Proverbs study: why seek wisdom?

Where does wisdom come from? How is it associated with knowing God? And how is it supposed to affect my everyday life? We’re going to unpack each of those questions through this new study where we’ll scour the Proverbs. 

First, we’ll set the scene for how this book came to be. Proverbs was written by King Solomon. He reverently and humbly pleaded to God for wisdom so that he could properly rule the people in his kingdom (2 Chronicles 1:10). And God answered. In fact, He rewarded Solomon with the most wisdom He’s ever given to any person. Ever. Solomon was the wisest person to live and who will ever live here on earth. Talk about an answer to prayers!

That didn’t mean Solomon never made mistakes. He ended up making quite a lot of them actually. So, he wrote a letter to his sons and the next generations so that they could learn from his mistakes. He wanted to impart the wisdom that God had given him.

This is why the Proverbs is so complicated sometimes. It goes over our heads. And we misconstrue it a lot. But there are a lot of things that we can learn from it. It’s a treasure trove of nuggets for how to tangibly live a Christian life. How to be like God, how to be wise. 

Truth in kindness

Since wisdom comes from an all-loving God, it’s nothing like our wisdom on earth. When we think of someone who is super knowledgeable, we don’t usually think of them as being kind people. Not to say that they couldn’t be, but that they aren’t often associated together. Not so with Godly wisdom.

Proverbs 3 says not to forget wisdom and then in verse 3, “do not let kindness and truth leave you”. Both kindness and truth are used together to describe wisdom. This would only make sense if you were talking about wisdom coming from an all-loving God. If God was simply a powerful force alone, there would be no mention of kindness. This chapter continually reminds the reader to “never leave” wisdom and to be constantly seeking it.

Why? Because it’s so easy to want to live our own lives, do what we want and not consider God at all. It’s nice to consider His gifts and answered prayers, but when it comes to seeking Him for counsel in our life, it’s far more difficult.

Acknowledge God

Because in order to seek God’s wisdom, we must reconcile that we need Him and that there is no wisdom in us apart from Him. Easier said than done, right? 

That’s incredibly humbling and definitely not our automatic response. Proverbs 3:5 says to “lean not on your own understanding” but rather trust in the Lord.

Not only that but to, “acknowledge Him in all your ways” (verse 6). All your ways. Not some of your ways that you’re willing to give up control over. This verse is saying that you need to acknowledge God for who He is, an all-loving, all-good, all-powerful King and Creator over all of existence. That of course includes your life.

This acknowledgment means that you live your life reflecting that truth. Acknowledging means you’re recognizing someone for who they are. You’re recognizing God for who He says He is. And if you recognize Him for who He is, that means you’re His creation.

It’s easy to miss the basics. We brush through, “yeah, I know who God is”. Okay, but do you? Do you really live your life acknowledging who He is? Do you see Him as He says He is? Do you see Him as good and live your life thanking and glorifying Him for what He’s done for you? Does this drive you to want to get to know Him more and prioritize it accordingly in your day-to-day life? When life falls apart, do you run to Him first? Do you fall at His feet and give Him your worries while also acknowledging that He is still good, even in this? Or does He come later, when you’ve “calmed down” and you’re ready to face Him again feeling angry or maybe ashamed? 

Now, listen. It’s not that seeking other people’s comfort and advice is a bad thing. But as a Christian, God should be our fall-back. The one we go to for our truest, most vulnerable emotions. Because He’s the safest person to handle absolutely everything.

Your family and community is crucial too, but they can’t be your primary support. Otherwise, in our human imperfections, they will fail you eventually. And if you’re relying on them primarily, it will sink you. As much as they want to love us perfectly, they don’t have the capacity to. Only God can. 

So we seek and acknowledge God first for everything in our life. And we see that we have no good apart from Him. It’s only then that we are able to extend that same loving and kind grace to others around us. No matter if they’re deserving of it or not. Because we know that we certainly weren’t.

And if we’re seeking God, we’re seeking His wisdom. More on that next week.