A SECRET TO WISDOM
PROVERB 2:1-6
PROVERB 2:1-6 NKJ
1 My son, if you receive my words,
And treasure my commands within you,
2 So that you incline your ear to wisdom,
And apply your heart to understanding;
3 Yes, if you cry out for discernment,
And lift up your voice for understanding,
4 If you seek her as silver,
And search for her as for hidden treasures;
5 Then you will understand the fear of the Lord,
And find the knowledge of God.
6 For the Lord gives wisdom;
From His mouth come knowledge and understanding;
My original title was the secret to wisdom, but absolutes are a tricky thing. However, these verses do give us vital information as to how to obtain God's wisdom.
It really is about our heart and attitude towards God's word and God's wisdom.
If you receive my words and treasure my commands within you. If is a conditional word. If is not an absolute. If means that receiving and treasuring God's word is not automatic. It's our choice and it's an important choice.
These verses reveal what attitude we are to take with God's words and wisdom. And it's not a passive attitude. Crying out for discernment. Seeking wisdom as you would silver, something of value. Searching for wisdom as you would for hidden treasure. All of these examples indicate that a secret to obtaining God's wisdom is a strong desire for wisdom.
I once read a story about a man who asked a renowned wise man to teach him wisdom. The wise man took the young man into a river and dunked his head underwater. Each time the wise man pulled his head out of the water, he asked the young man what he really wanted. Each time the man would sputter "wisdom." Finally, after a long dunk, the young man came up gasping for air. "What is it that you want?" he asked. "Air," the young man sputtered "air." The wise man stopped dunking and calmly said, "when you want wisdom as much as you want air, then you'll find it." Now I am not advocating this type of teaching, but the principle is very similar to what these verses in Proverbs are showing us. We have to want God's wisdom to find God's wisdom. Because God gives wisdom, but it won't fall on us. We will need to pursue.
APPLICATION:
How hungry are we for God's wisdom? It's a rather challenging question. Often our hunger increases in direct proportion to our need. We hit the wall, need God's wisdom and get serious about seeking and receiving and crying out for it.
But the wiser strategy would be to seek God and His wisdom before the need arises. To seek for wisdom because God‘s wisdom is a high-value proposition that will yield great results in all areas of our lives.
PRAYER:
Dear Father, show me how to seek for Your wisdom in a greater way. Your wisdom is timeless and can make a difference in all areas of my life. I need Your wisdom.