September 12, Proverbs 8
"For whoever finds me finds life and obtains favor from the LORD, but he who fails to find me injures himself; all who hate me love death.”
- Proverbs 8:35-26
Remember how the wisdom of God was personified as a woman in Proverbs 1? She spoke a dark word of warning to those who ignored and rejected her message, saying a day would come when they would cry out for her help, and she would laugh at them. In chapter 8, Wisdom is back on stage with a soliloquy in which she teaches some things about herself that we need to know.
I recently played Hide and Seek with two of my granddaughters. One was eight years old, the other was four. The eight-year-old was very good at hiding and remaining hidden while the Seeker (me) looked under beds, in closets and behind doors trying to find her. But the four-year-old was easy to find. She didn’t hide very well, couldn't keep quiet and enjoyed being discovered. Wisdom is more like the four-year-old. She is not hard to find like buried treasure; she's out in plain sight, at the crossroads, along the path and crying out. She freely offers her message to everyone. We picture wisdom as something secret, concealed and found only at the end of a long and difficult journey. But Wisdom says she's not like that at all.
When she cries out to fools to learn from her, she revealed some things about her manner of speaking that are incongruous with the kind of communication and information we're used to hearing in this fallen world. She talks about noble, right things. She speaks the truth. Her words are righteous, not twisted or crooked. Her words are clear to those who understand her, but sound strange to ears accustomed to fake news, deception and lies. It's a refreshing difference, a sweet aroma instead of the usual stench of wicked speech. I wonder how often we resist Wisdom's counsel because we are like children used to eating junk food and turning down healthful foods because they don't taste as good to their conditioned palates.
Wisdom claims she is better than whatever you value more, than any material treasure. She offers to enrich you in a far better way than any amount of gold, silver or jewels. Again, the offer sounds ridiculous to people so shaped by the world's value system that they prefer to grow in wealth than in wisdom. I love verse 17: "I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently find me." The indifferent man or woman who invests neither love nor effort into forging a relationship with Wisdom will not find her or receive a blessing from her loving generosity.
When we see the grandeur and intricacy of Creation, we marvel at the power of God, the Creator. Wisdom tells us she was with God in the beginning of the creation process. She said that God possessed (or created or fathered) her. From before the beginning all the way through the creative process to the finished product of a populated world, Wisdom was with God as his master workmanship unfolded. When we think we're smarter than God and his Wisdom, we need to re-read Job and be reminded that we got here far too late to be as wise as God.
Wisdom says she blesses those who listen to her. Those who do what she tells them are on a path that leads to life and favor with God. But those who refuse to hear and heed her instruction are choosing the way of injury and death. She appeals to our strong God-given sense of self preservation, pleading with all who hear her to accept her counsel for their own good.
We need to examine ourselves in light of Lady Wisdom's words. Has my life until now been characterized by living and listening to God's wisdom? If I have to admit I've listened to myself more than to God, what could I do today to begin making better, wiser choices? It's not that we can't. It's a question of what we love, and what we want. I pray God will grant us grace to desire and embrace Wisdom and follow her guidance. It’s the only choice that really makes sense, isn’t it?
Copyright © 2021 by Michael B. McElroy. Used
by permission. All rights reserved.
Today in God's Word—September 2024
East Tallassee Church of Christ
Comments