Wisdom & Community- Proverbs 11

Wisdom & Community- Proverbs 11
6/21/25
Shirley Jackson, who wrote the short story “The Lottery” that everyone reads in high school, wrote another story called “Charles”. It is from the point of view of parents of a young boy starting kindergarten. Each day he comes home and tells them about his day, but they become increasingly concerned as he describes the behavior of his classmate Charles. One day Charles kicks the teacher. Another he throws chalk or teaches the other kids a curse word. Each day, it seems, Charles does something bad that gets him in trouble, disrupts the classroom, and influences the other children in a negative way. With the first PTA meeting coming up, the parents decide that they will talk with the other parents and ask the teacher to expel Charles before he completely corrupts his classmates. They also decide to confront Charles’ mother about her shoddy parenting that has lead to such disruption for all the other students. As the parents enter the meeting, they scan the faces of the other attendees, looking for Charles’ mother, when the teacher pulls them aside.  “The other parents have asked me to talk to you” she says seriously. The parents knowingly shake their heads. “Of course. We assume you want to talk about what to do with Charles.” The teacher seems confused. “Charles? There isn’t a Charles in this class. But the other parents HAVE asked me to speak with you about your son….”

It’s a humorous story with a great twist ending and it demonstrates the influence our actions can have on others. As we’ve worked through Proverbs we’ve often talked about the positive results that come with having (and seeking) godly wisdom. Each of our lives are BETTER when we follow Jesus. Conversely, we often create our own struggles when we fail to follow God’s plan for our lives. But Proverbs also speaks about how our choices affect our broader community and I would like to look at those today.

Through the blessing of the upright a city is exalted, but by the mouth of the wicked it is destroyed.
Whoever derides their neighbor has no sense, but the one who has understanding holds their tongue.
A gossip betrays a confidence, but a trustworthy person keeps a secret.
For lack of guidance a nation falls, but victory is won through many advisers.
Whoever puts up security for a stranger will surely suffer, but whoever refuses to shake hands in pledge is safe. – Proverbs 11.11-15

This passage, like others in Proverbs, gives us “both sides of the coin” scenarios and shows us what comes from both positive and negative (or wise and foolish) behavior. We are given an option- God’s way or the world’s way- and shown the results of each on our community. The first thing we see in this passage is that a community full of righteous people (those who seek God’s ways and His wisdom) is blessed and exalted. Our individual choices and actions can lift an entire community to a higher level. And I think this applies to our all “communities”- our families, our neighborhoods, our schools/jobs, and even our cities, counties, states and nations. It is easy to talk about how our community, whatever it is, is going to the dogs, but we have to recognize we can each play a part in how these communities are doing. Secondly, we see the affect our speech can have on the world around us. We are told to watch what we say because these words can directly impact all the people who come into our spheres of influence and drastically alter lives. Finally, we are told that if we act wisely, we can achieve victory (some translations have salvation or deliverance) for our communities because when we follow God’s plan it can help create safety and security for us and those around us.  What a powerful promise!
I am biased, but I really feel like we have an amazing community here at FCC Grayson. I see God working in big ways every week, peoples lives being transformed, and the Spirit moving powerfully. If you are searching for a community that is earnestly trying to follow God, we invite you to come check us out. And if you are already part of our community in some way, we encourage you to become more involved with what is going on and join us as we try to bring our communities closer to Jesus.