Pro 3:13 Happy is the man who finds wisdom, And the man who gains understanding;
Pro 3:14 For her proceeds are better than the profits of silver, And her gain than fine gold.
Pro 3:15 She is more precious than rubies, And all the things you may desire cannot compare with her.
Pro 3:16 Length of days is in her right hand, In her left hand riches and honor.
Pro 3:17 Her ways are ways of pleasantness, And all her paths are peace.
Pro 3:18 She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her, And happy are all who retain her.
Wisdom begins with fear of the Lord. (Proverbs 1:7) If we truly desire to live a life that matters, a life that counts, a life that is meaningful, we must begin by fearing the Lord. Involved in this concept of fearing the Lord is, I believe, both a sense of reverence and respect AND even terror and quaking fear. It is a terrible thing to stand before a holy God as a depraved sinner. It is a terrible thing to stand before a righteousness with sin hanging on us and knowing that God cannot take pleasure in nor fellowship with sin. This reality ought to cause us terror and quaking. On the other hand, we as study the attributes of God and who He is, an awe and a reverence ought to overtake us in light of who He simply IS by His every existence.
When we have this sense of fear, it will affect our every action. When I fear God, I will not to so quick to yell at my children when they are frustrating me. When I fear God, I will not be so quick to ignore the requests of my wife because I simply do not want to do what she is asking. When I fear God, I will not be so quick to indulge my selfish desires when I see needs of others going unattended. When I fear God, I will not be so quick to give in to the temptation that commit sin.
When I fear God, I will be quick to meet the needs of others as personal sacrifice to myself. When I fear God, I will refrain from gossip and negative talk about others. When I fear God, will be quick to stop whatever I am doing to spend time with my kids, training, teaching, playing, and loving them. When I fear God, I will be quick to fulfill the requests of my wife because I love God enough to love her the way He tells me to. When I fear God, I will be quick to count my ONLY NEED to be that of serving others and bringing glory to my Father's Holy name.
Yes, fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom because when we fear the Lord, our very way of thinking is transformed and radically changed. Our values, opinions, beliefs, desires, goals, dreams, actions, every facet of our life is affected when we fear the Lord. We will seek to please Him in every possible way and there is no thought left for ourselves.
When I fear God, I will see my life through the lenses of Scripture and as I see God incarnate through the life of Christ, I learn how to please Him and to glorify Him.
So, I suppose the only real question that must be asked at this point is, "Do I fear the Lord?" For without fear of the Lord, wisdom does not exist.
When I fear God, I will be quick to meet the needs of others as personal sacrifice to myself. When I fear God, I will refrain from gossip and negative talk about others. When I fear God, will be quick to stop whatever I am doing to spend time with my kids, training, teaching, playing, and loving them. When I fear God, I will be quick to fulfill the requests of my wife because I love God enough to love her the way He tells me to. When I fear God, I will be quick to count my ONLY NEED to be that of serving others and bringing glory to my Father's Holy name.
Yes, fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom because when we fear the Lord, our very way of thinking is transformed and radically changed. Our values, opinions, beliefs, desires, goals, dreams, actions, every facet of our life is affected when we fear the Lord. We will seek to please Him in every possible way and there is no thought left for ourselves.
When I fear God, I will see my life through the lenses of Scripture and as I see God incarnate through the life of Christ, I learn how to please Him and to glorify Him.
So, I suppose the only real question that must be asked at this point is, "Do I fear the Lord?" For without fear of the Lord, wisdom does not exist.
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