Foreign Women, Stupid Men

I am preaching a series from Proverbs. This past Lord's Day I preached on the harlot and the various defenses we can use to protect ourselves from her. You can find the entire sermon here. Here is a brief sermon outline.

There are four sections in the early chapters of Proverbs that deal with this theme; 2:10-22, 5:1-23, 6:20-35 and 7:1-27. Solomon clearly felt this was a major issue in the life of young men. No other subject, outside of wisdom itself, dominates Proverbs 1-10 like the issue of adultery and the foreign woman. Reading the four sections one can see a pattern to how Solomon addresses the problem.

I. Wisdom Precedes Holiness-This is seen in the following verses; 2:10-11, 5:1-2, 6:20-23 and 7:1-5. Solomon begins his discussion of sexual sin in the same place he began the discussion of wise living (Proverbs 1:7), the fear of the Lord. All the practical hedges in the world will not a protect a man who does not walk in the wisdom.

II. The Harlot is Attractive-This is seen in the following verses; 2:16, 5:3, 6:24-25 and 7:10-21. Solomon does not pretend that the harlot is ugly woman with four teeth, who cannot string two words together. She is beautiful and flattering with her speech.

III. Her End is Destruction-This is seen in the following verses; 2:18-22, 5:4-14, 6:26-35 and 7:21-27. This destruction can be poverty, an angry husband or father and loss of reputation. Whatever it is, the man who indulges his lusts is sure to pay the price.

How to Protect Yourself
1. Stay far away from her-Proverbs 5:8 and 7:25-26. Notice that the man in Proverbs 7 went near her house. Also notice that in 7:26 all that she slew were strong or mighty men. If we hang around a woman like this we are sure to fall eventually.

2. A vigorous married life-Proverbs 5:15-20. Delighting in the marriage bed is a very helpful deterrent to adultery. We must not be Victorian. God expects us to enjoy sex with our spouses. He intended it to be good. The section in Proverbs 5 uses the word for intoxication. This should describe the marriage bed.

3. Remember the eyes of the Lord-Proverbs 5:21. We easily forget that God is always in the room. He always in our minds. He sees all the way in. Every second glance is seen by the Lord. We should be quick to repent when we do sin and strive to be more faithful.

4. Guard your eyes-Proverbs 4:25-27. How many sins in the Scripture came through the eyes? Eve, Achan, David and Ahab taking Naboth's vineyard. A vast majority of sins can be trace directly back to coveting and lust.

5. Guard your heart-Proverbs 4:23, 6:25 and 7:25. Jesus tells us very plainly in Matthew 15:16-20 that all our sins come from the inside out. One of the key ways we guard our hearts is by memorizing Scripture. (Psalm 119:11)