Thoughts from Proverbs 1:1-7

“The proverbs of Solomon, son of David, king of Israel:

To know wisdom and instruction, to understand words of insight, to receive instruction in wise dealing, in 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 and a saying, the words of the wise and their riddles.  The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.”

Life is far more complex than I had ever imagined it would be.  Few things are simple.  And, there is an enemy prowling around like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour.  In the midst of it all, how are we to respond?  2 Corinthians 5:20 says “We are ambassadors for Christ.”  That’s compelling.  It means that, like an ambassador to a foreign country represents his/her country of origin, we are the ones here on earth representing our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  We are His representatives, His messengers, His “face” on earth.  Jesus was perfect – He always did what was right.  It seems so simple – choose to do what’s right.  If only it were so simple.  As we read through the Gospels, we realize that the enemy was always setting traps for Jesus.  He was relentless in his attacks, always trying to trip Jesus up.  He never succeeded.  Yet, even for Jesus, it was far from simple.  He had to have close intimacy with His Father.  He had to have wisdom to discern what was in the hearts of men.  He had to seek and know His Father’s will.  He had to be aware of the attacks and be prepared to counter them with Scripture.  Time and again, He was presented with challenges and He always had the wisdom to know what was right and the fortitude to follow through.

True confessions.  I lack both the wisdom and the fortitude to know and do what is right in every situation.  But, that’s not how I want it to be.  I want to have both the wisdom and fortitude to do what’s right in all situations.  My journey into the book of Proverbs is an intentional journey to progress in that direction.  This book is full of practical wisdom for the instruction of the reader.  This is not about a search for intellectual superiority.  Instead, it’s a search for wisdom to be able to walk in righteousness, justice and equity.  Whatever limited wisdom I may already have, I want to increase in it.  Whatever understanding I may already have, I want additional guidance.  When the riddles and challenges of life come my way, I want to know the answers.  In this life that is far more complex than I had ever imagined, I want to know how to spend my time, I want to be a good steward of all my resources, I want to know how to love people as Christ loves them, to see people how He see them, and to respond to them how He would respond to them – regardless of the circumstances. 

A colleague of mine recently shared about a “Dear Abby” question and response that he had seen some years before.  For whatever questions we may have, the Word of God is the source of wisdom beyond any newspaper column.  It’s our roadmap and guide.  I’m thankful that we have it and am looking forward to growing in my understanding and discernment as I study this book and grow in intimacy with our Steadfast God!