This chapter of Proverbs contains the invitations of two women. One is called Wisdom and the other Folly. Wisdom abides in a rock solid house with seven pillars. She has prepared a banquet of choice meat and fine wine. The table is set and she sends out messengers to call out from the highest point of the city: “Let all who are simple come in here! Come, eat my food and drink the wine I have mixed. Leave your simple ways and you will live; walk in the way of understanding.” But the woman Folly is also calling out in a similar fashion: “Let all who are simple come in here! Stolen water is sweet; food eaten in secret is delicious!” Two invitations. Two choices. Two claims to truth. Two ways of approaching life. Two destinies.
There are some interesting differences between the two women. Wisdom has prepared a meal of her own; Folly has stolen hers. Wisdom serves wine; Folly talks of stolen water. Wisdom sends out her servants to invite those who will come; Folly is loud and profane as she stands at her door and boisterously calls out herself. Wisdom is calling to those who are on the wrong path to walk in the way of wisdom; Folly is calling to those “who go straight on their way” to leave the straight path and follow her. Wisdom’s invitation leads to life; Folly’s invitation leads to death.
I see this as a picture of what is taking place in our culture today. There are two philosophies of life calling for the attention of the world: one is the way of wisdom and the other is the way of folly. There are two worldviews clamoring for the adherence of the world’s people. Both ways claim to be the right way. One way appeals to the mind — the way of wisdom. The other way appeals to the senses — the way of folly. One way believes in Truth — God’s Truth; the other way believes that everyone should live by their own truth, whatever that may be. One way believes that God’s laws are the path of life; the other way believes there should be no rules even if it leads to death.
What is the answer to the dilemma? How do we make the choice between these two competing worldviews? I believe that Wisdom is calling out to us today in the same way she did in the book of Proverbs. First of all, Wisdom’s invitation is a call to fear the Lord. The pivotal verse in this chapter is verse 10, which says: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” Some people try to begin with the love of God instead of the fear of God only to find that they have things completely turned around. Let me illustrate this by telling you a story of a man who was a member of a church I served in a small town. He had grown up in this small town and knew most of the people in it. As a youth he was basically a good kid, but there were times when, as most kids, he tested his limits — like the time he was going 55 mph in a 35 mph zone. The officer pulled him over and gave him a ticket, but it didn’t really worry him because he knew the judge. The judge was a member of the same church and an old family friend. The young man went smiling into the courtroom and called the judge by his first name. He was expecting a wink and pretend reprimand rather than a fine. But what he came up against was an angry Judge who sternly rebuked his irresponsible behavior and fined him the maximum amount. He went out of the courtroom with a much different attitude than the one with which he went in. If he had learned to properly fear the judge he would not have ended up in his court and experienced his wrath. If he had learned to fear the judge first he would have ended up avoiding his wrath and experiencing his friendship and love. Fear is the beginning of wisdom, and love is the end of wisdom. Love is where wisdom is completed. Love lies at the end of the path of wisdom. But put love first and you experience fear. Put fear first and you experience love. We fear God because he is the judge of all the earth and, as the Bible says, “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account” (Hebrews 4:13). Proper fear is the appropriate response to the Judge of all the earth. It comes with the understanding that he is God and we are not, and we will stand before him and account for the way we have lived.
Around the turn of the previous century, people had become so tired of hearing about the wrath of God that American pulpits began to talk more and more of the love of God. That was good, but we have now tipped the other end of the scale by talking almost exclusively of the love of God, so that we have forgotten that there is an appropriate call to holy fear. God is our Father, and he loves us immeasurably, but a good father disciplines his children. Learn to respect the disciplinarian side of your father and you experience his love. Fail to respect his potential for wrath and you not only have a distorted idea of God you fail to experience his true love. Fail to properly fear God and your life will be headed down the road to ruin. And the wrong road is where many are traveling today as they heed the siren call of Folly rather than the invitation of Wisdom.
This loss of the fear of the Lord is glaring in one of the popular movies on the big screen today. The Cider House Rules is a fictional story of an orphanage in Maine. Dr. Wilbur Larch cares for the children along with his young assistant Homer Wells. In the promo for the film, Dr. Larch appears to be a caring physician who sends the boys under his care to sleep each night with the words: “Good night, you princes of Maine, you kings of New England.” But he is also in the abortion business, and he approaches his gruesome task with evangelistic zeal. Outside the orphanage is the incinerator where the remains of his daily work are disposed. But Homer, Larch’s assistant, does not believe in what Larch is doing at first. Not until Homer decides to leave the orphanage and “see the world” does his mind change as he works beside the migrant apple pickers who live in the Cider House — a bunk house next to where the cider is made. At the Cider House, Homer meets Rose and discovers that she is pregnant by her father. Her father will not allow her to leave the orchard in order to have an abortion and Homer offers to take the life of her baby. Larch has not only taught him the technique, but provided him with the tools as well. The movie, and the book on which it is based, is a defense of the practice of abortion — regardless of what stuffy religious moralists say. The theme of the film is unveiled as one day Homer notices a list of rules posted on the wall of the Cider House. But since no one there can read they do not live by the rules. Their former ignorance soon turns to rebellion when Rose discovers that Homer can read and asks him to read the rules aloud. When Rose’s father hears the rules he bellows: “Someone who don’t live here made those rules.” Instead, he says, the rules should be made by the ones who “live in this cider house” — those who grind up the apples, make the cider and “clean up all this mess.” “These rules ain’t for us. We the ones supposed to make our own rules. And we do. Every single day.” And with that the rules are ripped off the wall and burned in the stove.
I thought as I read about that part of the movie that it is very much like what is happening in the courtrooms and classrooms across America. Our national policies have interpreted freedom of religion as freedom from religion, and we have ripped the Ten Commandments off our walls because, we say to ourselves, “Someone who don’t live here made those rules.” We want to make the rules because we are the ones who have to live here, and so we have cast off restraint and human sensibilities as well. That is how, this month, our Supreme Court could make the decision that the most barbaric form of abortion is legal — killing the child by suctioning its brains in order to collapse the skull while the child’s delivered arms and legs are flailing. When that kind of evil can happen legally then there is no longer any acknowledgment of our accountability to God. When the rules are torn down and thrown into the stove, and our innocents are thrown into the incinerator, there is no longer a proper fear of God. To fear God is to understand that the rules do apply to us and that we are accountable to God. They apply to us because God not only lives here, but he created the world where we live together. He is God; we are not. He makes the rules and we are to keep them. These rules are the product of his love, but to ignore them is to experience his wrath. I believe we have yet to see how we will pay for the killing of innocent children.
God’s laws were not given to make our lives difficult, but to make them full and meaningful. To miss this important point is to accept Folly’s invitation to walk the path of the fool. The Bible describes the godless with these words: “There is no fear of God before his eyes. For in his own eyes he flatters himself too much to detect or hate his sin” (Psalm 36:1-2). But as for the righteous, the Bible says, “The Lord delights in those who fear him, who put their hope in his unfailing love” (Psalm 147:11).
But there is a second part of Wisdom’s invitation: Wisdom’s invitation is a call to avoid deception. The woman Folly is “undisciplined and without knowledge” (v. 13). Her call sounds the same as Wisdom’s invitation at first: “‘Let all who are simple come in here!’ she says to those who lack judgment” (v. 16). But her message is quite different: “Stolen water is sweet; food eaten in secret is delicious!” (V. 17). She claims that evil is fun and more pleasurable than good. Folly is actually a prostitute who tries to tell her customers that illicit pleasures are better than true love. Her manner and speech are deceptive as she swaggers and sways. In reality she has not prepared a meal for anyone, she only promises that there is food to steal. The writer says that those who follow her fall into a trap: “But little do they know that the dead are there, that her guests are in the depths of the grave” (v. 18). Some here may be being deceived and seduced by the woman folly as she appears in Internet pornography and cyber relationships. It is a deadly trap that will destroy you. Still others are buying this cultures attitudes on truth and morality. You want to cast off restraint. Beware of walking that dangerous road.
The apostle Paul warned: “See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ” (Colossians 2:8). The deceit working in the world today is the attempt to claim that there is no transcendent, objective truth. Everyone has their own truth, and you should not try to impose your truth on someone else. Truth has fallen on hard times. The idea that God is the author of truth, and that the world is held together by his truth is no longer accepted in the public square. Truth is not discovered, according to current thinkers, it is created. Each person constructs their own truth within their frame of reference.
Derek Bok, president of Harvard, expressed this form of thinking when he said, “Today’s course in applied ethics does not seek to convey a set of moral truths, but tries to encourage the student to think carefully about complex moral issues.... The principal aim of the course is not to impart ‘right answers’ but to make the student more perceptive in detecting ethical problems when they arise.” That may sound fine until you realize the assumption is that there are no moral truths, and each individual should make up their own mind after careful thought. The deception goes like this: if there is no truth then I get to make up my own truth. If there are no “right answers” then I can go by my answers and follow my own standards rather than God’s. If there is no God, I get to be God. If the woman Folly can win us over here her deception is complete.
Many of you know that my son-in-law, Jeremy, is in the process of getting his Ph. D. in mathematics education. One of the courses he is taking this summer is in qualitative research. The professor has spent a great deal of time teaching the class that there is no such thing as objective truth. Truth is relative to every person, every situation, every culture, every age, every generation, etc., etc. etc. To highlight this truth, different kinds of ice cream were brought to class. Everyone was asked to identify themselves as either a believer in objective truth or a relativist who does not believe there are overarching principles by which we live. Only two people in the class said they believed in truth — and they were given vanilla ice cream. The relativists, who believe that truth can be anything you want it to be, were given Ben and Jerry’s ice cream which was full of chocolate pieces and other tasty morsels. (Jeremy said he considered becoming a relativist for the day.) The point is that people who have a definite value system are looked at as being vanilla. Those who have no constricting moral code to their life are seen as colorful and interesting, but it is a deception. I said to Jeremy, “If there is no real truth why are they having the class? Why bother with research? And surely there will be no final exam, because there would be no objective standard by which to measure the answers. If there is no truth then how do they know that their statement that there is no truth is true?”
I believe that Alexander Solzhenitsyn was right when, in his Nobel Prize speech, he said: “One word of truth outweighs the entire world.” That truth is the secret to life. That leads to the third point which is: Wisdom’s invitation is a call to life. When Wisdom invites us into her house she says, “Leave your simple ways and you will live” (Proverbs 9:6). By way of contrast, the woman Folly’s invitation leads to death. The writer says, “But little do they know that the dead are there, that her guests are in the depths of the grave” (v. 18). Her door is the entrance to the grave and the gate of hell. Those who enter expect to find pleasure and freedom, but find destruction and death instead. Jesus said, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full” (John 10:10). The Bible says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).
The idea that God’s ways lead to life is not just wishful thinking, it is reality here and now. Science is finding that those who follow God and give head to Wisdom’s invitation find a longer and fuller life. According to the Southern Medical Journal, alcohol abuse is highest among those with little or no religious commitment. Researchers have found that the single best predictor of whether young people will become involved in substance-abuse is the importance of religion in their lives. Recent studies state that decreased levels of depression and stress are found in people with strong religious faith. In one Gallup survey, the people who responded saying that they had a strong religious commitment were twice as likely to describe themselves as “very happy.” People who do not attend church are four times more likely to commit suicide than those who attend frequently. Marital stability and satisfaction is stronger among those who practice their faith. One study found that marital satisfaction could be predicted by church attendance more than any other single variable. Medical studies linking physical health and longevity are directly linked to the practice of religion in a person’s life. This does not mean that everyone attends church and has a deep faith is healthy and has a good marriage, but it does mean that it is far more true for these people than others. Patrick Glynn in his book, God: The Evidence, writes that research data and clinical experience are finding that “among the most important determinants of human happiness and well-being are our spiritual beliefs and moral choices.” The invitation of Wisdom is a call to life.
During the 1700’s England was facing a major social crisis. Widespread corruption had left the courts and political institutions in shambles. Families were being destroyed by infidelity which was generally accepted. Mothers and fathers both were spending their time in the pubs, and the children were left to drift through the streets. The neglect led to abuse and corruption of their innocence. The country was on the verge of an uprising because of the unrest. The churches were lifeless places of tedious religious ritual and dead orthodoxy. But along came a man named John Wesley whose heart had been “strangely warmed,” and whose life had been changed by the power of God. He began to preach on street corners and anywhere people would gather to listen. He took his converts and organized them into small groups where they prayed for each other and held each other accountable. He talked about social righteousness and the power of God to change lives. And slowly the social, spiritual and moral climate of England began to change. Many people who have studied the social dynamics of what happened believe that the Wesleyan revival is the only thing that spared England from a revolution similar to the French Revolution of 1789. The invitation of God is a call to life.
Two choices face us. Two claims of truth. Two worldviews: the way of Wisdom or the way of Folly. The wise choose to fear God and follow him. They choose to avoid deception and believe in God’s truth. The wise choose life.
Rodney J. Buchanan
July 9, 2000
THE INVITATIONS OF WISDOM AND FOLLY
Proverbs 9:1-18
“Leave your simple ways and you will live; walk in the way of understanding” (Proverbs 9:6).
Wisdom’s invitation is:
1. A call to ________________________________________ .
2. A call to ________________________________________ .
3. A call to _________________________________________.
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION (July 9, 2000)
1. Who are the two women in Proverbs 9, and what are they like?
2. How are the calls of these two women being played out in our culture today?
3. Why do we have so much trouble with believing in absolute/transcendent truth?
4. Read Isaiah 55:1-2. How would you answer the question in verse two?
5. Read John 7:37-38. What was Jesus offering in this invitation? What response does it call for?
6. Read Revelation 22:17. In the last chapter of the Bible another invitation is given. Why are we so reluctant to accept this invitation?
7. Consider the spirit of rebellion in our culture that has such disdain for God’s laws. How can we as Christians answer these objections?
8. Read Ezekiel 33:11. What is the question God is asking these obdurate people? How do people answer his question today?
9. It appears that people are easily deceived today. Politicians or the media can put a spin on truth and people seem to buy it. Why are we so easily fooled?
10. Read John 10:10. What did Jesus come to give us? Why don’t more people take him up on the offer?
11. How can you more be a more genuine seeker of truth?
