"By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established; through knowledge its rooms are filled with rare and beautiful treasures." (Proverbs 24:3-4) Solomon may be speaking of a literal house here, but I tend to think he's using it more as a metaphor. A house can also be a small family, a large dynasty, or a lineage. A stable family and an enduring legacy cannot be established without wisdom. Solomon asks, "Do you want a happy home? Do you want to leave a godly legacy behind for your descendants? Then seek knowledge and understanding." Yesterday the king told us some things not to do if we want to keep our family together; today he tells us what we must do.
"The wise prevail through great power, and those who have knowledge muster their strength. Surely you need guidance to wage war, and victory is won through many advisers." (Proverbs 24:5-6) Brains often win out over brawn. Godly wisdom is power. When we study military battles in the Old Testament we find Israel and Judah victorious when they followed the Lord, but we see them meeting with defeat when they strayed from righteousness. David was vastly outnumbered in most of the battles he ever fought, but the Lord was his helper and his military adviser. I think I'd feel far safer going into battle with a group of godly, praying companions than with a group of muscle-bound fighters. When God fights on our side, victory is certain.
"Wisdom is too high for fools; in the assembly at the gate they must not open their mouths." (Proverbs 24:7) You've probably heard the saying, "If you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all." Solomon takes this saying a step further, "If you can't say anything godly or wise, be quiet. You can't add anything to the conversation of the judges and the wise men at the gate, so it's better to listen and learn. Don't make a fool of yourself by speaking on matters you know nothing about."
"Whoever plots evil will be known as a schemer. The schemes of folly are sin, and people detest a mocker." (Proverbs 24:8-9) Wicked people are known in the community. It's hard to hide a scheming heart. Only those who are like them will want to associate with them.
Every time I read this next verse it hits me like a rebuke, but at the same time it motivates me to step up my faith. "If you falter in a time of trouble, how small is your strength!" (Proverbs 24:10) So often I've almost fainted under the heavy burden of troubles and worries! Many times I've almost given up. I've spent a lot of useless hours in doubt wondering whether my God was going to come through for me. Haven't you been there, too? Don't we all, from time to time, experience days that overwhelm us? Haven't we all encountered circumstances that threatened to rob us of our peace?
Sometimes we read the gospels and marvel over the weakness of the disciples' faith, but the Lord could often say to us the same thing He said to them, "You of little faith, why are you so afraid?" (Matthew 8:26) Jesus answers His own question within His question. Why were they so afraid? Because their faith was weak. Why are we so afraid when an unexpected event arises in our lives? Because our faith is weak. But this shouldn't discourage us! It should motivate us to aim higher. I don't think Jesus intended His question to the disciples as criticism but as an invitation to step up their faith. He wasn't condemning them. He didn't say, "These guys are never going to get it. I'm never going to be able to make fishers of men out of them, so they might as well go back to the sea of Galilee and cast their nets in for regular fish. I've tried and tried to raise them up higher but they insist on remaining in their comfort zone. I give up!" No, He never said this about the disciples, and He won't say this about us either.
Both Jesus and Solomon intend for us to use the words we've studied today as a spiritual checkup. Do we become discouraged easily when troubles come? Do we doubt the promises of a God who cannot lie? Do we think He's tired of coming to the rescue? Then we need to work on our faith. We need to work on our relationship with our Redeemer. He invites us to step it up, to move out of our comfort zones, to "press on toward the goal to win the prize". (Philippians 3:14) Jesus doesn't cast us aside when we falter anymore than He cast the disciples aside. Instead He says, "Call to Me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things that you do not know." (Jeremiah 33:3) Jesus says something like, "Forget how you messed up yesterday. I'm not concerned with where you've been, but with where you're going. I'm inviting you to come along with Me on the greatest adventure of your life!"
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