My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee; So that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding; Yea, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding; If thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures;
Then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God. For the Lord giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding. He layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous: he is a buckler to them that walk uprightly. He keepeth the paths of judgment, and preserveth the way of his saints. Then shalt thou understand righteousness, and judgment, and equity; yea, every good path.
Proverbs 2:1-9
This week’s lesson is valuable. Please take this lesson, print it out, and prayerfully study it throughout the week, because the key to understanding the whole Bible is found within these nine short verses (Proverbs 2:1-9). I know that is a bold statement, but bear with me as I explain.
Although King Solomon may have written these verses as instructions to his son, it is important that you understand that God’s Spirit inspired all Scriptures. Therefore, I want you to envision God personally speaking verses 1 through 9 to you.
Imagine God saying, “My child, let My words become a part of you. Do not consider these words empty and without meaning. Take My words, meditate on them, and incorporate them into every thought and intent of your heart. Breathe in these words just as you breathe in air. Allow these words to flow through every fiber of your being because they will bring you life.”
If you earnestly seek and desire God, you will find Him. But in order to find God, you must seek Him for who He really is—not simply for whom you want Him to be. This requires that you set aside ALL of your preconceived ideas about God. Further, you must desire to know more about Him in order to serve and obey Him. “Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled” (Matthew 5:6).
God liberally gives wisdom, knowledge, and understanding to anyone who is willing to pay the price. Many people say that they want to know God at any cost, but once the refining fires begin to burn, they quickly want out. The price was steeper than they were willing to pay! Thus, they stay satisfied with just a little drop of wisdom.
However, a few individuals have a deep hunger and thirst for more of God and they are willing to pay the price…no matter how steep. “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field; the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field” (Matthew 13:44).
God never gives wisdom for anyone’s personal pride, riches, or power. On the contrary, when God gives wisdom it must be shared with the world. “But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure. It is also peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others. It is full of mercy and good deeds. It shows no partiality and is always sincere” (James 3:17, NLT).
In the first paragraph, I said that these nine short verses hold the key to understanding the Bible. Now I want to explain that bold statement. When you willingly seek God, with all your heart, mind and soul, you will find Him. Seeking God means that you are willing to spend the time and make the effort to pour through His Word, searching for God’s truths. God will reward your effort and reveal His Truth.
Furthermore, when you hunger and thirst for more of God, you begin to fellowship with Him through prayer and obedience. You also begin to look at life adversities as learning opportunities. You know that “The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord: and he delighteth in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the Lord upholdeth him with his hand” (Psalms 37:23-24). Enduring life’s trials, temptations, and persecutions through God’s power, helps you grow in faith and grow in dependence on the Lord. You begin to grow up.
As you begin to grow and increase in wisdom, you also begin to hunger and thirst for more of God. You hunger, thirst, and pay the price—you are rewarded with more wisdom, knowledge and understanding. You ask, you receive, you seek, and you find (Matthew 7:7-8). And repeatedly the cycle continues, because God has an endless supply of wisdom, knowledge, and understanding. “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering….” (James 1:5-6).
“But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God” (1 Corinthians 2:9-10).
Rather than discussing God’s blessings that He showers upon His children (verses 7-9), purposely, I am going to leave you with a different thought.
All around us, we are seeing financial turmoil, earthquakes, fires, hurricanes, wars, and other disasters (Matthew 24). We are living in a time of great upheaval and we desperately need wise leadership. However, as we have already discovered in our journey through Proverbs, God is the giver of true wisdom. If our leaders that we elect to government offices do not have a true relationship with God, then we are electing the wrong people to lead our nation at this critical time.
There has never been a time like this before in America’s history. Many of our government leaders have sold themselves to the highest paying lobbyist. Legally innocent babies are murdered within their mothers’ wombs. Abominable practices are committed inside our courts and inside our churches. This is a time that we need God to hear our cries for help. This is the time that we need to humble ourselves, pray, seek God, and turn from our wickedness.
Everyone, please cry out to God. If we earnestly seek God, we will find Him.
Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded. Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.
James 4:8-10
Three Key Concepts:
1. God liberally gives wisdom to those who hunger and thirst after Him.
2. God has an endless supply of wisdom, knowledge, and understanding.
3. This is a time that our country needs godly leadership.
