Proverbs 1:1-7, Wisdom in Proverbs

Proverbs 1:1-7 and the Call to Hear Wisdom

Proverbs chapter 1 verses 1 to 7. Hear the word of the Lord the Proverbs of Solomon the son of David king of Israel. To know wisdom and instruction. To understand words of insight. To receive instruction in wise dealing and Righteousness justice and equity.

To give prudence to the simple knowledge and discretion to the youth. Let the wise hear and increase in learning and. The one who understands obtain guidance to understand a proverb in the saying the words of the wise and their riddles.

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. Fools despise wisdom and instruction. May the Lord add his blessing to the reading of his Holy Word, and we'll be reading a lot more. Separate Proverbs in this message.

A cat may look at a king. Youth is wasted on the young. Those are the first and last English Proverbs in alphabetical order. From a list of over 500 of them. We could if we wanted to gain some wisdom we could recite each of them all 500 and meditate on them.

A Cat can look at a king. What's that mean? That might be helpful. What do you think? Maybe not right now, but wisdom is worth it. Isn't it many people even if they don't call it that want wisdom. They want to learn better ways to live to be successful to get what they want to be happy or to be happy with.

What? They've got. Ancient civilizations often had wisdom traditions. Sometimes schools that gathered around a great teacher who was teaching his disciples how to live well. Who was imparting wisdom. Egypt had a strong wisdom tradition.

Greece is remembered to this day for its wisdom tradition is Philosophy. The word philosophy literally meaning love of philosophy. Wisdom Sophia in Greece. They had the famous philosophers the wisdom lovers Socrates Plato and Aristotle.

The unexamined life is not worth living said Socrates. What do you think? China probably more than any other nation was shaped by its wisdom tradition whose first great champion was Confucius Kongsu he gave us Confucianism which became dominant in China really firm for about 2 ,000 years or more.

Young men used to study the sayings of Confucius called the Analects and then they would be examined they would go to examinations and If they could do well in the examinations, they could be designated mandarins kind of bureaucrats and powerful positions in the government and so the way to Success for hundreds of not thousands of years in China was literally by knowing that the wisdom of Confucius.

Confucius said to learn without thinking is in vain. To think without learning is dangerous. So the ideal in China was the scholar. Unlike for many Americans today, which the ideal is the athlete. I remember in Singapore.

It's kind of modern Confucianist society. Fact. I first saw the proverb to learn without thinking is in vain and to think without learning is dangerous. I saw it as a poster on there on their subway. Standing around you meditate on Confucius while you're waiting for your train to arrive.

But I remember in Singapore seeing a student soccer game at a nearby school and noticed that there was not even one parent present. To watch their kids play. No parents don't show up to watch their kids play a game.

Sports for their kids is play. That's child's play. Literally, you know pay attention to that. But it came time for the grades though for the big exams. For the who sees who the scholars are the grades to be released.

That was TV news. That was the front page of the newspaper where the top students celebrated like you had won a gold medal at the Olympics. Is that strange you Americans you think that's strange or is that great?

Yeah, that's what we need. Celebrate scholarship. What do you think? Well now we have modern gurus like Oprah. Dr. Phil. Selling their version of wisdom. Even our public schools are often adorned with posters with little bits of wisdom trying to inculcate in our kids to make them successful.

Your attitude determines your altitude. Books on the seven habits of the highly effective people are popular. You if you can show people that you have the secrets to Success and you could present those secrets in an entertaining way.

You could make a lot of money. There's big business in that and you can gain a following who knows what you could do with it. A Decade ago in 2011 the highest paid motivational speaker in the u .s. Was.

Anybody want to guess? Donald Trump. Who got one and a half million dollars per speech at a real estate Expo? This year the highest paid motivational speaker is Magic Johnson former basketball star who has earned six hundred thousand dollars so far giving his wisdom.

Now is that too much to pay? For wisdom. Well No that how to prosper how to thrive is the kind of wisdom Many people want now in our culture all around us. They'll they'll pay big bucks to hear That wisdom but the typical we call it Christian.

Perhaps the preachers way to respond to that is often. To devalue it you maybe even to decry it, you know. Maybe kind of scoff at it. Well, who cares what magic Johnson has to say or what some Mormon says are the highly have that Habits of highly effective people.

We don't need their worldly wisdom. We assure ourselves What do you think. I once gave my students a test with six essay questions and they had to choose four of them and answer, you know answer for the question out of the six and one of the questions was Describe what is a worldview and why it is important?

One student thought it was a good idea to answer that question with just two short sentences. We don't need a worldview. We need God's view. I Put a big red X on his paper and thought and I don't need to pass you either.

Some people use their piety as their feelings about God as an excuse not to think. Think I love God what I need to think for and here Proverbs. In Proverbs God tells us that he is not at all pleased with that.

Proverbs shows us that God has indeed revealed Secrets is truth that he intends us to search for that. He wants us to learn From whatever source that he speaks it and he can speak it from all kinds of sources, you know in the Bible he can speak it to a donkey in The world he can teach us through teachers of school TED talks podcast Dave Ramsey Magic Johnson Oprah grandpa books our lectures or just by observing people in Society just by looking at nature.

God the Creator has instilled in his creation His ways and he expects us to love him by loving those ways his wisdom. Well today we approach The Bible a little differently than we usually do instead of our usual expository message.

With one passage in front of us that we look into over the first seven verses which basically extols us to love wisdom. I'm not going to try to be taking that apart verse by verse or phrase by phrase.

We've kind of already Gotten to this main point. But instead we'll be looking at the idea of wisdom in the book of Proverbs and looking at many passages about it. What is wisdom? How do you get it? What are you willing to give for it?

What do you think? What is Wisdom. Well first whatever it is. It is valuable chapter 2 verse 4. We're called to seek wisdom. Like silver in search for it like hidden treasures. That is the same zeal that some people have for forgetting wealthy for making money we're to have forgetting wisdom.

That's because the reward of wisdom is valuable in chapter 3 verse 14 and 15. We're told the gain from her is better than the gain from silver and the prop her profit better than gold. She is more precious than jewels and nothing you desire can compare with her Whatever it is.

You may want. Nothing you desire will reward you as well as knowing the ways of the Lord wisdom it is a superior reward. And Whatever the world has offered whatever relationships even family even money itself and that because as it says the gain from wisdom will lead to the secrets of having Those good relationships a peaceful rewarding family of how to do well in business usually.

To make the most out of what you have. Wisdom contains the way that the Lord has revealed to get all the other good things. That you may want. Remember Solomon himself he's told by God ask whatever you want and I'll give it.

And Solomon asked for wisdom and The Lord says back, you know, you could have asked for your enemies to be defeated. You could ask for a long reign instead because you've asked for wisdom. You'll get those other things.

So Proverbs chapter 16 verse 16 says how much better it is to get wisdom than gold. To get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver. Wisdom is valuable. Wisdom is the ordering principle of the universe.

In Proverbs chapter 3 verses 19 and 20 says the Lord by wisdom. What's that preposition by that through by wisdom found of the earth? By that is using it like a tool like by a hammer a carpenter builds a house.

By Understanding he established in the universe by his knowledge. The deeps broke open and the clouds dropped down. Do that is the laws that God used to put the earth and the stars. Together the laws of physics of nature.

Those are God's laws. They are wisdom by God's creation of the laws of nature. Springs produce water. Clouds give us rain. So God designed the climate and the aquifers. The environment around us becomes conducive to life because God Made it that way.

In chapter 8 verses 22 and following the Proverbs tells us that creating wisdom Was the first of God's acts? Always. Back as he was beginning to create the universe the first thing creates wisdom but the laws of physics the laws of nature laws of morality of truth that is first God created the laws of nature before creating nature.

And when God created the mountains the fields the dust the galaxies the Atmosphere the water when he marked at the oceans from the continents and the islands wisdom says in verse 30. Chapter 8 verse 30.

I was beside him. It's wisdom. I was beside him like a master. Workman wisdom is God's contractor doing the jobs God orders. Since everything that exists is God's creation all of it shows something then about God about his ways in his character.

So the Puritan said that nature was God's other book, right? He inspired gave us the Bible. He also he also created wisdom in nature that expresses his laws his ways. That's why the the Puritans were in favor of science and education.

They pioneered there were some of the pioneers anyway of astronomy. The first person to write a book about Halley's Comet was increased. Matter was a Puritan pastor in Colonial, Massachusetts. His son cotton matter was the pioneer for vaccines.

Experiment experimenting with inoculations against smallpox. We have vaccines because there is wisdom in nature for how to master Viruses they look through microscopes and telescopes. Seeing that the heavens and the microbes Declare the glory of God.

This is why people who are not Christians Who don't know Jesus? Can learn something of God's way some of God's ways now his ways for salvation are in the Bible. They're through Jesus not through anyone not through anything else, but many of his other ways like how to master viruses are revealed in nature in society and for for all to see and.

So people who will even if they're unbelievers, it'll open their eyes and their ears. They can learn them and they're learning from God forever. Of chapter 1 verse 20 says wisdom cries aloud in the streets in the markets.

She that wisdom Raises her voice. He's out there shouting that his wisdom is out there in society in the midst of us and the wise Can hear her speaking? They're learning from wisdom everywhere. So pregnant in the world are God's ways just waiting to be discovered.

When Confucius was teaching his wisdom, he was teaching truths that God had built humanity with. When he was right, he was right because he had learned truth from God through wisdom. There was shouting out in the world Yale Carnegie teaching about how to win friends and influence people.

Was trying to give wisdom about how how God made people to respond to each other. All truth is God's truth, you know, it's not like God only cares about some truth saving truth and the rest of the truth is not his truth.

That's worldly truth. No all truth comes from God. It's true because God made it true all truth is God's truth. And so when you learn truth from anyone from anywhere. You're learning it from God. So wisdom is valuable.

Wisdom is the ordering principle of the universe. And third Wisdom is a masterful understanding. Wisdom is it just knowledge? But it's knowing in a way that that brings knowledge to bear that implements it.

But wisdom seeks after knowledge it doesn't denigrate knowledge. Oh, that's just me or head knowledge. People say things like that. What are you talking about? Like there's like there's knowledge. That's this meaningless.

Now a wise mechanic knows how an engine works. A wise teacher knows Something about his or her subject and how to teach effectively. A wise musician knows how to get his musical instrument. To make the sounds he wants it to make.

Probably know something about how it's built. This is why we have Sunday school to teach you some knowledge. It's the main function of it. You need some knowledge. Why the sermon has some knowledge in it?

It's why it's not all just emotion. This isn't just like a pep rally, you know to get you motivated you need knowledge, but wisdom doesn't just stop at knowledge. You can have a lot of knowledge but not have a masterful understanding not have wisdom.

A person could I guess memorize the whole book of Proverbs and still lack wisdom if he couldn't master that knowledge and Use it to guide him to guide his life his words. You could know everything there is to know a mechanic.

A good I guess good know everything there is to know about an engine. But if you couldn't apply it Apply your knowledge to fix a car. You're not a wise mechanic. Wisdom requires knowledge and mastery a masterful understanding.

And wisdom gives shrewdness. Now that is knowledge of how people work what people are like. The Lord Jesus told us to be as wise as a serpent out there in the world. Serpents are wise you'd be like them.

Be shrewd. Know how the world works. You know don't believe an email that promises you 50 million dollars. From someone you never heard of before if only you'll give them your bank account number. You think of that be shrewd.

Your people really do that. Yeah, don't believe a phone call says they're from the IRS and you owe a bunch of taxes. But they'll they'll forgive it all if you just wire them $1 ,000 to this account number.

No you think about it. Hmm, does the government really act like that? No, the wise person knows that if he answers someone rudely. How's he gonna act? He's not likely to get him to cooperate. Is it are you the shrewd person understands how people relate how they respond?

If you say this or that how they gonna respond, this is the value of some of the modern device on success. Like Dale Carnegie's how to win friends and influence people. You should be able to read that and pick up a lot of tips.

Yeah, that's right. He's right. He's right. It's related to discretion being able to behave or speak in a way so you don't defeat yourself. The ability to decide what should be done. And wisdom gives discernment.

It's the ability to detect the difference between things that most other people kind of lump together a kind of blur. This week I saw someone comment that claiming that one culture is superior to another that is quote racist.

You have to you have to say that all cultures are the same. Are you are a racist? Hmm, I thought so is saying that Confucian culture is superior to Nazi culture. Is that racist? Really is Nazi culture justice just as good as all kinds of other cultures.

No, of course not. The person confused culture with race which are really two very different things. He lacked discernment. Some decisions require keen discernment. Proverbs chapter 14 verse 4 says the wisdom of the prudent is to discern His way what's the best way?

But the folly of fools is deceiving. Should you date or marry that person? Hmm? What should you major in? What is likely to be the result if you get a degree in gender studies hmm, what job should you pursue and take.

What relationship should you develop? And which are a dead end? Should you be guided by principles and commitments or by feelings and just whatever giving you the thrill right now? The wise will be able to discern the difference.

But the foolish will be deceived by their own passions. Wisdom is also prudent as careful no sober. Able to tell the difference between what we want what I want. Maybe how we desperately want some relationship to turn out or some event to turn out and how it is really likely to turn out.

Maybe it's the promise of pleasure from some affair. But the prudent Sees what is really likely to happen. Shame heartbreak divorce trauma broken families. The same proverb that's repeated twice in chapter 22 verse 3 chapter 27 verse 12 the prudent sees danger.

Oh, there's danger and that relationship and that going that way and that affair what's happening? There's danger. The prudent sees danger and hides himself. But the simple go on and suffer for it. A Person who has learned from the law from the laws that God has built the world on.

Can see that if he continues the way he is going. It's trouble. He'll end up divorced fired or drunk in jail deep in debt used and abused yet again. So he stops and he turns around he changes. Those who won't change you just keep on because it feels good for now.

Who are thinking about what this is going to lead to. Repeating the same thing expecting a different result. They just won't think. What do you think. So wisdom is a masterful understanding. It's the ordering principle of the universe and is valuable.

How Wisdom Is Gained by Seeking, Listening, and Being Teachable

So, how do you get it? Go to college major in wisdom. There there are two things though we must do first. Simply seek it. Notice the beginning of chapter 2 my son if you receive my words and treasure up my commandments with you making your ear attentive to wisdom and Inclining your heart to understanding if you call out for insight.

Give me insight. Raise your voice for understanding. If you seek it like silver. Search for us for his and treasures. I'm the worst. Look for it as as hard as other people work for their money. Then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God.

So you receive you treasure. You pay attention. You strain your very self to get. Understanding. You seek out like others seek wealth. Then God will give it to you. That means you're open. You study. You're teachable.

You're trainable. You're eager to learn and to grow. Those are characteristics that should mark every Christian. Do that. Is that what people in church are known for being teachable? Open thinking through things.

In 1994 Christian scholar Mark Noll wrote an important book declared the most important Christian book of the 1990s by Christianity Today magazine entitled the scandal of the Evangelical mind and in it he said quote the scandal of the evangelical mind is there's not much of an evangelical mind in That same year 1994 the great Christian scholar Oz Guinness wrote a little book called fit bodies fat minds.

Why evangelicals don't think and what to do about it? All really about the same subject making the same point that modern Christians don't value using our heads. We're all about feeling not thinking. We're often more impressed by people who work out than we are by people who study.

I Gave a copy of that book as a birthday gift to an untrained pastor who I sensed Didn't like to think. He said it would be good sermon material and I thought well you might want to apply it to yourself first.

Sometime later I heard him say that preachers can be effective without an education like George Whitfield. He said Whom God used to spark revivals in colonial America? We don't need to be bothered with instruction like like George Whitfield.

But Whitfield had an education from Oxford University was the preacher. I gave the book to didn't know. Because he didn't bother to get instruction before giving it. Our problem today is that we claim to love and serve a God who created the whole universe with wisdom.

Who tells us? To seek that wisdom to crave that wisdom that is more valuable than jewels that nothing that we desire Compares with it and yet we so often don't Seek wisdom. Kind of content with what we already know how we already live.

If we love the Lord we're to love all his ways and to be open to them all that means we'll be teachable. Listen to several Proverbs. Poverty and disgrace come to him who ignores instruction, but whoever heeds reproof is honored.

Chapter 13 verse 18. A Fool despises his father's instruction, but whoever heeds reproof is prudent. Chapter 15 verse 5. The ear that listens to life-giving reproof will dwell among the wise. Whoever ignores instruction despises himself, but he would listens to reproof gains intelligence.

The fear of the Lord is instruction in wisdom and humility comes before honor. Chapter 15 verses 31 to 33. Whoever gives thought to the word will discover good and blessed is he who trusts in the Lord.

Chapter 16 verse 20. Listen to advice and accept instruction. That you may gain wisdom in the future. Chapter 19 verse 20. How do we get wisdom? No, we learn. Where are you gonna be taught? We listen we read we accept instruction steps up the truth.

Now if we believe all those Proverbs are the Word of God. How could we not? Value learning. How could there be a scandal of the evangelical mind our fit bodies? But fat minds when we're given all that encouragement to learn to listen to be open to accept instruction to change.

Something has gone seriously wrong. If wisdom is it's just crying out On the streets and we're invited. We're even compelled to gain insight and understanding to learn and to grow but we turn a deaf ear.

Just too satisfied with what we think we already know we say never mind continue doing the same thing. Maybe led by feelings or by a habit or by fear if you're change. Or we just do what we're used to doing.

You know always doing the same thing expecting a different result unteachable that shows that we often lack a fear of the Lord. It's not just we like some knowledge. We like a fear of the Lord, you know, the problem with people today is very rarely that they lack knowledge.

If they had a real fear of the Lord, they had a desire for the Lord. They wanted to know his ways. They would then get knowledge because that would lead them to get knowledge that the core issue is often a lack of Fearing God.

Trembling in his word. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom in Proverbs chapter 9 verse 10. That's true all-encompassing wisdom begins with a heart that reveres God that stands in awe of him.

Sees him as the Almighty Creator who designed the whole universe with his wisdom and so longs. So we long the heart longs to know and obey him. A heart that reveres the Lord masters. Foolishness because you fear the possibility of missing what he's trying to teach you so you open your ears.

You're teachable you learn you discern between things. You see differences where you didn't see them before even in you learn even from people who you know Are wrong and maybe about a great deal of many other things maybe about some very important things.

Maybe about the gospel sure magic. Johnson may be bad example morally and Dale Carnegie writes as if there is no God and so there's no reason apparently from his point of view to lose some friends or Alienate some people or that Confucius.

Confucius knew nothing about God's special revelation. That is scripture the Bible, but you realize that at least in some things now and then they may have some wisdom from God. About some things you don't have yet.

Oh. For a dr. Phil may be horrible theologically. You wouldn't want to learn about God from them, but occasionally God may have some instruction for you from them. I know it makes us feel better about ourselves, you know be a smart aleck.

You know just think you were superior to everyone else put down everyone who doesn't believe just like we do to score in the teachings of every non-believer. But here we're taught to put away that attitude and to constantly be attuned.

Listen carefully what wisdom is saying to you out in the marketplace or at school reading a book watching TV because you know that if you miss an instruction. You miss something that God himself Has said and you fear missing his word.

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom because it makes you teachable and Then you can really start to grow being wise. It makes you the opposite the fear of the Lord makes you the opposite of that kind of person decried in Proverbs the scoffer.

Scoffer is the name of the arrogant haughty man who acts with arrogant pride in Proverbs chapter 21 verse 24. He's arrogant because he does not fear the Lord. He thinks he has God taken care of like Job's friends people like that that he knows he knows it all already.

He doesn't need to listen. He's heard it before he knows the important things. So he doesn't need to study doesn't need to read or listen to anyone else to get advice and which heard in an American Originally American Singaporean pastor emphatically say I do not consult.

Proverbs chapter 11 verse 14 says in an abundance of counselors there is safety, but he said I do not consult. He was absolutely sure of himself. So when he was indicted for breaking in a financial regulation in Singapore, he insisted that he was innocent.

He wouldn't make a deal with the prosecution. Wouldn't listen to them trying to appeal to him, you know, just just plead guilty to a misdemeanor get off with just a fine. No, he didn't consult probably not even with his own lawyer.

But I had heard his own description heard it straight from him of what he did and I read the regulation and I could see That he was technically guilty. It was an innocent mistake. It didn't harm anybody.

Just admit that you're wrong humble yourself, but no he didn't consult. So he went to trial he was found guilty sentenced to one day in prison and a $10 ,000 fine and now had a felony conviction and Brought the whole church in Singapore into embarrassment because he wouldn't listen.

The fear of the Lord. The realization that we are sinful and he is holy. We are so tiny and weak so limited in our understanding and in our knowledge, but he is large and powerful and Infinite. We can't control him, but we desperately need to learn from him everything that he has revealed.

That kind of reverence for the Lord. Creation us a heart. That then begins to seek wisdom. That trembles at the thought of breaking his word of ignoring his ways and humbled by that wisdom. We can finally accept the wisdom the world can't imagine.

The world loves wisdom when it tells them how to make millions or when it's a guru telling them how to how to be happy. Wisdom that helps people be successful here and now is popular with the world and it should be popular with us to a point.

But that's not all the wisdom the Lord has to offer. Wisdom tells us that this world is not all there is. It's not that this world is nothing. But that there is a world a reality. It's so much greater So much more lasting that it is worthwhile sacrificing success here for success there.

Somebody said that a True religion and in the best sense of the word. Is a what would you die for ism? What will you give up everything else for? To what do you say? Nothing, I desire can compare with That.

Whatever you say that to. That's your religion your God. So what's your religion? What will you give up everything else for? For money. No, I doubt it. Maybe family families everything, right? Even the Bible the Christ the church exists to help our families, right?

It's the way it's often presented just like Confucianism exists to help us be successful now so that we can better support our families. That's what Confucius is all about focusing on the family. Is that wisdom?

There's even Christ himself. Is that what he is for? To support our families. Well, Jesus the sage the wise man comes along and tells us if anyone comes to me and Does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters.

Yes, even his own life. He cannot be my disciple. In Luke chapter 14 verse 26. We've been trying to reduce Christ so that he's just another purveyor of practical Information another Donald Trump another magic Johnson another motivational speaker to help us be successful here and now but he comes along and it Explodes that telling us that there is a reality so great if necessary if there is a conflict.

You have to choose the heavenly wisdom. Over the earthly you have to choose him over anything else. He doesn't serve ultimately the family. He doesn't exist to make you more successful in business to make your your business boom or more successful in sports.

Just make you succeed. Make you rich. All the wisdom you can get from this world is valuable and the family is great. Proverbs even tells us a noble wife who can find but all those things are to help you serve the Lord he not you is the purpose for all the wisdom.

You can acquire the fear of the Lord Prepares us for a wisdom that all the sages and the gurus and the motivational speakers Couldn't understand for the world wisdom it's just about the secrets to success and we come along and Tell them about Jesus on the cross the cross.

The cross is anything but successful. And so the world, you know to the world. It doesn't appear very wise. We preach Christ crucified foolishness to the world even to the Greeks with all their their philosophy their love of wisdom.

But Christ crucified is sheer folly to people Who love only that? Wisdom. No conference is gonna pay a speaker a million and a half dollars to tell them How to get crucified. That's a wisdom the world hates but it's the wisdom By which we are saved.

The cross is the wisdom of God for salvation. The cross tells us what our sins deserve that we cannot save ourselves that we cannot master our own sinfulness. We just learn the right techniques that God loved us enough to supply a perfect Substitute and in that In that showing what Christ himself was willing to give up on the cross.

The cross shows us that all the best things The world has to offer all the vain things that charm us most In its wisdom in its wealth. It's silver. It's gold. It's success. It's big bank accounts. It's stuff even in his family's everything I sacrifice them.

It's all worth giving up even dying to to gain a knowledge a relationship with this God That's the wisdom of the cross. What do you think?