August 17 2025, Sunday School Lesson

Trust the Lord

Lesson Text: Proverbs 3:1-12

Related Scriptures: Deuteronomy 18:1-5; 30:11-16; Psalm 25:4-10; 111:1-10; Hebrews 12:5-11

TIME: about 950 B.C.

PLACE: Jerusalem

Golden Text “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths” (Proverbs 3:5-6).

Introduction

Our world has access to information as never before. Areas of the world once deprived of education now have easy access to information. Yet while learning is widespread, wisdom is rare. Wisdom is the ability to apply knowledge to useful, right, and lasting goals.

Although “wisdom” has many shades of meaning in the Bible, it is primarily an attribute of God and of those who are properly related to Him.

God always pursues proper goals and means to accomplish His will. So also the truly wise person submits to mind of God as his own.

Our theme this quarter has been “Christlike Living.” Christ Himself is the wisdom of God. While not all traditions are wise, those that imitate Christ are. That is the emphasis of our final unit on Biblical Doing.

LESSON OUTLINE

I. HONORING A FATHER’S TEACHING – Prov. 3:1-4

II. FOLLOWING THE LORD’S DIRECTION – Prov. 3:5-10

III. PROFITING FROM THE LORD’S DISCIPLINE – Prov. 3:11-12

QUESTIONS

1. How should a son respond to his father’s instruction?

2. How should we interpret the promise that obedient children will live a long and satisfying life?

3. Mercy and truth are to be written on the tablet of the heart. What does that mean?

4. Mercy and truth bring favor with men. Does that imply popularity?

5. If God gave us our minds, why can we not lean on our own understanding?

6. What does it mean to acknowledge God in all our ways?

7. What does it mean to fear God? How does that change our lives?

8. Does God promise to make generous saints rich? Explain.

9. What attitudes should we avoid when the Lord disciplines us?

10. If God loves us as much as the Bible says He does, why does He take us through hardships?

ANSWERS

1. A son is exhorted to honor his father’s instruction, first by keeping his commands.

2. Living according to godly precepts brings benefits: “For length of days, and long life, and peace, shall they add to thee” (Prov. 3:2). Godliness and wisdom are conducive to a full and satisfying life (cf. Deut. 5:33; Prov. 3:16). “peace” (shalom) connotes prosperity, health, and tranquility. The same rewards are promised for those who keep the fifth commandment (Ex. 20:12; cf. Eph. 6:1-3). Those promises should not be taken as blanket statements without exceptions. Some obedient children die young. As a general principle, however, those who follow the godly wisdom of their parents do not subject themselves to many influences that shorten and degrade life. They enjoy a quality of life that the foolish never know.

3. The faithful son is never to allow those virtues to leave him. They are to accompany him throughout life. So closely should he cling to them that they are likened to a necklace around his neck and a tablet on his heart. The necklace may refer to a cylinder signet that hung around the neck and was used to sign documents. The tablet of the heart symbolizes the fact that mercy and truth become part of the son’s nature. His identity is marked by those virtues.

4. “Favor” indicates a favorable disposition of God and man toward someone who exhibits mercy and truth. “Good understanding” is prudence. In that context, both God and man favor the one who demonstrates that prudence. Our text is not implying that our motivation for kind and godly conduct should merely be a desire for a good reputation before God and men. It merely states that a person of integrity will be recognized as such. Nor does it imply that the good person will always be popular. But it does mean that even his enemies will have no legitimate grounds for bringing an accusation against him.

5. Insight, perception, and discernment are desirable traits to have (cf. Prov. 1:2, 6; Prov. 4:5-7), but our wisdom will always be less than God’s perfect wisdom. Limited human understanding often fails to comprehend God’s ways.

6. Acknowledging God involves knowing Him. This is a call to recognize and know God in all the circumstances of life. We must recognize His presence in everything we do and acknowledge His lordship over every area of life.

7. The antidote to self-centered “wisdom” is to “fear the Lord” (Prov. 3:7). This parallels “Trust in the Lord” (vs. 5). In this context, fear is reverence and awe arising out of a sense of God’s transcendence and holiness. In light of God’s overwhelming majesty, there is no place for self-exaltation. All we have is a gift of God’s grace. Fear of God results in a changed life: “depart from evil” (vs. 7). Godly fear and righteous living are inseparable (Lev. 25:17; Deut. 17:19). Reverential awe inspires a sense of accountability, by contrast, a small view of God encourages engaging in all kinds of sin (Rom. 3:10-18). Fearing God and departing from evil “shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones” (Prov. 3:8). The imagery denotes the promise of health from your outermost navel to your innermost bone marrow. Both physical and mental well-being comes to those who have a proper walk with God.

8. There is promise of reward for this generosity: “So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine” (Prov. 3:10). Grain was stored in these barns; those who honored the Lord would have full barns. The “presses” are stone vats used to press grapes; those too would overflow. Though we do not live under those rules, the principle of honoring God through contributions to His work is still important. God does not promise to make faithful givers rich, but He does promise to supply their needs (cf. Matt. 6:33; II Cor. 9:6-11). If we are generous in our giving, God will give us enough to continue to be generous (but cf. II Cor. 8:1-5).

9. Solomon instructed, “Despise not the chastening of the Lord: neither be weary of his correction” (Prov. 3:11). “Chastening” refers to correction for the purpose of instruction, leading to change. It differs from vengeance, which is merely exacting punishment for evil deeds. We are also warned in this verse not to despise correction. We must not take it lightly or reject it as unimportant. Nor are we to be “weary” of it, treating it with loathing or disgust. Those are normal human reactions. Some treat God’s discipline as nothing more than bad luck. Others accuse God of being uncaring and unjust. Neither of those responses looks beyond the circumstances to examine their possible meaning.

10. Solomon likened God’s dealings to the discipline of a father. He deals with us as a “son in whom he delighteth” (Prov. 3:12). The father loves his son and refuses to abandon him to his whims. For a good parent, “This hurts me as much as it hurts you” is true. God does not enjoy disciplining us, but he does so because He loves us. Indeed, discipline is a proof of our legitimate sonship (Heb. 12:5-11).