The Benefit of Counsel Prov. 15:22 CLICK TITLE FOR AUDIO

The Bible speaks of the multitude of counselors – 2 or 3 would be enough because in the mouth of two or three witnesses is every word established.  Christians like to say, “I prayed about it” and think that is enough to go on – it’s not.

A lot of young men are hesitant to get counsel from older men for two reasons – first, they don’t want to look stupid (this stems from pride – in other words I’ll do this “great” idea that I have and then they can all marvel how smart I am) – second , they don’t want to be told “no” – young men like to get up and go and they don’t want some wise old coot filling their plans with holes.

Well you are not stupid if you ask for wise counsel no matter how reckless your plan may sound – it will save you lots of grief down the road or it might actually cause you to refine your thinking so that the wild plan you have will actually work – without counsel purposes are disappointed

If you are told “no” by a wise counselor it may deflate your ego but he will save you years of heartache and agony particularly as it concerns relationships (like marriage and business).

What you need is counsel not a rubber stamp of approval on your foolish idea – so often people come for “advice” when they are just looking for someone else to agree with them (confirmation) – that’s not going to help you – I have acquaintances like that who just push for someone to agree with them when their mind is already made up – and so I tell them “You’ve already made up your mind so why are you coming to me?”  People generally do what they want to do any way.

Obtaining counsel requires good counselors who know something and are willing to tell you the truth – your pastor should be one of them – I have five good counselors – they are all older than I am – they all know me well – they all understand the ministry – and they all pray for us – in addition I have my wife and she knows when I have a hair brained idea or when I am really on to something – Prov 11:14 Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counsellors there is safety.  Prov 24:6 For by wise counsel thou shalt make thy war: and in multitude of counsellors there is safety.

Your father can be an excellent counselor – when I was 35 years old I received excellent counsel from my father about the ministry and I really don’t think he was in favor of what I was getting ready to do.

Counselors are no replacement for prayer and time in the word but they can add a dimension to prayer and the word that will help you immensely – you can hear counselors talk and often you are not going to hear the Lord or the word (at least not audibly) – if you have three counselors and you give each of them a chance to speak concerning an idea then you have to listen to their replies carefully – I have found that all of the counselors will line up on the main idea and their counsel will also help me to address some other things that I hadn’t considered – if their counsel doesn’t line up then caution!!!

Don’t be hasty or in a big rush – take your time – this is where a lot of people get in trouble – they are in such a rush that they don’t have the time for the counsel to sink in – they don’t have time to weigh what they’ve heard – they just jump right in – big mistake!

In building our first building we hired top notch engineers and a top notch architect – we received excellent counsel from a contractor – together this team advised us perfectly on the construction of the building.

In making decisions concerning things we have to deal with among ourselves in the local church, I have men with whom I take counsel – we talk over ideas and they help me figure out how to handle some things that I am not sure about – they aren’t a standing committee, they are just trusted men who have the best interest of the church in their heart – they have helped keep us from making decisions that might not be for the betterment of this local body – they help us to make decisions that are for the edification of the saints – this gives us all comfort to know the decisions have been weighed carefully before the Lord – after all, this kind of counsel gives you more folks praying for you and the ministry.

We receive excellent counsel at Pastors’ School in Toledo and Idaho – good wise counsel from men whose churches have grown through the place where we are now – we have learned from their experience and they have given us the opportunity to ask them some good questions.

So, talk things over carefully with your spouse – if your dad is still alive see what he has to say – talk with your pastor – get about three good wise men and visit with them about your ideas and get their counsel – pray – read the Bible – and ask God to give you wisdom – in the multitude of counselors your purposes will be established and there is safety!!!