Today’s passage: Proverbs 1
Helpful thoughts:
- James 1:5-6 – If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.
- As we begin to read through this book, let’s ask God to richly bless us with wisdom and with faith to stand firm in the truths we learn.
- Wisdom is tied to being willing to hear, listen, learn, receive counsel, etc.
- Fearing the Lord results in a willingness to humbly hear from Him. Fools think they know everything and despise being corrected.
- One common tool in Hebrew poetry is parallelism. For example, hearing from your father and your mother in verse 8 goes together. They are not separate commands and could be applied either way and together as one command, “listen to your parents.”
Questions to consider:
- What does it mean to fear the Lord? Why is it right? How does the gospel remedy our problem of a fear of justice and free us to have a reverential fear? How do we read our Bibles, view our days, handle our relationships when we are firmly rooted in a reverential fear of the Lord? When we don’t reverence God, how do you build that up?
- What does seeking after greedy gain result in? Why would people be prone to listen and go along with a group like this in the first place? Even if a Christian simply desires the idea of friendships, and that motivates them to go along, what was still the main motivator for their actions? How will we see people and interact with them when we are truly loving them and loving God first?
- When do people tend to decide they are ready for wisdom…before or after calamity comes? Why does being “simple” seem/feel more appealing than being wise? What changes does gaining wisdom require of us?
Prayer:
Father, please give us your wisdom! May we humbly and reverently come to your word with eagerness, ready to receive truth, ready to learn more about who you are, and ready to change and grow. We thank you that through the shed blood of Jesus Christ, we do not have to fear you in terror, but that in Christ we can respect you as our Father. Please give us ears to hear, minds that are continually transformed in truth, desire to keep learning and growing, and hearts to love you and love others in sincerity, in righteousness, and in wisdom.