Proverbs 12:1-14

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TALKS FOR GROWING CHRISTIANS

Wisdom in Work

BACKGROUND NOTES



DOCTRINAL POINT(S)

  1. The Proverbs are wise advice for everyday living.

PRACTICAL APPLICATION

  1. Widen your circles of care!

QUESTIONS

  1. Wisdom is the application of _________ to life. It is the ability to live life _____________, and involves good judgment and _________ _______.

  2. Several of the verses in this lesson address the issue of a work ethic. Identify those verses and briefly explain the wisdom lesson regarding personal labor.

  3. In verse 4, what does it mean for a wife to be “the crown” of her husband?

ANSWERS

  1. Wisdom is the application of truth to life. It is the ability to live life skillfully, and involves good judgment and common sense.

  2. Verses 9, 11 and 12 address the matter of a work ethic or attitude toward work. A godly man should not put himself above honest work, even that which is sometimes expected of a servant (v 9). He should first take his work seriously, considering it a higher priority than recreation or entertainment (v 11). He should also earn a living or income scrupulously, and not by tricking or ensnaring those around him (v 12).

  3. The excellent wife is the “crown” of her husband, that is, through her actions and words she brings honor and joy to him, and is not a life-sapping shame to him.

DISCUSS/CONSIDER

  1. Discuss the attitudes and practices that lead to, and help maintain, a righteous work ethic in contrast to the demands and distractions that often lead to an ungodly and half-hearted employment behavior. Consider the impact that a weak spiritual life may have on a person’s approach to work.

CHALLENGE

  1. Can you identify any cruel actions in your daily life? What about cruel thoughts? Do feelings of envy, jealousy, anger or selfishness deter you from thinking and acting with sensitivity, kindness and compassion toward those around you? The righteous person highly regards the lives of those around him, especially the lives of the innocent and helpless, even the lives of the animals in his care.

KEY VERSES

  • “A good man obtains favor from the Lord, but a man of wicked devices He will condemn. A man is not established by wickedness, but the root of the righteous cannot be moved.” Proverbs 12: 2, 3



Proverbs, Old Testament, TalksDeb HarmsProverbs 12:1-14