Did you wish to be wise? To be wise is kind of an elusive phrase.
Maybe a better question is- do you wish to think clearer? To make decisions with clarity and calm thoughtfulness? To be able to listen carefully to others and give back helpful and loving advice? To be able to see the path ahead and walk it with courage?
I do. Sometimes my head is like my computer with twenty tabs open, all things needing to be done right now.
Well, Solomon has an answer, and he gets right to the point in this proverb.
Seems simple, doesn’t it?
If you- like me- have lived some life, you know this is not at all simple.
No one would choose to be a fool, but it is hard to wade through the “wisdom” and “instruction” out in the world today. Solomon lays out a clear first step. I would take one more step back with a challenge.
What kind of knowledge do you want? Do you want to be wise by the world’s standards? Or do you wish to have true knowledge and understanding? Do you wish to have the calm, never changing, eternal knowledge the Creator of the universe offers? Because if we chase after the “knowledge of the world,” we will find only chaos and confusion. Right now, our culture believes that there is no truth. That truth is relative. My truth is my truth, and your truth is your truth. This is a lie.
There is one Truth, and He is also the Way and the Life (John 14:6).
Is Solomon really saying that all those smart people throughout history who said God didn’t exist- yet still had great ideas- were not actually wise?
Yes.
According to Proverbs 1:7, those who claim wisdom but never knew God have missed out on the Truth.
So, once we make the decision to seek after eternal wisdom, the New Living Translation says this,
Fear of the LORD is the foundation of true knowledge Proverbs 1:7a NLT
Hmmm. Even to step foot into the realm of being wise, one must first fear the Lord.
But what does that mean? Is it equal parts actual fear and awe? Is it understanding God as Creator of the universe and as loving Father? Is it like to trying to understand Jesus as fully God and fully man?
The author of Hebrews says this-
Since we are receiving a Kingdom that is unshakable, let us be thankful and please God by worshiping him with holy fear and awe. For our God is a devouring fire. Hebrews 12:28-29 NLT
I think the “awe” part is easy, especially when looking at the mountains or the ocean or a sunset. The “devouring fire” sounds scary, but as believers, we have nothing to fear from God. He promised that nothing can separate us from His love.
For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:38-39
Maybe fearing God just means that we walk in His ways, that we keep His Word ever before us, and seek His will every day. Maybe it means letting go of that human tendency to ” know it all.” The feeling that “It’s all me. I can do it myself.” Abandoning self and choosing to rely upon our Maker- that is hard to do. But isn’t it also freeing?
So, understanding this and doing it- or attempting to do it each day- is the beginning of knowledge. True knowledge. Let the world and culture go do its own thing. Stand with courage upon the Truth.
Heidi xoxo