Sermon: What Is Wisdom? Text: Proverbs 9:1-10

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1 Pastor Chris Matthis Epiphany Lutheran Church, Castle Rock, Colorado Pentecost 12 (Proper 15), Series B Saturday, August 15 th, 2015 Sunday, August 16 th, 2015 Sermon: What Is Wisdom? Text: Proverbs 9:1-10 Focus: The fear of Yahweh is the beginning of wisdom. Function: That they would believe and trust God s Word and lead a holy life according to it. Structure: Definition Locus: God s kingdom comes when our heavenly Father gives us His Holy Spirit so that by His grace we believe His holy Word and lead godly lives here in time and there in eternity (SC, 2 nd Petition of Lord s Prayer.). Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. What is wisdom? Many people pride themselves on the various kinds of wisdom they acquire. There are street smarts, book smarts, and folk wisdom. But having them doesn t necessarily make you truly wise. (After, all we ve all met one or two educated idiots in our lives.) Some people have common sense, while others still have horse sense. (Aside: Unfortunately, common sense isn t as common as we might wish to believe. Otherwise, we wouldn t have to put labels on hair dryers that warn against using them in the bathtub the fact that they have to say it indicates that somebody has tried it!). Then there is that special expertise that comes from specialization in a field of work or study. And then there are certain vivacious, larger than life individuals might consider themselves worldly wise, especially if they are practiced in driving fast cars, drinking old whiskey, and chasing younger women. But is any of this wisdom the kind of wisdom that God promotes in our Old Testament lesson from Proverbs 9? There King Solomon asserts, The beginning of wisdom [is] the fear of Yahweh, and knowledge of holy [things] insight (Prov. 9:10, CSM). 1 Or, as he writes in the 1 All Scriptures marked CSM are the author s own, personal translation.

2 Matthis 2 first chapter: The fear of Yahweh is the beginning of knowledge; wisdom and correction are despised by fools (Prov. 1:7, CSM). And in our epistle lesson, the apostle Paul urges us: Look carefully, then, how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil (Eph. 5:15-16, ESV). 2 I know many people think that wisdom comes only with age. And while that s often the case, we also know that it s not always true. When King Solomon was a young man, he prayed that the LORD would grant him wisdom to govern God s people, and he became world famous for his profound wisdom and insight (1 Kings 3). But in his later life, Solomon was seduced by the false gods of his hundreds of wives and likely ended his life as little more than an unbeliever and faithless fool (1 Kings 11). While some of the wisest people I ve ever known are elderly saints with a mature faith some of our homebound members, for example I ve known other elderly people who are damned fools and I mean that quite literally. For if you do not believe in Christ and his Word, then you are a fool destined for damnation. Remember the young man Elihu who, in the Book of Job, said: I am young in years, and you are aged; therefore I was timid and afraid to declare my opinion to you. I said, Let days speak, and many years teach wisdom. But it is the spirit in man, the breath of the Almighty, that makes him understand. It is not the old who are wise, nor the aged who understand what is right. Therefore I say, Listen to me (Job 32:6-10a). And in Psalm 119, the psalmist says, I have more understanding than all my teachers, for your testimonies are my meditation (Ps. 119:99). No age is not the source of wisdom. Nor are degrees not even a seminary education! (Aside: I used to think that maybe God blessed me with an extra bit of wisdom because I had five wisdom teeth instead of the typical four. Unfortunately, now that they re all extracted, I don t think they can help me one bit!). 2 All Scripture references, unless otherwise indicated, are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version.

3 Matthis 3 Clearly, the Scriptures have a special relationship to wisdom. In fact, there is an entire genre of writing in the ancient world called wisdom literature, which forms the bulk of Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, several Psalms, and the New Testament book of James. But again: what is the nature of this divine wisdom? Certainly, God s wisdom is more than the worldly wisdom of man. God s wisdom must even be greater than the knowledge of theology and Bible study! Wisdom even God s wisdom cannot be reduced to amassing a collection of knowledge. When I was a seminarian, one of my Old Testament professors defined chakmah, the Hebrew word for wisdom, as skillful living. And there are several places in the Old Testament where skillful living seems to apply. And, of course, the fear of the LORD is a good starting place for a skillful, disciplined way of life. For example, when we live our lives according to God s Law in the Ten Commandments, life generally goes better for us. When you keep the Sixth Commandment against adultery, you re not going to get a girl pregnant out of wedlock or ruin your marriage by having an affair or getting a divorce. When you keep the Fifth and Seventh Commandments against murder and stealing, you build trust with other people and contribute to your community instead of destroying it. But wisdom is more than just keeping the Commandments and checking off all of God s rules and regulations. So at this point we might take the same literary leap that others have taken and understand that Wisdom is an entity or being perhaps even God himself! Throughout Proverbs, Wisdom is personified as a noble lady calling out for people to come and learn the way of holiness from her (Prov. 9:5-6). In the history of the early church, the wisdom hymn of Proverbs 8 and 9 was commonly understand as an ode to the pre-incarnate Christ that is, the eternal Logos, or Son of God, before he was born of the Virgin Mary in 4 B.C. But the history of this interpretation has led people down many bunny trails of heresy. In the 4 th century,

4 Matthis 4 Proverbs 8 was the basis for Arius s heresy that Jesus was a created son of God instead of the begotten yet eternal Son of God (cp. 8:22-25). And because of the accidents of language, by which the word wisdom is of feminine gender in both Hebrew and Greek, modern feminist theologians have seized upon this Sophia emphasis to conceive of God as female. In other words, if the word for wisdom is feminine Lady Wisdom is a symbol of God, then it follows that God is a woman probably our Mother and not necessarily our heavenly Father. I don t even want to go there, and, as such, I try to steer away from this historical interpretation of Lady Wisdom, which is wrought with problems. So what is wisdom?! Enough already, Preacher! Stop teasing us and tell us plainly! Well enough! After many years of studying the Scriptures, I, personally, have come to believe that Biblical wisdom is the godly way of life that comes at the intersection of God s Word, repentance, faith, and good works. Wisdom is not so much skillful living as it is godly living the fruit of faith in Christ and his Word. Remember what Solomon tells us: The beginning of wisdom is the fear of Yahweh, and the knowledge of holy things is insight (9:10, CSM). In the Bible, the fear of Yahweh, or fear of the LORD, is the Old Testament way of talking about what the New Testament calls faith. Old Testament fear equals New Testament faith. Yet the fear of Yahweh doesn t mean that you re scared of God! Holy awe and reverence are certainly called for. But God is not a terrible tyrant or malevolent master. He doesn t want us to cower before him. Rather, by faith, he wants us to draw near with confidence and enjoy relationship with him. God in his grace offers a joyful invitation: Come, eat of my bread and drink of the wine I have mixed. Leave your simple ways, and live (9:5-6). God forgives freely and gives fully every good thing because of Christ s death and resurrection. If you believe in him and trust in his Word, you are already making a beginning on wisdom s way.

5 Matthis 5 The way of wisdom is the life of the forgiven sinner under the cross, not the way of the holier-than-thou, arrogant saint or the wicked fool. The way of wisdom begins with faith in Christ and his Word. And, ultimately, the way of wisdom leads to Christ who is the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6). In contrast to the way of Folly, which leads to doom and death, wisdom leads to eternal life. For whoever finds me, Wisdom says, finds life and obtains favor from the LORD, but he who fails to find me injures himself; all who hate me love death (Prov. 8:35-36). Folly is born of the flesh, but wisdom comes from God (8:22). Folly is like an adulterous woman or prostitute, enticing us with forbidden pleasures and luring us to our death, whereas Wisdom is like a tender, loving mother. Folly perfumes her bed; wisdom sets the table. Instead of stolen bread, wisdom is a gift we receive from Jesus Christ, the Bread of Life come down from heaven. And that is why Lady Wisdom s call Come, eat of my bread sounds a lot like the other dinner invitations scattered throughout Scripture. Through Isaiah the prophet, Yahweh beckons: Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food. Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live (Isa. 55:1-3a). Wisdom s call also sounds like the invitation of the Holy Spirit and the Christian Church at the end of Revelation: The Spirit and the Bride say, Come. And let the one who hears say,

6 Matthis 6 Come. And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price (Rev. 22:17). Life-giving bread and water, wine and milk, without price! Who ever heard of such a thing?! It sounds too good to be true. And God s gifts of wisdom, grace, and salvation would be too good to be true were it not for the preaching and teaching of our Savior, Jesus Christ. But grace is a gift it is the gift of God (Eph. 2:8). And so is wisdom. Divine wisdom is God s gift to those who believe in his Son. You cannot earn it, you cannot buy it, you cannot win it. But you can ask for it and you should! If any of you lacks wisdom, writes the apostle James, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given to him (Jas. 1:5). Wisdom is a gift for all who believe and sit at the feet of Jesus, listening to his Word. For the LORD gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding (Prov. 2:6). And so we pray: Lord Jesus, teach us your Word. Give us your wisdom. You are the Bread of Life. Give us this bread always. Amen. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of T the Holy Spirit. Amen.

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