Scripture Reference: Proverbs 24:30-34
I went past the field of th sluggard,
Past the vineyard of the man who lacks judgment;
Thorns had come up everywhere,
The ground was covered with weeds,
And the wall was in ruins.
I applied my heart to what I observed
And learned a lesson to what I saw;
A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest,
And poverty will come on you like a bandit
And scarcity like an armed man. (NIV)
Have you ever taken a walk around your neighborhood, or just took a drive through one of those real nice neighborhoods. We've all done that. As you were walking around, you observe how nice all the homes look. Some of thlem have their lawns nice and green, cut and edged; some may have recently had new roofs put on, or just recently painted or had new vinly siding. You don't see any trash in the yards. Everything looks nice and neat. You are really impresseed with the neighborhood.
Let's say one day as you were walking through one of these neighborhoods, you come across something that really catches your attention. You can't believe what you see. You see a house that looks like it has been in a hurricane. The shingles on the roof are falling down or missing: it looks like the paint has been peeled right off the house; the yard is littered with trash; the lawn looks like a jungle with grass knee high to a giraffe, and weeds with foreign names popping up all over the place. You stand there stunned that such a place could exist in this nice neighborhood. You walk over to take a look at the inside and what you see is unbelievable. It's even worse on the inside. You wonder to yourself, How could anyone let this house get in such a condition?
What happended to cause this house to get in this condition?
Well, the same thing happened to Solomon.
One day he was riding through his magnificent vineyeards and fields and he came across something that caught his attention.
Let's look at what he saw and learned verese by verse.
Verse 30 says that he went by the field of the sluggard and past the vineyard of the man who lacks judgment.
We know that the field was managed by the sluggard.
A sluggard is a person who is habitually inactive or lazy.
Proverbs has a lot to say about a sluggard:
Proverbs 15:19: "The way of the sluggard is blocked by thorns; but the path of the upright is a highway"
Proverbs 19:24: "The sluggard buries his hand in his dish; he will not even bring it back to his mouth."
Proverbs 21:25: "The sluggard's craving will be the death of him, because his hands refuse to work."
Proverbs 26:14: "As a door turns on its hinges, so a sluggard turns on his bed."
By now we have a pretty good idea of what a sluggard is.
Verse 30 goes on to talk about the vineyard of the man who lacks judgment.
This individual is also known as a fool. We can find out some more about the fool:
Proverbs 12:15: "The way of a fool seems right to him, but a wise man listends to advice."
Ecclesiastes 4:5: "The fool folds his hands and ruins himself."
we can get the picture about the sluggard and the fool.
Verse 31 begins to talk about the condition of the field and vineyard.
There are three things we notice about this field and vineyard.
First, it says that "thorns had come up everywhere. The field and vineyard were overgrown with thorns. The NASB reads "with thorns and thistles."
What are thorns and thistles?
They are often mentioned with other non-beneficial plants as evidence of the undesirability of a land and the ruination of a formerly propserous or populated land. Biblical references to thorns and thistles are mostly metaphors describing punishment for sin, and emphasizing anything that is worthless.
The seconed thing it says about this field and vineyeard was that "the ground was covered with weeds." The NASB says "nettles."
Nettles are coarse plants with stringing hairs. It refers to scrub brushes that grow up over neglected fields. Nettles growing over deserted ruins dramatize destruction and desolation.
Nettles are also symbolic of desolation and judgment.
The third thing mentioned is that the stone wall was in ruins.
The purpose of the stone wall was to keep animals and people out of the field and vineyard. It was for protecting the produce of the field and vineyard. So if the wall was in ruins, that means the field and vineyard were left unprotected and anyone or anything could walk right in and help themselves.
The field and vineyard were meant to be productive and to produce fruit. It is just life planting a garden in your backyard. You plant it to produce fruit.
What do the house we saw, the field and the vinyard have in common?
They are the result of the same problem, NEGLECT.
Webster's Dictionary defines neglect as :
To give little or no attention to
To carelessly omit doing something that should be done.
As we can see with the house, little or no attention was given to its upkeep. Mowing the lawn, repairing the roof, painting, pick up the trash were things that were carelessly omitted that should have been done. Little or not attention was given to the upkeep of the house. Whovever owned this house gave little or no attention to its upkeep, carelessly onitting doing the things that needed to be done. They were probably in the living room watching HBO. I actually saw a commercial for HBO where the husband and wife were sitting on the sofa watching HBO while their living room looked like a hurricane passed through and all the lamps were sparking.
The same with the field and vineyard. They were neglected, and as a result the field and vineyard became unproductive, overgrown with thorns, thistles, and weeds. The sluggard and fool carelessly omitted doing the things necessary to keep the fielf and vineyard productive. They gave little or no attention to the upkeep.
In verses 32 and 33 it reads: "I applied my heart to what I observed and learned a lesson from what I saw: A little sleep, a little slumber, and little folding of the hands to rest."
It says that Solomon observed what had taken place, reflected upon it, and receive instruction.
It does not say that he reprimanded the sluggard and the fool, but that he learned from their
neglect. He received insight into the cause of the condition of the field and vineyard. What did he learn: "a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands." The condition of the field and vineyard was the result of the inward conditon of the sluggard and fool. They probably woke up one morning, stretched, yawned, and said, "I really don't feel like working in the field or vineyard today. I'll do it tomorrow." Tomorrow came and they both did the same thing again, put it off for another day. This probably went on for a long period of time, until there was no desire to do what was necessary. The neglected condition of the field and vineyard was the result of the their neglect. What Solomon saw was a reflection of what was happening to the sluggard and fool. Solomon preceived that neglect was the real cause of the condition of the field and vineyard.
Verse 34 tells us that "and poverty will come on you like a bandit and scarcity like an armed man."
The result of "a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands," is that poverty and scarcity will come upon you quickly. A bandit or armed man attacks quickly when he wants to steal from. The field and vineyard are subject to attack because the wall that was supposed t protect it was now in ruins, and anybody or anything can come in and help themselves.
So far we have been talking about a house, a field, and a vineyard.
But what about your "spiritual house?"
You can describe yourself as a field, vineyard, or a house.
If somebody were to pass by your house, and people do everyday, what would they see?
Would they see the fruit of the Spirit as described in Galatians 5, or would they see the works of the flesh also described in Galatians 5.
The works of the flesh as described in Galatians 5 might be call the spiritual thorns, thistles, and nettles that manifest themselves in our lives when we neglect to do the necessary things.
What necessary things are you neglecting?
PRAYER
FELLOWSHIP
TIME IN GOD'S WORD
QUIET TIME WITH THE LORD?
Do we stretch and yawn and say, "I'll pray later," or "I'll read my Bible later," or "I'll skip church today." "Lord. I really don't have time for you today, maybe tomorrow."
Is "a little sleep, a little slumber, and a little folding of the hands" part of our lives?
It is when we begin to neglect the things that are necessary, when we begin to omit what we should do, this is when the spiritual thorns , thistles, and weeds begin to grow in our lives, and that is all you need to do for them to grow. Before long, you will find your spiritual house run down, overgrown, and in ruins.
Neglect is giving little or no attention to the things that are necessary. It is carelessly omitting doing something that should be done.
People pass by your spiritual house everyday, what do they see?
How long will you sleep? This question throws the responsbility where it belongs, but it give us the freedom to make up our own minds. You can choose.
When will arise from sleeep? This questions also holds out the option of personal change through action, as if to say, "You need not continue in your present impotence."
Are you willing to make the changes.
