Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: Spotify | TuneIn | RSS | More
Text: Proverbs 6:1-5
What is surety? An insurer. Surety is someone who takes on the obligation of the debtor. Judah was surety for Benjamin in Genesis 43:9 I will be surety for him; of my hand shalt thou require him: if I bring him not unto thee, and set him before thee, then let me bear the blame for ever. Jesus Christ was surety for saved people – Hebrews 7:22 By so much was Jesus made a surety of a better testament.
A foolish obligation has been made (vss 1-2)
- You could say this is a warning about making foolish promises. Don’t be unequally yoked. Don’t obligate yourself foolishly. This isn’t about taking on debt, it is about taking on someone else’s debt. But it’s worse than that. This is about someone who has already committed themselves foolishly.
- Clarification is needed here because people cut ties with people they should be close to while making alliances and friendships with people they shouldn’t. This is not about leaving that church or cutting ties with those Christians because they hurt my feelings.
- This is about you making an obligation that has no upside, only a downside. There is nothing good that will come out of this commitment. It will take you away from the LORD. It will hurt your walk with the LORD. It will cost you in the end. And the commitment has no value whatsoever other than maybe you were proud of yourself for making the arrangement.
- In financial situations it’s a co-signer situation
- The co-signer is more responsible than the signer. You assume all liability without any benefit.
- If the lender wants a cosigner it’s because they don’t trust the signer to pay.
- In social situations it’s sympathy that traps you in someone else’s sin
- Friends are not friends if they ask you to cover for their sin. Friends look out for you, they don’t put you on the line to look out for them.
- Some criminals or needy folks play the victim. They’ll use their kids or use some drama to garner attention or money. People use children to beg for money sometimes.
- A sympathetic soul prone to emotional decisions is going to have trouble with this. They may see what they perceive is a need and want to be quick to jump to rescue. You’re so in love with the idea of mercy that you don’t see the snare.
- Tactic of the devil
- Get you overextended or compromised so you are entangled with affairs of someone else in an unwise way. He wants to get you tied to a sinking ship.
- In either case, the situation here is someone has made a commitment to a sinking ship. Someone is tied to stake in the ground and they’re now destined to go in circles without any profit.
- Good intentions don’t make good decisions. Good intentions need to be tempered with discernment. This would’ve been good to know beforehand, but the proverb says the commitment has already been made.
- Here’s the Father’s advice: Get out now!
- The proverb is that if you find yourself committed to something that is going to eat up your life, steal your time, and there is no return on this investment, get out now! There are four aspects to getting yourself out of this situation.
Urgency
- Do this now (vs 3)
- You keep telling yourself it’ll get better, but the reality is it won’t.
Responsibility
- Deliver thyself (vs 3)
- This is something you have to do. Someone else won’t be able to do it for you.
- You can pray that the tough conversations you’ll have to have go well, but you can’t pray that someone else will get you out of this snare.
Humility
- Humble thyself (vs 3)
- Can you say, I messed up.
Reality
- Deliver thyself (vs 5)
- Why? Because you’re trapped.
- Verse 4 says the clock is ticking on this one and you don’t have time to sleep. With every passing minute the roots get deeper and the web gets more complicated and more of your brief time is eaten up with this foolish obligation.
