Grosey's Messages

Proverbs 1:1-7, 2:1-17  1Corinthians 1:18-31   James 1:1-7

The Greeks were full of famous philosophers. Can you think of some Greek philosophers? Socrates, Aristotle. Plato. Pythagoras. Pythagorean theorem. A squared plus B squared equals C squared. Yes, and that's exciting?! Not! Democritus, Parmenides, Cicero. Atomism, for example, the idea that all of matter is made up of little particles called atoms.  Greek philosophers were the first ones that thought that up. And Epicureanism, Platonism, realism, stoicism, hedonism: Life is about pleasure. Let's eat and drink and be merry for tomorrow we die.

For since in the wisdom of God, the world through its wisdom did not know Him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe." Now, that's an amazing statement . The Greeks were looking for wisdom, they were looking for God as well. Plato had statements about God and they were trying to find him through their intellectual achievements, but it was the wisdom of God that they could never find him that way. By thinking deeply and meditating about the world and about yourself, and working through axioms of truth you won't find God that way. He can't be found unless He reveals Himself to people. 

So the Book of Proverbs was written mainly by Solomon. Proverb: Mashal to represent or guide or rule.

Principles for life.

1 The proverbs of Solomon, son of David, king of Israel:  2 To know wisdom and instruction,

to understand words of insight,  

HOW DID SOLOMON GET WISE? 2 CHRONICLES 1:6 And Solomon went up there to the bronze altar before the LORD, which was at the tent of meeting, and offered a thousand burnt offerings on it. 7 In that night God appeared to Solomon, and said to him, "Ask what I shall give you." 8 And Solomon said to God, "You have shown great and steadfast love to David my father, and have made me king in his place. 9 O LORD God, let your word to David my father be now fulfilled, for you have made me king over a people as numerous as the dust of the earth. 10 Give me now wisdom and knowledge to go out and come in before this people, for who can govern this people of yours, which is so great?" 11 God answered Solomon, "Because this was in your heart, and you have not asked for possessions, wealth, honor, or the life of those who hate you, and have not even asked for long life, but have asked for wisdom and knowledge for yourself that you may govern my people over whom I have made you king, 12 wisdom and knowledge are granted to you. I will also give you riches, possessions, and honor, such as none of the kings had who were before you, and none after you shall have the like."

6 to understand a proverb and a saying, the words of the wise and their riddles.

Pro Verb  short statement on behalf of many words.

Some human proverbs are interesting.  Do you "look before you leap?" or is it "he who hesitates is lost?" "You only get what you pay for," or "The best things in life are free." "Leave well enough alone." And then, somebody else comes along and says, "Progress never stands still."

"Better to keep silent and be thought dumb than to open your mouth and remove all doubt."

So these are human proverbs, and there's some truth in all of them, if you figure out the riddle of it.

But God's proverbs are not just short sentences based on long experience; they're not little witticisms that sometimes just sound good. These are revealed truths from the Word of God, and they are God's ways that God's people can know true wisdom. Wisdom is the theme of the entire Book of Proverbs. And if you read the Book of Proverbs. Wisdom is used over and over and over again. For example, if you were to read the first six verses, you would find the word wisdom or wise used over and over again—just in those first six or seven verses here in the Book of Proverbs. So wisdom is the key.

1:7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.

Proverbs 9 ¹⁰ The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight. Proverbs 10 ²⁷ The fear of the LORD prolongs life, but the years of the wicked will be short.

Psalms 111 ¹⁰ The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice it have a good understanding. His praise endures forever!

So the Book of Proverbs was written mainly by Solomon.

1 The proverbs of Solomon, son of David, king of Israel:  2 To know wisdom and instruction,

to understand words of insight,  3 to receive instruction in wise dealing, in righteousness, justice, and equity;  4 to give prudence to the simple, knowledge and discretion to the youth— 5 Let the wise hear and increase in learning, and the one who understands obtain guidance,
In the wisdom of God, the world through its wisdom did not know him. But a simple slave, or a common man or woman who hears and believes the gospel of Jesus Christ, they have the wisdom of God.

"There's no true wisdom apart from God." It says, "The foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man's strength."

Wisdom. To make right decisions for the right reason at the right time.

It is being in tune with God's perspective rather than standing on our own.

So often I see people standing for causes who really have no historical or contextual information to make the decisions. We live in an age where truth is on the scaffold.

To have Wisdom you must start at the right spot.

Start With Christ              Start With the Cross       Start With Grace

Start With Christ  1 Cor 1:30 And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, 31 so that, as it is written, "Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord."

Start With Christ    And instead true Wisdom is found in knowing Christ. 20 Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? 21 For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. 22 For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, 23 but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, 24 but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.

 30 And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, 31 so that, as it is written, "Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord."

Start With the cross 1 Cor 1:18 For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 19 For it is written,  "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart."

Start With Grace     "It is because of Him that you are in Christ Jesus." Think about that. It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us, what? Wisdom from God. Our wisdom is Jesus Christ. He is our wisdom. He has become for us wisdom from God, that is our righteousness, holiness and redemption. Therefore, as it is written, Let him who boasts boast in the Lord.  "That no flesh should glory in his presence" (1 Corinthians 1:29). There are not going to be any peacocks in Heaven. "That no flesh should glory in his presence" (1 Corinthians 1:29). That's the reason why He saves us by grace. He won't save us by works, will He? "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should"—what?—"boast" (Ephesians 2:8–9). Why does God use ordinary people and give them extraordinary power? "That no flesh should glory in his presence" (1Corinthians 1:29). No superstar is in Heaven.

The Injurious Want of Wisdom

Unstable       he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

James 1:6 for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. ⁷ For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; ⁸ he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

Unhappy 1:18,19 but these men lie in wait for their own blood; they set an ambush for their own lives. Such are the ways of everyone who is greedy for unjust gain; it takes away the life of its possessors.

8:  34  Blessed is the one who listens to me, atching daily at my gates, waiting beside my doors.
 35 For whoever finds me finds life and obtains favor from the LORD,
 36 but he who fails to find me injures himself; all who hate me love death."

Ungodly      Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the LORD, would have none of my counsel and despised all my reproof, therefore they shall eat the fruit of their way, and have their fill of their own devices.

The Infallible Way to Wisdom      Proverbs 2:1-9

Appreciate the Word

1 My son, if you receive my words and treasure up my commandments with you,

2 making your ear attentive to wisdom and inclining your heart to understanding;

3 yes, if you call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding,

Psalm 19:7 The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure,

making wise the simple;

2Tim 3: 15 and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.

Assimilate the Word

4 if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures,

5 then you will understand the fear of the LORD and find the knowledge of God.

6 For the LORD gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding;

7 he stores up sound wisdom for the upright; he is a shield to those who walk in integrity,

8 guarding the paths of justice and watching over the way of his saints.

Seek it. Search for it.

Activate the Word

Matt 7: 24 "Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. 26 And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it."

9 Then you will understand righteousness and justice and equity, every good path;

10 for wisdom will come into your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul;

11 discretion will watch over you, understanding will guard you,

12 delivering you from the way of evil, from men of perverted speech,

13 who forsake the paths of uprightness to walk in the ways of darkness,

14 who rejoice in doing evil and delight in the perverseness of evil,

15 men whose paths are crooked, and who are devious in their ways.

16 So you will be delivered from the forbidden woman, from the adulteress with her smooth words,

17 who forsakes the companion of her youth and forgets the covenant of her God;

Pray Unceasingly James 1:5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.⁶ But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.⁷ For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord;⁸ he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

Pray Intensely                    Pray Expectantly

The Inviting Witness of Wisdom

A Public Invitation 20 Wisdom cries aloud in the street, in the markets she raises her voice;  21 at the head of the noisy streets she cries out; at the entrance of the city gates she speaks:

8: 1 Does not wisdom call? Does not understanding raise her voice? 2 On the heights beside the way, at the crossroads she takes her stand; 3 beside the gates in front of the town, at the entrance of the portals she cries aloud: 4 "To you, O men, I call, and my cry is to the children of man. 5 O simple ones, learn prudence; O fools, learn sense.
A Pressing Invitation  22 "How long, O simple ones, will you love being simple? How long will scoffers delight in their scoffing and fools hate knowledge?  23 If you turn at my reproof, behold, I will pour out my spirit to you; I will make my words known to you.  24 Because I have called and you refused to listen, I have stretched out my hand and no one has heeded,  25 because you have ignored all my counsel and would have none of my reproof,  26 I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when terror strikes you,  27 when terror strikes you like a storm and your calamity comes like a whirlwind, when distress and anguish come upon you.  28 Then they will call upon me, but I will not answer; they will seek me diligently but will not find me.  29 Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the LORD,  30 would have none of my counsel and despised all my reproof,  31 therefore they shall eat the fruit of their way, and have their fill of their own devices.
A Personal Invitation

32 For the simple are killed by their turning away, and the complacency of fools destroys them;
 33 but whoever listens to me will dwell secure and will be at ease, without dread of disaster."

Proverbs 19 ²³ The fear of the LORD leads to life, and whoever has it rests satisfied; he will not be visited by harm.

the 83-member crew of the USS Pueblo, who had previously discarded faith as excess baggage, turned to prayer and the Bible to sustain them in their 11-month imprisonment by the North Korean government in 1968. The article said, "A symbol of both their faith and their unity was the 'Pueblo Bible,' scraps written out from memory and jotted down on toilet paper or on pieces of paper that had been given the men to write the 'confessions' their captors beat them to obtain."

Isn't it strange how in the face of difficulties people turn to a book as old as the Bible for help? Of course, truth has no date on it. The multiplication table and the law of gravity are no less true because they are old. The Bible is true, eternal, and able to comfort and strengthen people even today.

Since God's word is ever true and helpful we ought to do three things with it:

1. We need to take it in. Appreciate it. Read it and memorize it Assimilate it. The psalmist said, "Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee" (Psalm 119:11). God's word in us becomes a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path. To take God's word in demands discipline. We need to set a time and place for daily Bible study and then stick with it.

2. We need to live it out. Activate it. Put into practice those things you have learned. Christianity is not merely academic. It is practical and should show in our lives. The probing question has been raised: "If you were on trial for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?" There certainly would be if we lived out the word of God.

3. We need to pass it on. Teach it to others also. Especially parents should instil the teachings of God's word to their kids.  That was Solomon's aim with the book of Proverbs. He says over and over again, "Listen my son."  Dads sit down and say listen my son. Mum's say listen my daughter.  And take your kids through the Word of God. Otherwise they may not be wise, but otherwise!