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Living Wise: The Voice of Wisdom

Proverbs 1:8-33
Cascades Fellowship CRC, JX
February 3, 2002

When I was a kid, every Saturday morning I would get up before everyone else in

the house, take my blanket and pillow, and go to the living room to lay on the floor in

front of the television for Saturday morning cartoons. I watched Bugs Bunny and Road

Runner, Elmer Fudd and Wile E. Coyote. Other favorites were Scooby Doo and Speed

Buggy. To this day I am still confused how Shaggy could be on both Scooby Doo and

Speed Buggy and why he had different names. At any rate, there was an entire regimen

of what a gym teacher of mine used to refer to as “educational material” that I watched

every Saturday morning.

We laugh at such a notion now. But the truth is that many of the cartoons I used to

watch offered quite a bit toward a humanities education – especially the Looney Toons.

The Warner Brothers often formed the plot of their cartoons around classic works of art.

On a Saturday morning I could be introduced to a painting by Van Gogh, the opera the

Barber of Seville, and the intense symphony The Flight of the Valkaries. Offerings of

jazz, swing, rock and roll; quotes from the greatest philosophical minds throughout

history; obscure references to classic literary works that most of us have never read, all of

these dabblings in the world of the arts and humanities could be found on a typical

Saturday morning as Sylvester stocked Tweety Bird.

And I haven’t even mentioned religion yet. Don’t worry. I am not going to make

some absurd claim like, “Everything I really needed to know for a Masters of Divinity I
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learned during Saturday morning cartoons.” But I would also be remiss if I did not say

that just like the rest of the humanities, religious references were woven throughout the

epic battles of Dawg and Foghorn Leghorn or as Elmer Fudd hunted Bugs Bunny.

One of the more memorable references that has made its way into popular culture

is the picture of an angel appearing on one shoulder and a demon on the other at crucial

time of decision. Normally the demon appears first, trying to tempt the character into

doing something dastardly. With a wink and a husky laugh, the demon prods the

character toward a wicked act. Then, POOF! The angel appears, reminding the character

of his moral responsibility. Normally, the character is bent on being wicked, so he plugs

his ears to what he knows is right – and then POOF! The angel is gone.

Last Sunday, we talked about the beginning of wisdom – the fear of the Lord. In

other words coming into a relationship with our God that inspires in us reverence.

Reverence implies we fear him because he is indeed Almighty God – whose holiness and

power would obliterate us instantaneously, was it not for his grace. Reverence also

means that we love him because he first loved us – the mercy and grace he revealed to us

in Jesus Christ is the evidence of that love. Reverence assumes we also worship and

obey him – he alone is worthy to be worshipped since he is Almighty God and his grace

inspires in us a gratitude that compels us to obey. This relationship takes shape when we

realize he is the Creator and we are his creatures – creatures who have rebelled and are in

need of being restored to a right relationship with the Lord.

That is the foundation for wisdom. This Sunday, we begin to discern the voice of

wisdom – what in the cartoon would have been the angel appearing with a POOF! This
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Sunday we look at Proverbs 1:8-33 and what we will find in some ways reflects the

picture given in the Looney Toons cartoon. We will look at two opposing voices – the

voice of the wicked or foolishness and the voice of wisdom.

To begin our discussion we will look first at vv.8-9. We will look at some of the

benefits of wisdom – benefits that are not immediately evident when one chooses the path

of wisdom. Then we will take a look at the voice of the folly or the wicked in vv. 10-19.

Finally, we will take a look at the voice of wisdom and how imperative it is to unstop our

ears when wisdom calls.

Many have made a great deal out of the fact that the author of Proverbs here

included this exhortation to one’s father and pay attention to the words of one’s mother

right after stating that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. They instantly

draw parallels to how the honoring of parents follows directly after the Ten

Commandments finishes drawing out the parameters for our relationship with God. They

draw the conclusion that what the author is meaning to teach is that the righteous life is

founded on two key relationships – our relationship with God and with our parents.

While I agree that both relationships are key to a life well lived, I think to read that much

into vv.7-9 is a bit much.

One reason for this is because as alluded to earlier and stated clearly last week, v.7

is really the motto for the entire book. The rest of the book is an exploration of what it

means practically live with “the fear of the Lord.” And remember, at the time this was

written, there weren’t any Christian schools or churches to teach kids about how to carry

on a relationship with God. That was the task of the parents – the mother and the father –
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as outlined in Deuteronomy 6. So really, if we see anything being related here in the

terms of what the Israelites were commanded to do, it is the parents carrying out their

obligation teach their children about what it means to walk with the Lord.

Another reason I do not believe we should be trying to turn this passage into a

mini lesson on the commandments is that it neglects what is the real purpose of vv.8-9.

Rather than try to explain what vv.8-9 are intended to do, allow me to demonstrate.

“Okay everybody, listen up. What I am about to say is very important. If you are

going to remain alive once you leave this place, you need to hear what I have to say.”

Did you catch that?

The purpose of vv.8-9 is simply to alert the audience that what’s about to come

next is really, really important. In other words don’t miss it. This particular literary

device is used widely by the apostle Paul in much of his letters to the churches – albeit in

a different form. For Paul it often came in a form similar to this “I do not want you to be

deceived” or “I do not want you to be ignorant.” What is interesting about how this

device is used in Proverbs is that it comes with reward – a benefit. Look at v.9.

They will be a garland to grace your head and a chain to adorn your
neck.

In other words, “If you listen to what I am about to tell you will become more attractive.”

What the author has in mind when he speaks about “a garland of grace” and a “necklace”

is the adornments used by people to make themselves more attractive or to imply their

position in society. Both of the items mentioned in v.9 are ornaments that were markers

of honor or beauty. So the real benefit for the son – or child – is that as he pays attention
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to what the parents have to say about walking in the fear of the Lord – as he grows in

wisdom and stature – he will also grow in favor, become more winsome to others. Does

this ring a bell? It is the way Luke describes the Lord Jesus Christ in Luke 2:52 as he

matured under the tutelage of his parents. That’s something to think about.

I am not going to speak for anyone else here, but I will assume that the experience

I am about to relate to you is fairly common to everyone. When I was in elementary

school – 4th grade to be exact – we were on our way back to class after our weekly visit to

the library. It was springtime, the air was growing warmer daily, the sun was a more

frequent visitor than in past months. And the energy level of the group of nine and ten

year-olds that belonged to Mr. Barnhouse’s fourth grade class was growing exponentially

as the days lengthened toward summer. As usual, we were lining up outside the doors of

the library, along the colonnade that housed the classrooms for the third and fourth grades

waiting for the teachers to gather the stragglers. The sun was hot and blazing and

suddenly the dare was given to have a walk race.

Now understand – there could be no running. That was against school policy.

But… if we were to walk, then we would not be breaking the rules against running along

the colonnade. As the participants marked out the course, the challenge came to me

personally to enter the race. The pressure was on! The eyes of my peers were turned

toward me to see if I would enter the race. We were supposed to stay in line, but I had a

chance to score a double! I had a chance to flaunt the authority of the school and to win a

race. Imagine the respect! Surely, with as fast as I could walk, I would already be back

in line before any teacher could finish gathering the last of the bookworms. As we,
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turned to make the final stretch we came face to face with a rather irate fourth grade

teacher. We were busted – in more ways than one. In Texas at that time, paddling was

heartily embraced. My posterior burned for some time after that.

In many ways, this is just the sort of scenario the father is warning the son against

in vv.10-19. And it is something that all of has faced or will face at some time. In the

case of the son in this passage, the clarion call comes from his peers offering a “get rich

quick” scheme by oppressing others. Peer pressure is the megaphone that the demon on

the left shoulder uses to shout down the angel on our right. But note how the father

presents his case.

He uses phrases like “Come… let us lie in wait for blood…” and “Let us swallow

them whole….” Who would really go for such a thing? Believe it or not, we would – if

we ignored the instruction of wisdom. The point that is being made here is that despite

the attractiveness of the offer, in truth this is what the sinners are enticing you into – a life

of violence and destruction to feed your own appetite.

Honestly, how many extra-marital affairs begin with “Hey, what do you say you

and I have a fling so that we can destroy your marriage, alienate you from your family,

and leave you with an STD?” Or “Come on give it a try! After the chemical induced

euphoria subsides you will have a real appetite for the stuff that will continue to grow

each time you use it. Soon, it will consume your whole paycheck and you will lose your

home, your car, your job, and you will end up in a rehab program that will work about six

months. Or even better, you will begin to sell yourself so that you can get your fix!” If

sinners approached us with this sort of candor, we would be less likely to follow our
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urges. Instead, the appeals of folly come rapped in peers clothing – do this and you will

be successful like me. Do this and you will be cool like me. If you really love me and

want to show it, you’ll sleep with me.

Folks, none of us are immune to these appeals and it is only when we see them for

what they are that we can begin to fortify our hearts against their attraction. Hence, the

form of the father’s instruction – to teach the son, and us, to look beyond the appeal to

what they are really offering. Never forget that wickedness – sin –comes with a high

price. No temporary pleasure is worth that.

But the voice of folly appears so pervasive. How do we combat it? How do we

drown out its siren voice – its alluring call to just this once indulge ourselves, to live a

little?! We listen to the voice of wisdom that’s how.

In vv. 20-33, wisdom is personified as a woman. Now, many of the commentators

will instantly draw a connection between the way wisdom is personified here and Jesus

Christ – a legitimate thing to do – but I want to be a bit more basic to begin with. Note

the very public appeal of wisdom. She goes into the streets and calls to every passer-by.

She goes into the city gate, otherwise known at that time as the seat of government, and

pleads her case. Every place of public discourse and interaction, the cry of wisdom goes

out. And what is here cry? “How long are you going to love following the crowd? How

long will you hate knowledge and remain simple – without knowledge?” In other words,

how much longer are you going to deny, avoid, suppress, flee from, ignore, or forsake

your relationship with God?

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And note what happens as wisdom calls – apparently, no one listens. Instead they

stop up their ears and continue in their simple and foolish ways. O if they would just

hear and respond! But do they? No. And since they did not heed wisdom when she

called to save them from their own foolishness, she will not heed their cries for help

when they finally see their need for wisdom. Why is that?

I mentioned just a few moments ago that to drown out the enticements of the

wicked, we need to heed the voice of wisdom. Folks, that implies effort. It implies

tending to the source of wisdom – the beginning of fear – our relationship with God. In

order to access wisdom, the relationship must be tended to. We must constantly be before

the feet of God drawing from his vast store of wisdom, conversing with our Lord through

the means he has provided – his written Word, prayer, and the fellowship of the saints –

all which is made accessible to us through the presence and the power of the Holy Spirit.

If we are to hear wisdom’s voice, we must become familiar with how it sounds. Just as I

know Rachel’s voice when she calls, as I know Abby’s cry as opposed to Jalina’s, I must

and you must be able to distinguish the voice of wisdom – God’s voice. How? By

spending the time necessary so that we become accustomed to his voice. There is no

substitute, no easy way to do this other than spending the time.

Let me put it to you this way. Glenn, I am going to use you as an example. Say

Glenn comes to me and says he wants his allowance. What’s my response? Naturally, I

am going to laugh at him because I think he is making a joke. Glenn really has no

reasonable expectation that I am going to pay his allowance. Why? Because I am not his

dad. He and I are not bonded in a father/son relationship. We haven’t spent that kind of
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time together. In the same way, if you want to have wisdom accessible to you in your

time of need, you need to spend the time. Otherwise there cannot be any reasonable

expectation. It would be like expecting to pass a calculus exam when all you have ever

studied is algebra.

People of God, what it gets down to is that if want to distinguish the demon’s

voice on our left shoulder from the angel on our right at a critical juncture, we have spend

more time listening to angel in the quiet moments. That’s hard to do, because our nature

is to be futile in our thinking, to tend toward the foolish in our darkened hearts. The

marvelous light of Christ dispels the darkness, but sometimes, old habits are hard to

break. We still want to engage in the foolishness. We have to constantly submit

ourselves to being shaped by the Holy Spirit and giving him fodder to work with by

continually subjecting ourselves to the wisdom found in the Scriptures. That is the only

way to unstop our ears to the voice of wisdom. We have to learn how to listen to its voice

even as the voice of folly calls to us. And as was noted last week, the Book of Proverbs

is full of good material for the Spirit of God to use getting our ears used to the voice of

wisdom.

Beloved in Christ, life is not as simple as it was when I was young boy. I don’t

get up for Saturday morning cartoons any more. But that’s okay. I learned a great deal

from those Saturday morning so long ago. And since that time, I have learned the angel

doesn’t have to go POOF! and disappear. I’ve learned it can be the demon instead. The

first key is realizing what the voice of folly is really offering us. Don’t be fooled by the

packaging. There is a hell of suffering awaiting those who follow the call of the wicked.
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The second key is knowing the voice of wisdom. And for that, you have to spend the

time. There is no substitute. Put these two keys into practice and you begin to live

wisely.