Putting the I into WISDOM
The Christians who have most influenced me for good have had a fully functional familiarity with the book of Proverbs. They were (and are) able to take their considerable knowledge and apply it to their lives, providing both godly examples and godly advice. Join with me as each one of us endeavors to put the I into WISDOM. Let us seek to exemplify God’s wisdom in our daily lives. (I will be using this opening paragraph for each of the brief messages in this series. The following material will change daily.)
On Saturday, we began studying Proverbs 1:26-33. Here, wisdom personified preaches a powerful message of the horrific and ultimately eternal consequences of rejecting the wise ways and words of God. Verse 27 builds on the thought of the previous verse, repeating the word “fear” (panic or sudden terror, not an appropriate fear of the Lord) and expanding the explanation of the results (a writing technique called repetition with expansion). “Desolation” (a severe storm) will sweep in like a “whirlwind,” bringing “destruction” (disaster), “distress,” and “anguish” (which includes the trouble itself and the strong emotions that ensue). Similar terminology is used of God’s own coming in judgment in Nahum 1:3: “The LORD is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked: the LORD hath His way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of His feet.” Yes, God is blessedly “slow to anger”; we must not lose sight of how long and how fervently He has sought after each one of us. However, if we reject His salvation which is fully and freely offered through faith in Jesus Christ, there must be judgment in kind. We have a choice: we can be overwhelmed by the love of God, or we can be overwhelmed by His judgment. Let us decide to live in His love.