The Call of the Wisdom of God to Humanity

Introduction

I doubt very much that any of us would disagree that relationships fundamentally change us. They change our priorities, can change our perspective on a whole host of issues. When a young man meets a young woman many things can change. The writer of Proverbs states that it something he doesn’t understand about the way of a man with a young woman. How many of us men remember the time that we first met our wives and eventually tried to woo her? Our desire to form a relationship with her inspired us to do things that we wouldn’t normally do and endure things we normally wouldn’t. We buy flowers...chocolates...watch romantic movies...and even, go “shopping” which is really browsing through one or more stores. Relationships change us, don’t they.

As members of the Church, our relationship with God should change us and it should be a more enduring change than what any other relationship brings to our lives. A big question is how does faith in Christ change our thinking and approach to what we think, say, and do? How then shall we live as Christians in a world that approaches everything from a corrupted point of view, a view that does not embrace our wise God?

The last Sunday in December, I preached from the beginning of Proverbs 1, where the focus was on Proverbs 1:7 “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.” At that time I gave a definition of the fear of the Lord that I would like us all to consider again as we look at verses 20-33 today. The fear of the Lord is a profound reverence and awe for the person of God and His majesty, which leads to a deep sense of dependence on Him and a commitment to live according to His revealed will.

God has called us not only to believe in Jesus Christ, but to live wisely in this life according to His Word. This is a call not only to us who are gathered here together this morning, but also to all of humanity. The Scripture says that the wisdom of God is found in the preaching of the cross. The wisdom of God is found in the person of Jesus Christ as we read out of 1 Corinthians 1. In your own time it would be profitable to continue reading into 1 Corinthians 2 as Paul continues to discuss the wisdom of God.

But for this morning, I would like to focus our attention on this passage in Proverbs 1 where Wisdom calls to each of us gathered here or listening online. The theme that we will be looking at verses 20-33 this morning is the Call of the Wisdom of God to Humanity.

The Subjects of Wisdom’s Call

There are three kinds of people that the Wisdom of God calls out to. I believe that as we go through these, we will find that the same kinds of people are to be found in all cultures, in all nations, and in all societies through human history. These people have a perspective on Wisdom that she is not very important.

The first is the simple. How long will you who are simple love your simple ways? Wisdom calls out. The simple is committed to neither good or evil. He is naive and vulnerable to seduction by folly. You might call this the person that just trips through life, not searching to know what is good. Perhaps the expression “Ignorance is bliss” is kind of their life motto. I don’t know how many of us here might remember the Disney movie Pollyanna from many years ago. It was the story of a young orphan girl whose approach to life was positive and rather naive. Life was just great until tragedy struck her life and she didn’t know how to handle it.

For the “spiritual” person this would be the one who hopes that by living a good life you can find your way to paradise in the next. As long as my good works outweigh my bad. But that simple ways is without thought about what a good work really is. Nor an understanding of why they decided on that type of hope for the future. For the rest of the simple, it can be the hope that as long as I don’t do anything really bad, I should be good with God. After all, isn’t he the kind old man upstairs. If God was truly loving He won’t send me to hell. I’ve never hurt anyone.

The simple is the one who goes throughout life without pondering the instruction of Wisdom that is in Proverbs 2 “Turn your ear to wisdom and apply your heart to understanding...look for it as for silver and search for it as a hidden treasure.”

The second is the fool. How long will fools hate knowledge? Wisdom asks. The fool has rejected wisdom. He is so occupied with the world that the things of God are not important. The fool is one that Proverbs 1:7 says despises wisdom and instruction. A fool is the person who is so confident in themselves that they believe they need nothing from God and that the source of all that they need is to be found in themselves. Proverbs 12:15 says that the way of fools seems right to them, but the wise listen…

The way of fools is not merely an individual thing, but can also be a societal thing. I have often been struck by the saying in Ecclesiastes that there is nothing new under the sun, or perhaps the common expression that those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it. That would be the way of the fool. A fool can see by those around them that a particular way of life is destined for trouble, but they choose it still with the idea that if I do it...it’ll be different.

For the fools that want to be “spiritual” it would be the rejection of Scripture – of the Wisdom of God – with an arrogance that I can find my own way to heaven, or I know what is best. Can even be the idea that the Bible is old and outdated and doesn’t have any value for me in the modern world. All of it is foolish as if the Wisdom of God that is the master craftsman of the world doesn’t know more than the fool.

The third is the mocker. How long will mockers delight in mockery? Wisdom asks. The mocker is hardened against wisdom and seeks to turn others to folly. The mocker is one that despises the things of God – the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the pattern of life that is set out before the believer, the call to be holy as God is holy, the knowledge about God and His ways. He despises Wisdom so much that he seeks to turn others away from the path of life and wisdom and turn them towards destruction and the grave.

Ironically, throughout the book of Proverbs Wisdom talks to the simple and the fool, urging them to turn from foolishness and simplicity. No such urging from Wisdom goes out to the mocker. Rather the picture of the mocker is the person who is intractable and headed towards destruction.

As we continue to look at this passage, we see that substance of Wisdom’s call is compassionate and sympathetic as she both warns and entreats them to turn from their ways and turn unto the truth of God.

The Substance of Wisdom’s Call

The original sin in the garden of Eden was the sin of pride. Adam and Eve did not have the humility of doing the will of God which, in their case, was resisting the devil and temptation. Rather, they exalted their will over God’s refusing to listen to his warning that in the day they ate of the tree death would come. We see here in Proverbs that Wisdom first calls the simple, the fool, and the mocker to listen to her call.

Repent at my rebuke, then I will pour out my thoughts to you. I will make known to you my teachings.

For the simple, that means that life is serious and there is a need to search out truth and wisdom. Stop being naive! Stop thinking and living in blind unfounded pie-in-the-sky hope. Be grounded in truth and wisdom. What is the problem with the simple? It is that he doesn’t pay attention.

For the fool, this means that you can’t figure out true spirituality or know the good and the beautiful without listening to God. The fool has the same problem as the simple and the mocker. We have a heart and soul that is not disposed towards God. By nature, we are blind groping in the dark but the fool thinks that his blindness is sight and the darkness is the sun shining brightly. What is the problem with the fool? He disregards the call and advice of wisdom.

The second point is to accept the rebuke of Wisdom and repent. This is to go beyond the listening of truth and, so to speak, let it go in one ear and out the other. The idea here in Scripture is similar to the idea of what a cow does when chewing the cud. It takes time and is a repetitive process. The simple and the fool are called to contemplate the message that the Wisdom of God sends to them. What is repentance? A few weeks ago when preaching on the passage in Luke about Zacchaeus we saw that repentance is a change of mind and heart that is demonstrated by a change in action. Zacchaeus heart and mind was changed during his encounter with Christ, who is the Wisdom of God, and this started a change from greed to generosity, from fraud to restitution.

What is the repentance of the simple and the fool? It is to turn away from naivety and pride and embrace the knowledge of God. Repentance is to turn away from lies...the lies of the world and the lies about the truth that is conjured up in the human heart. It is the repentance of sitting at the feet of Christ and to learn from Him, to embrace the Word of God that comes to us from a merciful and gracious God.

The Significance of Wisdom’s Call

In this entire passage, Wisdom brings an indictment against the simple, the fool, and the mocker. How long will they choose to remain in that spiritual condition? How often does wisdom have to speak to them? After the truth of God is spoken time and again, will they continue to refuse to listen. The true significance of Wisdom’s call is something that is true for all of us. Jesus taught us that there are only two ways in life. There is a broad way that leads to destruction, but there is a narrow way that leads to everlasting life. The broad way has many spiritualities and different religious philosophies. The narrow way that leads to everlasting life is only through Christ. What is the significance of the call of Wisdom today?

First, the way of folly – the broad way - ends in disaster. When calamity overtakes you like a storm, when disaster sweeps over you like a whirlwind, when distress and trouble overwhelm you, then they will call to me but I will not answer; they will look for me but will not find me, since they hated knowledge and did not choose to fear the Lord.

As I’ve contemplated these words, how terrifying is it! It is like building your house upon the sand of the seashore. You are warned that during a storm of the sea you will not be safe. You are warned that death will find you when the sea rages and breaks up your home. Many warnings are given by friends and family, but you ignore them all because you either like the simple who doesn’t believe that there will ever be a storm upon the sea, or you are like the fool who believes that you can build a house on the sand that can withstand the storm. In the end when the storm comes, the simple or the fool will call out but it is too late, they are pulled into the storm of the sea in its raging.

For the waywardness of the simple will kill them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them.

But what would happen if you listened to the call of Wisdom in this life? You see God calls us to repentance and faith. God can set our feet upon the rock and give us a firm place to stand, and that Rock is Christ.

You see, brothers and sisters, the way of wisdom leads to safety. It is important for us to grasp that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is the good news that the Wisdom of God became flesh. Jesus Christ is the incarnated Wisdom of God that is our righteousness, holiness, and redemption. He provides the way of life. Every day the call of God’s Wisdom goes into all the earth urging all those who do not fear the Lord to embrace the knowledge of God, to turn from foolishness and disaster and to embrace way of safety and salvation in Jesus Christ.

But it’s even more than eternal safety and security in the arms of Jesus. It is also a wiser and more godly life lived in the time and place where God has placed you. One of the problems with pursuing folly is what we are told early in Proverbs 1 My son, if sinful men entice you, do not give in to them. The context in verses 8-19 are greed and violence. Throughout Proverbs the path is shown for wise living by God’s people in a sinful world. A couple of well-known verses are Proverbs 3:5-6, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your way submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.”

Conclusion

In conclusion, the call of Wisdom is to all of us, both believers in Christ and non-believers also.

To the non-believer the call of Wisdom is this, repent of your foolishness in pursuing all other things besides Jesus Christ. Do not refuse the call of the Gospel this morning. Turn from embracing the foolishness of the world – its thinking, its philosophies, its idols of money, power, and pleasure. Turn away from that and turn unto life. TIndurn to the Author of Life, Jesus Christ, in faith and repentance. There will come a day when you will eat the fruit of your schemes. Wisdom says that the unrepentant waywardness of the simple will kill them. The unrepentant complacency of fools will destroy them. But whoever listens to Wisdom and embraces the fear of the Lord will live in safety.

Brothers and sisters I’d like you to think back to the beginning of this sermon when I spoke about our relationship with God. Our relationship with God should definitely change our view of the world and our own lives. Wisdom calls upon us to dig ever deeper into the wonderful depths of the riches of God – to know the height, the depth, and breadth of the grace of God in Jesus Christ. Wisdom calls you to search for understanding, to know the fear of the Lord. Learning about the ways of the Lord and how to live wisely in a sinful world is a lifelong pursuit. For the Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding. He holds success in store for the upright, he is a shield to those whose walk is blameless, for he guards the course of the just and protects the way of his faithful ones. AMEN.