A Plea for Wisdom: Chapter Two

Real Life Treasure
When I was in first grade, my family lived in Ingalls, Kansas. It was a sweet little town, complete with public school, two churches, post office, cafe and railroad tracks. Most families were reminded of the train tracks nightly - when the house would shake vehemently, always to my mom's joy.

There wasn't much to do in town, so my two brother's and I often had to create our own fun. We would play sports, ride our bikes (Jonathan and mine were named Lightning and Thunder, and we solved many mysteries riding our noble steeds). But there was one thing my brothers and I did which will always be implanted in my memory.

We searched for treasure.

Correction. I searched for treasure. My brother's were the masterminds - Ben Gates and Riley Poole. But without me - well - without me no treasure would ever have been found. "What was this treasure?" you ask.

Pop bottle caps. That's right. Back in the day, you could actually win things from a single bottle cap - none of this "enter a code" nonsense. And so, we three treasure-hunters sought for them. How we went about this was simple, yet so rare that one might say we were the only ones who could have come up with such a technique. Here's what happened.

My brother's would throw me into dumpsters, and I would dig around piles of garbage, looking for bottle caps. It can't quite be labeled "abuse," because it was consensual. You see, I was the third-born son with a younger sister. So, to be "needed" by my brothers was a treat. I don't remembering ever winning anything, and if we did, I am quite sure I did not share in the winnings. Yet, I spent many hours of my 1st-grade year wading through beer cans and banana peels - treasure hunting. 

Turning over Couch Cushions

Proverbs 2:4-5 says that those who search for wisdom "as for hidden treasure" will find it. That seems like a fair trade, right? After all, we search for many things "as for hidden treasure." 

I spend quality time browsing netflix for great movies to add to my wife and my queue. Lord knows how many hours I've spent researching cell phones and plans. Even today, my wife had to physically remove me from the pet aisle, because I was spending so much time investigating pet food ingredients, to see which offered the most nutrition for the cheapest price. 

We search high and low for all sorts of things. Pets, restaurants, hotels, plane tickets, spouses, etc. Why is it that we give up so easily searcing for wisdom? Growing up, if we wanted to watch a movie and could not find the remote, we would spend an hour flipping over couch cushions. 

How many cushions do we flip over in our pursuit of wisdom? Why do we give up the moment we realize its not a quick find? 

My Lucky Silver Coin

I have a lucky silver half-dollar that I have carried on my person since middle school. Every interview, acting performance, college exam and marriage proposal (I've only had one of those) has been with that coin in my right pocket. 

When I moved from Georgia to Minnesota I could not find that coin. I turned over my entire room, emptied my packed suitcases and cleaned my girlfriends car. It wasn't to be found. I don't think I cried, but I was close. An emptiness filled me every time I thought of it. When I unpacked, I continued searching for it, but again - nothing. It was not until months later that my wife found it hidden under the passenger seat of her car. 

I was so excited - so happy. All for a coin. 

The Value of Wisdom

This isn't the part where I talk about priorities. After all, I will continue looking for remotes my whole life (until they put computer chips in our fingers that can be used as remotes). I don't need to even encourage you to consider becoming more of a treasure-hunter. Every person was born to be a treasure-hunter - it's innate. 

Rather, this is the part where I suggest that there is a grand treasure hidden - valued beyond a city of gold (or remotes) that we have missed. This is wisdom. In the rest of chapter two, listen to how Solomon describes the individual who finds wisdom. 

- "Discretion will preserve you" (You will have the ability to make great decisions)

- "Understanding will keep you" (You will see situations more clearly and evaluate conversations better)

Wisdom will deliver you from...

- "the way of evil" (You will know when a situation is leading toward sin)

- "the man who speaks perverse things"

- "those who leave the paths of uprightness"

- those "who walk in the ways of darkness"

- those "who rejoice in evil doing" 

- those who "delight in the perversity of the wicked"

- those whose ways are crooked, and who are devious in their paths"

- "the immoral woman - the seductress who flatters with her words...her path leads to death"

Wisdom will help you...

- "walk in the way of goodness"

- "keep to the paths of righteousness"

- "dwell in the land" (In both this life and the next, you will be a member of the kingdom of God and the many promises associate with that.)

Why Wisdom is Worth Searching for

Wisdom is the remote to your entire life. Without it, your life will be significantly worse than it could be. That's a little blunt, but it's just the case. Wisdom keeps you silent when you want to chew someone out. Wisdom keeps you humble when you want to brag. Wisdom gives you words of comfort when you aren't sure what to say. Wisdom helps in making big decisions. Wisdom gives you a correct view of God. 

And the pursuit of wisdom - the constant plea for wisdom - keeps you on your knees and in the Word. As much as God hates pride, He equally loves wisdom. It is a treasure worth pursuing. 

A Plea for Wisdom: Chapter 1 (Part Two)

Wisdom is Available to Everyone
In verses 20-21, Solomon says that Wisdom (personified) calls out to individuals everywhere - street corners, open squares, city limits, etc.

Note: Wisdom is not selective. It is not reserved for the wealthy or well-educated.
Whoever truly seeks wisdom will find it.

Wisdom is not Attained 
Wisdom is not a trait to be learned in school. It is not purchased. It is not handed down from a father to his son or a mother to her daughter. It is a free gift from God to the individuals who ask for it, and it is kept alive by God alone. Solomon says that wisdom is calling out for anyone to take ahold of it. Sadly, no one is answering. Why?

Note: People do not disregard wisdom because they do not seek to be wise. They disregard it, because wisdom only comes when one hoists their white flag and surrenders to the fact that they are not wise on their own. There are very few white flags that have been raised.

Anguish will be Mocked
Those who refuse the wisdom of God will fall into calamity. It's inevitable. It's for sure. The wisdom of God doesn't handcuff us. Wisdom is the key unlocking the handcuffs already on our wrists.

Note: Those who refuse this key will fall again and again into destruction their entire lives. They will find themselves in prison because of greed. They will find themselves drunk behind the wheel because of addiction. They will find themselves disowning family members because of pride.
Again and again they will find themselves in these situations, because they are not willing to surrender to wisdom. They may even know they are in this rut, but they will refuse to accept any counsel but their own.
Wisdom will view such people as a mockery - foolish.

Cries will not be Answered
Do not think you can avoid wisdom until the last possible minute. This will not work for two reasons.
1. You do not know the hour of your death. Many live life by their own knowledge, believing they will seek the wisdom of God "later" - after college, when they have their first kid, when they retire. This rarely happens.
2. Even if you are still alive when you choose to seek wisdom, you will still suffer the consequences of your years of rejection. It might continue to affect your crime record, driving record, health or family relations.
Note: Just as sin has lasting consequences, the one who avoids wisdom will experience consequences years after turning to wisdom.

A Beautiful Alternative
The conclusion of chapter one turns for the better - hope. You see, there is a beautiful promise to the individual who accepts wisdom. They will "dwell safely." They "will be secure, without fear of evil."
Note: This isn't the prosperity gospel. Wisdom doesn't make you rich or better educated. It will give you a more spiritually rich life. You will make more common sense decisions. You will be slower to speak, which will often keep your relationships better. You will more quickly listen to what God is telling you, and that will drastically change your life for the better.

A Plea for Wisdom: Chapter 1

A Recipe for Wisdom

Imagine you are looking to purchase a cooking book. You don't want just any ol' cooking book though. You want your cooking to be completely transformed by this book. Strangers at bake sales will ask you how you came to attain such baking skills. Deacons at church fellowship meals will beg their wives to learn under you. This is the baker/chef you desire to be, and you are searching for a book to guide you along the way. 

Imagine again that such a book existed, written by the best cook the world had ever known. No chef had been better before him or her, and none would arise more skillful after. In this treasured book, they spilled all the beans - all their secrets were hidden inside those beautiful pages. Not only would you purchase that book, but certainly you would devour its content. 

Such a book by such an author does exist (1 Kings 3), though containing something much more precious than cooking skills - wisdom. I'm not talking about tips to living a better life - some sort of self-help guide to making better decisions. No. This is the real thing - true wisdom shared freely by the wisest man who will ever walk this planet. 

Where it Begins and Ends

1:1-7

If such wisdom comes so freely, let us not saturate ourselves in it. But first, we must discover if these words are for us. They are, after all, not for everyone - not even every man and woman who desires to attain wisdom. There is a key stipulation from which the book thereafter flows forth.

In order for any of this book to affect me - in order for me to receive any kind of knowledge, prudence, justice, equity, etc.; I must "fear The Lord." This, according to the wisest man, is fundamental. 

"The fear of The Lord is the beginning of knowledge."

A house cannot be built without a foundation. It is imperative to the structure. Likewise, wisdom can only begin to be found when a fear of The Lord is present. That is why this book is not for every reader. A reader who has no interest in fearing The Lord has no interest in wisdom. Because just as wisdom begins with fear, the lack of fear is where it ends. There can be no wisdom without it. A reader so intentionally devoid of it may as well live for the moment until his or her moments run dry. They are all fools who despise wisdom and instruction (1:7). 

Before the Wilderness

1:8-9

When you live at home, there is a safety each of us will probably never feel again. Like chicks under the wing of the hen are we until that moment we pack our bags and step out the front door. Do not use those years carelessly. They are vital to your survival in this sin-scarred planet. 

Where does Solomon begin his discourse on wisdom? The home. It starts at home. He implores sons and daughters to listen to the instructions of their fathers and the rules of their mothers. Note something extremely important here. It is assumed that parents will teach godly wisdom. Children here are not instructed to blindly follow prideful, sinful direction from their parents. Therefore, parents, need your child be cautious of your instruction? Make sure that is not the case. 

However, when the child is still in the home, and assuming the instruction and law is sound; wisdom is to be found first in the home. It is a training ground - a haven for learning. For if a child learns under sound wisdom at home, they will leave for college or career looking like princes and princesses compared to the rest of the world. Crowns of wisdom will be atop the young man's head and priceless jewlery will adorn the young woman's neck. They will be prepared for the wilderness they are about to face. 

Pregnant Temptation

1:10: "My son, if sinners entice you, do not consent."

Young adults, Solomon was not naive about sin. He knew it was enticing. He doesn't warning you against being enticed - enticement is assumed. His wisdom was to not consent. I fear that in recent years, though perhaps it has been much longer than that, it has been expected of the young man and woman to refrain from desire all together.

While desire certainly can lead to sin, temptation is not the same as sin. Afterall, Hebrews 4:15 states that Jesus "was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin." Therefore, temptation cannot be the same as sin. If our young people understood this today, I think there would be far less failure. Once a human is down, it is only natural to stay down. Therefore, when a young adult thinks they have sinned (when, in fact, they have not) they often give fully into the sin, since they are down already. 

This is not an excuse to dwell on desire. It is not an excuse for a young man to stare at a bikini-clad woman. But it is so important to realize that if such a female walks past, and the young man happens to notice that God created her extremely well, he have not sinned. After all, is it a sin to notice the Rocky Mountains and say, "WOW!" Of course not. Yet, there are civilizations who have worshipped such things, just as we worship the body. 

James 1:14-15 says, "But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death."

Nelson's NKJV Study Bible says this about the word conceived: "Conceived suggests the image of a person's will beinding toward and finally seizing evil." A glance is not sin. A glance becomes sin when the object of the glance take's hold of you, so that you become its slave. This is Solomon's warning. "Do not consent." 

Choose the Path Less Traveled

1:11-18

Much of Solomon's wisdom is common head-knowledge but rarely practiced. In verses 11-14, Solomon poetically shares the temptations that will entice young adults. His advice is not to fight back. It's not something witty to say in response. Solomon's wisdom is simply to not be friends with those people. "Their feet run to evil," so run in the opposite direction. 

Wisdom is first learned in the home, but when you leave the home (and even when you are in it still), the wisest thing you can do is to choose wise friends. This is no difficult task. Where do your friends spend their money, time and resources? If they spent toward godly things (Remember, wisdom begins with God.) then they are worth following. If not, do not walk through life with them. Note, this does not mean to avoid them or cease praying for them. But do not put your confidence in them. They will lead you (often unintentionally) to death. 

The Death of the Greedy

1:19

Greed is at the heart of many of the temptations you will be faced with. The desire for money, power, sex and praise are a few. Beware of these. Identify them when you are tempted, so that you may remember something utterly important. "(Greed) takes away the life of its owner." In other words, greed will swallow you and spit you out naked. 

Nothing and no one but The Lord can satisfy your cravings. Money cannot buy you enough. A bikini-clad female can not make you feel good enough. Power and praise will never satisfy. And your pursuit of them will suck the life out of you until there is nothing left but a dry skeleton. 

Identify the desires in your life which are not of God. Seize them. Do not give them control over you. Run from those who would tell you otherwise. And above all, fear The Lord. Be completely bent to His will, and you will find wisdom.