The beginning of wisdom

Do you need wisdom today? James encourages us to ask for wisdom, which God will give to us.

James‬ ‭1:5‬ ‭AMP “If any of you lacks wisdom [to guide him through a decision or circumstance], he is to ask of [our benevolent] God, who gives to everyone generously and without rebuke or blame, and it will be given to him.”‬‬

Did you know that the fear of the Lord also leads to wisdom? The Bible warns us not to be wise in our own eyes, and not to follow our ways, but to be obedient to God. We need to shun all evil and follow after God. We humble ourselves and surrender to God, which is the path to wisdom.

Proverbs‬ ‭3:7‬ ‭AMP “Do not be wise in your own eyes; Fear the LORD [with reverent awe and obedience] and turn [entirely] away from evil.”‬‬

Remembering from last week’s post, God longs for us to fear Him and revere Him as our one and only Lord. When we fear God, we please Him. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of the wisdom we need because it is the wisest decision we can make. The Psalmist writes that we cannot have wisdom without first fearing the Lord.

Psalms‬ ‭111:10‬ ‭AMP “The [reverent] fear of the LORD is the beginning (the prerequisite, the absolute essential, the alphabet) of wisdom; A good understanding and a teachable heart are possessed by all those who do the will of the LORD; His praise endures forever.”‬‬

When we have God as our first and most important priority, our attention is on Him. Just think about when the Israelites realized the error of their ways, they would fear God again, and make the wise decision to forsake their idols or pagan gods. By turning back to God, we are acting wisely. The fear of the Lord sets us up to follow His ways even when it means going against all the opinions and trends of the world. When we put God first as our one true God, when we esteem Him with awe-filled respect and reverence, we open up our hearts to His insight and His standard and truth in all aspects of life.

I think it is impossible to follow your selfish desires when your heart is to please God by fearing Him. When we earnestly seek His will, we want to make Him part of all our decisions, doings, and goings. In this lifestyle of worship, we start to know God more because of our relationship with Him, and what He desires becomes our pursuit. When we seek His will, the Lord gives us understanding and new insight into Himself and His will for us, and the people around us. The Holy Spirit guides us in wisdom and knowledge.

Wisdom becomes our aim and no longer riches and glory. Wisdom is infinitely more valuable than all the riches in the world. No wonder Solomon devoted several chapters in Proverbs on the subject.

Proverbs‬ ‭2:4-5‬ ‭AMP‬‬ “If you seek skillful and godly wisdom as you would silver And search for her as you would hidden treasures; Then you will understand the [reverent] fear of the LORD [that is, worshiping Him and regarding Him as truly awesome] And discover the knowledge of God.”

Wisdom and the fear of the Lord walk hand-in-hand. The fear of God is the beginning of wisdom, but wisdom also helps us to understand the fear of the Lord better. Therefore, fear the Lord and grow in wisdom.

My prayer for you this week is that as you seek God and His will as your highest priority, you will experience His wisdom and guidance in all you need to do and be. May this be an exciting and enriching beginning of a journey of discovery of more Godly wisdom, His will for your life, and the knowledge of intimate and valuable things we can only learn from our Heavenly Father.

Stay resolute my friend.

Talita

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