The
proverbs of Solomon the son of David, king of Israel: To know wisdom and
instruction, To discern the sayings of understanding, To receive instruction in
wise behavior, Righteousness, justice and equity; To give prudence to the naive,
To the youth knowledge and discretion,
A wise man will hear and increase in learning, And a man of
understanding will acquire wise counsel,
To understand a proverb and a figure, The words of the wise and their
riddles. The fear of the LORD is the
beginning of knowledge; Fools despise wisdom and instruction. Proverbs 1:1-7
Graduation is coming up in the next
couple of weeks so this week we are going to be taking a look at wisdom. True wisdom, not the kind you get from a
textbook, just the Good Book. Proverbs is a
wealth of wisdom and today we will focus on the passage above.
You can never gain true wisdom without truth. A wise man knows the truth.
If we do not know God, we cannot know the truth. Jesus said to him, I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes
to the Father but through Me. John 14:6
An elementary awareness of God affects my knowledge, my understanding,
and my wisdom and insight. The essence of wisdom is full knowledge, not only
knowledge of the facts, but a knowledge of God Himself.
·
"Don't ever
trust yourself. In everything you do, put God first, and he will direct you and
crown your efforts with success." Proverbs 3:5, 6
·
"For the
reverence and fear of God are basic to all wisdom. Knowing God results in every
other kind of understanding." Proverbs 9:10 In this passage
"knowing" means "to know by experience."
Many today have a lot of knowledge
about the Bible, but do not seem to know very much about God. They know what
the Bible says, but don't know how to put it into practice. They seem to be
unaware of God's presence in their lives, or of the reality of his Spirit
within them. They have knowledge, but they lack the skills needed to live a
life that pleases God. Wisdom is far more than the mere gathering of
information. A person may have a great deal of information and not have wisdom.
The Source of Wisdom is God –
"The
fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge." Proverbs 1:7
- Lets dissect this verse bit by bit to discover what wisdom it offers us.
Reverence - "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of
knowledge." This
reverence for God is pivotal in our lives. If we do not come to God in
submission and reverence, we can never have the skill to experience life as it
ought to be lived.
Relationship - "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of
knowledge." Knowledge is basically a relationship. It does not matter how much we know about God. We must know God. There is a big difference. That knowledge is
to be experienced. Our whole purpose of life is to come to know God and to come
into a relationship with him. The fear of the Lord is the starting point of
that relationship.
Repetition - "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge." In this passage the word "beginning" has nothing to do with chronology. Instead it refers to a "starting point." It is the place where we begin, but it is more. It continues to be the controlling principle of our relationship with God. It is the very heart of life for us. We begin with the fear of God, and we never leave it behind. Wisdom never comes to the lazy, careless, or casual person. It is a pursuit that calls for diligent energy to be expended. Reverential awe and submission is our beginning attitude, but it is also to be the continuing core of our relationship with God.
Restraint – (Discipline) Wisdom does not come to the undisciplined or the careless. It does not come with the casual application of knowledge. A vital part of discipline involves heeding the warnings God gives from the experiences of life and from the pages of His word. A wise man will listen and so increase his knowledge. He sharpens his skills. He realizes that we never arrive, never exhaust our potential to learn.
When we experience God's discipline, we will gain the wisdom to use our
time wisely. Discipline helps us use our days well and wisdom also helps us
learn to communicate properly.
Open your mind and heart and make
yourself available to the Holy Spirit.
Seek His wisdom in His word.
There are many lessons for all of us to learn.
Scripture to Claim:
"From
a wise mind comes careful and persuasive speech" Proverbs16:23.
