Walking in Wisdom: Week 1, Tuesday

Week 1 -Tuesday

Read:  Proverbs 2:1-6    

{SOAP:  Proverbs 2:6}

S –  (My son, if you accept my words, And treasure up my commands with you,

So that you make your ear attend to wisdom, Incline your heart to understanding;

For if you cry for discernment, Lift up your voice for understanding,

If you seek her as silver, And search for her as hidden treasures,

Then you would understand the fear of יהוה, And find the knowledge of Elohim.)

For יהוה gives wisdom; Out of His mouth come knowledge and understanding.

O&A – When it comes to the word, it always stands out to me when things like this are said (in verse 1), “*IF YOU ACCEPT*” my words… “*AND TREASURE UP MY COMMANDS WITH YOU*”… Then we have, “*So that YOU MAKE your ear attend to wisdom, INCLINE YOUR heart to understanding*”… “*For if YOU CRY for discernment, LIFT UP YOUR voice for understanding, if YOU SEEK her (wisdom) as silver, and SEARCH for her (wisdom) as hidden treasures, THEN YOU would UNDERSTAND the fear of Adonai, and FIND the knowledge of Elohim.  For Adonai GIVES wisdom, out of HIS mouth come knowledge and understanding.”  I see so many if/then statements.  If YOU/I do THIS, then Adonai will do THAT.  So that means if I CHOOSE not do those things, will I still receive the reward?  Doubtful. 

First thing I see in this passage is that I must ACCEPT the words of Adonai.  There’s a scripture that says, “Many are called, few will choose.” (Matthew 22:14)  And while that passage is speaking of the wedding feast, I think it still ties in.  Many are called to salvation, but not all choose it.  Not all accept it, which is the admonition we receive in this first verse concerning wisdom.  If you accept my words.  If you cry for discernment.  If you lift up your voice for understanding.  If you seek her as silver.  If you search for her as hidden treasures.  I see also: If you accept my yoke.  The choosing is up to me.  No one can choose it for me, and I can’t choose it for anyone else. 

Back to the SOAP verse: For Adonai gives wisdom; out of His mouth come knowledge and understanding.  So when I want, need, and desire knowledge and understanding about a matter, to whom should I turn?  Whose word should I seek?  Abba’s!  How precious of a treasure do I have in my hands that I can turn and see what Abba says about a matter, and I can see Yeshua’s example, according to the word of Adonai.  The Bible is rich with knowledge and understanding, and with instruction that leads us to wise choices.

Side note:  There’s a book I once read with one of my little buddies who comes to visit me every Wednesday afternoon.  The book was about a little bear who is very adventurous, and his momma bear who is giving him instruction.  The first few adventures, the little bear says, “I want to do this” and as his momma is setting about giving him instruction, he doesn’t heed it, and instead rushes off to do the thing.  He falters, and then comes to his mom and she (patiently) says, “Here’s how to do it.”  So after like 3 or 4 of these episodes, he says, “I want to do this!”  He then turns to his momma and says, “How do I do it?”

That sounds a little bit too familiar to me. 

P – Abba, I desire Your wisdom, and the knowledge and understanding that come only from You. The more I draw close to You, the more I read Your word, the less I realize I *know* and *understand*. Help me to accept Your words without my own conditions, and to be willfully submissive to You. In Yeshua's name, Amein.

Walking in Wisdom: Week 1, Monday

Week 1 - Monday        

Read:  Proverbs 1:1-7    {SOAP:  Proverbs 1:7}

S –  (The proverbs of Shelomoh son of Dawiḏ, sovereign of Yisra’ĕl:

For knowing wisdom and discipline, For understanding the words of understanding,

For receiving the discipline of wisdom, Righteousness, right-ruling, and straightness;

For giving insight to the simple, Knowledge and discretion to the young.

The wise one hears and increases learning, And the understanding one gets wise counsel,

For understanding a proverb and a figure, The words of the wise and their riddles.)

The fear of יהוה is the beginning of knowledge; Fools despise wisdom and discipline.

O&A – You know, when I went through confirmation class in 7^th and 8^th grades, my memory verse was similar to this.  “The fear of the LORD, that is wisdom, and to depart from evil is understanding.”  Job 28:28.  This is repeated throughout Mishlei/the book of Proverbs, and when Abba repeats things to us, we should know it’s especially important!  So looking at this passage today, I see this:

If the wise one hears and increases learning, and the understanding one gets wise counsel, then they are able to begin to discern, understand, and gain wisdom.  But a fool despises wisdom and discipline – my understanding is that the fool follows his own devices.  He doesn’t want to learn of Adonai, nor does he want to do what is right in Adonai’s eyes.  I’m jumping ahead, but Proverbs 21:2 says, “Every way of a man is right in his own eyes, but the LORD weighs the heart.”  That word way is derek in Hebrew, and means path, journey, direction, manner, habit, course of life, moral character.  So we can either be on Adonai’s path, or be like the fool who thinks his own path is the right one.

Why would we need all of these reminders?  Because Abba knows His people can be stubborn, disobedient, willful of spirit (who, me?!?), and maybe sometimes puffed up in ourselves.  This verse uses a word that always grabs my attention – beginning.  In Hebrew, it is re’shiyth, and that is the first word in the Bible – Bereshiyt – In the beginning.   So even from the beginning of creation, Adonai has wanted us to choose wisdom over folly, His ways over our ways, His yoke upon us, not the world’s burdens.   He has always wanted us to consider Him in all that we do, weighing our thoughts, words, and deeds against what He says and does.  

Can I say that I have always been faithful in this?  Sadly, no. 

P – Abba, as we turn our hearts to You, and incline our ears to Your words, please have mercy upon us – for the foolish things we find ourselves doing, for the tempers lost and words coming out of our mouths that don’t glorify You, and for putting things above You.  Help me to be wise/learn wisdom according to Your guidelines, and not be foolish.  Thank You for being a good Father, and loving us more than enough, and giving us Your instructions.  In Yeshua’s name, Amein.