"Wisdom" & "Truth" = Word of God

I was moved this evening as I was reading Chapter 4 of the book of Proverbs to my two oldest girls as we were approaching bedtime, here Sunday evening at approx 8:45pm..Up to this point, I had no idea that this bedtime reading would spur inside me a desire to share..but nevertheless, here I am..and before I get into what Chapter 4 spoke to me, I just wanted to take the time to say...Thank You Lord..for allowing me to be able to have this special time with my girls and for them to have ears to hear and patience to sit thru some of these sometimes hard to understand verses that flow from the Bible.. There are very few things in my life right now as it stands that are as important to me than to read the Word of God to my kids..For them to 1) See that the Bible is useful 2) to see that the Word of God is exalted in our home 3) For them to know that I love them enough to share the Wisdom of It's contents.. There is no greater joy for me than to read a verse to them and have them ask a question trying desperately to understand, to have it make sense in their youthful minds..As they grow older, it is my prayer that the dots begin to connect themselves as they begin to study God's Word and that they find meaning and Wisdom beyond their ability to even understand..

That leads to my next brief point I wanted to wrote about and that is simplified in one word "Wisdom".. Never had I heard it used so aggressively and emphatically as I did when reading it to them tonight..so much so that it struck a cord with me causing me pause, and then asking myself..Do I seek this level of wisdom spoken of in Proverbs 4..? Do I even have my life heading in a direction that mirrors the words King Solomon spoke..The gravity of it all fell upon me and burdened my heart...and all this came from the quiet times of everyday life..Not from a special message spoken from a great speaker, or a divine book that channels God's message..but from the everyday life of fatherhood...the small things to which to most go completely unnoticed..and rightfully so..but for me a moment of great reflection and a noticeable verifiable tug from the Holy Spirit on my heart.. One of the revelations I have learned over the last couple of years is the work of the Holy Spirit and just how The Spirit works in our lives.. The Holy Spirit is our daily guide..to which we grow in discerning its affect in our life.. Many times, we as believers are looking for rapturous moments where we may have been left on our knees, but forget and are unable to truly discern the everyday workings of the Holy Spirit in our lives..The small inward tug to make this decision over that one..The soft quiet voice that speaks to us throughout the day.. The undeniable conviction that overcomes us when we step outside of God's will..so it is my desire to journal this moment in time in my very own life, where I felt the small inward tug of the Holy Spirit lay hold of my consciousness, and spur me on to seek further this idea of wisdom...and what it means for me and my greater understanding of God's word and His perfect plan for us all..

Pastor Jeff Long said today in service that every single word of the Bible is true..Every single word..and that no verse would be skipped over because it might hurt someones feelings..When I let the weight of that lay on me (which I am in 100% agreement) coupled with the fact that this chapter is dealing with a subject that I often struggle with...is just evidence for me that I need to spend more time on this and seek to understand the message God intends for me to have..at the undeniable request of the Holy Spirit..

So lets take a moment and look at what Proverbs 4 has to say http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/parser.php (Link to Proverbs 4) in lieu of placing it all here, let me lay out the concepts to me that bear emphasis..

Let your heart hold fast my words; keep my commandments, and live. - Let your heart hold fast says to me - Lay claim on this to the depths of your being..Inscribe as such to never be removed..Tattoo it to your heart...but then he says and LIVE..Don't miss this..he says LIVE..not to hide from the wicked society..not to refrain from others..not to protect your children so much so they cant be salt and light.. Live..have joy, peace, hope in the wisdom of the Truth..Live in the Truth and it will set you free!!

Get wisdom; get insight; do not forget, and do not turn away from the words of my mouth. Do not forsake her, and she will keep you; love her, and she will guard you. -I found this particular verse to be especially endearing..Written from a man's perspective, He sees wisdom as "her"..This a most certainly a term of endearment..How many men call their favorite material possession "her".. like his favorite golf club..Boy she did me proud today..notice the "she".. This is the term I might use when referring to something near and dear to me..He also starts this off by saying Get...This is a verb meaning to obtain, to chase after till you catch it..He did not say, try to get wisdom, or work on obtaining it, or to give it your best effort..NO..he says Get..That leaves nothing to question about his intent on having wisdom...and then lastly.."love her and she will guard you"..how sweet does that sound..man ol man..Wisdom will guard you from making dumb decisions..Wisdom will keep you from placing yourself in the temptuous paths, wisdom will be the armour that protects against the fiery darts of the evil one..Ephesians 6:14 says "fasten on the belt of truth" - We must understand that wisdom is the truth of God's word..Wisdom is not what the world says is smart.. Wisdom is knowing and understanding God's word to such a degree that it is part of who you are.. Having this wisdom will keep you and guard you from the wiles of the accuser..

I have taught you the way of wisdom; I have led you in the paths of uprightness. When you walk, your step will not be hampered, and if you run, you will not stumble. Keep hold of instruction; do not let go; guard her, for she is your life. - When you walk your step will not be hampered and if you run, you will not stumble..This is saying the the more importance you place on God's word, the less you will be tripped up by Satan..Walking is a modest understanding but running denotes "full blown sold outness" to God and His commands...and notice..you will not stumble..Seeking God with all your heart and your soul and mind and your strength, both feet in, will make your paths straight and clear..leaving no opportunity to stumble on the root of pride, or a rock of covetousness, or step in the hole of doubt.. Then he says "do not let go of her" for "she is your life".. This is a command to stake your claim and do not sway..This is where satan will attack you..in your mind..your knowledge of the truth and if you let go even for an instant, the evil one can seize that opening and began to lay claim on your thinking...which will begin with doubt & discouragement..So leave no opening no matter how small for satan to enter and guard your mind and this wisdom (truth) will be your life..Your..your direction, your life purpose.

My son, be attentive to my words; your ear to my sayings. Let them not escape from your sight; keep them within your heart.For they are life to those who find them, and healing to all their flesh. Keep your heart with all vigilance, for it flow the springs of life. - This means, do not go days and weeks without renewing your mind with God's word..Keep it close to you..It is when you drift away that you become a target to be devoured.. Your focus, your daily bread needs to be the Word of God and all the wisdom contained in it..Not of this world..If you are spending more time in this world(mentally) than you are the things of God, then the world becomes easier and easier to be part of and God's truths are then diluted with the world..causing the believer to adjust their view of God to conform with the world..can anyone say Tolerance..This is a huge problem with many..The largest of which is there are many ways to God..No one way is better than another..Folks that is the world diluting the faith out of political correctness and not wanting to offend someone. Solomon says "Keep within your heart" and then again "Keep your heart with all vigilance" - He understands this more than any..What is close to your heart is something you will protect and guard and keep sacred.. It is not just an intellectual event..it is rooted in this inner fabric of the heart of a human.. This knowledge of the Word of God and what God did for us, even as sinners, wretched wicked beings..Satan knows that if he can keep the truth from you, then you have nothing to hold onto..You are defenseless without God and His armour (Eph 6:10-20)..

I shall be so bold as to say that Wisdom is the root of our faith to which the Tree springs forth Life..We must possess this in our deepest of beings, so that we are unshaken in times of rough seas and turbulent winds.. Cultivate your mind with the Word of God and renew it daily so that you will be transformed, and made New, to become a useful vessel in the Kingdom of God..for without Wisdom anchoring our Faith, then we are subject to being tossed around the ocean of life, to and fro, with no real purpose and a life without Peace and Joy, Love and Hope..

***************This is Monday at around 2:30 and I am in awe of the amazing perfectness of God's word and felt compelled to add this to the above piece..As I was studying in Romans Ch 9:30-33" Israel's unbelief" - a few more dots were connected for me..This is happening to me on almost a daily basis where something you run across in everyday life happens to coincide with my bible study..and it never ceases to cause chills and goose bumps to run down my body..Listen to this..You know above where he (Solomon) says "if you run, you will not stumble." - this same type of stumbling is referred to in Romans verse 32 and 33..Paul says..." ******32 Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as if it were based on works. They have stumbled over the stumbling stone, 33 as it is written, “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense; and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.”*******

The Israelites stumbled over the very thing that could save them..Jesus Christ..so instead they used the law to esatblish their own form of righteousness and saw no need for a Christ..Plus Christ was not from the tribe of Levi..which all High Priest had to come from and more specifically from the lineage of Aaron..Jesus Christ came from the tribe of Judah and therefore was rejected as "High Priest", Messiah"..They stumbled because they did not obey the Word of God..they did not seek after wisdom as Solomon instructs here in Proverbs..with vigilence..and keep it close to your heart, never losing sight..The people of Israel were so caught up in being God's chosen people that the mere intention of obeying the law made them feel justified in God's eyes and that gigantic mistake (act of disobedience) cost them ultimately there life, forever..Israel's death was a direct result of not obeying God's word - a lackluster desire to attain the wisdom needed to confront misguided beliefs..and this still goes on today..

The whole bible is inspired, every bit of it and we cant decide what parts fit our lives..Whether we like what it has to say or not..it is God breathed and perfect in every way..Sometimes we just need to have respect for the mystery of God's providence..We were not created to know everything..Rest in the Mastery of His Peace!!!!!!

EB

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