Proverbs: How to Build a Life: The Way of Wisdom

We begin a new series through the Old Testament book of Proverbs called How to Build a Life, the art of living according to the book of Proverbs. In this opening message from Proverbs 1:1-7, Grant Clark makes the case that in an age drowning in information yet starved for wisdom, the good life is not something we invent from scratch by looking inward, but a skill we receive from God by starting with him.The series began with a diagnosis of why the modern world leaves us disoriented:"For most of us, somewhere along the path to adulthood comes the unsettling realization that most people are winging it. They don't know what they are doing. They don't know where they are going. And they aren't sure what the point is. To some extent this is just the challenge of growing up and figuring out life, but there is something special about the modern world which has disoriented us and our moral imaginations... We lack guiding principles and authority figures to orient us toward the Good Life." - Alan Noble (To Live Well)The first challenge is the information age. We have more content than we could ever consume, but access to information is not the same as wisdom. Data is very different to discernment."From the dawn of civilization to 2003, five exabytes of data were created. The same amount was created in the last two days." - Eric Schmidt (Former Google CEO)The second challenge is the age of authenticity, in which the old authorities, institutions, and inherited ways of living have all come under suspicion, so we are left trying to build a life from scratch."Expressive individualism is also iconoclastic because it involves an inherently critical position toward culture. It inclines us to suspect that society is always trying to squeeze us into its mold and make us inauthentic... It sees traditional forms of external authority and social existence as intrinsically oppressive. Therefore, traditional religious institutions and teachings could be seen as less plausible, as hindering innovation, and as a negative, oppressive moral force." - Carl Trueman (The Desecration of Man)So what is a proverb? A proverb is a simple, but insightful saying, meant to train us in moral skillfulness. Proverbs are not life hacks, inspirational quotes, or success formulas. As wisdom literature, a proverb is a principle, not a promise, prophecy, or precept."A proverb is a short sentence based on long experience." - Miguel de CervantesAnd what is wisdom? Wisdom (Hokmah) is "skill in the art of godly living." This wisdom is the skill of living in God's world, according to God's design."Its function in scripture is to put godliness into work clothes." - Derek KidnerWhere is this wisdom found? The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge (Proverbs 1:7; 2:6; 9:10). We start by coming to God as the foundation we build our lives upon, and when we see him rightly, everything else comes into focus."I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else." - C. S. Lewis (Mere Christianity)But what is the fear of the Lord? Thomas Aquinas described two types of fear: servile fear (the fear of punishment) and filial fear (the fear of offense). Proverbs calls us not to a cowering dread of God but to a reverent, relational fear of him."The fear of the Lord is a life-rearranging, joyful, awe and wonder before the greatness of who God is and what he has done that deeply humbles us, and makes us come alive." - Tim KellerProverbs sets before us two ways to live, the way of the wise (humble and teachable) and the way of the fool (proud and resistant to correction), and it invites us to ask God for wisdom (James 1:5; Proverbs 4:5) and to pursue it actively: call out for it, seek it, treasure it, love it, prize it, and hold on to it.Ultimately Proverbs points beyond wisdom to Jesus, the true and wiser King. He does not only teach the way of wisdom, he is wisdom itself (1 Corinthians 1:24; Colossians 2:3), and he saves us from our own foolishness, which is a matter of the heart. Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it (Proverbs 4:23).Verses referenced:Proverbs 1:1-7 (CSB)Proverbs 1:7 (CSB)Proverbs 2:6 (CSB)Proverbs 9:10 (CSB)Proverbs 2:5 (CSB)James 1:5Proverbs 4:5Proverbs 3:13-15 (CSB)1 Corinthians 1:24 (CSB)Colossians 2:3 (CSB)Proverbs 4:23 (NIV)