Proverbial Wisdom – 4:10-19

Hear, O my son, and receive my sayings; and the years of thy life shall be many. I have taught thee in the way of wisdom; I have led thee in right paths. When thou goest, thy steps shall not be straitened; and when thou runnest, thou shalt not stumble. Take fast hold of instruction; let her not go: keep her; for she is thy life.

Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men. Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away. For they sleep not, except they have done mischief; and their sleep is taken away, unless they cause some to fall. For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence. But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day. The way of the wicked is as darkness: they know not at what they stumble.

Proverbs 4:10-19 (KJV)

Recently, a powerful tornado ripped through the countryside, ten to fifteen miles from my home. It destroyed houses, trees, and everything in its path. It buried cars under debris and it twisted trees out of the ground. The wreckage from the storm was horrendous. Many people were hurt and even a couple of people lost their lives!

The aftermath of a natural disaster, whether it is caused by a flood, earthquake, tsunami, hurricane, or tornado, is devastating. You are overwhelmed by the fact that so much damage can happen so quickly. Lives are lost, people are injured, and properties are destroyed.  Moreover, sometimes it all takes place in just a few short minutes. 

However, no matter how extensive the property damage is, the most catastrophic loss is the loss of lives. Houses can be rebuilt, vehicles can be replaced, and trees can be replanted. But a life cannot be replaced. Once someone is gone from this earth, he or she is gone. All that is left is the memories of his or her short earthly life.

If the individual had a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, then that individual receives an eternal heavenly body…one that will never die. Thus, death for them is a stepping-stone to eternal glory.

But not everyone has a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Some people refuse to accept God’s gift of His Son. Since these souls have never accepted Jesus Christ, then they have not been reborn through the Spirit of the Lord. Jesus said, “…Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God” (John 3:5). Heaven will not be their home…their souls are lost.

That is the most catastrophic lost that there can ever be…a soul dying without Jesus!

My purpose in writing these short lessons is to point you to the Lord and to encourage you in your journey with the Lord. Things of this world are quickly changing, but the wisdom and the knowledge of God are eternal—these will never fade. No man can enter into the presence of God except through Jesus. Jesus is the only Way. He is the Light, the Truth, and the Word. Except you come through Him, you will not see the Father.

Several lessons back, I stated that true wisdom comes through knowing Jesus Christ and through the anointing of the Holy Spirit. “…For our benefit God made Christ to be wisdom itself” (1 Corinthians 1:30, NLT). Wisdom that you gain from knowing and accepting Jesus Christ will lead you towards the right paths, helping you to make good choices. But this wisdom cannot be found in college textbooks; rather, this wisdom is only found through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and by the anointing of God’s Spirit. It is wisdom from God.

When you know Jesus Christ and follow His Spirit, you are led down the right paths of life. He protects you by shining His light of truth on obstacles that the enemy throws into your pathway. If you do make a mistake and trip, He will help pick you up. Thus, when you hold firmly to the Word and follow the Word’s instructions, never letting its wisdom slip away, you will have a long life…eternal life. It cannot get any longer than that.

True godly wisdom helps you recognize and avoid the evil deeds of lost souls. You are walking through a battleground of deceit and many people will come at you with great lying words. Their deceitful words may appeal to your pride, they may appeal to your lustful flesh, or they may even appeal to your hunger for power or money. No matter what kind of deceit that the wicked spew forth, do not be entangled in their snare. Avoid them…walk away…have nothing to do with their web of lies.  

The wicked man thrives upon creating chaos and lies. He feeds upon the flesh of the innocent. Upon his bed at night, the wicked man plans more traps for his prey. He, the wicked man, is lost and he is stumbling around in the darkness of his soul. His hunger for destruction will not be satisfied until he has ensnared you in the darkness of hell.

Flee from the wicked man. Run straight into the welcoming arms of the Lord. There you will find love, peace, and eternal life. Run!

Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

John 14:6 (KJV)

Three Key Concepts:

1.  This earthly life can change in a single minute.

2.  Jesus is the only Way to the Father.

3.  Avoid becoming ensnared by the deeds of the wicked man.

Proverbial Wisdom – 1:20-23

Wisdom crieth without; she uttereth her voice in the streets: She crieth in the chief place of concourse, in the openings of the gates: in the city she uttereth her words, saying, How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? and the scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge? Turn you at my reproof: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto you.

Proverbs 1:20-23 (KJV)

Thank you for joining me on our journey through Proverbs. This is our fourth week in this series and I hope that you are enjoying these lessons as much as I am enjoying preparing them. With each new lesson, God blesses me with a deeper understanding of His Word. With God’s help, maybe I can share part of that understanding.

This week we are going to cover four short verses, but these verses hold a lot of information. So let’s just jump right in and get started.

Verse 20 immediately begins with the word wisdom. Later on, wisdom is associated with feminine pronouns. God equally values everyone, male and female, and both have equal opportunities to become wise. However, some cultures and faiths devalue females and treat them like a piece of property. In those cultures, women are given minimal rights and rarely are they consulted for advice. This is not God’s way.

God created women to help, or aid men—“a help meet” (Genesis 2:20). Further, the first woman (Eve) was created from the rib of man (Adam). She was a part of him and God instructed them to cleave together, “they shall be one flesh” (Genesis 2:24, Ephesians 5:28-29). Men and women are stronger when they work together as one cohesive unit.  However, as usual, when runaway sin enters the scene, the cohesive unit is broken.

Remember back to part 1 of this series (August 5, 2011), in which we defined wisdom as utilizing and living all the facts that we have accumulated throughout our years. Upon further investigation, we discovered that wisdom helps us live godly lives with discernment; it improves our judgment by better morals, and helps us become holier in our words and actions. But how do we learn discernment, morals, and holiness?

Wisdom cries out to everyone (verses 20, 21). She lifts up her voice encouraging people to come and partake of her. She freely offers instructions on how to live a godly life, with improved judgment and morals. She calls out to anyone who will listen. Triumphantly, with much rejoicing and singing, wisdom boldly proclaims her truth throughout all the land.

In the streets, markets, and city gates, wisdom speaks encouraging people to come and partake of her joy. In essence, she is saying, “Come and taste…I can nourish your soul. I can give you more discernment, better judgment, and a holier life.”

“…Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water” (John 7:37-38). The Holy Ghost was the river of living water (John 7:39).

“But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things….” (John 14:26).  “Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth….he will shew you things to come” (John 16:13).

Is anyone beginning to connect the dots here?

When you truly believe in the saving power of the blood sacrifice of Jesus Christ, humble yourself, repent of your sins, you are spiritually reborn. Your dirty, sin-filled heart is replaced with a clean, pure heart. Your sins are washed away and your heart is made habitable for a holy Guest. God’s Spirit is that holy Guest.

“But you have received the Holy Spirit, and he lives within you, so you don't need anyone to teach you what is true. For the SPIRIT teaches you ALL things, and what he teaches is true…So continue in what he has taught you, and CONTINUE to live in Christ” (1 John 2:27, NT, emphasis added).  “But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel; And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of MY SPIRIT upon all flesh….” (Acts 2:16-17, emphasis added). 

If you continue to walk by the Spirit of the Lord and not by your flesh, you will be wise.

But look back to our opening verses. Wisdom issues a warning to three types of individuals: the simple, the scorner, and the fool. The simple are naïve and easily manipulated; as such, they often drift back and forth between opinions. Evil can easily persuade and entice the simple man.

Scorners insist on mocking people who try to give them wise counsel. They laugh at their rescuers, refusing to consider true words. You could say that scorners are hell-bent in following their own wicked ways. And hell was the right word to use for the scorners.

Lastly, we have the fools. Fools hate knowledge…they simply refuse to learn. They are prideful, opinionated, and set in their own ways.

“Thus saith the Lord, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk therein. Also I set watchmen over you, saying, Hearken to the sound of the trumpet. But they said, We will not hearken” (Jeremiah 6:16-17).

Wisdom still cries throughout all the land. She speaks from the pulpit, through the Bible, from an evangelist, and on the street corners. Wisdom even uses our electronic gadgets to make her voice heard. Continually she cries out over the internet through websites, twitter, face book, and blog sites. She says, “Come…ask wisdom of me. I will freely give to all man…just come.” 

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.

 James 1:5 (KJV)

Three Key Concepts:

1.  Wisdom invites everyone to partake of her.

2.  The Holy Spirit will give you wisdom.

3.  The simple, the scorners, and the fools refuse wisdom.