3 Provisions of God’s Wisdom
During my morning reading in Proverbs, I noticed something this go round I hadn’t noticed before. Solomon follows his opening of the book of Proverbs in vv20-33 showing how there are 3 things God’s wisdom provides (which of course the rest of Proverbs affirms this opening lesson):
It redirects you around foolish thinking. (vv20-22, 28-30)
It diverts you away from foolishness’ consequences. (vv24-27, 31-32)
It directs you toward insight, peace, & life. (vv23, 33)
redirects
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God’s Wisdom — directs
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diverts
Essentially, Solomon is saying God’s wisdom is the secret sauce for a godly-abundant life; it’s like a GPS. All throughout Proverbs notice what wisdom keeps you from and where it leads you. And in chapter 1, Solomon is saying this as a response to his warning from v10,
“if sinners entice you, don’t be persuaded.”
What a good word!
Christian, don’t let the world (“sinners”) convince you of something contrary to the truth God has revealed in His Word. Why should we ever consider what the world says, thinks, or believes about how to live or about truth? They are still dead in their sins, restricted to the natural, and unenlightened by the Spirit (1Cor. 2:6-16, 2Cor. 4:1-4, Eph. 2:1-3). The world can’t know the heart of God, or the mind of God, or the truth of God. Therefore why should we ever listen to and be persuaded by the world when they can’t offer us anything toward knowing God, the truth in His Word, godliness, or life with God?
The caricature of “foolishness” in Proverbs—(which is antithetical to God’s wisdom)—is comparable to the character of “the world” in the New Testament—(which is antithetical to God’s kingdom). With this said, the world (“sinners”), like God’s wisdom, is also trying to redirect, divert, and direct us in their way. That’s their “enticement”—“come, have fun with us”; “come, follow us”; “come, listen to us”; “come, trust us”. And Solomon says don’t fall for it!
But how so though? How can we not be persuaded—to sin and/or to deny God/His Word—by the world? The answer is in v7 before he states his warning, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge.”
Revering God –> Knowledge = Wisdom
Notice what wisdom says in vv28-29,
“Then they will call me, but I won’t answer; they will search for me, but won’t find me. Because they hated knowledge, and didn’t choose to fear the Lord.”
God’s wisdom can’t be found apart from a sincere reverential worship of the Covenant God. Thus, the point of wisdom here is undeniable with what all of Scripture teaches: There’s only ever one way, one truth, and one life. If you miss the Covenant God of the Bible, you miss His way, His truth, and His life.
“23 If you respond to my warning, then I will pour out my spirit on you and teach you my words.”
May we all heed God’s wisdom in His Word. It will redirect us around foolish thinking, it will divert us away from foolishness’ consequences, and it will direct us toward insight, peace, & life. God’s wisdom is the GPS for a godly life.