Gary Webster: Cheshvan - What the World Needs Now [2024/5785]
Read the transcript below, or watch a video of the teaching by Gary Webster.
Shalom from Jerusalem. Tonight begins the month of Cheshvan. Last week, the Torah scroll was rolled back to Genesis. Barasheet, we will continue reading the book of Genesis for the next several months. As you look back over the last year, do you consider yourself to have made wise choices or foolish ones?
As you look back over the last year, do you consider yourself to have made wise choices or foolish ones? Would you consider yourself a wise person? Now notice, I did not ask if you were intelligent or smart because a high IQ does not equate to wisdom. The Bible has a lot to say about wisdom and folly. The Book of Proverbs, for example, is replete with contrast between the wise and foolish. Here are a few examples: Proverbs 3:35 declares,
"The wise inherit honor, but fools yet only shame."
Proverbs 12:15 states,
"The way of fools seems right to them, but the wise listen to advice."
And Proverbs 14:16 says,
"The wise fear the Lord and shun evil, but a fool is hotheaded and yet feels secure."
These verses reveal the actions of both the wise and the foolish. We are still left to guess, though, what makes one wise. Yeshua (Jesus) shows us clearly in Matthew 7:24-27:
"Therefore, everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, yet it did not fall because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash."
What distinguishes a wise man or woman from a foolish one? The wise person hears Yeshua's words and lives them out; the foolish person hears Yeshua's words but does not act on it. In order to drive home the importance of obeying his words, Yeshua gives us a vivid word picture: two individuals build separate houses. One builds on the rock, and the other builds on the sand. So far, so good; alas, both houses experience the forces of nature. Severe wind and rain pound both homes. One withstands the storm, and the other is destroyed. The one who built on the rock comes through unscathed; that would be the wise man or wise woman. The one who built on the sand is wiped out—the foolish man. Unfortunately, we've seen this scene play out in recent weeks: multiple homes destroyed due to the extreme wind and rain from hurricanes Helen and Milton. Our hearts go out to those who have lost every worldly possession. These homes were built on sand. Could they have avoided such severe loss if they had built their homes on the rock? I believe they would have.
The wise man or woman is not immune to the storms of life, whether they be literal storms or figurative. We cannot control the weather, neither can we control the storms that come into our lives: the death of a loved one, chronic or acute illness, divorce, loss of a job, etc. We can choose how to build and where to build. Spiritually, we have a choice also. We can obey the words of Yeshua or ignore them. What were some of his words and sayings? In chapters 5, 6 and 7 of Matthew, it's revealed to us: He says, "Deal with your anger because it can turn to murder. Do not lust after a woman; it can lead to adultery. Do not divorce your wife or husband. Practice charity anonymously. Pray with the proper intention. Fast for the right reasons. Forgive each other freely. Love your enemy." The list goes on. Tonight, you have a choice to make: Do I continue to live foolishly, or do I live wisely? John 3:16 declares,
"For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved."
Yeshua is God's only begotten Son. Believe in him, obey him, leave folly behind, and embrace wisdom. Rosh chodesh samech