Proverbs Ch1v1-7 - Wise Words

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

The Proverbs of Solomon, son of David, king of Israel.

For gaining wisdom and instruction.

For understanding words of insight.

For receiving instruction in prudent behavior.

Doing what is right and just and fair.

For giving prudence to those who are simple.

Knowledge and discretion to the young.

Let the wise listen and add to their learning.

And let the discerning get guidance.

For understanding Proverbs and parables.

The sayings and riddles of the wise.

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.

But fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you.

No, I don't hear.

That's fine.

I'm a stream, sir.

Well, good morning, everyone.

Nice to see you.

Please have your Bibles open there as we begin our new series in the book of Proverbs.

I'm looking forward to it because I've never taught from it before.

And I hope it will be encouraging and helpful for us all.

Need a drink?

Let's pray.

Father, thank you for your word.

For its truth and its wisdom.

We pray that you will be our teacher.

Father, so that we become wise, as you call us to be.

Amen.

Well, a few years back, some friends of mine, and we went off down to Kerry.

And we went walking the mountains.

And it was bad weather.

So we decided that we would take a professional guide with us.

And before we headed off, the guide gathered us around together and began to say,

Listen to my instructions.

Do what I say.

My job is to get you up and down the mountains safely.

Of course, as he spoke, and being a bunch of lads, everyone was joking and fooling about.

Everest, here we come.

And then he said something that got everyone's attention.

People have died up there.

And with that, he just marched off down the path.

So in that moment, we had a choice to make.

We had to decide, are we going to follow him?

Or are we going to go it alone?

Well, in a sense, we are all on a journey through life that it is fraught with danger.

Every day, we're faced with multiple choices and decisions.

What course am I going to take after my leaving cert?

Who am I going to marry?

What job will I apply for?

Where will I live?

How do I use my money?

What words will I say to that person?

How will I manage this difficult situation?

Make the right choice.

And life will be pleasant and good.

But if we make a wrong decision,

well, we know that life can end in misery.

So the question is,

how do we know what is the right choice or the right decision?

How do we navigate the journey of life

so that we do what is right?

Well, as if you've been listening to the songs and the teachings so far this morning,

we need wisdom.

And Proverbs is all about wisdom.

In fact, wisdom is our teacher who will guide us safely through life.

Look at verse 1,

the Proverbs of Solomon.

A proverb is a nugget of wisdom

to enable us to navigate all the twists and turns of life.

Have a look at chapter 13,

verse 14.

Chapter 13, verse 14.

The teaching of the wise is a fountain of life

turning a person from the snares of death.

Or just go on a page further to chapter 15,

verse 24.

The path of life leads upward for the prudent

to keep them from going down to the realm of the dead.

Let's go back to chapter 1.

You see, wisdom is not just about making right and good choices.

It's the difference between life and death.

So, as we begin Proverbs,

we must let wisdom be our teacher.

One writer put it like this.

Wisdom will give you understanding of the world in which we live

and the skills to navigate through it.

It'll give us understanding of the world we live in

and the skills to navigate through it.

So, as we look at this first little introduction

to the book of Proverbs,

we're going to see three things.

The source of wisdom,

the purpose of wisdom,

and the experience of wisdom.

So, the source.

Where do we get wisdom?

The purpose.

Why do I need it?

And the experience.

How can I get wisdom for myself?

So, first, the source of wisdom.

Verse 1.

The Proverbs of Solomon,

son of David,

king of Israel.

Solomon, the author and writer,

has many Proverbs,

all the way through to chapter 31.

Many wise sayings that can teach us.

But where did he get his wisdom from?

Well, we know from reading the book

where he got it from.

So, look at chapter 4.

Verse 1.

He gathered his wisdom,

first of all,

from his parents.

Yes, children,

parents are wise.

Chapter 4, verse 1.

Listen, my sons,

to a father's instruction.

Verse 3.

For I, too,

was a son to my father,

still tender,

and cherished by my mother.

Then he taught me.

So, he gathered wisdom

from his parents as he grew up.

We also know that he got wisdom

from other places,

from other nations.

In chapter 22 to 24,

there's a collection

of sayings

of the wise.

And scholars point out

that these sayings

more than likely

came from

surrounding nations.

Not just his parents

or from different places,

but from different people.

At the very end of the book,

chapters 30 to 31,

we have some wisdom

from a man called

Agur

and a king called

Lemuel.

We don't know anything else

about them

other than what

they've written

in Proverbs.

So, it seems

as he goes through life,

he gathers wisdom

from his parents,

from other places,

and from different people.

But that's not

the only source.

Turn with me

to 1 Kings chapter 4.

1 Kings 4 · chapter mention

1 Kings,

you have to go backwards

in your Bible.

1 Kings chapter 4.

1 Kings 4 · chapter mention

Anybody have a page number?

339.

1 Kings chapter 4.

1 Kings 4 · chapter mention

Page 339.

So, remember,

Solomon was king

of Israel

and at the beginning

of his kingship,

God came to him

and said,

Solomon,

ask for whatever

you want

and I will give it

to you.

And Solomon

asked for wisdom.

Now, look at

verse 29.

Verse 29.

God gave Solomon

wisdom

and very great

insight

and a breadth

of understanding

as measureless

as the sand

on the seashore.

Solomon's wisdom

was greater

than the wisdom

of all the people

of the east.

He was a living,

talking Wikipedia.

Look at the end

of verse,

look at verse 34.

From all nations,

people came to listen

to Solomon's wisdom,

sent by all the kings

of the world

who had heard

of his wisdom.

So, forget about

asking Siri.

Ask Solomon.

He will have the answer.

Let's go back

to Proverbs.

You see,

Solomon is telling us

that the ultimate

source of wisdom

wisdom is God.

Yes,

parents have wisdom,

nations have wisdom,

other religions

have wisdom.

We can find wisdom

in all kinds of places

and people,

but the source

of wisdom

is God.

All truth

is God's truth

because God

is the creator

of the universe

and he is the one

who is the source

of all truth.

Go to your grocery stores

today,

pick up an item

of food

and you'll see

that they're very

concerned about

the origin

of the food

they sell.

It must be traceable.

You need to know

where it comes from.

Well,

all truth

has a sticker

and a label

on it

and it says

its origin

is God.

All wisdom

can be traced

back to God.

So Proverbs

Proverbs 2:6

chapter 2

verse 6

tells us

for the Lord

gives wisdom

and from his mouth

come understanding

and knowledge.

That's the message

of the Bible.

That wisdom

comes from God.

So in the New Testament,

the writer

James

tells us

if any of you

lacks wisdom

you should ask

God

who gives generously.

Need wisdom

over decisions?

Just pray out

and call out

to God.

So first,

God is the source

of all wisdom

and truth.

Second,

the purpose

of wisdom.

Why do we need it?

Well,

we need wisdom

because we need

to be wise

to help us

make the right

kinds of choices

that lead to life

rather than death.

If we look

at our introduction

verses 2 to 6,

we'll see there

that wisdom

teaches us

five core truths

that will come

again

and again

and again

as we read

through the book

of Proverbs.

The first one,

wisdom teaches us

what is right.

Verse 2.

It's for gaining

wisdom

and instruction,

for understanding

words of insight.

Now,

if you are

insightful,

it means

you can see

the whole

big picture.

You don't just see it

from one angle,

but you can see it

from many angles.

What's the real issue

behind all the detail?

It enables us

to grasp

what is best

and what is

the right course

of action.

Wisdom teaches us

what is right.

It also teaches us

how to live.

Verse 3.

It's for receiving

instruction

in prudent

behaviour.

wisdom

instructs us

about how

we should live.

Not just

knowing in our

heads

lots of

information

about right

things,

but knowing

how to apply

that information

as it says

at the end

of verse 3

so that we

can do

what is

right

and just

and fair.

Wisdom

also teaches

us thirdly

who I

am.

Verse 4.

It's for giving

prudence

to those

who are

simple,

knowledge

and discretion

to the

young.

Now the

simple

and the

young

are not

two different

people.

When we

read poetry

and literature

like proverbs,

the second

half of the

sentence

often help

expand

and give

insight

for the

first part

of the

sentence.

So simple

and young

are the

same

person.

And we're

given a

definition

of who

the

simple

are.

If you

look down

at the

bottom

of your

Bible,

there's a

little

note.

It says

something like

this,

the Hebrew

word rendered

simple in

proverbs

denotes a

person who

is gullible,

without

moral direction,

and inclined

to evil.

Wisdom

is teaching

us, is

telling us

that we

are all

simple.

Well, that's

pretty offensive,

isn't it?

That we

choose our

own ways

in life,

we choose

what we

think is

right.

None of

us have

been born

wise.

In fact,

the other,

as we read

through the

book,

we'll discover

that we're

inclined to

foolishness.

So,

chapter 9

and verse

6 tells

us,

leave your

simple ways

and you

will live.

Walk in

the way

of insight.

So,

wisdom is a

great teacher.

It also

teaches us,

fourthly,

what we

need in

life.

what we

need.

So,

chapter 1

verse 5.

Let the

wise listen

and add

to their

learning and

let the

discerning

get

guidance.

You see,

wisdom is

not a

quick fix.

It's not

like we

sign up

to a

course and

we

graduate in

wisdom.

It's not

like come

along on

Sunday

morning and

listen to

a few

sermons and

go away

with your

certificate,

I'm

wise.

Now,

wisdom says

add to

your

learning.

So,

when you've

got a

bit of

wisdom,

learn a

little bit

more and

you will

have more

wisdom.

And when

you've done

that,

go and

learn some

more and

you will

have more

wisdom.

It also

tells us,

fifthly,

how to

mature.

Verse 6.

Wisdom

teaches us

understanding

for

proverbs

and

parables,

the

sayings

and

riddles

of the

wise.

You see,

wisdom comes

in all

shapes and

sizes.

It comes

in proverbs,

that distilled

word of

truth.

It comes

as a

parable,

stories which

contain a

truth with

an application

to our

lives within

the story.

Or

sayings,

short

comments on

life or

riddles,

truths that

we need to

think about

deeply to

be able to

get the

meaning.

So we

don't just

add

wisdom,

we develop

ways of

learning.

We use

all means

possible to

make us

wise.

You see,

wisdom is

our teacher.

But did

you notice

how we

are taught?

wisdom

is

God's

word.

Verse 2,

understanding

words of

insight.

Or verse 5,

listening to

the words

of the

wise.

Wisdom

comes from

God,

but it

comes through

his word.

Proverbs,

parables,

sayings,

riddles are

all communicated

by his word.

So wisdom

is found

in God's

word.

Without

God's

word,

we would

have no

understanding,

no insight,

and no

guidance.

So it

begs the

question,

how often

are we

reading

God's

word

so that

we can

be wise?

You see,

living

without

the word

would be

like trying

to put

up an

Ikea

wardrobe

without

the words

of

instructions.

I've

tried to

do it.

It's not

very helpful.

It would

be like

trying to

get to

a restaurant

that you've

never been

to before

without

the words

of Google

Maps

telling you

where to

get to

your

destination.

God's

word

will make

you wise.

Now,

God's

word is

good and

beautiful.

They're not

harsh words.

They're not

just a bunch

of rules

to corral us

into some

kind of

order or

some kind

of test

that we

have to

pass.

No,

God's

word is

wise.

It's

there for

our benefit.

One

author put

it like

this.

Proverbs

is practical

help

from

God

for weak

people like

us

stumbling

through

daily

life.

It is

his counsel

for the

perplexed,

his strength

for the

defeated,

his warning

to the

proud,

his mercy

for the

broken.

God's

word is

good.

So we

could

summarize

wisdom

like this.

God's

word

to live

God's

way

in

God's

world.

You

see,

we all

need

the

wisdom

of God's

word.

So we

see the

source,

we see

the

purpose,

and we

see the

experience.

So how do

we experience

this wisdom?

wisdom?

How can

I become

wise like

Solomon?

Well,

before we

rush into

the book of

Proverbs to

discover what

career I

should choose

or what I

should do

with my

money,

we just

need to

slow

down.

You

see,

if we

are to

experience

wisdom,

we need

to start

in the

right

place.

And if

we don't

start at

the right

place,

we're never

ever going

to be

wise.

So where's

the starting

place?

Where's

the door?

Well,

verse 7

is the

door to

the whole

book of

Proverbs.

Do you

see what

it says?

The fear

of the

Lord is

the beginning

of knowledge.

Or as it

says in

chapter 9

verse 10,

the fear

of the

Lord is

the beginning

of wisdom.

Now,

when we

think about

the fear

of the

Lord,

we think,

run,

hide,

God is

after me,

I haven't

done one

of these

Proverbs,

I've got

it wrong,

he's going

to punish

me.

But that's

not how

God

works.

Remember,

he's not

out to

crush us

or break

us,

but to

help us.

Did you

notice

something

different

about one

of the

words in

verse 7,

how it's

different to

all the

others?

It's the

word

Lord.

It comes

in capital

letters.

And whenever

we see that

phrase,

that word

Lord in

capital

letters,

it's

talking

about

God's

personal

name.

It's

the God

who

reveals

himself

to his

people

for the

purpose

of

rescuing

us so

that we

can be

in right

relationship

with him.

This is

the personal

God who

wants the

very best

for you.

So the

fear of

the Lord

is to

humble

yourself

under

his

loving

authority.

It's to

submit

yourself

to

his

gracious

rule.

It's a

desire that

I want

to please

this God.

I want

to know

him

better.

It's a

longing to

want

what he

wants

for me.

So the

fear of

the Lord

first of

all

leads

to

wisdom.

You see

you can't

have wisdom

without

God.

We all

want to

be wise.

We all

want to

know how

to make

good and

right choices

and decisions

but so

often we

want to

do it

without

God.

But

wisdom

without

God

will

always

mean I

will

always

choose

what I

want.

My

decisions

will

always

be

self

orientated.

What

pleases

me?

And not

only is

that selfish

living,

it's

downright

foolish

living.

Look at

the second

part of

verse 7.

But

fools

despise

wisdom

and

instruction.

You see

what he's

saying?

The fear

of the

Lord

is the

beginning

of

wisdom.

But if

we

reject

the

Lord,

well then

it's

the

end

of

wisdom.

We

cannot

have

wisdom

without

God.

It's

like me

saying

I want

Kirsty's

help

but I

don't

want

Kirsty.

I

need

her

for

doing

things

but not

in a

marriage.

The two

go

together.

So

the fear

of the

Lord leads

to

wisdom

and this

wisdom

leads

to

life.

If we

start

with

God

it means

I will

always be

desiring

what God

wants.

if I

start

with

self

it will

always

be

about

me.

And if

we

start

with

what

God

wants

it will

always

be

what

is

right

and

best

for

me.

Can

we

trust

that

the

creator

of

the

universe

will

only

do

what

is

right

and

best

for

his

creation?

Look

at

chapter

14

verse

27.

Wisdom

leads

to

life.

Chapter

14

verse

27.

The

fear

of

the

Lord

is

a

fountain

of

life

turning

a

person

from

the

snares

of

death.

Or

look

at

chapter

19

verse

23.

19

verse

23.

The

fear

of

the

Lord

leads

to

life.

Then

one

rests

content

untouched

by

trouble.

So

isn't

it

wonderful

how

wisdom

takes

us

from

death

into

life.

It's

the

fountain

of

life.

The

source

of

life.

But

there's

something

even

better

than

that.

The

fear

of

the

Lord

leads

to

wisdom.

It

leads

to

life.

And

ultimately

it

leads

to

Jesus.

Look

as we

read

through

the

book

of

Proverbs

we

will

discover

that

we're

not

just

simple

but

that

we're

more

foolish

than

we

ever

thought

we

were.

Rather

than

fear

the

Lord

we're

people

who

often

reject

the

Lord.

Rather

than

be

listening

to

his

words

we

so

often

listen

to

that

internal

word

in

our

hearts.

Or as

Proverbs

Proverbs 10:8

10

verse 8

tells us

the

wise

in

heart

accept

commands

but a

chattering

fool

comes

to

ruin.

in

other

words

I

know

what

is

best

for

me

don't

tell

me

how

to

live

my

life.

You

see

our

choices

may

be

wise

in

the

eyes

of

the

world

but

they

are

foolish

in

the

eyes

of

God.

What

we

need

is

not

just

advice

we

need

more

than

direction

about

the

career

we're

going

to

take

or

the

person

we're

going

to

marry

!

or

the

place

I'm

going

to

live

we

need

someone

who

will

come

to

us

who

will

save

us

from

our

self

centred

foolishness.

Let's

go to

1st

Corinthians

where

we

began

our

time

this

morning

1st

Corinthians

chapter

1

1st

Corinthians

chapter

1

starting

at

verse

26

you

see

the

fear

of

the

Lord

leads

to

wisdom

which

leads

to

life

which

leads

to

Jesus

he

alone

is

the

one

who

can

save

us

from

our

foolish

ways

and

make

us

truly

wise

let's

pick it

up in

verse

26

reflect

with me

on

these

words

he's

writing

to the

church

to

believers

brothers

and

sisters

think

of what

you were

when you

were

called

not

many

of

you

were

wise

by

human

standards

not

many

were

influential

not

many

were

of

noble

birth

in

the

words

of

proverbs

we

might

say

we

were

all

simple

verse

27

but

God

chose

the

foolish

things

of the

world

to

shame

the

wise

God

chose

the

weak

things

of the

world

to

shame

the

strong

God

chose

the

lowly

things

of

this

world

and

the

despised

things

and the

things

that are

not

to

nullify

the

things

that

are

so

that

no

one

may

boast

before

him

you

see

here

is

true

wisdom

we

do

not

come

saying

I'm

wise

I

have

my

life

all

together

no

wisdom

starts

by

saying

I'm

a

fool

I'm

weak

I'm

lowly

I

need

help

verse

30

it

is

because

of

him

that

you

are

in

Christ

Jesus

who

has

become

for

us

wisdom

from

God

that

is

our

righteousness

our

holiness

and

redemption

did

you see

that

little

phrase

there

in

verse

30

it

is

because

of

him

that

you

are

in

Christ

Jesus

who

has

become

for

us

the

wisdom

from

God

think

of

your

journey

through

life

as

crossing

a

large

sea

a

sea

that's

fraught

with

dangerous

storms

and

currents

there's

two

ways

for

you

to

cross

that

sea

either

you

can

swim

or

you

can

take

the

boat

well

in a

sense

Jesus

is

our

boat

the

boat

is

called

wisdom

and

as

our

captain

he

calls

us

on

board

to

be

in

Christ

who

is

our

wisdom

and

all

those

who

come

to

him

are

given

his

righteousness

so

that

we

may

be

accepted

before

him

we

are

given

his

holiness

so

that

we

might

be

treated

like

him

and

we

are

given

redemption

assured

that

we

will

make

it

to

the

other

side

even

if

we

should

fall

overboard

by

our

once

again

foolish

actions

he

will

grab

us

before

we

touch

those

stormy

waters

Christ

our

wisdom

Christ

our

life

Jesus

is

our

wisdom

who

will

see

us

through

to

our

final

destination

let

us

come

before

him

admit

who

we

are

and

know

his

strength

his

help

and

all

that

we

need

to

live

life

his

way

God's

words

to

live

God's

way

in

God's

world

let's

pray

together

we

sang at

the very

beginning

of our

service

a song

with the

line

that

you

are

God

and

we

are

not

father

help

us

that

we

might

humbly

come

before

you

that

we

would

submit

to

your

loving

gracious

rule

that

we

would

not

want

what

we

want

but

desire

the

things

of

God

help

us

that

we

would

not

listen