Good morning Church,
Can you hear her calling in the street? Can you hear in the midst of all the chaos and confusion, a voice of reason, of sanity? Can you hear that voice saying "seek me"? Oh, how we need Wisdom in these days of deception and evil! Listen to her calling:
4 “I call to you, to all of you!
I raise my voice to all people.
5 You simple people, use good judgment.
You foolish people, show some understanding.
6 Listen to me! For I have important things to tell you.
Everything I say is right,
7 for I speak the truth
and detest every kind of deception.
8 My advice is wholesome.
There is nothing devious or crooked in it.
9 My words are plain to anyone with understanding,
clear to those with knowledge.
Do you see those attributes of Wisdom personified: good judgment, understanding, wholesome, right and truth. Does that sound like something every person needs, especially those who belong to the Lord and are supposed to make a difference in the world? Let us ask ourselves, "what voice are we listening to"? Wisdom is more valuable and precious than any of the riches earth has to offer (vs.10-11). She offers true riches and honor, wealth and justice (v.17-21) .
Where does one find Wisdom? She shares a room with good judgment, knowledge and discernment (v.12). You will find Wisdom when you "fear the Lord" (Prov. 9:10). Wisdom cannot exist apart from the source of Wisdom - the God of universe. We must turn form evil and hate it. Then we must turn to God, in a life of faith and trust. The Bible calls this kind of decision "repentance". We need to make a decision in our mind to follow God, not the world. This is done by surrendering our lives to Jesus, who is "the wisdom of God" (1Cor. 1:24). Wisdom is a characteristic of God, and He shares it with all who come into relationship with Him; all we have to do is ask Him for it (James 1:5). A person cannot make themselves wise by reading books, nor attending university. One must be connected to the Source of true wisdom. The world has nothing to offer!
The world offers pride, arrogance, corruption and perverse speech; but Wisdom offers common sense, success, insight and strength (v.13, 14). Wisdom causes leaders to lead with righteousness and justice (v. 15, 16, 20). Do you want to see the greatest example of wisdom in action? Look at creation (vs.22-31)! It was the wisdom of God that caused all this to happen! This incredibly complex universe, with all of its intricate details, laws and mechanics, did surely not happen by chance evolution! Only an intelligent Designer could have created such handiwork. "By wisdom the LORD founded the earth; by understanding He created the heavens." (Prov.3:19).The world tries hard to do away with a wise God as the source of creation, but they keep running into complexities they just can't explain. Do you want to understand how the universe works? Read God's word, and ask God for wisdom to understand - it is amazing all that He has written about His creation! He holds it all together.
Proverbs 8 concludes with some powerful promises, reminiscent of those promised by Jesus.* Whoever finds and follows wisdom finds joy and life; Those who don't, receive injury and ultimately death (v.31-36). What is the moral of the proverbs 8? Seek God and you will find Wisdom, and Live!
God bless you all,
Have a great week!
Mike
*(Note: Many have tried to equate Wisdom, who is speaking in Proverbs 8:22-36 equal to Jesus, in light of Colossians 1:16, and John 1:10). Of course the problem is that Jesus is not a created being (v.22) - He is God! Jehovah Witness use this as one of their texts to prove Jesus was created. One needs to understand that this is poetical wisdom literature, with personification of Wisdom employed. Wisdom is not a person, it is an attribute of God, exemplified in Christ.)
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