Illustration
The faculty of a college were in their annual meeting when, suddenly, an angel
appeared. Turning to the Dean, the angel said, "I will grant you one of three choices -- infinite wisdom, infinite wealth or infinite health." The Dean thought for a minute, then replied "Wisdom."
"So be it." and the angel disappeared.
In the silence that followed, the Dean sat thoughtfully, saying nothing and staring off into the distance. Finally, one of the other faculty members exclaimed, "Do you have anything to say? What words of wisdom can you give us?"
The Dean replied, "I should have taken the money."
1) Daily Decisions We Make Have Consequences
Every day we make choices, on the job, at school, at home. Will I get up and go to work or school today? Do I call in sick and play hooky? Will I lie to save my own skin? When someone insults me, puts me down, or hurts me how will I react? When I am tempted to do something that sounds fun but might have negative consequences what will I do? How should I handle money? Where should I spend it? Will I work overtime this week because the boss wants me to even though my kid’s game is tonight? Will I help my friend even though I was really looking forward to watching the game?
Each choice we make has consequences whether good or bad, some results we see right away, some results we may never see for years, decades, or even a lifetime. [Story of positive consequence]
I could have a Big Mac, super-size fries and pop at McDonalds today for lunch and it probably won’t have any dire consequences today or tomorrow or but supposing I eat this meal all the time, eventually it will lead to obesity, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol, and possibly a heart attack.
You’re probably familiar with the verse in the Bible which says, “You reap what you sow (Gal. 6:7).” Which means if you are planting bad choices you will see eventually bad consequences, if you make good choices you will eventually see good consequences.
The choices we make do make a difference.
2) Wisdom is the ability to consistently make good choices
There is a word for being able to make the right decision every time. The word is wisdom. Webster’s Dictionary defines wisdom as: “Having the knowledge of what is true or right coupled with good judgment.” In other words, according to Webster, a wise person is one who knows what is true and right and then is able to make the right decision. Wisdom should not be confused with knowledge or common sense. Knowledge you can pick up in a book, taking a class, watching Dr. Phil. A person who is wise has nothing to do with how smart they are, or what kind of grades they get in school, or what kind of job they have. Some of the smartest people make the dumbest choices because they lack wisdom.
Illustration:
Just to demonstrate that smart people don’t always make the best decision. The Reuters news agency reported the following story:
A Massachusetts doctor and Harvard graduate has been suspended for leaving a patient on the operating table midway through spinal surgery so he could deposit a check at his local bank.
The state board of medicine said David Arndt, an orthopedic surgeon, posed "an immediate threat to the public health, safety and welfare" after he left the patient last month with an open incision in his back.
According to Reuters, Arndt left behind a surgeon who was not qualified to complete the surgery. After his 35-minute trip to the bank, Arndt returned to the operating room and finished the surgery within a few hours.
The doctor’s license to practice medicine in Massachusetts has been suspended, but he will have a chance to appeal the decision. Arndt, a graduate of Harvard Medical School, was not available for comment on his suspension.
SOURCE: Preaching Now Vol. 1, No. 20, Tue 9/3/2002 7:41 AM.
We probably all know smart people who made bad choices. Company CEO’s, presidents, even pastors.
3) God is the source of all wisdom
How does a person gain wisdom so that we consistently make the right choices? The book of Proverbs in the Bible which is frequently known as the book of wisdom says this:
NIV Proverbs 2:6 For the LORD gives wisdom, and from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.
The Bible tells us God is the source of wisdom. God is the one who helps us make good choices every time. Which makes sense because God knows everything, he created everything, and he knows the future. God knows the result of every decision we will ever make before we even make it. Unfortunately we tend to rely on our own wisdom and understanding. We ask ourselves, ‘does this feel right to me,’ ‘will this make me happy,’ or ‘does it make sense to me,’ which may work for us for a while, but eventually if all we rely on is our own wisdom and understanding we’re going to steer ourselves in the wrong direction perhaps even make a disastrous choice because we made our decision on based on our own limited abilities rather than God’s. Using your own judgment alone will cause you at some point to fail morally, destroy a relationship with a friend or family member because of what you said or did, misuse money, something will happen.
Proverb 14:12 says, “There is a path before each person that seems right, but it ends in death.” That means the decision you make or the path you choose to take may seem like the right one to you when in reality it leads to death, or a bad consequence.
NLT Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. 6 Seek his will in all you do, and he will direct your paths. 7 Don’t be impressed with your own wisdom. Instead, fear the LORD and turn your back on evil. 8 Then you will gain renewed health and vitality.
Notice what it said, don’t depend on your own understanding, don’t be impressed with your own wisdom, rather seek God’s will and he will direct your path. God will point you in the right direction.
How often are we seeking God’s wisdom and his will? How often do we rely on our own limited understanding rather than relying on God? Do you know what is going to happen tomorrow? No, I don’t either, but God does. Do you know how your choices today are going to impact your future? No, but God does. Why wouldn’t we trust in God and seek his will.
4) We Must Seek God’s Wisdom
How do we gain God’s wisdom? How can we know what the right choice is to make in our life? As we have already discovered wisdom comes from God, therefore we need to seek him.
a) Crying out
NLT Proverbs 2:1 My child, listen to me and treasure my instructions. 2 Tune your ears to wisdom, and concentrate on understanding. 3 Cry [call] out for insight and understanding.”
Wisdom is not an automatic thing. We don’t just suddenly become wise even if we become a Christian. It is a gift from God, which is given to those who pursue it and ask for it.
Crying out or calling out for wisdom, means we implore God, we ask him. Listen to what Jesus’ brother James writes in his letter.
James 1:5 If you need wisdom-- if you want to know what God wants you to do-- ask him, and he will gladly tell you. He will not resent your asking. 6 But when you ask him, be sure that you really expect him to answer, for a doubtful mind is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. 7 People like that should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.
Proverbs and James both tell us if we really want God’s wisdom and understanding, to make the right choices in our life we have to go to the source. We need to ask God. Asking God is a form of prayer. “Lord, what do you want me to do?” Asking God isn’t just something we do when a big decision comes up (what should I do with the rest of my life, where do I go to college, what should I major in, ), but in everyday life. One of our earlier passages said “seek his will in all you do.”
When was the last time you asked God for help in making a decision? When was the last time you looked at your daily schedule and asked God, “what do you want me to do today?” Unfortunately, we tend to run our own life without God’s input until after we’ve blown it. Then we want God to bail us out. Fortunately, God is loving and kind, and frequently (but not always) helps us out. But we still face the consequences of our decisions. All too often we don’t ask God for his wisdom until we are at the end of our rope, or we cannot come up with a solution on our own. What would happen if we started every day with God instead?
Asking may also mean we humble ourselves and seek the advice of wise godly people. God shares his wisdom through other people. In the NT of the Bible we are told that God has given some believers special gifts or spiritual gifts of wisdom or discernment in order that they might help others in their decision making. If we ask and actually listen to these wise people we may gain God’s insight.
b) Search for Wisdom
We can also seek God’s wisdom when we read His word, the Bible.
NLT 2 Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It straightens us out and teaches us to do what is right.
We are given God’s inspired Word to help guide us in making the right choices. Unfortunately the Bible just sits and collects dust because we think we don’t have the time or we just don’t understand it so why bother and we never crack open the Bible. We grow in God’s wisdom by reading the nuggets of wisdom he has already given in His Word. This is not just an ancient book of old fashioned principles, it is still relevant to us today too. Over the next several weeks we are going to explore one particular book in the Bible, Proverbs, the book of collected wisdom. In Proverbs we have the collected wisdom of the wisest man who ever lived, Solomon. He collected and shares wisdom on avoiding sin, how to handle money, watching your tongue, avoiding anger, being humble and teachable, having integrity, being a hard worker. These gold nuggets are there if we choose to mine them. This is why we are giving graduates one of the best Bibles out there written in very easy to understand translation with Life Application footnotes in the bottom which are there to help you apply God’s word to your life. But it only helps if you read it. My challenge for all of us is to read the book of Proverbs over the next month. It is 31 chapters long therefore you could read one chapter a day and finish it within the month.
I heard somewhere that Billy Graham was known for his daily habit of reading wisdom from the book of Proverbs, a Psalm, and some other from elsewhere in the Bible frequently from one of the gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John). He realized he didn’t grow wise by accident but by diligence.
Proverbs 2:4 “Search for it [wisdom and understanding] as you would for lost money or hidden treasure.”
5) The ultimate goal of wisdom is to know God better
Seeking God’s wisdom is not just about getting help to make the right decisions in our life. It is about getting to know God better.
NIV Ephesians 1:17 I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.
While it is good to gain God’s wisdom in making good choices, remember that God’s best choice for us is to know him better. God actually wants a personal relationship with us. Ultimately God imparts his wisdom through his Spirit to those who choose to have a personal relationship with him through his Son Jesus Christ. The Apostle Paul wanted them to receive more of the Spirit of wisdom, not just so they could choose right from wrong, or what God’s will is, but so they could go deeper with God, getting to know him better.
As we continue our series on Proverbs over the next several weeks, I don’t just want us to grow in wisdom for wisdom’s sake but to help us to know God better and to do his will.
I want to close with a word to the graduates. You have a lot of choices ahead of you in the next several years. What do you want to be when you grow up? Who will you will date and perhaps even marry. Where you will live? You will have to take responsibility for all your own decisions. There are consequences to the choices you will make. What I am encouraging you to do is not to wait until things fall apart before you ask, seek God and his wisdom, his direction, his will, and then follow Him, even if it goes against your feelings, even if it goes against your logic, or against your friends advice. God will never steer you wrong. We’ve given you Bibles in an easy to read translation, so you can seek God’s wisdom and understanding.
Many of you will gain a lot of knowledge in the next few years, but only God’s wisdom will help you live a truly successful life.
