Back to the Beginning // Wisdom That Works, Part 20

A Different Perspective Official Podcast

God’s wisdom as it turns out … well on the one hand, when we’re sitting there all wrapped up in our selfish desires, God’s wisdom seems pretty counterintuitive. Seems to cost a lot and not deliver too much. But actually - God’s wisdom delivers just enormous blessing. Question is - how do we get our hearts in a place where we’re ready to listen?

Well over these last four weeks isn't it amazing how much wisdom there is in God’s word as we've stepped through the Book of Proverbs in this series that I've called Wisdom That Works? If you've had the opportunity to join me on and off over these past weeks my prayer is that you've been moved as I have by the power of God’s wisdom.

On all sorts of different things. On friendships and wealth and impurity and infidelity and on what we say and the desires of our hearts and on foolishness. The list just goes on. God’s wisdom is so practical and so real and you know what I've found in my life? So liberating.

God’s wisdom sets us free from so many of the things that blind us. So many of the things that rob us of life. The abundant life that He has planned for us. But in these four weeks, twenty messages in all including today, you know we've only stepped through just a few chapters, just a handful of chapters in this Old Testament book of wisdom, the Book of Proverbs.

There's so much more there and that's the thing, people sometimes ask me, 'Berni, you produce hundreds of episodes of your radio programs every year so don't you ever run out of ideas? Don't you run out of fresh content?' NO. If I get to do this every day for another hundred years I still will only have scratched the surface of God’s wisdom.

And that's not because it's big or it's complicated, it's not because you need a PhD in theology to understand it. God’s word is simple, practical, straight forward. It's just that, well I'm a slow learner, I need to feast on God’s word every day and little by little He changes me.

You know the more time I spend in God’s word each day the less of it I read. Now that sounds a bit weird, let me explain. I used to try and plough through several chapters each day as though somehow it was a race to see who could get to the end first.

But then, then I stumbled on a passage written by Paul the Apostle. Old and experienced, much wiser for it, writing to his young ministry protégé Timothy. This is what he said, 1 Timothy chapter 2, verse 7:

Think over what I say for the Lord will give you understanding in all things.

Just stop and think over what's in God’s word, that's when it makes a difference.

Had a young listener email me recently and she said, 'I have a problem. I try and read my Bible like you said but by lunch time I can't even remember what I read'. So I said to her, 'I used to have that problem too and so what I started doing was reading less. Not less often but less in volume and started thinking and praying about it more.' That's when it started coming together for me.

God’s wisdom is so powerful but just like good food we need to chew it over and swallow it for it to do us any good. I encourage you to do that. To take His wisdom, to chew it over, think about it and then pray over it, swallow it and let the spirit of God write it on your heart. That's when it becomes part of who we are.

Over the last decade and a half of doing that I can honestly say that God’s word has become part of the fabric, the essence of who I am. That's what transforms us. That's how His wisdom starts working in our lives. We take it in, little by little and the old maxim is true, we discover that we are what we eat.

The place where I think is the best place for us to draw this four week series to a close is the place where we kind of began. Proverbs chapter 9, verse 10 sums it up best. It says:

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.

If we read this stuff, God’s word, with a proud heart, if we're full of pride that we know better, that we should be able to hang on to our attitudes and our sin and my friend that is so often how we come, at first, to God’s word. So often if that's how we approach God’s word then it will profit us nothing.

The beginning of wisdom, the starting point is the fear of the Lord. The beginning of wisdom isn't hard, prideful, puffed up, full of myself heart. The beginning of wisdom is a humble heart, a soft heart, a teachable heart. A heart that knows that without God it's poor, wretched, pitiable and naked.

A heart that seeks first to honour God, that's the place where wisdom begins. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Nothing else and unless and until we're ready to humble ourselves at His feet and accept His ways above ours, friend there will be no wisdom.

That's sad because without God’s wisdom, let me tell you because I've been there, without His wisdom frankly it's a lousy life. We can either proudly head off in our own direction and as the old song goes 'do it my way' but it doesn't matter how clever we are it only leads to pain and destruction.

Or we can choose to listen to God’s word, God’s wisdom, the sort of wisdom that really works. Lay down our pride and do it His way. That way, that way leads to life.

I for one know how hard it is sometimes to let go of my sin, to humble myself, to open the door to God’s wisdom. Believe you me, I know. So many times in my life I was so determined to do it my own way. So many times it ended in pain. I know how hard it is to lay down pride but it's such a powerful turning point when we do that.

I know people who live their lives in the bitterness of unforgiveness but when we lay that down at God’s feet and He teaches us His wisdom of forgiveness, how to forgive, well then we're set free from bitterness and anger. It's pride that stops us from taking that step. It's pride that stops us from turning back to God. Its pride that keeps us heading on the path to destruction.

Wake up! And so right now if you know this is something that you're struggling with. Pride in whatever area of your life that really needs God’s wisdom, well let's pray together about it right now.

Lord God We come to you to confess that so often we're caught up in our own sense of pride and self righteousness, we know that. And we know that you oppose the proud but that you give grace to the humble.

We know that you hide the truth from those who think they're so wise in themselves and yet you choose to reveal it to those who come to you with a simple child like faith.

Father Thank you for being like that and we ask you to forgive us for our pride. We come to you now with a simple faith, the faith of a little child to receive your wisdom.

Lord Pour out the riches of your wisdom on us in great abundance and give us the humility to drink it in. Lord we ask this in Jesus name. Amen.

Friend the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. It seems odd does it not that the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom but it's the second part of that verse that really explains the first part:

And the knowledge of the Holy One gives insight.

When we really get to know God that's where we discover His insight into life. When we draw close to Him and listen to His heart beat, His words, when we see through His word how He reacts to things, how He makes things happen that's the place where truth sets us free.

Why oh why I sometimes wonder, did I let my pride get in the road of that? There are some days when I have challenges and struggles, just like you do, and there are some days when people come against me then the enemy comes against me. When circumstances that should have been in my favour come against me.

On those days it is God’s wisdom that steers me through. I dread to imagine living my life the way I once did. In the pride that rebelled against God. And on that day, a decade and a half ago, when I laid my life down for Him, when I chose to honour Him, to fear Him as it were, that was the place for me where wisdom began. And I wouldn't swap that for all the tea in China.

May the Lord bless you with His wisdom.