Introduction:
It’s a shame that so many people immediately tune out when you start talking about wisdom. To
them, wisdom is theoretical, academic book knowledge that has nothing to do with the real
world. Yet that is not at all what wisdom is about.
Wisdom is not abstract knowledge; wisdom is a practical understanding about how to live.
Wisdom consists of being able to discern [v. 2 - “To discern the sayings of understanding”
(NASB)]. Discernment is simply being able to separate what’s true from what’s false, what’s
right from what’s wrong, what’s good from what’s bad, what’s worthwhile from what’s
worthless.
Today, the problem is not that we don’t have enough advice. Oprah’s got advice, the Today
Show’s got advice, everybody’s got advice. The problem, if anything, is that we’ve got too much
advice.
How do you know which advice to take? How do you know which path to pursue?
Wisdom is the ability to discern the best path from amid all the other ideas as we deal with the
everyday struggles and problems of life.
If you would like that, but realize you don’t have that now, let me share with you. . .
Good News For The “Wisdom-Impaired”:
1. Wisdom is learned.
V. 1 explains what this book of Proverbs is. V. 2 explains why it has been written. It’s for
people “to know wisdom and knowledge.”
A lot of people presume wisdom is something you’re born with, but that’s not true. Why would
you write a book filled with wisdom if wisdom was something either you had or you didn’t? No,
it says this book was written that people might know wisdom.
Wisdom is learned, which of course means it is open to anyone with a willingness to learn. Even
you.
2. Wisdom will meet you where you’re at.
V. 4 says, “To give subtilty to the simple.” Subtilty just means cleverness or prudence. Then it
says, “To the young man knowledge and discretion.”
You might think “I could get wisdom if I was a little smarter” or “I’ll be able to get wisdom in
my life when I’ve been around a little longer.” Wrong. You don’t have to wait around or have a
bunch of changes in your life before you qualify to seek wisdom. Wisdom will meet you where
you’re at.
Now, let’s talk about a couple of starting points for this journey of seeking more wisdom in your
life.
Starting Points For This Journey:
1. You must be teachable.
V. 5 says, “A wise man will hear, and will increase learning.” Notice that he hears and his
wisdom increases. There are a lot of people who hear but don’t get more wisdom because they
hear but don’t listen.
Some people have too much pride to be teachable. Some people are too stubborn to be
teachable. Some people are too self-sufficient to be teachable. They will never increase is
wisdom.
2. Wisdom begins with a right relationship with God.
V. 7 says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” You’ve got to have a solid
foundation of a proper understanding of and relationship with God if you want to be wise.
Now, where do you go from there?
How Do You Have Wisdom Begin To Increase In Your Life?
1. The Bible gives you the knowledge.
The Bible is your teacher and tutor. It provides the practical information you need understand to
grow in wisdom.
2. Prayer makes the application to your life.
Time with God provides the moments when that Bible knowledge can move from your head
down to your heart and you can deal with the specific problems, shortcomings, and sins in your
life.
If you study the Bible but never pray, you’ll likely have a lot of head knowledge about what
wisdom looks like, but it won’t be applied to your life. If your pray but never study the Bible,
you may well see the problems you have, but you won’t have the practical knowledge of what the
right course of action would be.
Conclusion:
Wisdom is not for the elite few. Wisdom is available to everyone who will seek it.
The question is: do you want it?
