🦁 Is there a 'lion' in your path today?
Base Text: Proverbs 26:13-16
INTRODUCTION
We all know what lions entail. They are some of the most feared and powerful beasts on earth, great hunters. Seeing a lion in a cage catches our attention, however, outside of it, it instills fear; its roars and what it has been seen doing generate terror.
But there exist, according to the revelation and wisdom that God gave Solomon, lions invented by the lazy, by sluggards, which are destroying that person's life.
Solomon also declares them within the line of "FOOLS". The question is: Which lion is in your path today? How are laziness and spiritual apathy killing many? What is happening with the church?
1. "The sluggard says, 'There is a lion in the road'" (Proverbs 26:13)
"The sluggard uses the excuse that there are lions in the street wanting to eat him" (NLT)
Imagine a peasant in biblical times. They knew lions well. He decides not to go out to work or to plant because he says: "the lion is in the road and will eat me". His wife goes out to check and says: "there is nothing". The next day he replies: "now there are two lions".
These comparisons were not inventions of the writer or literary imaginations; it was something that happened. And the teaching reveals to us why many fail, why there are people who do not advance naturally, but also spiritually. Why have many stopped in their growth today?
a) There is a Lion that truly roars
"Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour" — 1 Peter 5:8
- Yes, there is a real lion: the devil.
- But today he is not the one stopping you... but rather the ones you invented.
2. Laziness: The root of excuses
- Laziness in Hebrew is עָצֵל (ʿā∙ṣēl): idler, sluggard. It is related to being slow to act, which implies a lack of discipline and initiative. It is understood as a moral failure.
- Synonyms for laziness: Inactivity, idleness, apathy, negligence, carelessness. The opposite of diligence and action.
Tedium: Paralysis of the soul
There is another synonym for this word "laziness" which is called "tedium". According to John Climacus: "Tedium is a paralysis of the soul, mental weakness, negligence in pious exercises, contempt for vows, complacency in worldly things".
This tedium is what is making many lazy. Their spiritual life is in a nosedive, and they do not have enough strength to grow. The paralysis of the soul has them with the perfect excuses: they claim that due to lack of time they no longer see the need to seek God.
This class of believers wants quick services to be over. They say "Sunday morning is enough for me". They do not show up on a Tuesday because "it's too much", or they say "I've been there, I used to be a fanatic". Then they invent Lions.
THE 3 LIONS OF THE SLUGGARD
1) The lion of "I have no strength"
"The sluggard uses the excuse that there are lions in the street wanting to eat him" — Proverbs 26:13
Exhaustion, fainting, and discouragement are a Lion that is tearing down lives. They believe: "what is all this effort for?" (Malachi 3:14: "You have said, 'It is futile to serve God...'").
- Mental weakness is making them invent things and excuses that stop the church's advancement.
- When we are lazy or do less than we can, we are actually sinning: we are ignoring what God wanted us to be and, therefore, we halt His plan, not just our productivity.
- "It's just that I'm sick, it's that I don't have time, it's that I'm discouraged, it's that they don't understand me". They are all lions in the road that are stopping you. The productivity level of many Christians is at rock bottom.
People in the past had dreams, fought, struggled, achieved, did not give up. Today they are fragile, weak, with laziness and invented lions. Christians had a strong mentality: "Come on, we can do it, I will be here, God called me to serve!".
The consequence of being like this is PARALYSIS.
2) The lion of unproductivity
"As a door turns on its hinges, so a sluggard turns on his bed." — Proverbs 26:14
- Laziness leads to poverty in the literal sense. If we think about the problems of our world, it is clear that laziness (along with funds) is often the obstacle to solving them.
- But in the spiritual realm, excuses and "spiritual laziness" (detachment from spiritual disciplines) are weakening us, leading us to produce nothing in the Kingdom of God.
"A sluggard buries his hand in the dish; he is too lazy to bring it back to his mouth." — Proverbs 26:15
- The spirit operating in them is one of tiredness and fatigue. It is not the Holy Spirit, because the Holy Spirit is "action", "motivation", "joy", "gladness". A spiritual person does not invent obstacles, they tear them down.
- When you hear "I am too tired", it becomes evident that laziness breeds more laziness (Proverbs 19:15). With the sluggard, inactivity becomes a habit.
The modern world says: "Mind your own business". God's wisdom says: "Mind God's business!" (Proverbs 19:16).
The consequence of being like this is natural and spiritual IMPOVERISHMENT.
3) The lion of "I am fine as I am"
"A sluggard is wiser in his own eyes than seven people who answer discreetly." — Proverbs 26:16
- There are 7 classes of fools in the bible, but there is the fool dominated by laziness and mental inventions that make him believe he is wiser than everyone else, "because he thinks his argument is valid".
- The one who invents lions believes them. There is no one to advise him because he feels gifted. He says "I am fine as I am", becoming rude, arrogant, and argumentative.
- There are people paralyzed not by an attack, but by an excuse they repeated so much that it now seems true. And whoever believes they are already fine... stops growing.
The consequence of living like this is the HARDENING of the heart.
CONCLUSION
What lions are you inventing? What excuses are leading you to procrastinate and fill yourself with laziness? Have you stopped being fertile ground and become spiritually unproductive?
Kill those lions TODAY. Let us stop being lukewarm and draw near to the spiritual fire.
"Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord." — Romans 12:11
It is impossible to experience joy and laziness at the same time.
The lazy man invents lions... and then lives running away from them.
- Runs away from commitment...
- Runs away from the calling...
- Runs away from the purpose...
"The lion is not in the street… it is in your mind… and as long as you do not kill it… you will never advance."