Pursuing God’s Wisdom
Pursuing God’s Wisdom
Books of wisdom in the Bible: Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Eccles, Song of S.
You won’t benefit by just reading them. They are meant to be savored, meditated upon, pondered over and over to get the nutrients.
Wisdom like a well prepared meal was meant to be savored, and enjoyed slowly.
Ill. Consider how many occasions in scripture involved meals: Passover and the feasts of Israel. Jesus’s first miracle wedding feast- water – wine. Last Supper. Psa 23 “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies”. Even when you face an enemy God has a feast of wisdom for you to feed from. Every situation is like a parable of wisdom for to glean from. Slow down and relate to God in every situation. “The Lord of Hosts is with us!”
We just concluded a series of messages on Psalm 46 emphasizing our growing in the awareness of the Presence of the Lord, whether hidden or manifested, is to give our lives fearless confidence. Now in the first book of wisdom – Job we read:
“Look, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom.” Job 28:28
Ill. Jesus was tempted by devil to worship him to get the world back from Satan. Jesus quotes Deut. 10:20 “Get away from here, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only shall you serve.” Mtt. 4:10 “fear the Lord” = worship the Lord
Jesus changed the word fear in OT to worship.
To worship God is wisdom and this wisdom is manifested in this – honor, worship, surrender to God and His mysterious ways. Donald Rumsfeld, former Secretary of Defense said
“There are known knowns – things we know we know. Then there are known unknowns – things we know we don’t know. But there are also unknown unknowns – the one’s we don’t know, we don’t know.” Donald Rumsfeld
Do people w/o God have wisdom? Yes – God gives good gifts to everyone. Ill. “KOH like a treasure hidden in a field which a man suddenly found. He wasn’t looking for it.
Judges in court – Inventions = Jewish people many wise inventions and yet they are a minority race. (Kindle- blue jeans, lipstick, instant coffee, remote control, kidney dialysis, chemo therapy, vaccinations, walkie talkie, adding machines, more, thank a Jew! Jewish people receive more Nobel prizes than any other nation of people.
“Why is it that man, with drastically limited wisdom, insists on making all the decisions in his life while a good portion of the time he is wrong?” A. W. Tozer
Wisdom begins and ends with God. We must go to God in order to get wisdom.
“If any man lacks wisdom, let him ask of God who gives to all men liberally and without criticism, and it will be given him.” James 1:5
ill. Don’t think of this is ask and God is going to download instant wisdom to solve some solution. We are wanting a quick fix.
Everything God does is relational. It begins with and ends discovering deeper things about our relationship with Jesus.
Ill. One time I was complaining to God about not understanding something and out of the blue HS spoke to me these words, “that’s because you don’t know Me very well.” – That stung but what can you say when Someone 100% perfect tells you this? “Lord, You are right. I don’t know You very well. Will You teach me and take me deeper?”
- Every problem in your life today must not be you wanting a quick fix !
The answer is first relational. Lord, what are You revealing to me through this? What are You wanting to be to me through this trial?
Go to God first! Wisdom needs to be our number one requests.
After you ask God for wisdom then expect your life to be a process of parables to find it. Ill. College – So many friends dropped out for various reasons. A friend said, “What if God’s reason for us being here is not to get a diploma but for the experience itself?” That changed the way I looked at it. Maybe some people were to only be there a short time to get some revelation of God that could only come this way.
- School was not about a diploma but the journey itself.
- Sometimes you have to fail in order to find out that was not what God has planned for me.
Job’s life was a text book of discovering God’s wisdom.
“Where does wisdom come from? Where is the place of understanding? It is hidden from the eyes of all the living and concealed from the birds of the sky.” Job 28:20-21
Wisdom is hidden from us, but it is also hidden for us.
ill. Go to nature. How do wild birds in the north find their way to the south? How do honey bees find their way across a meadow to their hive? In one place scripture God is saying, “the birds know their place and yet you are dumber than an ox, because he knows his master and yet My people do not know their God” para Is. 1:3
God wants us to go deeper in our relationship with Him. He knows a quick fix to our problems will not do that. There may be a larger objective than the preservation of our own life.
The purpose of our life is the glory of God – making Him seen.
After you ask God for wisdom – now your job is to go find it, and go deeper with God.
Ill. He is intent on having a better relationship with you. If this means He has to withhold some things or keep you from some things in order for you to grow in depth in your relationship with Him, so be it. He values a deeper relationship with you more than fixing your problems so you can be on your way.
I guarantee you that if you would slow down and take time to think deeply about some current problem and seek wisdom, you will eventually come up with a new parable about it.
Parable is an earthly story with hidden wisdom.
Your life is filled with parables of wisdom waiting to be discovered. But you will have to go further than just the surface to find this wisdom.
- Maybe today the parable God is wanting to write with you is the parable of how to get more money – out of debt.
- Or Parable of the struggling marriage, etc.
“The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field which a man found . . . Again the kingdom of heaven is like merchant seeking beautiful pearls, who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all he had and bought it.” Mtt. 13:45
First parable a man stumbles across and finds a hidden treasure that he was not looking for. The second parable has a man who knows what he is looking for.
- Some wisdom we stumble across and find. Other wisdom requires us to search it out and find it.
The merchant is looking for the pearl is searching for that thing that grows out of irritation.
He has to pursue it in order to find it. God is not going to drop it in his lap.
Col. 3:3 says our old life is dead and our new life is hidden in Christ to those born of God. We will have to go to God in relate to Him to discover what and how this life with X hidden in us is to operate.
- The Xn life is not a program. It is not an assignment to complete. It is not a job to be accomplished. IT is a relationship to be carried out moment by moment that will require a lifetime.
- Jesus said, “Take my yoke upon you and learn of Me.”
This yoke is a partnership relationship with Him. Ill. A young ox is yoked with a mature ox so it can learn it’s role in life. We have to learn to be led by the Spirit – it is not automatic and you can’t be in a hurry with relationship – it takes time, long walks, deep talks, stillness.
Ill. One time in church it seemed like everything was going wrong in Sunday service. Sound – lights – ppt – people distracting – and I was getting irritated. “Lord, here I am trying to worship you and honestly I am very irritated right now. Why am I letting this bother me so much? “Because you want control.” But Lord, this is not the way things are supposed to be – people can’t focus like this! “So what are you going to do about it – get angry or let go and just do your part?”
King Solomon, son of David appointed king.
“The king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for there was a great high place, and he offered a thousand burnt offerings on that altar. While he was at Gibeon the Lord app eared to him in a dream and said, “Ask what you want from Me.” I Kings 3:4-5
Burnt offerings were for consecrating yourself to God. 1 was all needed but he gave 1000.
Paraphrase the rest of the story here. Dream of God saying ask.
“An understanding heart = a heart focused on You.”
“Solomon awoke from the dream and found it was a dream. Then he came to Jerusalem and stood before the ark of the covenant of the Lord and offered up burnt offerings and peace offerings.” I Kgs 3:15
Why did he come to Jerusalem? Because the Ark was there. Remember no Temple yet and David brought Ark to Jerusalem to be the center piece of Israel. This is why David was a man after God’s own heart.
PIC Ark Covenant
Picture of our Lord JC. Wood – humanity covered with gold divinity.
Solomon made a trip to Jerusalem because he was going after the Presence of the Lord. He was not just waiting for God to drop wisdom on him – he pursued God.
“God gave Solomon wisdom and great depth of understanding as well as compassion, as vast as the sand on the seashore.” I Kings 4:31
- He discovered God and His wisdom in nature, trees, plants, animals, insects. Most of all He had wisdom to lead Israel God’s way with his ears and eyes on God and not man’s opinions.
Solomon never sought nor asked to become king. The leaders God appointed all had reluctance to be the leader God called them to be.
- Moses was reluctant. Gideon very reluctant. David and others.
The leaders God chose did not seek power but were chosen by God to exercise power. Ill. In church many willing to serve but few are willing to take the responsibility to be the leader of something.
Leaders appointed by God have to make decisions not based on popularity or to please everyone. Sometimes it is hard but necessary.
Ill. Two women came before Solomon as king to make a decision. Both women lived in the same house. Both had babies about same age. One woman’s baby died and in the middle of the night she stole the other woman’s baby and said it was her baby. The real mom screaming this is my baby and the other lady said no. So the king said, “Bring me a sword – divide the child – give half to each. Then the real mother said no don’t kill the child – give her the child. The other said no divide it. The king said don’t kill it – give it to the real mom. She is the mother.
- I am sure the friends of the lying mother sided with her. Felt bad for her and took offense for her. Others sided with the king.
But when a leader makes a decision it cannot be based upon what will people think of me! Sometimes hard decisions and necessary ones. Is everyone going to be happy? No – unity and oneness does not mean agreement.
“All Israel heard . . . and saw the wisdom of God was in him, to execute sound judgment.” I Kings 3:28
Concl: Pursuing Wisdom summarized is going after the presence of God first. It is standing in awareness of God’s Presence. When you say I need wisdom you are saying, “Lord, I need You – You to be my shepherd and guide me.” You don’t need an answer – you need Him. In Him is the answer.
If you need guidance – You first need a relationship with the Lord. If you already have one and need guidance it means you need to know Him better and get closer.
He will give you an answer and guidance but it will come through you getting closer to Him. Out of that your answer will be clear.