Wisdom for Life

Wisdom For Life

We live in a world of 280-character sound bites and pop philosophy. In a society moving at breakneck speed with attention spans rarely longer than a few minutes, we often look for a quick fix as we move about our days and weeks. But the world is not that simple. It is vast and complex, with challenges that defy not only our quick answers but even the knowledge of experts. What we need is wisdom. 

The biblical word for wisdom (hokma) means skill, mastery, and insight born of experience. But more than this, the Bible insists that it was God’s wisdom that orders all of creation. As such, to have wisdom or to be wise means being able to see and understand the world the way it was intended to work and discern how to live when life defies easy answers. Buried in the heart of the Scriptures are books that we have come to call “wisdom literature”: books like Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Job. These books are designed to teach us wisdom. 

Furthermore, many people have noted that these books are also poetry. Rather than being “simple steps to a happy life” for quick consumption, these books are a poetic art that instills wisdom as you wrestle with them. They teach you what it means to live in rhythm with life as God intended, granting you skill and mastery born of experience as you gain insight into how life was truly meant to be lived.

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Jan 7/8: The Way of Wisdom

One of the most well known places to go for wisdom in the Bible is the book of Proverbs. Unfortunately, very few of us know how to read them. “A proverb (Hebrew masal) is a poetic, terse, vivid, though-provoking saying that conveys a world of truth in a few words…A proverb is like hard candy: If you just bite down on it, you get little out of it and may even get a broken tooth. Instead, you must meditate on it until the sweetness of insight comes.” (Tim Keller, God’s Wisdom for Navigating Life (Viking: New York 2017), pg. 1)

 

Jan. 14/15: The Beginning of Wisdom

The benefits of wisdom are countless. Just a brief survey of them can be found in the opening chapters of the book of Proverbs: insight, discretion, prudence, knowledge, peace, and prosperity to name just a few. But the one thing that the author of Proverbs notes is that all of this begins with “the fear of the Lord.” It seems like a strange thing to say. Why fear? Why not love?

Jan. 21/22: The Wise Person 

So what does it mean to be a person of wisdom? The answer the Proverbs gives us is that a wise person is someone who carefully considers their ways and is unafraid to address the hidden places of the human heart.

Jan. 28/29: Wisdom for Work & Wealth

Proverbs has quite a bit to say about money and wealth, but one theme that runs throughout the book is the balance that we are called to have when it comes to work and wealth; namely, that both are gifts from God to be enjoyed and appreciated, but not clung to.

Feb. 4/5: Wisdom for Marriage & Singleness

An interesting trend that we find today is that many people want love and companionship, but not marriage. Yet one of the things that Scripture highlights over and over again is that the best romantic relationships are ones in which love and law are combined: a covenant. 

Feb. 11/12: Wisdom for Eternity 

Throughout our study of Proverbs we have seen how wisdom is something that helps us navigate our world well. But it does more than this. Godly wisdom ultimately prepares us for the world that Christ is building and which he will bring to its fullness. A truly wise person knows that though there is much in this world to be admired, the things of this world will ultimately not satisfy

 

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