The Beginning of Knowledge

The Book of Proverbs teaches Wisdom

The proverbs: Proverbs teach wisdom through short points and principles but should not be regarded as “laws” or even universal promises.

“Proverbs are wonderfully successful at being what they are: proverbs. They are not failed prophecies or systematic theologies. Proverbs by design lays out pointed observations, meant to be memorized and pondered, not always intended to be applied ‘across the board’ to every situation without qualification.” Dan Phillips

What is the difference between Wisdom and Knowledge?

Wisdom and knowledge, both recurring themes in the Bible, are related but not equal.

The dictionary defines wisdom as “the ability to discern or judge what is true, right, or lasting.”

Knowledge, on the other hand, is “information gained through experience, reasoning, or acquaintance.”

Knowledge can exist without wisdom, but not the other way around. One can be knowledgeable without being wise. Knowledge is knowing how to use a gun; wisdom is knowing when to use it and when to keep it holstered.

The Beginning of Knowledge

Write your name in the top left on the inside of your bibles.

Write down this verse:

Proverbs 1:7 ESV

7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Two types of fear

The Fear of God’s Wrath

Is being reminded of what God has displayed from the beginning. We are sinners, who have sinned and there is seperation from a perfect, Holy God. This Holy God will have not only nothing to do with sin, but a punishment for those who have sinned. There is punishment for all. That you, a sinner, would not be deserving of going to heaven, but to hell.

Hebrews 10:26–30 ESV

26 For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, 27 but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries. 28 Anyone who has set aside the law of Moses dies without mercy on the evidence of two or three witnesses. 29 How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has trampled underfoot the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of grace? 30 For we know him who said, “Vengeance is mine; I will repay.” And again, “The Lord will judge his people.”

Romans 1:18 ESV

18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.

Psalm 7:11 ESV

11 God is a righteous judge, and a God who feels indignation every day.

What do we see here from these verses:

In Hebrews, we see that there is fearful expectation of judgement, a fury of fire for those who deliberately keep on sinning.

In Romans, the wrath of God is revealed to the ungodly, to the sinners.

In Psalms, God is THE righteous judge and is angry to those who wrong Him.

When you disobey your parents, you will fear that they might ground you or take away your phone. Your parent holds the right to judge.

Let’s take this a step further.

A criminal who stands before a judge, will fear the punishment that will be sentenced for them.

This fear is not filled with anxiety as a Christian, but it is filled with a full realization that you have been bought with the blood of Jesus. That if you were not saved, there should be a fear that God’s wrath will be poured out against you. But as someone who is saved, we must be reminded of this sort of fear.

We don’t worship daddy God in the sense of lowering Him from His righteousness and almost making Him earthly. We worship Abba Father, who does have the Father like quality, but He is still the ruler of all, He is your King, He commands angels to do His bidding, where one angel would wipe out 80,000 people, yet He commands an army of them. That He is a judge with a punishment in store for the sinner. The punishment that is His wrath. A sentence to Hell, where there is no good and eternal torment.

Do you have this sort of fear for God? If you do, there should be a desire to worship Him, to repent, turn away from your sin, and obey His commands because Christ has taken on this punishment for you. He has sacrificed Himself, to die for your sins, that if you have faith that Jesus is Lord of your life, you are saved from God’s wrath.

You must know this:

Proverbs 1:7 ESV

7 The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.

The Fear of Reverence

The other side of fearing the Lord is this aspect of reverence. Fear of the Lord is a sign of deep, deep respect for who God is.

Matthew 6:9 ESV

9 Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name.

The word hallowed is to mean holy, far greater then we are, a name with great power.

We talked about the fearing aspect and there should be a sense of being scared of God and His wrath but we are saved so that doesn’t weigh as much, it still should be on the forefront of our minds. However, we also need to greatly respect who the Lord is.

His Name is Great

Go to Psalm 145

1. Circle every time he says great.

2. Circle the words explaining why God is great

Psalm 145:1–10 ESV

1 I will extol you, my God and King, and bless your name forever and ever. 2 Every day I will bless you and praise your name forever and ever. 3 Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised, and his greatness is unsearchable. 4 One generation shall commend your works to another, and shall declare your mighty acts. 5 On the glorious splendor of your majesty, and on your wondrous works, I will meditate. 6 They shall speak of the might of your awesome deeds, and I will declare your greatness. 7 They shall pour forth the fame of your abundant goodness and shall sing aloud of your righteousness. 8 The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. 9 The Lord is good to all, and his mercy is over all that he has made. 10 All your works shall give thanks to you, O Lord, and all your saints shall bless you!

What did you find?

This is the importance of a knowing God more. Do you believe that He is truly this great? Do you pray like this to God? Where is your heart this new year? I challenge you to know God more in such a way.

There is Action in Wisdom

Underline the verbs and circle main word the relates to the verb.

Proverbs 1:1–6 ESV

1 The proverbs of Solomon, son of David, king of Israel: 2 To know wisdom and instruction, to understand words of insight, 3 to receive instruction in wise dealing, in righteousness, justice, and equity; 4 to give prudence to the simple, knowledge and discretion to the youth— 5 Let the wise hear and increase in learning, and the one who understands obtain guidance, 6 to understand a proverb and a saying, the words of the wise and their riddles.

The fear of the Lord should move you into becoming wise but people often stop at knowledge and don’t do anything, which you could then argue, do they truly fear the Lord?

Once you have the knowledge of God and you have the fear of Him planted in your heart, you must live a life of doing, not just knowing.