Introduction

Hello everyone, let's study Proverbs 29. This chapter's main focus is on stiff-necked people. How do people become foolish? Because they are stiff-necked, how does someone become smart? By making their neck soft.

In the Bible, there was a very powerful prophet named Samuel. After he left Saul, he didn’t see him again until his death. Samuel was very sad because he saw that Saul was very stiff-necked. People who have stiff necks don’t believe that it’s their fault.

Among us, there is a brother whose father is very stubborn. His father was driving with GPS, and when he reached the seaside, he found there was no road. He believed that he had come to this place yesterday and that there was a bridge. He wondered who had taken the bridge down today. In reality, he had just navigated to the wrong place, but he refused to believe that he had made a mistake. So, stiff-necked people are really quite interesting.

A lot of people say that I am very smart, but I am just like you guys. I found that most people's IQs are similar. The human brain is quite similar, but the neck is something else. If the neck is good and soft, the head can turn easily and be very flexible. If the neck is not good, the head is not flexible, like a zombie.

It is a hard job to change a foolish person. Actually, I have managed to turn a few people around, and the results were quite good. How can you make people listen? You need to tell them that they are wrong.

Listen carefully, it’s better to have a soft neck than a stiff neck, our faith should be like a diamond, but our neck should be like a rubber band. A stiff neck isn’t flexible. Nothing can help stiff-necked people.

Do things bit by bit

We need to have a good habit of understanding things one by one, figuring out exactly how things work. For example, when learning maths, understand each formula clearly, when learning programming, understand each line of code.

I also discovered a secret: If a person doesn't figure out one by one, then this or that thing will turn around and trouble you. For example, if you understand a computer well, it will not cause you trouble. But if you don't understand a computer well, the computer will cause you trouble in no time.

If we need to handle tasks, whether at the bank, industry, commerce, or tax office, we should do our homework in advance and understand the principles behind these tasks. If you don't develop the habit of figuring things out clearly, then when you are handling these tasks, if it is not one thing going wrong, it will be another, and you will be stuck in a never-ending cycle. Having issues means you are not in a victorious state. Therefore, developing the habit of understanding things clearly is an admirable trait.

By justice a king gives a country stability, but those who are greedy for bribes tear it down. (Proverbs 29:4 NIV)

It’s very important to manage a country. As a Chinese saying goes: "It is not scarcity that worries people, but inequality". This means that people don't mind the amount of things, but they worry about unfair and unjust distribution. Therefore, kings establish stability in their countries through fairness; otherwise, they can't govern effectively.

The righteous care about justice for the poor, but the wicked have no such concern. (Proverbs 29:7 NIV)

If a poor man is in court, and you immediately rule him guilty, you will be cursed. When taking cases, you need to look at every detail. It’s very hard to trick me, I am a very careful person.

If a ruler listens to lies, all his officials become wicked. (Proverbs 29:12 NIV)

If you rule two people, they will trick you, if you rule 20 people, they will also trick you. We should understand that people don't do this on purpose; it is just human nature.

If a king judges the poor with fairness, his throne will be established forever. (Proverbs 29:14 NIV)

Don’t assume that poor people are good, they have many bad habits. If I am asked whether I would go to a very poor place to solve the problem of poverty, I would say that if it is just to distribute money, I wouldn't do it. However, if it is to change the bad habits of unruly people, I might be interested.

What does that mean to be poor? If a person is poor and is stubborn, then he will be ignorant. Ignorance leads to being wicked, and the result of being wicked is poverty.

If there are very poor people among us, I want to tell you not to feel hurt. This is meant to help you. If you have been poor one year after year, you have to get rid of the dirt in your head. It is a little difficult to not be blessed among us. But you have to change and not be stubborn. Don's make excuses for yourself.

Understanding things clearly is crucial. Even Kings need to understand, and the same goes for ordinary people. From now on, we should have a victorious mindset to sort things out correctly. Some people end up very messy while pursuing their Ph.D. Why? Because they don't have the habit of understanding things clearly. They just want to finish quickly, a habit they developed when they were very young. This leads to a big mess. I can give you many examples like this.

Keep our internal temper under control

Fools give full vent to their rage, but the wise bring calm in the end. (Proverbs 29:11 NIV)

There are many things we have to understand. The first is to keep our internal temper under control. Fools are not only stupid but also stubborn and self-righteous. In the past, I served a lot of cancer patients. Many of them were very stubborn and hot-tempered. If you told them they did something wrong, they would argue with you or become very angry. They believed they did everything right.

If a wise person goes to court with a fool, the fool rages and scoffs, and there is no peace. (Proverbs 29:9 NIV)

Fools can't control themselves when they are angry. They will only be happy when things go their way. If not, they will be very angry. If you have wisdom, it is best to avoid such people. It is hard to change them.

Do you see someone who speaks in haste? There is more hope for a fool than for them. (Proverbs 29:20 NIV)

Why does a person speak in haste? Because they think they are right, then they continue talking. It is hard to stop them and ask them to listen. Many people in the world don't think they did anything wrong. They have a lot of excuses, which is why they are hot-tempered.

An angry person stirs up conflict, and a hot-tempered person commits many sins. (Proverbs 29:21 NIV)

Once a person is stiff-necked, the devil will reside within them, causing a lot of trouble.

Whoever remains stiff-necked after many rebukes will suddenly be destroyed—without remedy. (Proverbs 29:1 NIV)

Sometimes, the person died while I was serving them. They didn't die because of me, but because of their stubbornness. I didn't know if I made a prophecy or just stated a fact, but I would serve them to death. He could give up, but I couldn't. So how do I handle it? I have to try to make them less stubborn. I thought it was not just their stubbornness, but I wasn't handling things correctly.

We need to control our anger. Why do people get angry? Because they think the other person is wrong and they are right. It’s not important whether you think you are right or wrong; what matters is understanding the matter clearly.

Discipline children and servants

Do you guys know how to discipline kids? There was a very naughty child and his mom came to me. I asked, "Did you discipline your kid?” She said yes. Later, she brought her child to me, and he was very annoying. I asked the mom, “Discipline your kid for me to see.” She picked up her son to spank him, but at the very end, she slowly patted him. What kind of discipline is this? If she does it like this, how can her child listen to her?

So, when I see the behavior of a kid, I can understand the situation of the mother. When you see how a child reacts to his mother, you can guess what the mom is like.

A rod and a reprimand impart wisdom, but a child left undisciplined disgraces its mother. (Proverbs 29:15 NIV)

An undisciplined child will disgrace his mother. Everyone should understand this. Sometimes, when a father is disciplining a child, the child's mother may try to stop him, fearing too much discipline. Then what? Even if I don't have this child anymore, it doesn't matter. Many mothers just want to have fewer problems and try to ignore it.

Spanking and rebuking are two ways to discipline a child. I think a child's neck will not be stiffer than a rod. Parents need to discipline kids when they are young, after they are around 10 to 12 years old, there is no chance after that. They will have the habit of looking down on you. So I want to tell you all that we should recognize when we haven't done things correctly. If you think you are right and continue your way, you will become a nanny to your child.

Discipline your children, and they will give you peace; they will bring you the delights you desire. (Proverbs 29:17 NIV)

See this? If you didn’t do it right, you should know.

A servant pampered from youth will turn out to be insolent. (Proverbs 29:21 NIV)

Does this mean it is a good thing that your servant became your son? No. He will be a problem for you. For example, whether you are a small boss or a big boss, you can’t manage workers by spoiling them. You need wisdom, you need to know how to discipline them. Spoiling is just good for their flesh. The same applies to kids, you need to know how to discipline them and understand how effective it is.

I will give you guys my suggestion, as long as you are under my authority, I will manage you. Whatever I tell you to do, you do. If you come to my church, I will manage you. If you don’t want to be in this church, I won’t care about you. The same applies to kids. If you are my kids, then you have to accept my discipline. We should stand firm when we discipline our children or servants. We don't rely on them for our livelihood. But before we discipline, we should tell them that what we do is to build them up. If you don't want me to build you up, then I won't take action at all.

Not just kids, but old people too. A sister called me, and she was very sad because she couldn’t communicate with her mother. I told her to not worry or manage her mother like a nanny. A few days later, she said that their relationship was good again after she decided to stop trying to control her mother. We should understand this: If people want to change, they will change. If they don't want to, just leave them alone.

When we mention discipline in the church, I would never give any chance to the devil for the people I am serving. It is not that I don't want to discipline. I just don't manage them like a nanny. I have my way to manage, and we need wisdom to do so. When you discipline your kids, they have to be under you, not you under them.

Don’t rely on people

People often place their hope on others. Some parents spoil their children in the hope that they will look after them when they are old. But that’s not good.

Those who flatter their neighbors are spreading nets for their feet. (Proverbs 29:5 NIV)

There are many scriptures in the Bible that tell us not to rely on people. Why do people try to flatter others? Because they think doing this will create a good relationship. But doing this will put a snare under their feet. It is because of fear that they want to flatter others.

Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe. (Proverbs 29:25 NIV)

Relying on people doesn't work. For someone like me, I don’t ask for favors or rely on others because I don't need people to do things. If I need help, I will find God. In human interactions, we should know what we can offer to others and what they can offer to us. Asking and relying on God brings stability while relying on people brings fear and flattery.

It is all because we don't make things correct. From now on, we have to make things right, one by one. Get rid of anger, understand life, and stop thinking you are right and others are wrong. We live by relying on God, not people. If we are unsure, then we have to clarify this understanding. Then we will realize how effective it is to rely on God and can firmly put trust in Him.

The poor and the oppressor have this in common: The Lord gives sight to the eyes of both. (Proverbs 29:13 NIV)

Whoever remains stiff-necked after many rebukes will suddenly be destroyed—without remedy. (Proverbs 29:1 NIV)

No matter who it is, everyone has been enlightened by God at some point. But people often ignore it and thus repeatedly face punishment. Poor people have a poor mentality, no matter what you do, they will still follow that poor mentality. A person who is both poor and violent can't achieve anything. As soon as a person's neck softens, many things can be resolved.

Summary

We have to look at the result, if it's good, then we did it right, if it’s bad, then we did something wrong. This is a very simple way to know if we are doing things correctly.

After listening to Proverbs 29, isn’t it good to get rid of selfishness and bad habits? When you are happy, share with me, especially through testimonies. If people are happy, I feel good because I did it right.

Where there is no revelation, people cast off restraint; but blessed is the one who heeds wisdom’s instruction. (Proverbs 29:18 NIV)

Today, we should understand why people do as they see fit. It is because they don't have a vision. If there are no big goals or purposes inside, then small things will become big issues. People will easily get angry with little things and create a lot of trouble.

Don’t make small problems into big problems. Have a purpose, know why you are here, and know what you are living for. You need to observe the results and recognize that you have a destiny and goal in the world.

When you come to our church, I will consider what your problem is. Our church is here to help people grow. I am not fully understanding everything yet, but I am still learning every day. If we fully understand this, there will be a profound effect on future generations. We are able to help kids become smart, and I think this is a great reward. I want to build my life on God. I wish for God to show His glory to me until I see Him.

I hope that our brothers and sisters have the same goal as me. As long as you have a goal and a vision, no matter how slow the journey is, you will reach it. Then you will say: "Thank God for giving me a vision, a goal, and a destiny for my life. I didn't live in vain. I can walk with God and experience His glory while I live in the world."

May God bless everyone.