Finding Wisdom

“My son, if you receive my words and treasure up my commandments with you, 2) making your ear attentive to wisdom and inclining your heart to understanding; 3) yes, if you call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding, 4) if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures, 5) then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God.” 

Those who seek wisdom, seek God.  Those who find wisdom, find God (2:5).  True wisdom comes from God.  True wisdom leads to God.  Proverbs 2:1 pictures a godly father, himself trained in wisdom and governed by God’s word, calling his son to experience the riches of eternal life.  This life is experienced only by those who pursue God’s wisdom as revealed in Scripture.  To ignore Scripture is to ignore that which “is able to make one wise for salvation” (1 Timothy 3:15).  Those who reject God’s wisdom become subject to delusions.  They are ultimately taken captive by “philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world…” (Colossians 2:4, 8).  Having rejected divine wisdom, unbelievers live lives conformed to the world.  They are unable to “discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect” (Romans 12:2).  Their end is destruction.  No wonder this father pleads with his son to “receive my words and treasure up my commandments with you…”     

But what will it mean for this son to receive God’s wisdom?  Practically speaking, what must he do?  Proverbs 2:2-5 instructs us.  In order to receive God’s wisdom we must proactively choose God’s wisdom.  And choosing God’s wisdom over the wisdom of this world requires the following: 

To receive God’s wisdom, we must focus our attention on God’s wisdom (2a).  What distracts you from the pursuit of God’s wisdom?  What do you fix your attention on day by day?  Social media?  Television?  Political divisions?  Chaotic family or work situations?  Anxieties?  Recreation?  What occupies your time and energy?  Proverbs 2:2 makes it clear.  We will never effectively pursue God’s wisdom until we intentionally “make our ear attentive” to God’s wisdom!  Do you “make your ear attentive” to God’s word?  The first step in finding wisdom is to intentionally make time for God’s word.   

To receive God’s wisdom, we must apply ourselves to understanding (2b).  Attaining wisdom requires more than simply hearing and reading God’s word.  We must strive to understand it.  We must study God’s word by ourselves and in the company of other believers.  We must learn from those gifted to teach/preach—and from those who are more mature in their faith than we are. 

To receive God’s wisdom, we must cry out for God’s help (3).  Apart from prayer and the work of God’s Spirit, we are unable to make God’s wisdom our own (see 1 Corinthians 2:14).  When you study God’s word do you hunger for understanding?  Do you fervently pray for it?   

To receive God’s wisdom we must labor for it as for the treasure it is (4).  Those who attain God’s wisdom are those who value God’s wisdom above all else.  We work for that which is of value to us.  Of what value is God’s word to you?

Proverbs 2:5 reminds us that those who find wisdom find a deeper walk with God.  Is a closer walk with God your deepest desire?  In the end, the wisdom we receive will be in direct proportion to the wisdom we hunger for.  Ultimately, what we honestly desire is what we invest ourselves in. 

Lord Jesus, increase our hunger for you and your wisdom.  May you become the object of our greatest desire!  Empower us to pursue you above all else.