Wisdom for Living

I’ve a very simple question for you this morning… ‘do you want to be wise?’ I’m sure everyone of us can think of numerous times when we’ve been faced with situations, decisions to make, roads to take, advice to listen to or reject, and we’ve longed to be wise!! To be honest I think I find myself in that situation pretty much everyday!! And here’s the thing about it, sometimes we long for that wisdom when we face really big things in life…should I marry this person, should I take this job, should I move church, should I spend this money… But quite often we need wisdom in the simple, daily, humdrum of life…what way will I react to this, how friendly should I be with these people, how should I use my time here, is this person genuine…?

We need wisdom! And what a wonderful thing it is to know, that God wants His people to be wise! Not wise in the eyes of this world! But rather wise in His eyes, to have a ‘skill for living a godly life’, to have an ability to live in a way that brings God glory, and us joy and peace! He wants that for us! And He makes that available to us, through His Word! What a gracious and kind God!

So this morning we want to begin a pursuit of this wisdom, and to help us do that we want to look at the book of Proverbs. It falls into the category of ‘wisdom literature’. Remember the Bible is made up of number different styles of writing (genres). God in His wisdom knew that we needed truth in different ways because we’re so complex! At times we need the straight, no nonsense law, Do not commit adultery! But at others times we need that to hit us in different places, in different ways, like through the example of stories when we see those who commit adultery and how devastating it is! Or when we hear poetry and picture imagery of those committing adultery being described as like a ox going to the slaughter! God knows what we need! And in Proverbs, He seeks to impart to us this wisdom, this skill for living a godly life!

One writer described the book like this, imagine you are about to sit down on a one to one counselling session, with the wisest person that ever lived!! Image you are about to sit and listen to the One in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge (). The wisdom here is not just of Solomon, or Lemuel, or Agur, but rather the wisdom of Jesus Christ rings off each page!

So let’s begin by reading 1:1-7...

The Context of this Book (v.1)

Verse one acts as the title of the whole book. And in it we learn a lot! Firstly we see the form this writing is going to take, ‘proverbs’. Now proverbs are hard to define, one writer decribed them as ‘short sentences, drawn from long experience’. They're bite sized statements of truth, that are easy to remember but often difficult to understand!

And they’re by no way unique to the Bible. Proverbs are found in nearly every culture on earth, we can read of proverbs and wisdom literature that predates the Bible, and we can think of examples of proverbs that are used today… ‘Actions speak louder than words’ , ‘Don’t judge a book by it’s cover’, ‘Good things come to those who wait’, ‘Better late than never’. I must say some of the Irish proverbs though are good! One of my favorites, ‘Put silk on a goat and its still a goat’!

We use proverbs often, they’re a powerful means of communicating in a memorable way! But in the Bible there is a huge difference! These proverbs are not just sayings of the wise, but they are inspired by God!

Solomon is identified as the author here. Now we know Solomon didn’t write all of this book, there are other contributors mentioned and then someone has clearly arranged the material as we find it now. But Solomon is the first name we read of, and the main contributor. Although his actual proverbs don’t begin until chapter 10, it is him that writes in these first 9 chapters, drawing us in, wetting our appetite, causing us to see the beauty and need to walk wisely!

And we know that Solomon was unparalleled in his day for wisdom! And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding beyond measure, and breadth of mind like the sand on the seashore, so that Solomon’s wisdom surpassed the wisdom of all the people of the east and all the wisdom of Egypt.

Now when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the Lord, she came to test him with hard questions... And when she came to Solomon, she told him all that was on her mind. And Solomon answered all her questions; there was nothing hidden from the king that he could not explain to her. And when the queen of Sheba had seen all the wisdom of Solomon, ...there was no more breath in her. And she said to the king, “The report was true that I heard in my own land of your words and of your wisdom, but I did not believe the reports until I came and my own eyes had seen it. And behold, the half was not told me. Your wisdom and prosperity surpass the report that I heard. ()

Solomon had a wisdom unlike any other, because his wisdom came from the Almighty! But in the title we also are reminded that Solomon was the Son of David, king of Israel! This was not just any wise man, this was the representative of God before His chosen people Israel! The wisdom contained in this book doesn’t come to us in a vacuum, it comes to us in the setting of a loving, covenant keeping God, speaking through His servant, to His chosen people! It’s within the security of that relationship that the fruit of this book can really grow!

For us today, as we read this together, let’s hear it as a loving Father speaking with His children, telling them the ways of this life! For those of us who have trusted in Christ as our Savior, we are adopted into His family, Jesus has given us the right to become children of God through His sacrifice! And God loves us, and wants us to live well before Him!

The Purpose of this Book (v.2-6)

Wisdom comes with Instruction

Wisdom is much more than head knowledge

Wisdom is for all

There’s no veiling, no secrets, no hidden purpose as to why this book has been given to us! As we said at the beginning, God wants His people to be wise! He wants us to live well before Him in the big and the small of life. And Solomon as the wise king of Israel, wants to impart this wisdom that God has given him to the people he rules over! Notice the verbs at the beginning of each verse, to know, to receive, to give, to understand… That is what the teaching of Proverbs seeks to do, to help know wisdom (not just a head knowledge, but an inner experience, something that is part of us) , to help us receive it’s teaching, to give us prudence (cleverness, cunning in the good sense), to help us understand the complexities and difficulties of life. But there are 3 things in particular I want to just highlight here...

Wisdom comes with instruction

v.2-3 & 7...

The word instruction here can mean training or discipline. If we want to be wise, if we want this skill for living, we must be ready to go to school! We need to be prepared to be instructed, to be trained, to be disciplined!

It doesn’t come from looking deep inside our souls, and there we’ll discover the keys to life! We don’t have this within ourselves, like we so often told! We need instruction! We need to be taught, to be shaped, to be corrected, to be guided!

This book offers us wisdom, but as one writer says, it’s hard earned! We need to ready to be instructed, willing to listen! And at times that is not a pleasant process, it’s not always easy! You know what it’s like when someone tries to tell you what to do, or how to think, you know the feelings that bubble up inside when someone challenges your way of doing something and even goes as far as saying it’s wrong!

We naturally hate it! There is this inbuilt defense system, and it’s as though any time someone tries to instruct us, the anti advice missiles are launched and the impenetrable wall is raised! How dare you try to instruct me!! As though we are the fountains of all knowledge!

As we go through this book, be ready for instruction, settle in your heart now that we need it! …the way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to advice… ()

Wisdom is much more than head knowledge (v.3)

The wisdom that God seeks to impart in this book is not mainly to help us to know more, it’s to enable us to live better! To live lives of righteousness, justice and equity! I’m sure all of us know people who the world would look upon as being really wise, and yet they live lives of such unrighteousness!

Knowledge alone does not lead to wise living! That’s the lie we’re sold over and over again! Whatever the issue, it seems the answer is better education! How do we solve the problem of poverty…better education, how do we correct racism…better education, what about drug abuse…better education! Now education is useful in all these areas, but it doesn’t change the root problem, which is the heart!! Some of the most educated people in our world today are also some of the most evil! Those who see no problem with slaughtering babies in the womb!!! Some of the best informed, intelligent people in our society can be the most arrogant and obnoxious to be around!

Wisdom is so much more than simple head knowledge! Proverbs 3:13-18...

Wisdom is for all (v.4-5)

Throughout this book we’re introduced to different characters, the wise, the fool, the young, the simple, the scoffers… But God offers His wisdom to all! To any who will hear! Maybe your here this morning and you’re only young, you maybe think you’re too young to be that interested in being wise! That’s for the older people!! No!! It’s for you! God wants you to walk in wisdom now, to live skillfully now!! And you need that! In school, with friends, at home, when you’re faced with choices and problems! God wants you to be wise! As I think but to being young and in school, I was so foolish! I made so many bad choices!! This wisdom is for the young!

It’s also for the simple! Those who seem to be on the fence, who could really go either way, they’re not so sold yet on what path to take! Maybe you’re at a cross roads in life and you’re just not sure where to turn! This is for you, if you’ll listen!

It’s for the fool! The person who has made the bad choice, who has started down a dangerous road! Maybe there is still hope if they can hear the cries of wisdom! You know when you make a bad decision and you start down that path, but before you’re too far gone you can hear the voice of reason calling you back! And you need to choose, do I humble myself and turn, or harden my heart and press on?!

But this is also for the wise, those who already have understanding! There’s no one that is beyond what this Book has to offer, there is no one that has ‘made it’, and now can cover their ears and bask in their enlightenment! Everyone can grow and increase, if we’ll have ears to hear!

The purpose of the book is clear! God wants us to have wisdom!

The Gateway of this Book (v.7)

Just as is described as the doorway to the rest of the Psalms, so verse 7 here is described as the doorway or gate to the rest of Proverbs. This is where it all begins, this is the first step on the journey to what this book offers! No matter what we learn, no matter what we hear, no matter what we seek to put in place, there is no progress in wisdom, in knowledge, without the fear of the Lord!

Have you ever started buttoning up a shirt or a blouse and you think you’re making good progress but you get to the final button and you realized you started in the wrong place! Because you failed to get the first button right, all the others went wrong!

We must not get this beginning wrong, because if we do, all else will fail! And you see it time and time again! People who live well, who want to do what is right, who want to be wise! But no matter how well they may live, there’s something not right, there’s something missing! They have the appearance of godliness bu deny its power!

So what is the fear of the Lord here? Well in Hebrew poetry we often see what’s called parallelism. You have 2 sentences, and the second helps interpret the first. We’ll see it throughout the book. The key to understanding 7a is 7b...

The fear of the Lord is an attitude of heart! It is a humbling of ourselves before God. It is an acknowledgment that He is God, and not just God from whom all wisdom comes! He is also Lord! The One who has revealed Himself to His people, the One who loves us, and does good to us, the One who doesn’t play games or try to trick us! He speaks words of truth for our good always!

One writer says, The fear of the Lord is that affectionate reverence, by which the child of God bends himself humbly and carefully to his Father’s law’

There is a way to fear God that is false, Isaiah speaks of it in 29:13...

And the Lord said: “Because this people draw near with their mouth and honor me with their lips, while their hearts are far from me, and their fear of me is a commandment taught by men,

We all know the difference of obeying out of compulsion and with resentment, and obeying in the most difficult of circumstances because we love and want to honour the person asking!

Here is the attitude, the heart, the mindset God calls us to as we begin this journey, fear Him! He love us, and every word of His proves true!!

Let me encourage you each time you lift His Word to read, every time you come to hear His Word taught and preached. Simply pray, ‘Father, I need wisdom, and you are Lord!! Anything you ask me to believe I will believe, anything you tell me to do I will do, anything you command me to change I will change! This is where wisdom begins, and the the soil in which it will grow!

Father I ask that you might fill us with the knowledge of your will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so we might walk in a manner worthy you, fully pleasing to you, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. May you strengthen us with all power, according to your glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to you, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in light.