I don't want to go any further, but I really want to apply this now. Perhaps you have a sense of the presence of God when you're in here, but when the cold day air hits your face - all those spiritual realities seem to fade away. There will never, ever again be another chance to be the way that man was. ![]() And he will be broken in a way that is irrevocable - it will not be able to be brought back, it will not be able to be mended or, as the translation I read said, it won't be able to be healed. The put it: the man - the women, the teenager, the boy or girl - who hardens his neck, who stiffens the muscles and the sinews and the flesh of his neck against God, who refuses the yoke of God, who refuses God's will, God's way upon his life, who refuses the lead of God whereby He may walk him in His paths of righteousness - he says that that man who hardens his neck, who has a brass neck, suddenly that man will be broken. He just won't let you put that lead on him, and he moves, and he turns his neck away - and he'll bite you, but he won't have the lead round his neck. It's the picture of little dog, isn't it? You go over to the cloakroom, and you open the door and he sees you getting the coat - and then he goes frantic, and he's jumping and shouting, jumping on your knees - and then you go to put the lead on him, and then there's a growl. And he goes over to those beasts, and he goes to put the yoke upon their shoulders but they turn their heads - they turn away, they refuse his yoke, they're rebellious, they don't want anything to do with it - and he can't seem to put the yoke upon their shoulders, for the purposes and the labours which he has in mind. And he goes into the field and he takes the yoke - that big long panel of wood for the shoulders of the oxen, which they will plough that field and work hard for his labours. A picture of a bullock - and the farmer is walking along, and he's about to start his work early in the morning, and he's about to plough the field. The picture that the man who is writing this proverb has in his own mind, I believe, is perhaps the picture of the oxen. 'He, that being often reproved hardeneth his neck, shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy'. It's a bit like gambling as well, isn't it? You get a scent, and you get a feel, you get an emotion for the gambling and you go a little bit further - and the more you win, the more you want to go on, until you fall because you go a bridge too far. ![]() Perhaps in business we've found it, and we've got that scent - that scent of the bait, if you like - and we go a little bit further in business, and we try to gather a bit more money, and we go too far - only to fall and lose a bit of money. Perhaps in education we've achieved something and we thought we'd go on a little further - and we got a little further, until we got greedy about it, and we went a little more further to only fail and realise we'd went a bridge too far. We can think of many illustrations, many instances, within our own lives where we could say that we have gone a bridge too far. ![]() Perhaps you've seen the film, you've seen how those troops in the second world war - they got so far, only to go a bridge too far, where they met their end. The subject I wish to preach on this evening, from this verse, is: 'A Bridge Too Far'. Another translation, again, says: 'The man who is often reproved, but refuses to accept criticism, will suddenly be broken and never have another chance'. Another translation puts it like this: 'He, who is often reproved yet stiffens his neck, will suddenly be broken without healing'. Not very many words in this little proverb - like most proverbs - but there is profound truth within it. Week after week they hear the message of the Gospel, and week after week they harden their heart and their neck against God! Is that you tonight? Be honest with yourself here!
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