The Pursuit of Wisdom

INTRO:

We are living in perilous times.

This past year has been a tremendous year in which to be alive.

We have witnessed history being made and continue to see events unfold before our eyes that we never dreampt that we’d be seeing.

When this pandemic started we all knew that it was a historical event, but who could have ever known that this pandemic would lead to as many cataclysmic events as it has?

- Racial tensions and riots,

- political in-fighting

radical division among the people of this country

a highly publicised and contested election

- the storming of our nation’s capitol,

- the silencing of free speech by not only the press but Social Media itself.

There are voices that are clamouring to be heard over all the others, while other voices are being silenced at a dangerous rate by the self proclaimed moral police of the day. For those of us who have been around the block a while, we are witnessing the demise of our nation, the crumbling of our democracy and blatent disregard for the faith and goodness upon which our nation was founded.

It doesn’t matter which political party you adhere to, the things that are taking place in our country these days should greatly arrest your attention, and cause you to pause... not only for the historical significance of what is taking place, but also because we very well just might be watching scripture unfold as the end times fall into place right before our very eyes.

Now, more than ever before, there is a tremendous need for wisdom among God’s people.

Now, more than ever before, there is an urgent need for discernment among His children to both see interpret what is happening all around us in light of Scripture.

For if we’re not careful, we will just accept the truths we are spoon fed from talking heads on both sides of the political spectrum instead of digging deep into God’s word to gain His insight, His view point and His opinion of everything that is taking place in our world today. I don’t know about you, but I’ve had enough of what everyone else thinks, I want to fill my mind and my heaert with what the Lord thinks about it.

So this morning we are continuing on our journey towards wisdom.

- We began last week by seeking to learn from the mistakes of Solomon - one of the worst examples of wisdom God’s people have ever known.

- Today we are going straight to the source of wisdom - the book that is all about wisdom - the book of Proverbs.

Much of this book was written by king Solomon, one of the wisest men who ever lives on this planet.

Yet His words were not wise simply because he was an intelligent and astute man.

His words were wise because he was filled with the wisdom and insight of God.

And this book, is a keepsakes reminder to us all as to how important wisdom is , and to learn from Solomon how to properly pursue and obtain it.

If you have your Bible please turn to Proverbs chapter 1.

The first few verse spell out the purpose of the book.

Their purpose is to teach people wisdom and discipline , to help them understand the insights of the wise. Their purpose is to teach people to live disciplined and successful lives, to help them do what is right, just and fair.”

I love how the Passion Translation describes these verses...

TPT says it like this, “Within these sayings will be found the revelation of wisdom and the impartation of spiritual understanding. Use them as keys to unlock the treasures of true knowledge. Those who cling to these words will receive discipline to demonstrate wisdom in every relationship and to choose what is right and just and fair. These proverbs will give you great skill to teach the immature and make them wise, to give youth the understanding of their design and destiny. For the wise, these proverbs will make you even wiser, and for those with discernment, you will be able to acquire brilliant strategies for leadership. These kingdom revelations will break open your understanding to unveil the deeper meaning of parables, poetic riddles, and epigrams, and to unravel the words and enigmas of the wise. How then does a man gain the essence of wisdom? We cross the threshold of true knowledge when we live in obedient devotion to God. Stubborn know-it-alls will never stop to do this, for they scorn true wisdom and knowledge.”

‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭1:2-7‬ ‭TPT‬‬

wisdom is the practical application of knowledge. Its not about just knowing things, its about how to apply what we know to every situation that we face in life.

In order to properly understand and apply wisdom, we must possess the ability to both ANALYZE and DISCERN what is really taking place- we need to see behind the things we are shown, we need to be able to read between the lines so that we are not deceived by people’ words or deceptions but can truly grasp the truth of what is taking place.

Can you see now, why this subject is so timely and applicable? If there was ever a time we needed wisdom, there is no greater time than now.

So where to do we start? How do we begin to set our hearts towards wisdom?

The beginning of Chapter 2 gives us a few clues:

“My child, listen to what I say, and treasure my commands. Tune your ears to wisdom, and concentrate on understanding. Cry out for insight, and ask for understanding. Search for them as you would for silver; seek them like hidden treasures. Then you will understand what it means to fear the Lord, and you will gain knowledge of God.”

‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭2:1-5‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Regardless of what translation you might be reading today, I want you call out some of the action words - the verbs - you see in these verses.

Listen

Treasure my commands

tune your ears

concentrate

cry out

ask

search

seek

other translations say:

ESV

make your ear attentive

incline your heart

call out

raise your voice

seek it

understand

TPT

open your spirit wide

cry out

intercede for insight

AMP

treasure my commands

apply your heart

seeking it consciously and striving for it eagerly

MSG

collect my counsels

guard them with your life

tune your ears to the world of wisdom

set your heart on a life of understanding

make insight your priority

don’t take no for an answer

What can we learn from all these descriptions? Wisdom will not just fall on us - it is something we must go after and pursue.

we won’t gain it through osmossis

it won’t be discerned by merely going through the spiritual motions of our lives

it won’t be transferred to our account or downloaded into our consciousness automatically

if wisdom is something we want - we are going to have to expend our energy and go out in radical pursuit of it

And here’s the problem…many of us don’t do that. Many people living in today’s hectic world have very little time for critical thinking, they have little energy or bandwith to decipher what is really happening in the world around them as opposed to just accepting what is being spoon fed to them from the talking heads of their chosen television network or internet gathering house.

God wants us to have wisdom and discernment. He wants us to have more than just a mere head knowledge of current events - he wants us to understnd and apply our knowledge to the practical decision we make each day of our lives. YET he’s not going to just drop it on our laps. We’re going to have to prize our pursuit of it and seek after it with all of our hearts!

I want to encourage you to GO ON A WISDOM SCAVENGER HUNT WITH THIS JANUARY

I want you spend time each day reading at least one chapter of proverbs a day.

Before you start reading, I want you to center yourself. I want you to say a prayer and invite the Holy Spirit to speak directly to your heart.

I want you to look for words and sentences or phrases that stand out as you red them - write those down so that you can meditate - or chew on the truths you find.

Ask yourself why those things stood out to you. Notice the feelings and emotions they invoke. Journal what you discover.

I want you to ask the Holy spirit how that nugget of truth you found can be applied to your life - right now - today - in this moment.

Then I want you purpose in your heart that to the best of your ability, you are going to live out that truth whenever you have the opportunity thorughout the day.

Will you do that with me? Will you pursue wisdom this New Year? Will you purposefully apply God’s truth to the situation you face 0n a daily basis? Will you set aside time daily to grow in something that will pay huge dividends for the rest of your life?

Look at the promise Scripture gives us if we do this...

Verse 6 “For the Lord grants wisdom! From his mouth come knowledge and understanding. He grants a treasure of common sense to the honest. He is a shield to those who walk with integrity. He guards the path of the Just and protects those who are faithful to Him. Then you will understand what is RIGHT, JUST and FAIR, and you will find the right way to go. For wisdom will enter your hearts and knowledge will fill you with joy. Wise choices will watch over you. Understanding will keep you safe.”

Did anyone catch some of the rewards association with gaining wisdom? What were they?

Commons sense...

A shield of protection

he will provide a path to walk on

We will understand what is right

we will know the right path to take

we will be filled with joy

Wisdom will watch over us

understanding will keep us safe

But before going after wisdom, there are a few ground rules we have to follow. there are a few conditions that have to be met before god can fulfill the promises made that we just read.

Flip on over to chapter 3 with me.

Starting with verse 1 “My child , never forget the things I have taught you. Store my commands in your heart. If you do this, you will live many years, and your life will be satisfying.”

we can’t afford to just read these truths - they must be applied to our lives

We need to store them in our hearts so that we can be sure to live them out in our actions

doing so, we are promised, will cause our lives to be satisfying!

“Never let loyalty and kindness leave you! Tie them around your neck as a reminder. Write them deep within your heart. Then you will find favor and with both God and people.”

Knowledge has a tendency to puff us up and to stroke our ego

if we’re not careful we will start looking down on those who know less than we do

we will criticize and judge them

that’s why loyalty and kindness are so important - they keep us honest and grounded

and they help us find and keep favor with people and with the Lord

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, do not depend on your own understanding.”

- TRUST IN THE LORD

- trust him entirely - with ALL your heart

- God demands an undivided commitment to himself

The greatest commandment instructs us “to love the Lord our God with all our hearts, minds, soul and strength

Soif we really want wisdom, that is entry price we are going to need to be willing to pay

the Hebrew word for “Trust” means “to lie down on”

to put your entire weight on something

when you sleep at night in your bed, you show that you trust that your bed is strong enough to hold you

But how are we to TRUST? We are to Trust With ALL our HEART

Means entirely, without exception

God is essensially saying, “trust me completely; I can sustain you. I can protect you. I can lead you.

Your own understanding is incapable of doing this...

If you doubt me, check your past record. How has trusitng and following your own instincts gone for you in the past?

DON”T LEAN ON YOUR OWN UNDERSTANDING

By nature we are programmed to rely on our insticts and desires

Much of what we do is determined more by our FEELINGS than by our FAITH

there is a way that seems right to a man but its end is the way of death

he who trusts in his own heart is a fool

Or even the understanding and wisdom of others

we must learn to evaluate the counsel and influence of friends, family members, and the experts of the world against the WORD OF GOD

IN ALL YOUR WAY ACKNOWLEDGE HIM

This ia an umbrella statement covering anything that has to do with our lives

we aren’t just to acknolewdge God’s Lordship over our Spritual life - but over ALL of our lives

we need to bring his truth and wisdom into every decision that we make

We must trust that He knows best how to run our fmailies, our careers and our finances

We must invite his presence into all daily activities and and decisions

HE WILL MAKE YOUR PATH STRAIGHT

we will enjoy success

we will not live with regret

He will remove the obstacles standing in your path