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Wise Guy Studies Lesson 1: When is the last time you had an Enigma? I cannot think of a more practical book than the book of Proverbs in the Bible. The more I read and understand this book, the more simple life seems to be. One author says "the essence of the Book of Proverbs is the teaching of moral and ethical principles." That’s right, but I would go one step further. It is God’s teaching of moral and ethical principles. You can go to the bookstore on any given day and find all kinds of books on morals and ethics. I have not read any lately, but from looking at the morals and ethics of our society one might determine that if the books in the book stores are good books, no one is reading them; if those book are teaching what our society is actually doing, then no one should be reading them. The book of Proverbs begins by telling us why it is written. Proverbs 1:2 says these words were written "To know wisdom and instruction, to perceive the words of understanding." God wants His people to know and perceive. Know and perceive what? Wisdom: I always define it as the proper application of knowledge. The dictionary says it is "good sense" with synonyms of "learning, knowledge and judgment." Instruction: Another translation uses the word "discipline." The idea is training, and the context implies training in wisdom. Discernment: The idea is the ability to sift (perceive) words of understanding, wise words or wise sayings. If you’re accustomed to people "talking over your head," this will fix it. Have you ever sat in a class and felt like you just weren’t able to grasp what the teacher was saying? My advice is to study the book of Proverbs because God said He wrote the book to give us the ability to "receive the instruction of wisdom, justice, judgement and equity" (Proverbs 1:3). Do you ever think, "Well, that was stupid." after having done something that was really ... well, stupid? Surely not. But just in case you have, the book of Proverbs is for you. God said He wrote the book "to give prudence (subtilty, discernment) to the simple" (the one who does stupid things but would rather not) (Proverbs 1:4). And what young man (or woman) doesn’t need a lesson or two in discretion. I watch one of the morning news shows as I prepare to go to work in the mornings (in other words, while I drink my wake up call). It seems that the goal of these news talk shows is to find people who have no discretion, people who have no (apparent) ability to make responsible decisions. They need a big dose of Proverbs and a desire to learn. Discretion without a desire to apply it doesn’t do much good. God wrote Proverbs to "give the young man knowledge and discretion" (Proverbs 1:4). There are a few in this world who are wise, discerning, fair, prudent and discreet. That’s great. But one who is truly wise never stops learning. Other than someone who is a "wisecracker," one can never be too wise in the proper sense of the word. So, God wrote the book of Proverbs for the wise man just as He did for the simple man. "A wise man will hear and increase learning, and a man of understanding will attain wise counsel" (Proverbs 1:5). The book of Proverbs is full of "pithy sayings" which give us the necessary wisdom to succeed in both our physical and spiritual lives. There are other proverbs, parables, wise and dark (deep) sayings in the Bible. In the book of Proverbs we are not only given the "pithy sayings" but we are given the ability to interpret them. God said, "I wrote the book to help you understand a proverb and an enigma, the words of the wise and their riddles" (Proverbs 1:6). As you consider this book of God’s wisdom, remember what Paul said: "Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth" (2 Timothy 2:15). |
Monday Wednesday
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For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Ephesians 2:10 |
