“But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth. Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds; And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him: Where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision, Barbarian, Scythian, bond nor free: but Christ is all, and in all. Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering;” (Colossians 3:8-12)

The Bible tells us about attitudes and actions we should put off and others we should put on. Let’s consider these and purpose in our hearts to obey the commands of God concerning them. First, we will consider attitudes and actions a Christian should put off. In Colossians 3:8 we read, “But now ye also put off all these…”

(1). Anger: In Ephesians 4:31 we read, “Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamor and evil speaking, be put away from you with all malice.” Learn to show a cool head and measure words in every situation.
(2). Wrath: In Ephesians 4:26 we read, “Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath.” Avoid letting anger simmer and grow to wrath which will boil over, and later make you ashamed of your response.
(3). Slander: In Proverbs 10:18 we read, “He that hideth hatred with lying lips, and he that uttereth a slander is a fool.” Be very careful what you say about others. If you can’t say something good about a person then say nothing.
(4). Blasphemy: In Colossians 3:8 we read, “But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth.” Never allow ridicule of great eternal things to escape from your lips. The Lord’s name is never to be used in vain, and hell is a place, not a curse word.
(5). Dirty Language: In Colossians 3:8 we read, “But now ye also put off all these…filthy communication out of your mouth.” Remember your eyes are the window of your soul, so keep the words of your mouth acceptable before the Lord.
(6). Lying: In Ephesians 4:25 we read, “Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbor: for we are members one of another.” We who are saved should be known for truth in our words and actions.

This does not exhaust the list of “take offs,” but let’s look at attitudes and actions to “put on”. In Colossians 3:12 we read, “Put on therefore…”. Remember we cannot put these on until we take off the others.
(1). Mercy: In Matthew 5:7 we read, “Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.” Showing mercy can go far in enhancing your life and testimony before others.
(2). Kindness: In Colossians 3:12 we read, “Put on therefore as the elect of God, holy and beloved bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, longsuffering.” Amid your busy lives be sure to look around and show kindness to others.
(3). Humility: In I Peter 5:5 we read, “Likewise ye younger, submit yourselves unto the elder. Yea all of you be subject one to another, and be clothed with humility: for God resisteth the proud, and giveth grace to the humble.” Pride always goes before a fall, but humility is great attire for a gracious, caring believer.
(4). Gentleness: In Galatians 5:22 we read, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith.” We must not be pushy, or gushing with pride, but rather humble servants of God.
(5). Patience: In Luke 8:15c we read, “Bring forth fruit with patience.” Someone has said that patience is the easiest thing to lose. Others may struggle to do right, but be patient and understand their struggle.

We must choose between what the devil wants us to carry or what the Lord wants us to carry. God will not make the choice for us. It is an exercise of our free will. What will we choose?

“And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.” (Job 28:28)

I do not often react to things going on in the news. I cannot swing my sword in every direction. So, through the preaching of the whole counsel of God, every element in life and society will be dealt with. However, I am greatly alarmed. I am not so much alarmed by what happens, but I find myself alarmed to the response of believers.

We are aware of how the Olympics opened. In what should have been a celebration of sports became a message of inclusion. Their “goal” was mentioned in the apology. “Clearly there was never an intention to show disrespect to any religious group. On the contrary, I think (with) Thomas Jolly, we really did try to celebrate community tolerance,” “Looking at the result of the polls that we shared, we believe that this ambition was achieved. If people have taken any offense we are, of course, really, really sorry.” Anne Descamps (A spokesperson for the Olympics.). They sought to promote community tolerance.
It has been said that what they did is being misinterpreted. I believe their intentions were obvious. A drag queen portrayed Jesus. Let that sink in a moment. Tolerance was being preached. The world wants to tear down the wall of righteousness with the gospel of tolerance. Some people want us to just accept evil. We are there.

Many Christians today are preaching tolerance. What should we be preaching? We ought to be preachers of righteousness. That is what Noah was. “And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly;” (2 Peter 2:5). I am sure that he was expected to tolerate the wickedness of the world. “And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them. But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.” (Genesis 6:5-8). We cannot expect God’s blessings and tolerate sin.

We need to remember that we are living in a day that sees groups like the ACLU will rush to the defense of anyone who wants to worship Satan, they will rush to the defense of anyone who believes in Eastern philosophies. But they will not rush to defend a born-again Christian who wants to take their Bible to a classroom. The world cries out for tolerance but has no tolerance for the Lord Jesus Christ. Dr. Paul Chappell stated, “We are told that you can believe whatever you would like, but don’t disagree with anyone else.”

“The world does not tolerate us. Judge David Hamilton was asked to rule on this question in the Indiana case Hinrichs v. Bosma: Can clergy pray in the name of their deity before official state meetings? Judge Hamilton (who was recently appointed to the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals) ruled that while it was legal to open an official government meeting in prayer, that prayer must not include any language that may be considered “sectarian.” Clergy could pray in the name of God in their language (Theos in Greek, Elohim in Hebrew, even Allah in Arabic), but they could not pray in the name of Jesus Christ.” The world will not tolerate Jesus and is trying to force Christians to tolerate the attacks on Christ.
Christian, we must remember what Jesus taught. Remember what Jesus taught does not contradict Scripture.

“Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men. Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.” (Matthew 5:13-17)

We are to be salt and light. We are to be both. We cannot be light if we are not salt. We cannot be salt if we are not light. Salt preserves. Is righteousness worth preserving? Is this country worth preserving? We do so by being preachers of righteousness. We do not reach the world with a low Christ. This is not a time to be a weak Christian, but to be a good soldier of Jesus Christ. This is a time to be like Noah who preached righteousness in a world that God repented of. This is a time to be like Job who told his friends that it was wise to depart from evil.

Think about this. Job had some real friends. He was accused of living in sin. “Remember, I pray thee, who ever perished, being innocent? or where were the righteous cut off? Even as I have seen, they that plow iniquity, and sow wickedness, reap the same.” (Job 4:7-8). “Behold, God will not cast away a perfect man, neither will he help the evil doers:” (Job 8:20). “If iniquity be in thine hand, put it far away, and let not wickedness dwell in thy tabernacles. For then shalt thou lift up thy face without spot; yea, thou shalt be stedfast, and shalt not fear: Because thou shalt forget thy misery, and remember it as waters that pass away: And thine age shall be clearer than the noonday; thou shalt shine forth, thou shalt be as the morning.” (Job 11:14-17). Their reasoning for his suffering was that God only sends trials to the wicked. They were telling Job that since he was sinning somewhere secretly God was judging him publicly. They did not know Job very well. Job declared that he feared God and to fear God is a wise thing because it helps one depart from evil.

Notice what Job said in the next chapter. “I put on righteousness, and it clothed me: my judgment was as a robe and a diadem.” (Job 29:14). What we put on can be seen by others. Job put on righteousness. He may not be called a preacher of righteousness, but he preached righteousness. To put on something shows identification. If I wear a baseball hat you will think that I identify with that team. There are some hats I will not wear because I do not tolerate that team. I am using a silly example to teach a truth. The truth is this. If we preach righteousness we will not preach tolerance. We will be salt and light. We will stand for righteousness as we point people to our Saviour. We can do both! We must do both!

“You cannot have unity without compromising the truth, and to forsake truth for the sake of unity is to betray Jesus Christ.”

Charles Spurgeon

If we accommodate our faith to an intolerant culture, we betray our Saviour and lose our identity.
Job is accused of living in sin and Job says that his philosophy on life was to fear God and depart from evil. Job was a very influential man because of his philosophy. Secret sins diminish ones influence. Job was not living in sin. He was learning something about God. His “friends” had no clue what God was doing. The best thing they could have done was to sit quietly and let him grieve. But because they did not he had the opportunity to share with them something very powerful. Reread our text.

“And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.” (Job 28:28)

Our text teaches us something about Job. His view should be incorporated in every believer’s life. His view will help us respond Scripturally to things in our personal lives and even in society.
First off, notice that he believed in fearing God. Fearing God is a Godly thing. God must be the object of our fear. “Sanctify the LORD of hosts himself; and let him be your fear, and let him be your dread.” (Isaiah 8:13). When we think of God as an object we think of Him as the object of our faith. He is. Hebrews 12:2 tells us “Looking unto Jesus.” He must also be the object of our fear.

“For the LORD spake thus to me with a strong hand, and instructed me that I should not walk in the way of this people, saying, Say ye not, A confederacy, to all them to whom this people shall say, A confederacy; neither fear ye their fear, nor be afraid.” (Isaiah 8:11-12).

The context for this command is God telling the prophet to not be like the people. He was not to fear the people, he was to fear God.

Matthew Henry thoughtfully stated, “There is a proneness in the best of men to be frightened at threatening clouds, especially when fears are epidemic. We are all too apt to walk in the way of the people we live among, though it be not a good way.” He paints a vivid truth, we all will fear man or God. He who does not fear is a liar. Anyone who says they do not fear God or man is both a liar and a fool.
I believe that society is conditioning Christians to fit in. This is being accomplished through fear of man. What will people think? Will what we believe and say hurt somebody’s feelings? What will it cost to take a stand? When the whole armor of God is adorned we are to stand up and take a stand. We do so because our fear of God is greater than our fear of man. Dr. Sexton often said that the greater fear cast out the lesser fears.

Job had it right when he said that he feared God. It is that simple. The place we hold the Scriptures in our lives indicates how we view our Saviour. The Scriptures teach us to fear the Lord, therefore we must fear Him. This begs the question, how can we tell if we fear Him?

That is a good question. There are some earmarks, indicators, that will help us see if we fear Him or not. If we do not have them then we also know what actions to take.

Fear is an interesting word with varying definitions. One of Webster’s definitions is: In scripture, fear is used to express a filial or a slavish passion. In good men, the fear of God is a holy awe or reverence of God and his laws, which springs from a just view and real love of the divine character, leading the subjects of it to hate and shun everything that can offend such a holy being, and inclining them to aim at perfect obedience. This is filial fear. His Scriptural example is Jeremiah 32:39. “And I will give them one heart, and one way, that they may fear me for ever, for the good of them, and of their children after them:” (Jeremiah 32:39).

From this definition, we can glean that we must have a holy awe or reverence of God and His Laws. In other words, if we fear God we will have a high view of God. God is not the man upstairs. This reference to our all-mighty God should make us want to stand up and take a stand. Such a low view of God is why we are even discussing this thought. There used to be a day when even the unsaved had a reverence for God. That day is past.

When we study the history of the Israelite people they were in a constant cycle in which they worshipped God, then fell into idolatry, then were judged, and brought back to worshipping God. Their worship of idols was a sign of having no fear of God. When a man does not fear God he runs as far away from God as he can. When a man does fear God he lives as close to God as he can.

Consider the prophet, Isaiah. When he saw God high and lifted up, when he saw a thrice holy God, his response showed awe and reverence because he saw himself as low and needing the Lord. (Isaiah 6:1-7) When we fear God we will want to be right with Him. We will say things like “Honesty is not the best policy, it is the only policy.” This is why most Americans have little to no respect for the law. That is because there is no fear of God. Without the fear of God can there be conviction of sin? No! That is because without this fear people will not care what God thinks.

Tolerance for sin shows a lack of fear. We must realize that an unbeliever will behave a certain way. But does that mean that we as believers must not take up the mantle of being salt? If we fear God then we will be salt. It seems like the salt has lost its savor.

Here is a thought to ponder, do the things that break Jesus’ heartbreak ours? What we often tolerate are things that break His heart. Oh, may the Lord help us here! We are people of extremes. It would be easy to think that protest is being advocated. It’s not. This is where being the light God wants us to be comes into play.

If you can picture a light, a single light, you know that it does not light an entire building. It lights an area. That single light has an influence in the room that it is in. We all have a sphere of influence. God gave you an influence with people. God gave me an influence with people. We cannot influence outside of our sphere.

We have an influence in our homes. Our families ought to know from us that there are things that God does not tolerate and neither should we. Our dining room tables can be turned into pulpits as we teach our children and grandchildren what God says.

We have an influence in our communities. We work, shop, and live. We may think that we do not have much influence here, but use the influence God has given us. Do not be afraid to take a stand for the Lord if and when the time comes. We can write our representatives. We can go soul-winning. We can speak to our neighbors about the Lord. These are not small things.

We have a sphere of influence in church. This might be the easiest place to take a stand because we are surrounded by like-minded people. This influence can go a long way in helping us be the influence we need in the community. Stand with the preacher as he preaches. Go soul-winning. Pray for souls to be saved.

Nothing here has hinted at making signs, marching on the streets, and disrupting things. In fact, the best thing we can do is to be the Christian God saved us to be and let Him use us where we are. He may even extend that sphere. Too many Christians give Christianity a bad name because they are looking for a political movement when in fact we need the Lord. Fearing God will help us do this. We cannot be neutral. It is impossible to be neutral. Being neutral is a position.

Another earmark that we can glean from this definition of fear is obedience. If we fear God we will obey Him. We will have such a reverence for Him that we will not want to hurt Him with our disobedience. The Bible says…

“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do his commandments: his praise endureth for ever.” (Psalms 111:10)

The emphasis is on how fearing God leads to obedience. We will do what the Bible says we should do? We will obey because we have a reverential fear of God. We will want to please Him. What specifically must we obey? Again, we go back to Job’s philosophy.

“And unto man he said, Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.” (Job 28:28)

We are to depart from evil. Depart means to turn off. That is the opposite of tolerance. Tolerating something means that we are enduring or being patient. We may tolerate something hoping for something better. We may tolerate it because we are trying to help someone grow. However, there are things we just need to turn off because of how it influences us and because of how destructive it is.
American Christians have not turned off some things and have allowed the world’s preaching of tolerance to persuade them to preach the same message.

I ask you, why was Abel killed? “And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.” (Genesis 4:8). Cain got mad at Abel because Abel was not going to tolerate this evil in his brother’s life. I can see him pleading with his brother to do the right thing and depart from evil, but Cain could not tolerate Abel’s preaching of righteousness. Abel could have turned a blind eye to his brother. That would have been the easy thing to do because they were brothers. Instead, Abel told Cain to turn off the evil.

Moses, after he received the Ten Commandments, taught the people. He never taught the people to tolerate false religion. “He that sacrificeth unto any god, save unto the LORD only, he shall be utterly destroyed.” (Exodus 22:20). Moses knew that if false religion was tolerated then it would be the downfall of the Israelite people. It had to be turned off.

The truth is that we are not willing to turn off evil. We play TV shows and movies filled with horror, violence, and immorality. These shows are disguised entertainingly so that we will tolerate them in our homes and play them for our children. This subtle message has latched itself onto our thinking and we preach tolerance in other areas of life. If we fear God we need to turn it off.

Never be ashamed to turn off evil. To do so is to identify with the Lord and the truth. The church, the believers that make up a local assembly, need to identify with the truth. We are the pillar and ground of the truth. (1 Timothy 3:15). Do we want the praise of man or the praise of God? The answer is clear therefore our voice should resonate clearly that where God stands is where we stand. We will not allow evil in our homes, in our churches, and in our personal lives. We may not be able to control what others may do, but as for us we fear God and will depart from evil. There are just some things we will not put up with.

“Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.” (Psalms 1:1)

Life is too short to follow bad advice. I have learned that the counselor does not have to deal with the consequences of his bad counsel. The counsel we receive can and will impact our lives. There is a story about George Washington receiving good counsel from his mother. His father died when he was eleven. It became his dream to join the British Navy, but his mother counseled against it. Instead of becoming a ship captain, he became the commander-in-chief of an entire military. When receiving counsel we must seek God’s wisdom because we must take the long view of life. Bad counsel can harm our lives and Godly counsel can propel us.

“Now therefore come, let me, I pray thee, give thee counsel, that thou mayest save thine own life, and the life of thy son Solomon.” (1 Kings 1:12)

This Psalm teaches us about the way of blessedness and warnings of destruction. Blessings and destruction can be linked to the counsel we choose to follow. Life is too short to choose to listen to ungodly counsel. Let us understand what ungodly counsel is.

Ungodly counsel is different than bad counsel. Ungodly counsel is bad counsel, but bad counsel could just be counsel from someone who just does not know, and instead of admitting ignorance about a subject he gives bad advice. Case in point, I am not a carpenter. Do not come to me if you have structural issues in your house. I would give you bad counsel. The council would not be ungodly, just bad.
Ungodly is the key. Strong’s teaches us that ungodly means morally wrong. That means there must be some moral code on which the council hinges. Godly counsel is built on the foundation of God’s book. “The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple.” (Psalms 19:7). Anyone who strays from God’s Word is an ungodly counselor. He values his opinions or feelings higher than God’s.

Webster also defines ungodly. It is an adjective that describes a person. This person is wicked and neglects the fear and worship of God. He does not want to violate God’s commands. (1 Peter 4:18) The ungodly is Sinful and commits ungodly deeds. (Jude 4). Finally, an ungodly person is someone polluted by wickedness. Pollution makes things dirty. An ungodly person is dirty because he is not cleaned by the Word of God. (Psalm 119:9)

Counsel is defined as a plan or advice. It would be wise get get a plan from someone who knows what they are talking about. We seek counsel from someone who will guide us. I do not know one person who does not need some type of a plan. A young person needs counsel as he seeks what to do after high school. He also may need some help when it comes to finding God’s will for a spouse. (Fall asleep in God’s will and let God bring that person to you. If a person is not a Christian, does not go to a good church, or serve God they are not God’s will.). A person may be confronted with a life-changing career decision and they need some kind of a plan.

Let me use a simple illustration. When I go to make a purchase I like to speak to people that have had to make that same decision and I want the pros and cons. I want to know about the things that they did not think about. I will go to YouTube and find different reviews and see the thing in action. I rarely will go to a salesperson and ask because he has a vested interest.

This message is going to discuss this warning about ungodly counsel. We do not need a plan of action from someone who does not know the Lord. To do this I have some questions for us to consider.
The first question is “What are some ungodly counsels.” There are things people say that have no Biblical basis. Let me quickly give five ungodly counsels with a brief thought behind them.
If it feels good, do it. Truth is never based on feelings. “Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.” (John 17:17). An honest study of God’s Word has a way of making us feel bad sometimes. That is because our flesh does not want to be told what to do. Paul knew this. “But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.” (1 Corinthians 9:27)

The second bit of ungodly counsel that is often given is like the first, “Follow your heart.” What does the Bible warn about our hearts? “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” (Jeremiah 17:9). Why would I want to listen to something that God says is deceitful? Who is being deceived? ME! We know politicians lie, but we listen to them. We do the same thing with our hearts. Don’t listen to your heart.

The third thing that may be said is, “So and so is doing it. Why can’t I?” “Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.” (Matthew 15:14) I see said the blind man to the deaf guy. Just because someone else is doing it does not make it right. I see many people doing something because others are doing it. Finish the statement, “If so and so jumped off the Brooklyn Bridge…”? Yet, what do we do? We allow what others do determine what is right. This is the whole idea behind polls.

Have you heard someone say, “When you’re in Rome.” The idea is that it is wise to blend in. Christians are not to blend in. “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.” (2 Corinthians 6:14-18). We are to separate unto the Lord from the world. Rome will not live like this. Christians do not need to adapt to Rome, we need to conform to the image of Christ. “And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” (Romans 12:2)

The last bit of ungodly counsel that is often given is, “As long as it is not hurting anyone, it must be ok.” Are there not consequences? Are you ok with hurting yourself? How do you know that you are not hurting others? Never forget that every one of us is leading at least one other person. Let me give some bit of Biblical counsel here. “Neither give place to the devil.” (Ephesians 4:27). Do not give place to the devil in your life.

Here is another question, “What are some of the dangers listening to ungodly counsel?” There has to be some consequences. In our text, we see the word blessed. We are being told that if we want to be blessed then we must avoid ungodly counsel. God is warning us that it is dangerous to listen to ungodly counsel. The danger is seen in two areas.

The first area is in direction. A simple reading of our text reveals a digression. Ungodly counsel takes us backward in life. The very idea of living the Christian life or the faith life is forward-moving. God wants us to progress not digress.

The digression is a process that begins with where we stand. David said, “walking in the counsel of the ungodly.” Standing gives us time to contemplate what the ungodly counselor is saying. It gives time for us to say, “That sounds good.” Standing gives us time to listen. It is dangerous to listen to ungodly counsel. We are not expanding ourselves or growing as a person. The only learning we will do will happen when we have to deal with the consequences and we are asking God to help us get back on track.
It is dangerous to listen to somebody attack the truth. Are we aware of how our own philosophy is shaped by what we hear? That is because we want to please the person we are listening to. That is the wrong motive. As a child of God, we should always want to please the Lord, even in the counsel we receive. Paul counseled the Thessalonians this way: “Furthermore then we beseech you, brethren, and exhort you by the Lord Jesus, that as ye have received of us how ye ought to walk and to please God, so ye would abound more and more.” (1 Thessalonians 4:1). Walk in a way that pleases God. That means do not even listen to ungodly counsel.

Standing at the door of ungodly counselors leads us in the direction of standing in the way of sinners. We go from walking to standing. We go from listening to looking. We are no longer contemplating what we are experiencing. There are just some things God does not want us to experience.

Go back to the garden and listen to the counsel of the serpent. He wanted them to experience life. He told them that God was hiding something from them. They were not living life to its fullest. This was bad advice. We know this because they experienced sin and the consequences of sin. They learned what guilt felt like. All because they walked and stood.

The final direction is “sitting in the seat of the scornful.” Strong’s definition of scornful is an ambassador. They are an ambassador of sin. They represent sin. They speak well about sin. They are trying to entice others to walk, stand, and sit.

Not only do we need to be concerned with the direction of ungodly counsel, but we must also be aware of the consequences. Remember that the scornful are ambassadors for sin. They need someone to take their seat because they must deal with the consequences of their actions. God will not be mocked, He will chastise us if we head ungodly counsel. There will be consequences for our decisions and actions.
Hebrews gives us the classic passage for chastisement. “And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him: For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons. Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live? For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness.” (Hebrews 12:5-10)

God speaks to us about chastisement to let us know that He loves us and wants the best for us. He will get involved in our lives so that we may live a life that pleases Him. He wants to clean out the rubbish. Would it not be wise to heed this counsel and to voluntarily repent and do right? “Form the habit of heeding His taps, and you will be less likely to receive His raps.”—A. W. Pink

The third question to ask is, “What are some ways to avoid ungodly counsel?” If there are warnings and consequences, then there must be a plan to help us avoid ungodly counsel. God’s plan to avoid ungodly counsel is found in HIs Word.
The first way is for us to know our Bibles. We want to allow God to be our number counselor. Let us look at the Bereans. “And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea: who coming thither went into the synagogue of the Jews. These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so. Therefore many of them believed; also of honourable women which were Greeks, and of men, not a few.” (Acts 17:10-12)

If the Lord ever led me to start a church I would want to name it The Berean Baptist Church. This passage is why I would want this name. They heard the Bible preached, went home and studied the Scriptures, found the Scriptures to be true, and implemented the teachings in their lives. They became believers because they studied to see if those things were so and found them so.

I have found that Biblical counsel is a topical study of Scripture. I am so grateful to have study tools that are topical by nature. Someone took the time and arranged things topically so all I have to do is look it up in the index and then go to my Bible and receive God’s counsel on the matter.

Here is a truth, it does not matter how well we know our Bibles, we do not know it well enough. “Of these things put them in remembrance, charging them before the Lord that they strive not about words to no profit, but to the subverting of the hearers. Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:14-15). Paul told Timothy to put the people he pastored in remembrance of some things. The only way for him to be the counselor he needed to be was to go to the Book and to know the Book.

It may be wise that as we receive counsel from the Book we write these things down, type them out, print them, and place them in our Bibles. This way we have a ready reference.
Do not just have a tool like this and not use it. A reference is a guide. It will guide us to the Book, to specific counsels. Those counsels are only good if they are used.

Another way to avoid ungodly counsel is to have a team of Godly counselors. “Without counsel purposes are disappointed: but in the multitude of counsellors they are established.” (Proverbs 15:22). “For by wise counsel thou shalt make thy war: and in multitude of counsellors there is safety.” (Proverbs 24:6).
Solomon did not counsel his son to have a bunch of random counselors. He wanted him to have a team of good, godly counselors. Nor did Solomon want his son to run from person to person until he got the counsel he wanted. Oh, how often do we do that? I think that this is why we do not go to good Godly people because we know what they are going to say and we already do not like it. I think this is why many people do not go to their pastor.

This team of counselors should include your parents, your pastor, your Sunday school teacher, and A Christian who has a real walk with God (These are people who read their Bibles and pray, they are faithful in church and service.). A godly counselor is going to love God, His Word, and you. “But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ:” (Ephesians 4:15). He will want the best for your life.

This brings us to one final question. “What are the dangers of giving ungodly counsel?” Here is where it gets really scary. I do not have to live with the consequences of ungodly counsel I may give.
Somebody may come to me and say this or that. They are seeking counsel and because of my position, I could abuse what God has given me. That person may listen to me, believing that because I am a pastor I won’t mislead them. They do not “try the spirits.” They do not search the Scriptures to see if those things are so. May I say this is one of the best ways to make something personal? They take what was given them, follow the counsel, and are now left with the consequences. There is no redo button. Time cannot be reversed. They have to deal with the consequences, I do not. This is a dangerous thing.
Here is counsel for the godly counselors. It is wise to remember that we do not have to bear the consequences of bad counsel or ungodly counsel.

Be prayerful. Seek God’s face as you search His Word. Be slow in giving counsel. Give God time to lead you in your counsel. Be knowledgable. Study the Word of God for it is our guidebook. Be silent. Do not share with others that you are counseling someone else.

God hears ungodly counsel. He is insulted by ungodly counsel. If a man fears God this would do much in the counsel given. An ungodly counselor may not have to deal with the consequences of his ungodly counsel, but he will be held accountable for giving ungodly counsel.

This message just makes us realize the importance of avoiding ungodly counsel. It is not directing us away from counsel. Counsel is important. God advises us to seek and to give Godly counsel. Both parties require discernment. The one seeking counsel must discern if a counselor is Godly and the counselor must discern what is it that God is advising.