what?
It's faith.
That's all this is.
It's not anything to do with the, again, whether the lips of the mouth or the lips of the heart.
All it is is us believing God's word, either revolting or receiving.
What did the Bible say in John 1 concerning Jesus, the word of God?
To as many as receive him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name.
They didn't revolt, we'll not have this man to rule over us.
They received.
Lord, thou art the Christ, right?
My Lord and my God, Lord, to whom shall we go?
Thou hast the words of eternal life.
So the wicked revolt, unbelief, the just confess, faith.
The wicked say I sit in the seat of God because they don't believe that God alone is sovereign over them and they must give an account to him.
Now Jesus said in Matthew 10, verse 32 and 33, "Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven.
But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven."
Now that's both, that is our proverb in Proverbs chapter 12 tonight in a nutshell.
The wicked are snared by the transgression of their lips, the revolt of their lips.
The just on the other hand are delivered out of it, they shall come out.
So whoever confesses Jesus before men, he says, "I will confess him also before my Father in heaven."
At the same time the person that denies me, he says, "I'll deny him before my Father which is in heaven."
Once again, the just are delivered from trouble by the words of their lips, but the wicked are snared by them.
We confess the gospel of Jesus Christ because we believe it.
We're not saved because we confess, we confess because we believe.
Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.
They deny the gospel of Jesus Christ because they don't believe it.
Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.
Again, we're not saved by confessing Jesus before men.
If you ever see those things on Facebook that say, "Jesus said if you confess me before men, then I'll confess you, and if you deny me, I'll deny you, so confess him now and share this post."
Just delete that stuff, that's a bunch of garbage.
Because they're mishandling the word of God, they're perverting the word of God.
Never, never in God's word did someone say, "What must I do to be saved?"
"Well, go find somebody and tell them Jesus is Lord and thou shalt be saved, and thine house."
It's not like that.
But what he's saying is this, it's in a practical sense.
The person that confesses me before men, oh, those men may hate you, those men may stone you, those men may put you in prison, but let me give you this assurance.
Whoever confesses me before men, I'll confess them before my Father in heaven.
I won't be ashamed of them when that day comes.
On the other hand, these people out here denying me, preaching against me, he says, "When that day comes, I'll deny them before the Father in heaven."
There is a consequence for our words.
But Jesus never said, "Go confess me before men to be saved."
The people who are saved confess Jesus before men, but they don't confess Jesus before men to be saved.
Does that make sense?
But what a wonderful, comforting promise we have, that knowing we confess Jesus, we only confess him because we believe him, and because we believe him, we're saved.
We receive the gospel rather than revolt against it.
And there is a practical part to that.
Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks, and we do.
We're not damned by not confessing Jesus before men.
If you never confessed Jesus before men, you would not go to hell.
Now, if you deny Jesus, and, "Oh, there is no Jesus," well, out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.
You don't go confess Jesus before men to go to heaven.
We're not damned by not confessing Jesus before men.
We are damned because we believe not in the Son of God.
And those who deny him don't believe him.
Words, again, convey our heart.
Our heart either agrees with God, or it doesn't agree with God.
And it's so comforting to know that sinners like us are delivered out of trouble by simply coming into agreement with God.
You can call it confession, because if I say the same thing God says, obviously we agree.
You've been in an argument with someone, and you start thinking, "Wait a second, we're saying the same thing."
Really, there's no argument.
Find out you agree after all.
To confess is to agree with God.
To believe God is to agree with God, because you're believing what He believes.
To repent is to come into agreement with God, which is to agree with God.
It's just the act of going from disagreement to, "Now I agree."
Unbelief to, "Now I believe."
Denying to confessing, admitting, however you want to put it.
But whoever confesses Jesus, Jesus confesses them.
I absolutely love that.
We're saved by our agreement with God, by not professing our independence from God's Word, but by confessing our dependence on God's Son.
Whoever confesses Jesus is confessed by Him.
Whoever denies Jesus shall be denied by Him.
The wicked are snared by the transgression of their lips, but the just shall come out of trouble.
Father, we thank You so much for Your Word tonight.
I thank You, Father, for the simplicity of Your Word.
Thank You, Lord, for us coming into agreement with You, Lord, for convincing us that Your Word is truth.
Jesus said, "Sanctify them by Thy truth.
Thy Word is truth."
And Lord, us hearing the Gospel, we acknowledge that it is true.
We confess that it's truth.
We confess Jesus as the Son of God, the Savior who You sent to redeem us, Father, from our transgressions.
And Father, what a comfort to know, Lord, that those who've come into agreement with You, Father, You'll confess and never deny those who receive You are received by You.
We thank you so much in Jesus' wonderful name.
Amen.
