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The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction. Proverbs 1:7
The depth of our worship often determines the level of our wisdom. Solomon is considered to have been the wisest and wealthiest of all the kings of the ancient world. He had wealth in the form of money (gold), land, and cattle. But it wasn’t earthly holdings that Solomon clung to as his security. After all, he wrote in Ecclesiastes that he had spared nothing in his want of pleasure, and found all of it to be worthless in attaining fulfillment.
What was it then that was foundational for his greatness? Solomon says that the beginning, the foundation, the footings for all knowledge was the fear of the Lord. A better rendering of fear hear would be, as Gill says, a filial fear, a reverential devotion to his Heavenly Father. In a word, the beginning of knowledge is worship.
After all, worship is giving our allegiance to that which we hold in highest esteem. Our human tendency is to worship that which we perceive with our senses. We worship what we can hold, what we can hear, what we can taste. We don’t need to name our objects of worship. We show by our actions what is the most important. Relationships, Religion and Riches are the top three. But Solomon had all three of those and came up empty, just as many of us do.
Knowledge is made up of facts, figures and information. Wisdom is the ability to act according to the knowledge you have. If your knowledge is faulty, your wisdom is inevitably so as well. In the same way, if your knowledge of God is shallow, your worship will be shallow.
Some would say that there is knowledge and wisdom that is apart from God, that we need to separate the ‘religious from the political’, but Solomon tells us that the beginning of any knowledge is actively worshipping the God of the Universe.
Others may say, “I’ve asked God for wisdom and got nothin’!” But my question is how well do you know the Father? The closer we are to the author, the more we understand the book. James tells us in his letter to the church that if we lack wisdom, we can ask God and he will give it to us.
If you are looking for answers to life’s difficulties start with renewing your relationship with the one who invented the idea of relationships. If you want to know the meaning of life, begin with getting to know the giver of life. If you are looking for direction, seek the one who laid the four corners of the earth. Apart from him there is no true wisdom. Learning to worship him is the best way to gain wisdom.
PRAYER: Father God, I thank you for being the source of all wisdom. I pray for those of us who are going through difficult times with our families, businesses, finances or relationships. I ask that you would help us to grow in our worship of you so that we may have wisdom to face today’s challenges. In Jesus name I pray, Amen.
(To my readers: Today’s post is in response to the recent accusations of abuse by Minnesota Vikings running back, Adrian Peterson. But in a more general sense, the situation has reminded me of how easy it is to become judgmental. For the believer, hard as it is, grace comes first. )
When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” John 8:7
Maybe it’s because I made a horrific mistake that cost me a career I loved and left me with a criminal record that I’ll carry for the rest of my life.
Maybe it’s because I remember the shame and embarrassment I felt realizing that I’d hurt someone very dear to me, someone I loved and would have protected with my life, but ended up hurting.
Maybe it’s because I remember the looks, the loneliness and the rejection from friends I once thought would be loyal (many professing Christians).
Maybe it’s because I still harbor the wounds of those who still consider me an abuser, and still hear their accusing words.
Maybe it’s because I remember the few that stood by me even though they knew I wasn’t completely innocent.
Maybe it’s because I learned the ground is level under the cross and we are all equally guilty before God.
Maybe it’s because I learned the hard way that the common belief that one is ‘innocent until proven guilty’ is a fallacy and that even though our justice system may still be the best in the world, it’s seriously flawed.
Maybe it’s because I don’t think social media is the place to determine innocence, guilt or character.
Maybe it’s because I learned through my own failings what grace was.
Maybe it’s because, as a parent, there were far too many times I failed.
For whatever the reason, I’ll stand with AP. I don’t agree with what he did, but Jesus died for him too. I expect the secular media to crucify him, not believers. We are to be the last to cast stones, not the first.
I would be less serious. I would laugh more. I was too serious the first fifteen years of ministry. Serious people miss the punchline—and there are lots of them. We’re funnier than we think—and quite a bit more weird. When I started laughing more at the church where I was pastor, so did others. The older I got, the less serious I took myself. And the less serious I took myself, the more serious I took God. Interesting. And the more you laugh, the less likely you take up offenses, which wouldn’t hurt.
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Forgiveness is not easy. Sometimes the hurt is so great, I may feel like I cannot forgive…on my own. But because of Christ, and the forgiveness I have received from God, I am able to extend grace and mercy and forgiveness to others. That is why we can say that forgiven people forgive. The reason we forgive is because we have been forgiven. And when we forgive, it is as much for us as it is the person we’re forgiving, because what happens with forgiveness is forgiveness begins to release the grip of the grudge in our own lives. It brings cleansing, healing and freedom that is not available to those who choose to continue nursing a grudge.
Forgiveness is not passive. It is very aggressive. Forgiveness breaks the chain of the past and allows us to move forward. We have already said that application of scripture is what makes…
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The car seemed to reverberate with my frustration: “I CAN’T go on like this! I CAN’T do this anymore! I’m burned out, don’t you understand?!” In my muffled sobbing, what could my husband say? He knew I was stressed to the max, but at this point, late last year, there was no solution. I felt like maybe God was not hearing my prayer.
We walked on into church–of course I got my halo out of the glove compartment and put it on!–and soon the service began. After a time of praise and worship, our pastor began his sermon. He had my full attention in any case, but God, just to be sure my mind wasn’t wandering, had him question, “When is the last time you said you CAN’T make it, that you CAN’T go on?” As he finished his sermon, I sat stunned. God, the Almighty Creator, had spoken through…
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Mike Fisk & Built with Grace 