Sermon Tone Analysis

Most of the Biblical literature is focused on how man can be in a right relationship with God given his holiness and our sinfulness.

Wisdom literature recognizes the rawness of life.

If you have your relationship with God right and then you’re thrown into the lion’s den of interpersonal interaction, most of the time you will fail.

As a young person, you are almost destined to fail.

Ironically, we have so many church kid’s and youth programs geared toward teaching you “this week’s moral/virtue” like diligence or forgiveness or joy or compassion.

Yet at the same time we have arguably the least amount of virtue out of young people today.

And you, even as a young person could potentially agree with this statement.

In times past, we’ve seen an larger amounts of virtue and civility without churches constantly pouring these morals down our throats.

What’s changed, in some sense, is some churches approaches to their teaching.

In stead of giving you the hard edge gospel commanding all people everywhere to repent of their wicked sins, they sit around a campfire singing Kumbaya and asking, “how does this make you feel?”

This weak effeminate Christianity has come in contact with a society who has rejected natural law, rationality, and basic observation.

You see, the wisdom literature (like Proverbs) is so intriguing, even for the unbeliever, because it analyzes the way God has organized the world.

Picture and old man sitting on a bench on a busy street for a hundred years.

This man just sitting there observing human behavior.

He has discovered two ultimate paths people take: one leading to life and the other leading to destruction.

By basis of this simple observation, the old man has distilled the order God wove into the universe.

Now he plans to impart this wisdom to you with short, wise sayings that are generally true.

This idea is known as natural law.

That is there exists, because of the creator, an innate sense of right and wrong which comes from creation and the outworking of life.

David Haines and Andrew Fulford, professors of Apologetics and Philosophy explain, “There is a divine order to the universe, this order is knowable, and some unregenerate (that is unsaved people) recognize this order.

Take for example, the Golden Rule, which if you know is located where?

Matt.

7:12 ““So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.”

Notice what Jesus says, “whatever you wish that others would do to you” implies all people have implicit, natural knowledge of what is morally right and wrong.

Modern and post-modern man has rejected rationality and simple observation that leads to the recognition of what is wise and foolish.

C.S. Lewis laments that mankind used to be preoccupied with learning how to live their lives and have given that up.

He writes, “For the wise men of old the cardinal [main] problem had been how to conform the soul to reality, and the solution had been knowledge, self-discipline, and virtue.

For magic and applied science alike, the problem has been how to subdue reality to the wishes of men. .

.” (Abolition of Man, 25-26).

In other words, Lewis wrote (almost 80 years ago), that people used to be occupied with figuring out how the universe words and conforming their soul to that reality.

This is what the book of Proverbs seeks to do.

Now, however, man sees the universe as something they’ve mastered, and if they can’t figure something out, just Google it.

The universe is shouting at us, “This is how life works!

If you want your life to work, do this!

This is how God designed it!”

Lady wisdom herself is shouting:

Prov.

9:1-6 “Wisdom has built her house; she has hewn her seven pillars.

She has slaughtered her beasts; she has mixed her wine; she has also set her table.

She has sent out her young women to call from the highest places in the town, “Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!”

To him who lacks sense she says, “Come, eat of my bread and drink of the wine I have mixed.

Leave your simple ways, and live, and walk in the way of insight.””

“Wisdom has built her house; she has hewn her seven pillars.”

Wisdom is how God designed life to work.

Wisdom builds her house; she has hewn her seven pillars.

Remember our simple definition of wisdom here: Wisdom is how God designed life to work.

This term, חָכְמָה deals with skills and crafts (building your house on the rock, not the sand; aside: can we come up with tech to overcome natural obstacles?

Sure, but even modern beach houses often have foundations going down to the bedrock), intelligence, good sense, and an understanding of fundamental issues of life in relation to God.

So “how god designed life itself to work” is here personified as a wealthy woman who just completed her house, a large house, and is now hosting a banquet to inaugurate the building’s grand opening.

This was common practice among wealthy and royal people of the ancient near east.

They would generously host an event to the benefit of their fellow countrymen.

And this house is large, being held up by the symbolic number of seven pillars.

This house is so very large to host anyone and everyone who would want to enter in.

It reminds us of Jesus’s teaching in John 14:2 “In my Father’s house are many rooms.

If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?”

Just as Christ makes room for all who will come in, so does Wisdom.

Now wisdom, that is, how God designed life to work, is setting up a huge banquet, slaughtering animals, mixing wine (to make it more enjoyable), and setting the table.

Wisdom is constantly working, and working hard to put on this great feast in her great house.

Wisdom never stops working .

Think of the principles listed in Proverbs:

Prov 10:2 “Treasures gained by wickedness do not profit, but righteousness delivers from death.”

Prov 10:4 “A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich.”

Prov 10:9 “Whoever walks in integrity walks securely, but he who makes his ways crooked will be found out.”

This is wisdom, this is how God designed life to work.

The wisdom reflected in these Proverbs don’t stop working.

You may find human societies, corrupt governments, and crime organizations that pervert these things; however, you’re never going to wake up to a universe that magically starts to award your laziness (as much as you might like), or a universe that starts to praise “snakes” (which is modern slang for hypocrites for you older people).

Partaking in wisdom is an enjoyable experience in the long term.

This does not mean that there are not short term pleasures as well.

But rather, choosing wither wisdom or folly is like taking a path for the rest of your life.

Take a particular career path for example.

Imagine you decide to become an aerospace engineer at an early age.

You know how important the subjects math and physics are to this field so you work diligently and make 100’s on all your math assignments.

You have the small pleasures along the way of reaping those benefits of your hard work.

Then you have the pleasure of being accepted into a top notch college.

Then one day you have the pleasure of being hired at SpaceX and designing the rocket that leads to the first human journey to Mars!

On the flip side, imagine you chose the same career path, but also chose the way of folly.

You cheat on all your math exams, and never get caught.

Your parents pay to fake your college entrance exams and you get in to the top notch college.

You get fired at SpaceX and are tasked with designing the same rocket, but you don’t really know how, but are really good at faking it, so good, no one notices your terrible mistake until your rockets consecutively explode before maintaining orbit.

“Whoever walks in integrity walks securely, but he who makes his ways crooked will be found out.”

Folly can provide you with temporary pleasures, but in the end, leads to abject misery.

Prov.

9:3 “She has sent out her young women to call from the highest places in the town,”

Wisdom is taught not caught

Prov.

1:8 “Hear, my son, your father’s instruction, and forsake not your mother’s teaching,”

Prov 10:1 “The proverbs of Solomon.

A wise son makes a glad father, but a foolish son is a sorrow to his mother.”

The “young women” that Proverbs sends out are representatives of the sages and especially the parents to whom God intrusted to teach the ways of wisdom to their children.

“But wait,” you may wonder, “I thought you said that wisdom is universally and innately recognized.”

And there is truth to that claim.

Think about a parent’s responsibility to his offspring.

Isn’t it right for a father to take responsibility for the children he begets?

This is wisdom that is universally recognized.

Here’s some examples:

“Children, the old, the poor, etc. should be considered as lords of the atmosphere” (Hindu, Janet)

“To marry and beget children” (Greek, list of duties, Epictetus)

“‘Nature produces a special love of offspring’ and ‘To live according to Nature is the Supreme Good’” (Roman, Cicero)

“The Master said, Respect the Young.”

(Ancient Chinese)