548 - 1 WHERE TO FIND WISDOMMay 25, 1980
Henry F. Kulp
Proverbs 1: 24 - 33 Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded; But ye have set at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof: I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh; When your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish cometh upon you. Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me: For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the Lord: They would none of my counsel: they despised all my reproof. Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices. For the turning away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall destroy them. But whoso hearkeneth unto me shall dwell safely, and shall be quiet from fear of evil.
God is writing to teenagers—Jewish teenagers and telling them that what they need more than anything else in this world is wisdom, and we need to remember that he is writing to a covenant people, to those who are believers—not to the unsaved, but to children of God.
1/ He shows us in Verse 20, 21 that the nation has not embraced wisdom. Wisdom crieth without; she uttereth her voice in the streets: She crieth in the chief place of concourse, in the openings of the gates: in the city she uttereth her words, saying,
Wisdom is not to be found in its religious circles. In its national circles, wisdom is outside of the religious crowd.
2/ But they are to find wisdom, to embrace, wisdom, to live wisdom.
3/ Verse 23 Turn you at my reproof: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto you.
Wisdom cries to me. Embrace me. But then in Verse. 24 - 32 we have what the lack of wisdom produces. There is a natural result. Wisdom says because I have called and you refused, and you would have naught of my council, I will laugh at your calamity, I will mock when your fear cometh. Remember, this is wisdom speaking, not God.
4/ The first thing we need to see is that into every believer’s life will come a time of crisis—not just once, but again and again, and here we read—not having wisdom, will produce a crisis—not walking in wisdom is sure to bring about a calamity, and wisdom says—Verse 28 Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me:
5/ Why does wisdom answer this way? Isn’t wisdom interested in someone who is in a terrible situation, in a calamity? Wisdom, of course, cannot be found in a moment of time. It takes a long time to accumulate wisdom, and when you are in a time of trouble and you need wisdom, you can’t produce it in a moment of time, and then you are in a terrible situation.
6/ If all that you know in a time of crisis is human view point, just human reasoning, you are in great trouble—you make wrong decisions and then have to suffer for those wrong decisions. So God is saying, young people, get wisdom while you can. In your formative years, be sure to accumulate wisdom in your mind, because when the time comes that you need it, it will be there.
7/ Verse 29 For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the Lord:
Here is an important verse as far as wisdom is concerned—because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the Lord. So what is wisdom, really? Wisdom is God’s Word coupled with fear. Knowledge is not accumulated in a few moments. It takes many hours of hard study. But the knowledge of God’s Word is not enough. If you do not fear the Lord, the knowledge can become a very sterile thing in your life, and produce nothing. Wisdom is the knowledge of God, embraced by the fear of the Lord.
8/ One of the sad points of our day is that there is no fear of God. Fear makes you subject to the Word of God, that you want to live by it, that you want to embrace it.
9/ But, of course, the starting point is knowledge. Just fear of the Lord without knowledge is valueless. The two go hand in hand.
10/ First of all, let us look at knowledge.
II Timothy 2: 15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
Here God says, study to show thyself approved unto God. The word, study, is very interesting in the Greek, it is SPOO – DAD’ – ZOE and it means to labor, and it is translated that way in Hebrews 4: 11 Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.
So actually studying and laboring go hand in hand—it’s not easy to get knowledge. Many folks who are believers are just too lazy to get God’s knowledge in their minds, but you and I have to know what God has said if we are to have wisdom. There are those who say it is earthly wisdom but really is there wisdom? Can one have wisdom without God? Of course not.
11/ The hatred of knowledge was the very problem in Hosea’s day
Hosea 4: 6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children.
Here he says, my people are destroyed for lack of knowledge because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee. God brought judgement down upon the children of God because they hated knowledge.
Hosea 6: 5, 6 Therefore have I hewed them by the prophets; I have slain them by the words of my mouth: and thy judgments are as the light that goeth forth. For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.
Notice the sin of the people in the 6th verse, For I desired mercy and not sacrifice, and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.
What was their problem? They loved the law of God in ceremonialism, they loved the burnt offering, they loved the sacrifices, but they didn’t love the Word of God, for the law was divided into two parts for them—the knowledge of what God had said, and then it was illustrated by the sacrifices, and they choose the sacrifices, the easy way, and forgot the knowledge of God which was the hard way, and so God rejected them. They hated knowledge.
12/ The dark ages came about because men were too busy fighting to get any knowledge, and the church took over, and kept the people in ignorance about God’s Word, and the Church got into the worse condition it was ever in.
13/ Now the fear of the Lord. Sin has so hardened man that the fear of the Lord is rejected, even by believers. When you know the Word of God and lack the fear of God you will never live by the Word of God. Have you ever noticed what religion has done to our day? The character of God has been destroyed. There is no fear in religion. They, too, love ceremonialism, rites and rituals, rather than the Word of God.
Acts 5: 11 - 14 And great fear came upon all the church, and upon as many as heard these things. And by the hands of the apostles were many signs and wonders wrought among the people; (and they were all with one accord in Solomon's porch. And of the rest durst no man join himself to them: but the people magnified them. And believers were the more added to the Lord, multitudes both of men and women.)
Acts 9: 30 Which when the brethren knew, they brought him down to Caesarea, and sent him forth to Tarsus.
Act 10: 2 A devout man, and one that feared God with all his house, which gave much alms to the people, and prayed to God alway.
Notice the fear of God is very prominent in all the Scriptures, and the fear of God is very important. When you study the Word of God and labor over it, and have knowledge and apply fear to it, then you will have wisdom.
Psalm 5: 7 But as for me, I will come into thy house in the multitude of thy mercy: and in thy fear will I worship toward thy holy temple.
Fear was in their worship. God wanted the Israelites to fear God, but they lost that fear, they were in trouble, and so it is with us today.
14/ Proverbs 1: 30 They would none of my counsel: they despised all my reproof.
There is a phrase here that is very important. They despised all My reproof. That means you have the knowledge of God, these two correct the things that are in our life. You will see that which is not pleasing in God’s sight, and be willing to correct it. But those who lack knowledge and fear lack wisdom, and don’t care to be corrected, to be straightened out in their everyday life.
15/ Verse 31, 32 Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices. For the turning away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall destroy them.
WHAT’S THE RESULT OF NO WISDOM, NO KNOWLEDGE OF FEAR? It is very easy to describe SELF-INDUCED MISERY when you have a false scale of values that are bound to catch up with you someday. Take for instance food, shelter and clothing. You say these are the necessities of life. Are they really? Many in this world today do not have them in the abundance that they would like them. I have been in difference parts of the world where they have had very little food, no one is ever heavy or fat, not one ever dresses well, perhaps just a few items of clothing. Never really owning a pair of shoes. But here in this land of plenty, what if God would take food, shelter and clothing away from you? You would be miserable. Not so if you have the knowledge of God and the fear of God. You can be joyful even if those things are taken away from you.
16/ God here is emphasizing a rule we studied a while ago.
Galatians 6: 7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.
This is sure to take place. Every time you sow, you are guaranteed to reap, and what is important is what you sow. You never sow one thing and reap another—that is impossible—you only reap what you sow, so if you live without wisdom, if you live without the knowledge of God and the fear of God, you are going to bring upon yourself exactly what you have sown, self-induced misery.
17/ The Bible is a wonderful book to have illustration of what we see. Take the man, Samson.
Judges 14: 1 And Samson went down to Timnath, and saw a woman in Timnath of the daughters of the Philistines.
And here we have Samson, a man who is to be a servant of God, and if you read the entire 13th chapter, you see he was to be a true Nazarite. He was to be separated from the Philistines, and he was to be used mightily of God, but you will notice his first step, and I can’t emphasize the first steps in life too much, and his first step was down. He takes a downward step and goes to Timnath, and he sees a woman of Timnah, one of the daughters of the Philistines, and so his first alliance is with the enemies of God. Remember, he was brought up to know better. He had knowledge of God’s will for his life. Here we see a man whose testimony was to be one of separation, and the first thing he does, is to link himself with the enemy, so this is the first step in self-induced misery for the man.
Notice verse 3 Then his father and his mother said unto him, Is there never a woman among the daughters of thy brethren, or among all my people, that thou goest to take a wife of the uncircumcised Philistines? And Samson said unto his father, Get her for me; for she pleaseth me well.
Samson said unto his father, Get her for me, for she pleases me well. A Nazarite is to refuse all self-pleasing, so he starts out on the wrong foot. Self-denial was one of the characteristics of a Nazarite. So here is a man who should be characterized by self-denial, and the first thing he does is to please himself.
18/ Remember, he knew better. His father and mother warned him that this was wrong, but what was the one thing that was lacking in his life? The fear of God.
19/ His parents were linked with him in his sin. He drags them down with him. They made a protest, and then went along with in this deed. Samson’s life is one of compromise with God’s enemies.
20/ Judges 16: 1 Then went Samson to Gaza, and saw there an harlot, and went in unto her.
All he is interested is gratification of his own sexual appetite caring very little what blot might be left upon the name of God and His people. Again he is sowing and he is going to reap. Self-induced misery. It doesn’t seem so at the time, but it will come. As you read the life of Samson up to this point and a little beyond, you think Samson is getting away with everything. It seems like he is prospering in spite of the fact that he is turning his back on his Nazarite vow. There is no fear of God before his eyes, so the story of Samson is a story of compromise, defeat and dishonor.
21/ Judges 16: 4 And it came to pass afterward, that he loved a woman in the valley of Sorek, (so wreck), whose name was Delilah.
And now he is ready to pay the price. Ready to experience self-induced misery, for this woman brought about his downfall, and you know the story about how she got the secret out of him of where his strength came from, is hair, and then in Verse 20 And she said, The Philistines be upon thee, Samson. And he awoke out of his sleep, and said, I will go out as at other times before, and shake myself. And he wist not that the Lord was departed from him.
He had lost his Godly power, then he lost his eyes, then he was bound by fetters of bronze and he was imprisoned, grinding meal, and the grinding of meal between millstones was the task of a beast or a slave. Now he has self-induced misery. He could not blame this upon God, He could only blame it upon himself.
22/ Verse 23, 24 Then the lords of the Philistines gathered them together for to offer a great sacrifice unto Dagon their god, and to rejoice: for they said, Our god hath delivered Samson our enemy into our hand. And when the people saw him, they praised their god: for they said, Our god hath delivered into our hands our enemy, and the destroyer of our country, which slew many of us.
Notice the result, The lords of the Philistines gathered together to offer a great sacrifice unto Dagon, their god and rejoiced and said, Our god hath delivered Samson our enemy into our hands, and when the people saw him they praised their god, for they said, our god hath delivered into our hands, our enemy. So you see, it was not just about the matter that Samson paid a price, but the name of God was torn asunder by his servant’s actions.
23/ How do you think this sounded in his ears? It certainly must have been a horrible thing for him to experience.
24/ Verse 25 And it came to pass, when their hearts were merry, that they said, Call for Samson, that he may make us sport. And they called for Samson out of the prison house; and he made them sport: and they set him between the pillars.
He made sport for them, and they set him between the pillars. Yes, he brought the temple down, but he had to die to do it. He dies in the hand of his enemies. What a price he paid because he lacked the fear of God.
The fear of God is the beginning of wisdom.
AMEN
Ref: 05/25/1980 / WHERE TO FIND WISDOM / 01/24/2021
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