Revering the Word
Proverbs 8 The value of Wisdom.
Good morning, everyone. This morning, we are in Proverbs chapter eight. Occasionally, as we go through the three-year journey through the Word of God, we will pause in whatever book we're in, and then we sprinkle in Psalms and Proverbs. So right now, we're in the Book of Romans, but this will give us a one-day break, and we will take on these wisdom saints from Solomon in Proverbs eight, and that's what this is. Solomon prayed for wisdom, and God granted his request, and Solomon wrote these Proverbs, and they're wisdom saints. They're not absolute promises that are going to occur every time in our lives, but they are wonderful advice and guidance in the life that we live, and let's take in this wisdom from Solomon today. In fact, today is specifically about wisdom, and he speaks of it as though it's like an entity. We'll see that in this proverb that the wisdom that he's referring to really comes from God and is connected to God, but he kind of mentions it as though it's a person today. So let's take in. Does not wisdom call an understanding lift up her voice on top of the heights besides the way where the paths meet she takes her stand, besides the gates at the opening to the city, at the entrance of the door, she cries out, "To you, O man, I call, and my voice is in the sons of men." Wisdom is there for us. I had an instance where just recently there was like a social media thing I was getting involved in, and on social media, especially when you're conservative and you're biblical, you're going to get people that are not going to like what you have to say, or you know, I think this person said they hate fundamentalists or something like that, and you know, right away, I kind of like in my flash, I wanted to, you know, post something, and I would have, honestly, if it weren't for God to correct me. So wisdom is there for us, but we have to pause and seek it. We have to pause and seek God, and he will grant us wisdom, and we have to be careful, I have to be careful, to not respond in our own strength, not respond in our flesh, but rather take time to seek wisdom, and wisdom is there, hallelujah. O naive ones, understand prudence, and O fools understand wisdom. Listen, for I will speak noble things, and wisdom will give us noble things to speak and to write, and the opening of my lips will reveal right things, hallelujah. I believe that's true. Man, how much better are we when we seek the wisdom from one high instead of our own thoughts and words? From my mouth will utter truth, from wisdom, we will have truth, and wickedness is an abomination to my lips. Wisdom does not like wickedness. All the utterances of my mouth are in righteousness. There is nothing crooked or perverted in them, and you can see that wisdom here is connected to God, and you know, with God there's nothing crooked or perverted, and he has the right words. They are all straightforward to him who understands, and right to those who find knowledge. Take my instruction and not silver, and knowledge, rather than choices gold, for wisdom is better than jewels, and all desirable things cannot compare with her. And it's so much more valuable. I mean, in fact, you may not have wisdom or silver or gold right now, but I tell you what, if you have wisdom, you have what you need, and you know, silver and gold may follow too. But if you have silver and gold without wisdom, you're going to end up using it for evil purposes rather than for God, and so much more valuable, not only in this life, but in the life to come to operate as a man or woman of wisdom. I wisdom dwell with prudence, and I find knowledge and discretion. The fear of the Lord is to hate evil. That's really an interesting statement, isn't it? The fear of the Lord, which by the way, that's where wisdom comes from, is the fear of the Lord, says that many times throughout scriptures, but the fear of the Lord is to hate evil. You know, God is very clear about what's right and good and what's evil and bad, and when we have a reverence for God, when we fear the Lord, we will agree with him on what he calls good and what he calls evil, and God hates evil because it messes people's lives up, and he doesn't want people's lives to be messed up, and so he hates when deception and evil things turn people away from the one true God. Pride and arrogance and the evil way and the perverted mouth, I hate. Listen to that. There are things God hates. There's things wisdom hates. Council is mine and sound wisdom. I am understanding power is mine. Man, the beauty of wisdom is Proverbs so elevates this, and I hope it makes you, makes me think, and makes us want to turn to God in every situation we deal with to gain greater wisdom. By me, King's reign and rulers decree justice when they're good. By me, Prince's rule and nobles, all who judge rightly, yeah, who judge rightly, they have wisdom. I love those who love me. Isn't that interesting? I love those who love me, and those who diligently seek me will find me. You know, this person who said they hate fundamentalists, I know them. I've known them for a long time, and actually kind of, you know, love them, like them. I mean, like, you know, it's sad to me when people don't know what they don't know, and you know, I said to this person, my response, which wouldn't have been what I would have responded to first, but I said, hey, you know, if you'd ever like to see the evidence that exists to reveal that Jesus is the Lamb of God, I'd be honored to show it to you. And, you know, this person said, no, thanks, I'm good, which, you know, I wasn't expecting that the person was going to say yes, but, you know, I said, well, if not now, if another time in life, I'll be there, Lord willing, if I'm still alive, but, those who diligently seek me will find me. One of the saddest things that I perceive in this life as far as unbelievers is that they've denied what they don't know. Many of them have a post-modern thought that, you know, everyone can have their own God, everyone can believe what they want to believe, and there's really no one right, and there's really no one wrong. And just, you know, so don't think that you have it right in Christianity because you don't, that's what they think, and everyone kind of has an equal right to call God who they want to call him. And this passage here says, and those who diligently seek me will find me. So if you don't think that there's anything that is true, if there's nothing that's really true, if they're all kind of equally true and equally not true, then the sense is really I don't need to seek anything because there's nothing really to be found, and that's kind of where an atheist comes from. But you know what, you haven't genuinely sought to see the evidence that exists to reveal that Jesus is the Lamb of God, and there is so much evidence, and you know, I wrote about all this in my book, Altered, A-L-T-A-R apostrophe D, and you can get it on the website, RehearingTheWord.com. It's a book of evidence. It unveils evidence that a logical person can examine and seek, and you will see that there are reasons to believe. It's not just a mystical faith kind of thing that we have, but Jesus really did exist, and he really did die, and he really did rise again, and he fulfilled so much that was written before about him, and if only people would know all the evidence before they reject the one that they don't know, and I pray that more people would read that book, I hope you do, RehearingTheWord.com, Altered. Riches and honor are with me enduring wealth and righteousness. See that's what I'm saying, you know, with wisdom you may even end up acquiring wealth. My fruit is better than gold, even pure gold, and my yield better than choice is silver, but even despite earthly riches, wisdom is still far more valuable. It leads you to God, and in that way it leads you to eternal life. I walk in the ways of righteousness, in the midst of the paths of justice, wisdom goes the right way to endow those who love me with wealth. Look at that, that I may fill their treasuries, so there you have it. Don't live for the dollar, don't live for gold, don't live for silver, live for God and live with wisdom, invest with wisdom, and you just may end up having God and your treasury may be filled. The Lord possessed me at the beginning of his way before his works of old. See, God had wisdom when he created everything. From everlasting I was established because wisdom is God and was with God, from the beginning, from the earliest times of the earth, when there was no depths I was brought forth, where there was no springs abounding with water, before the mountains were settled, before the hills I was brought forth. While he had not yet made the earth in the fields, nor the first dust of the world, when he established the heavens I was there, when he inscribed a circle on the face of the deep, when he made firm the skies above, when the springs of the deep became fixed, when he set for the sea its boundary, so that the waters would not transgress his command, when he marked out the foundations of the earth, then I was beside him, capital H, as a master workman, and I was daily his delight, rejoicing always before him, rejoicing in the world his earth, and having my delight in the sons of men. Wow, what a wonderful thing. I wonder if this makes you think of the book of Job, where Job and his friends were wrestling with, you know, what is wisdom and towards the end of the book, it shares that God created it all, and who are we to kind of question him, and it goes through all these amazing parts of God's creation. It's a resounding chapter, somewhere around chapter 30 of the book of Job, and it sounds very much like what we just read, and only it's only even more beautiful and more rich than even what we just read as lovely as it is. That's a wonderful couple of chapters towards the end of the book of Job. Now therefore, oh sons, listen to me, for blessed are they who keep my ways, hallelujah, you know what, following God has been such a blessing to me, and I want that, for others, I want that for my children, I want that for even people who would consider me an enemy. By the way, I don't look them that way, I hope they come to Jesus one day, because it's blessed me in every way to be a believer. I think it's made me more purposeful, it's secured my future in heaven, it's given me greater wisdom. You know, Pastor Jay, we all, I can keep growing to be a man of God, but I'll tell you what, I'm a, I am such more a man of God than I would have been without Jesus. I mean, he has helped me so much, hallelujah, thank you Jesus. He'd instruction and be wise, you got to be willing to seek it though, you got to be willing to see what God has said and what God has done, you don't reject him before you've even found him, he'd instruction and be wise and do not neglect it. Blessed is the man who listens to me, hallelujah, I believe that's true, I believe we are blessed when we follow God, when we follow wisdom, watching daily at my gates, waiting at my doorposts, for he who finds me finds life, hallelujah, amen and obtains favor from the Lord. You know, God promises all throughout the book of Deuteronomy that when you follow him and obey him, it's going to go well with you and I'll tell you what, life goes so much better than it would have been if we wouldn't have followed God and there's favor in following God. When you're abiding in him, there's favor from God in doing so, hallelujah, there's blessing from God in that, but he who sins against me injures himself and that's what, you know what, when you forsake God and just do your own thing, you're going to face consequences, sin has consequences and there's punishment for sin and there's blessing for following God, that's a word right there, all those who hate me love death. You know, and sometimes the bible will say things strong like that, all who hate me love death because he's trying to wake us up, he's trying to wake us up to stop doing your own thing, stop having pride in your own thoughts, stop thinking you know what's best and instead come to the conclusion that God knows best, God's ways are best and man does not live on bread alone, but from every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God seek the wisdom of God and obtain the favor from him and that is the way to a blessed life now and forever hallelujah, oh may we take in wisdom and may we take in God and may we take in our Lord and Savior Jesus, once you do, you'll never regret it. God bless you all.