The Key to Becoming Wise

You know, one of the most important qualities that we need to develop, to put into practice

if we're going to live the best life possible, is wisdom.

And I want you to think with me about it.

Some people would think that the most important quality is love, and I certainly wouldn't

disagree when you start talking about putting love at the top of the list.

But doesn't love need to be expressed wisely?

Wise parents know that sometimes you need to express what would be considered tough love.

And when you express that tough love to your child, your child considers it anything but loving.

Modern technology is great.

It has given us the ability to instantly communicate with people about anything that crosses our minds.

But if we don't use it wisely, we may use the best communication tools ever invented to spread stupidity.

Or to stir up unnecessary controversy.

Or just waste time.

Just about everything that we do in life requires that we act wisely in order to achieve the desired results.

Now, we're turning back to Proverbs this morning.

Going back to the subject of wisdom.

Seeking to grow in wisdom.

Seeking to become wise.

And when you hear that word wisdom, when we talk about being wise, let me just remind you.

We're talking about more than just having understanding.

Just having knowledge of something.

We're talking about more than someone just being smart when we talk about a person being wise.

The wisdom that we need most, all of us, is God-given wisdom.

The kind of wisdom we see described in Proverbs.

The goal of the writers of Proverbs is to help us as God's people to live wisely.

And we can summarize what that means like this.

A wise person has correct knowledge.

That's intellectual wisdom.

Understands how to apply that knowledge to life.

Practical wisdom.

And then demonstrates godly character in all things.

That's moral wisdom.

Probably the most well-known part of Proverbs to most of us is in chapter 3, verses 5 and 6.

Maybe verses 5 through 8.

I want you to turn there if you would.

This short section of Proverbs 3 shows us the key to developing the kind of wisdom that we're talking about.

These verses emphasize that wisdom is developed in the context of a relationship with God in which we trust Him wholeheartedly.

Wisdom is not something that you just achieve through an academic exercise.

There's really no formula that you can follow to acquire God-given or biblical wisdom.

There's a lot of things we can read, we can study, we can observe that'll help.

But the kind of wisdom we're talking about, it happens, it develops, it matures in the context of a right and close relationship with God.

And that's what Proverbs 3, verses 5 through 8 is talking about.

Proverbs 3:5–8

Let's read it.

What does it mean to trust God?

I'm going to guess that a lot of people in this room, you memorize trusting the Lord with all your heart and lean not into your own understanding.

Well, what does it mean?

Well, to trust the Lord means simply to depend on Him, to rely on Him, to lean on Him, to put your confidence in Him.

The idea of doing this with all your heart means that we trust God totally.

The word heart refers to more than just our emotions.

Some people think, you know, if you do something with all your heart, it's just all your emotions.

No.

In fact, I listened to the sermon that Mike preached a few weeks ago when I was gone, just a few days ago, actually.

He did a great job.

And he explained that the idea of loving with your heart is more than just a feeling.

We're talking about loving God with all that's within us.

We're talking about trusting God with every fiber of our being.

And, you know, we can only trust God like that if we have a relationship with Him.

Do you trust people you don't know?

Do you trust people that you are just casually acquainted with?

Hopefully you don't.

And just as a word for some people who may need to be encouraged or reminded,

people who call you or people who send you emails and ask you personal questions

and they want personal information, don't trust them.

They're out to con you, to scam you.

Just use good old common sense.

Don't trust yourself, anything about yourself, to people you don't know,

that you don't have a relationship with,

that you cannot be sure that you can confide in.

That's what we do.

And so in order to really trust God with all of our heart,

we've got to have a relationship with Him.

And the kind of relationship that we need to be thinking about

is a relationship that comes through faith in Jesus Christ.

Jesus made it real clear in John 14, verse 6, the end of that,

John 14:6

that no one comes to the Father and talking about

no one can have a relationship with the Father except through me.

So the first step, really, and we've talked about this in days gone by,

in this series, the first step to being truly wise

is to know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior.

The first step to becoming a wise person

and having the kind of relationship where you can trust God with all your heart

means you've got to have a relationship with Jesus.

Look at the next idea.

In all your ways acknowledge Him.

Verse 6.

To acknowledge God means more than just be aware of Him.

Even the devil is aware of Him.

It means to truly know Him.

To know Him in a personal way.

To have fellowship with Him.

This is really just another way of saying

trust in the Lord with all your heart.

Solomon is telling us that trusting God

requires that we be totally committed to Him.

Look at the verse.

With all your heart and in all your ways.

I want you to look at one more phrase

that describes what it means to trust God.

And we're looking at positive ways we do this.

In verse 7.

Fear the Lord and turn away from evil.

The importance of fearing God

is repeatedly stressed in Proverbs.

It begins in chapter 1.

You'll find it throughout the book.

It's even in chapter 31, the last.

From beginning to end and in between.

At least 10 times

the writers of Proverbs

tell us that the key to being wise,

the key to having the right kind of knowledge

is to fear God.

And as we've already seen in previous studies,

that means we need to treat God with reverence,

with respect.

And in the context here,

fear the Lord and turn away from evil,

it means that we will seek to obey Him.

We'll fear Him.

We'll honor Him.

We'll respect for Him.

We'll have respect for Him by...

When we learn His Word,

when we learn what He says in His Word,

we'll want to obey it.

We'll want to do what He says

and turn away from every form of evil.

That'll be the normal part of our lives

if we truly are fearing God

and trusting Him with all of our heart.

Now, the idea of trusting God

as we're thinking about this morning

is not just expressed in positive terms

in these verses.

Let's look at what you might say negatively,

what we must not do

if we're going to trust God.

Again, in verse 5,

do not lean on your own understanding.

Now, this does not mean

that you don't use your brain.

It doesn't mean that you don't learn

from your experiences in life.

You know, there are some Christians

who have this idea,

because I've heard it come out of their mouth before,

that we really don't need to

try to think deeply

about God and the things of God,

especially some of the mysteries of the Bible.

Some people think in terms

we just need to focus on our feelings

and our love

and our emotional relationship with God,

so to speak.

Well, that's not true.

We need to love God with our minds,

with our hearts,

with our will,

with everything that is within us.

When He says here,

do not lean on your own understanding,

He's not saying,

don't use your brain.

He's not saying,

don't think.

Don't learn from experience.

No.

That would not only be unwise,

it would be foolish.

To not lean on your own understanding

means,

don't look at yourself.

Don't look at the world

or to the world

for you're a real source of wisdom.

In other words,

don't reject the truth of God's Word

and replace it with your own best thinking.

You know,

when we face situations in life,

we've got to form opinions,

we've got to make decisions.

We don't need to just scratch our head

and think,

well,

what's the best that I can figure out here?

What's other people saying?

We need to be always,

as Christians,

trying to look at life

through the lens of Scripture.

Trying to understand,

what would God have us to think?

What would God have us to believe?

What would God have us to do

in this situation?

If we truly trust God,

we're going to look to Him

as He's revealed Himself

and His will

in His Word.

And we're going to make that

our source of wisdom,

our first priority source of wisdom.

The other negative warning

reinforces this.

He says,

Be not wise in your own eyes.

The person who is wise in his own eyes

has an inflated

and incorrect understanding

of himself.

And you know,

we can,

we can all do that,

can't we?

We think too highly of ourselves.

We think too highly of our opinions.

We think too highly of our understanding

or wisdom.

We need to be,

we need to be very careful here.

There's another place in Proverbs

in chapter 26

where we're told

that the person who thinks like this

too highly of himself

is worse than a fool.

Look at it on the screen.

Do you see a man who is wise

in his own eyes?

There's more hope for a fool

than for him.

Paul says something similar.

He doesn't talk about being a fool,

but he says in Romans chapter 12

Romans 12 · chapter mention

in verse 16,

Never be wise

in your own sight.

This is repeated

in scripture like this

because we just naturally think

we're smarter than we are.

We,

that we know more

than we really do.

It's just natural

for us to lean

on our own understanding.

It is great

if there are people

in your life

who have told you

or they show it

by the way they act.

It's great

if there are people

in your life

who think you're wise.

They're just impressed

with your knowledge,

with your intelligence,

and they like to

ask you for advice.

They want to know

your opinion.

You should be flattered.

That's great

if people think that.

But you cannot

think it of yourself

because if you do,

there's more hope

for a fool

than for you.

The scripture says.

We're setting ourself up

for disaster

if we,

if you,

if I,

think of myself

as really

a great source

of wisdom.

Now,

let's think about

how well

we are putting

this teaching

about trusting God

into practice.

And I want us

to do that

by answering

another question.

Number two,

how can I tell

if I am trusting God?

How can I tell

if I'm trusting God

like this passage says?

Well,

what is the source

of what you believe

and how you live?

Where can you trace

your basic beliefs,

your worldview,

the way you just

live life

and treat people

and do the things

you do?

Is your source

the Word of God?

Or is it just

your own best thinking?

Or is it just

what everybody else

is thinking?

what's popular

right now?

I want us to look

at one of the most

controversial issues

of today

to help us

really answer that.

The issue I'm talking

about is marriage.

How would you

define marriage

this morning?

Would you define it

the way God does

in His Word

in Genesis chapter 2

Genesis 2:24

verse 24?

Here's what

Scripture says.

Therefore,

a man shall leave

his father and mother

and hold fast

to his wife.

King James

uses that old word

cleave to his wife.

It's using a word

here that describes

the strongest

possible union

like being glued

together

or even welded

together.

Therefore,

a man shall leave

his father and mother

and hold fast

to his wife

and they shall

become one flesh.

Here's the first question.

Do you have the conviction

that marriage

should be a lifetime

commitment

or

it's a temporary

arrangement?

It's a temporary

arrangement that exists

until problems happen,

until we get tired

of one another

or find someone better.

The world thinks

that latter way.

The world says

that divorce

is really,

excuse me,

okay,

it's not ideal,

it is painful,

but it's just not

that really,

it's just not really

that big a deal.

The world says

divorce happens.

It happens

for all kinds

of reasons

and we should just

accept it

as inevitable

in about half

the marriages

that happen

in this country.

that's what

the world thinks.

But

God's word

says that marriage

is designed

to be a permanent

one flesh

relationship.

Therefore,

married couples

should be encouraged

to work

through problems,

to grow

and develop

their relationship,

to work

and pray

and seek help

if necessary

to make

their marriages

not just work

but mature,

flourish.

You know,

God intends

for divorce

to be a rare

occurrence

and only when

there are biblical

grounds such as

sexual immorality

or desertion.

I want to make

clear here

divorce

happens

because of sin.

God's will,

God's design

for marriage

has been broken.

One man,

one woman,

one flesh

relationship

for life.

That's God's plan.

That's God's will.

And when that

doesn't happen,

His will

has been violated.

Now,

everyone involved

in a divorce

may not be guilty

of sin.

Sometimes,

one spouse

commits adultery,

deserts their spouse,

will not reconcile.

Things like that

take place sometimes.

And the victim

in those situations

would not be guilty

of divorce.

I also want to point out

that like all sin,

divorce can be forgiven.

God is a God

of grace

and mercy.

And with any sin

that we truly confess

and repent of,

He forgives.

He can give us

a fresh start.

But what I want us

to see

and think about

right here,

God really wants

us as His people

to understand

divorce is not

His will.

It's not His plan.

And it shouldn't be

something that

we just think of

as,

well,

it's okay

if it doesn't work

like I thought

it would work.

We need to learn

to trust God

with all our heart

in our marriage.

we need to work

to please God

and have the kind

of relationship

with our spouse

that He intends

and that we will enjoy

if we'll seek God's way,

if we'll not be selfish

and self-centered,

if we'll put our spouse

first.

Along the same line,

how do you encourage

other people

who talk to you?

I know sometimes

friends will talk,

co-workers will talk,

even family members

will talk,

ask your advice.

Are you quick

to encourage somebody

that will just

be done with them?

Or,

do you encourage

just the opposite?

To work on it,

seek help,

pray,

save your marriage

because this is God's ideal.

Second question,

though,

about marriage.

Do you have the conviction

that marriage

should be between

one man

and one woman

only?

Or do you think

it's okay

for two men

or two women

to be married?

Controversial thought

idea today.

The world says

that same-sex marriage

is not only permissible,

but it is actually

the law of the land

in this country.

The Supreme Court

has ruled

it is law

in this country.

But God's Word

says that marriage

is designed

to be experienced

only

by one man

and one woman.

Scripture also teaches

that homosexual behavior

is sinful behavior.

That means

that same-sex marriage

is sinful.

And I want you

to understand

that is

the only

teaching

of Scripture

concerning marriage.

There is another,

there is not another option.

If you choose

to reject that,

you have that privilege.

But I want you

to understand

you are rejecting

the Word of God.

You're rejecting

the only thing

that Scripture teaches

about marriage

if you reject

one man,

one woman,

one flesh relationship

for life.

Now,

the world

has taken

their view

one step further

than making it legal.

The world now says,

our culture now says,

you can't believe

what the Bible teaches

and be a respected

or acceptable

member of society.

The world now tells us

you can't call

same-sex marriage

sinful

without you being condemned.

And where it can happen,

you be punished.

I'll give you

one of the latest examples.

Chip and Joanna Gaines

are a married couple

who hosts

the popular

HGTV show

called Fixer Upper.

I know a lot of you

watch that.

Chip and Joanna

are also committed Christians

and they attend

a large evangelical church

in Waco, Texas.

A popular news website

called BuzzFeed

has come out

with an article

condemning them

for being a member

of this church

where the pastor

teaches that

same-sex marriage

is sinful.

This news website,

BuzzFeed,

implies in their article

that because Chip

and Joanna

are members

of that church,

they must be against

same-sex marriage

and that should

disqualify them

from having a show

on HGTV.

Now,

from what I've read,

that church

that they're a member of

and that pastor,

they're very much like

our church

and most

Southern Baptist

Convention churches.

They teach

simply the truth

of Scripture

about marriage.

They speak

the truth in love

and they welcome

everyone

into their church

including gay people.

they've made

that kind of statement

and their idea is

they want everyone

to feel welcome

in their church.

They want their doors

to be opened.

They want everybody

to come

and they want everyone

to hear

the good news

about Jesus.

Salvation is by the grace

of God

through faith in Jesus.

They want everyone

to hear the full truth

of God

about everything.

and their prayer is

as people hear

God's Word,

as they hear

this good news

about Jesus,

they'll trust Jesus.

They'll surrender

their lives to Him

as their Savior

and Lord

and they'll want

to live their life

according to the truth

of God's Word

and turn from all sin

including the sin

of homosexuality.

That is the desire

of our church.

I hope

that you know

I've said it

on various occasions

and various ways.

The doors of our church

are open to anyone

and everyone.

We're not going to

bash anyone

because of who they are,

what they are,

what their sinful

condition is

because we're all

sinful people.

We're all

sinners in need

of a Savior.

And if we're Christians

it's not because

we figured anything out.

If we're Christians

it's because God

favored us,

demonstrated His grace

to us

by calling us

in the midst

of our sin

to see the truth

and turn from our sin

and trust Jesus.

Salvation by the grace

of God

through faith in Jesus

plus nothing else.

And we want everybody

to come

and hear this message.

We want to love

everybody who comes

as we try to

communicate this message

in the most positive

and gracious way

that we can.

Here's what I want

to ask you now.

Do you trust

God enough

to stand on

the truth

of His Word

even about marriage

no matter what

the world might say

or do to you

if you do?

Or

could you ever

envision yourself

leaving this church

because I preach

what I've just said

about marriage?

Or because our church

and our denominational

statement of faith

defines marriage

exclusively as

the uniting of

one man

and one woman

in covenant

commitment

for a lifetime.

the day has come

the day is here

when some Christians

in this country

are being persecuted

for simply saying

they believe

this truth.

The day has come

when some people

are being

Christians

are being persecuted

because they are

members of a church

that believes this

or a denomination

that believes this.

You know right now

it's easy for us

to say that we

trust God

with all our heart

we lean not

on our own

understanding

when it doesn't

cost us anything.

But the real test

will come

when we

have to risk

losing friends

or jobs

or earthly security

in order to

publicly stand

and say that

we trust God

and we're going

to remain

faithful to him

and the truth

of his word.

That leads us

to the final question.

Why should I

trust God?

Well first

in verse 6

the latter part

he will make

straight your paths.

The word straight

here is used

to describe

travel made safe

by clearing

and leveling

a road.

The idea

is that

if we will

live our lives

according to the

teaching of God's word

if we'll live

our lives

according to

God's wisdom

God will make

our path

in life

smoother

and straighter

but that doesn't

mean it will be

easy.

That doesn't

mean that

doing life

God's way

living life

God's way

is going to be

the easiest way.

A lot of times

it will be hard

but God's way

is always the best

way for his

people.

That's because

God created us

God's gifted us

God has a plan

for our life

and the path

if we follow him

we'll follow the

path in life

that God designed

for us

that will most

glorify him

and enable us

to make the best

difference in this

world.

Another reason

why we should

trust God

is because

what it says

in verse 8

it will be

healing to your

flesh

and refreshment

to your bones.

As we've said

throughout our

study of Proverbs

Proverbs are not

promises.

They're a

description of how

life

descriptions of

how life

usually works.

This verse is

not promising

that if we

trust God

we'll always

be healthy

but it does

mean that

living life

God's way

will help us

to avoid

bringing unnecessary

problems upon

ourselves.

A lot of people

who suffer in

this world

have brought

a lot of it

on themselves.

Not everyone.

Some of the

most godly

people you'll

never know

struggle

with health

problems

with financial

problems

with family

problems

but as a

general rule

living life

God's way

results in the

best life

we could

experience

compared to

people who

don't live life

God's way.

God's way

this passage is

encouraging us to

trust God in all

things and

warning us don't

trust yourself.

Don't trust in just

what the world is

doing.

Or we could think

about it like this.

This passage is

telling us not to

live our lives

according to that

old song

My Way.

That song was

originally made

popular by Frank

Sinatra and

later by Elvis

Presley.

Now I would

give my Elvis

impression and

sing it for you

but you may not

get the point

if I do.

So look at the

first and last

stanzas of this

song My Way and

think about what

it's saying.

And now the end

is near and so I

face the final

curtain.

My friend I'll

say it clear.

I'll state my

case of which I'm

certain.

I've lived a life

that's full.

I traveled each

and every highway

and more much

more than this I

did it my way.

For what is a

man what has he

got if not

himself that he

has not to say

the things he

truly feels and

not the words of

one who kneels.

The record shows

I took the blows

and did it my

way.

Now the writer

of Proverbs

would say that

is an absolutely

foolish song

that only a

fool would

sing.

And if there

was some way

to know

we can be

confident that

Frank Sinatra

and Elvis

Presley

would agree

I was a

fool for

singing and

living life

my way.

When you think

about it

my way

is the name

of the road

that leads to

a whole lot

of heartache

in this life

and to hell

for all

eternity.

The opposite

of living life

my way

or as

Proverbs says

being wise

in your own

eyes

the opposite

is to fear

the Lord

kneel before

him

and trust

in the Lord

with all

your heart.

That's

the key

to becoming

wise.

So now

you get

to decide

are you

going to

live life

my way

or are you

going to live

life

God's way?

That's a choice

we make

every day

and it's a

choice

that we will

live with

for all

eternity

my way

or God's

way.

Would you

pray with me?

Father

help us to

see what is

the pattern

of our lives.

Can we

get up this

morning and

sing

I did it

or I'm

doing it

my way

or are we

doing it

your way

or at least

seeking to

do that

and confessing

and repenting

of it

when we

don't.

Dear God

show us

the key

to wisdom

is trusting

you,

loving you,

obeying you

and living

life your

way.

Show us

that the

beginning

of wisdom

and a real

relationship

with you

is through

faith in

Jesus Christ.

Surrender to

him as

Lord and

Savior of

our lives.

Show us

how we

should respond

now and

then in

attitude of

prayer let's

just listen

to the

Lord.

Respond to

him as

he speaks

and I'll be

happy to pray

with you

during this

time I'll be

here at the

front.

If you want

to share

something with

me you

come as

God leads.