For the first time in about seven and a half years,
I've produced for you this morning a sermon outline
with some texts in there.
That's either because I'm more organised
than I've been in for seven and a half years
or I'm more confused than I've been for seven and a half years.
And as I go through this,
I don't want you to be as confused as I am.
So hopefully that you can follow along.
Proverbs, as I've said to a number of people
throughout the course of the last couple of weeks,
Proverbs has been doing my head in.
And it's been a lot of work to get to this point.
So there's a sermon in each one of these,
at least in each one of these points I want to make today.
So let's pray that we might get the message
of God's word to us right now.
Father, I pray that you would speak to us
with clarity through your word.
There's a bunch of ideas.
I pray, Lord, as people pursuing wisdom,
that we would not just stop here,
but in fact that we would pursue you
and continue to pursue you regardless of what happens.
In the next little half an hour or so.
Lord, Father, we pray that you would speak to us
with clarity, implant your word deep in our hearts
and particularly your love might be bound around our necks,
that it might be settled in our hearts,
that we might be confident in who we are in you.
Amen.
Alistair McIntyre in his book, After Virtue,
gives an illustration which has become quite famous.
Imagine you're standing at a bus stop
and a young man comes, walks up to you and says to you,
hey, the Latin name for the common wild duck
is Historonicus, Historonicus, Historonicus.
How do you make sense of that?
Why did that just happen?
What does it mean?
There's only one way to make sense of that statement
and that is to put it into a story.
You have to ask,
what is the story in which that incident,
that statement makes sense?
Because without the story, it makes no sense.
And so McIntyre says that there's a few options.
For instance, it could be a sad story
that the man is in fact mentally ill
and that would make sense
of that little interaction you've just had.
Another possibility is that it's a case of mistaken identity.
Maybe a few days earlier,
the man was in a library doing some research
on the Latin name of the common wild duck.
He spoke to the librarian about that project he was doing
to get some help
and maybe you look like the librarian
and so that would explain
it was a case of mistaken identity at a bus stop.
A further possibility,
that is that he is in fact a spy
and he's mistaken you for his contact
and he's inadvertently passed on to you
the contact code.
You see, the statement makes no sense
unless you stick it into a story
and the story that you put it in
completely determines how you will respond to it.
Your response might be one of pity
or it might be one of confusion
or it might be one of anxiety
of looking over your shoulder.
How we live is determined
by what we think the story of the world is.
How we live is determined
by what we think the story of the world is.
And the story of the society in which we live,
the secular society,
is that we are here by accident
and that when we die, we rot.
That's the story of our society.
There is no order or pattern.
Everything is by chance.
There's no absolute truth.
There's no moral standards.
This life is all there is
and therefore,
this is the only happiness
that you will ever get.
And that story determines how you live.
Wisdom equals beshainment.
The attitude of happiness here and now.
Sexual ethics,
the way you think about your money,
how you raise your children,
what the purpose of your work is,
your relationships,
everything,
everything in life
fits in that story.
Everything.
There's nothing that it does not touch.
Now, the Christian person
sees the story of the world quite differently.
Christianity says
that we are all created by God
and so that absolutely everything
that we have is a gift from him,
including the money
that we just handed on just then.
Christianity says
that the problems of this world
are all linked
to our rejection of God.
But this same God
who's been rejected
came into his world
to redeem it,
not just to redeem the world,
but that one day
he's going to renew the world,
his broken world.
And Christianity said
that this life
is not the only life.
It claims that this life
is in fact
a relatively small part
of our entire existence
and the greatest amount
of joy and happiness
is yet to come.
And so that story
shapes everything in your life.
There's not an area
of your existence
that it does not touch.
And Proverbs shows us
how everything
is touched and shaped
and impacted
by that story of existence
with the God of the Bible
behind it
and in it
and through it.
And so this series
is about wisdom.
It's about what wisdom is
and how to get it
and how to grow in wisdom
and it's about
how to allow,
align our lives
with that story,
with ultimate reality,
and Proverbs 9 verse 10
says the fear
of the Lord
is the beginning
of wisdom.
That's the Christian story.
It starts with God.
That's where wisdom starts.
Now last week
I went with
the following definition.
I said that wisdom
is becoming competent
with regard
to the realities of life.
I ripped it off
Gerhard von Rad.
Wisdom
is becoming competent
in regard
to the realities of life
and I mentioned
two key areas
that were essential
for the wise life.
Firstly,
you have to see
and admit
that there is a pattern
in this world,
that God has made the world
and there is a pattern.
There are principles
by which life
customarily works.
Secondly,
you've got to see
that you cannot know
the whole pattern.
Much of the pattern
is hidden from us
and so
that's the beginning.
But the beginning
as we just read out
in those passages
in Proverbs 1.7
it says
the fear of the Lord
is the beginning
of knowledge.
That's the Christian framework.
That's the Christian story.
And chapter 9 verse 10
says
the fear of the Lord
is the beginning
of wisdom.
Now they are
very similar statements
but they are
different statements.
Proverbs 1.7
reveals
that the fear
of the Lord
is more comprehensive
than we actually think.
Fear of the Lord
is not just about
how to do moral things.
Relationship with God,
faith in God
completely determines
what you know
about the world
and how you know
the world.
That's a pretty astounding
and controversial statement.
In our modern society
it just does not
think like that.
Our society thinks
it's possible
for people
to have different
faiths,
different personal
individual ideas
about God
but they're to be
kept private
and separate.
That's a matter
of faith.
That's a thing
over there.
The general consensus
is that faith,
that stuff about God,
is opposed
to reason
and that reason
and knowledge
can only operate
in its full capacity
if it's separated
from faith,
if it's separated
from God
and knowledge of God.
We're a secular society
and so in the past
couple of weeks
media personality
Andrew Denton
called on those
opposed to euthanasia
on religious grounds
to step aside
from the debate.
Get out of the way.
He's of the view
that if you take
faith out of the equation
we can then have
a sensible,
reasonable,
logical,
knowledgeable discussion
about the issue.
He said this
to the National Press
Club
on the 10th of August,
to those
whose beliefs
instruct you
that only God
can decide
how a human being
should die,
I urge you
step aside.
May your beliefs
sustain you
and those you love
but do not impose
them on the rest of us.
See the thinking?
Faith
and reason,
God
and knowledge,
they don't belong
at the same table
and Proverbs
opens
with a statement
that's exact opposite.
The fear of God
is the beginning
of knowledge.
It's the beginning
of how we know anything.
The fear of God.
Faith is the foundation
from which all
of our reasoning
comes.
Our faith
is the beginning
of our knowledge.
Now Denton's view
is a fairly common view
and it goes like this.
The only things
that we can be
really sure of
are the things
that we can,
that can be
scientifically proven.
The facts.
You might have
your belief
about morality
and about God
and that's fine.
That's for faith stuff.
Keep it over there.
The only things
that we're really sure about
are the things
which are scientifically proven.
But
that statement
can't be scientifically proven.
Therefore,
on its own terms,
you can't be sure of it.
If you don't believe
that anything
that happens
in this world
has a supernatural cause,
that's fine.
But understand this.
In and of itself,
that is a belief.
It's not a statement of fact.
It is a belief.
Once you've adopted
that particular worldview,
that particular view of reality,
by faith,
all of your reasoning
flows out from it.
to be a convinced atheist
is a position
of faith.
And therefore,
all of your reasoning
flows out from that,
of how you view the world.
Everything in life
or every one of us,
every single person,
Andrew Denton,
you, me, whoever,
we all make
faith leaps.
All of us.
And so the struggles
in our society
at the moment
appear to be
religion
against no religion.
When in actual fact,
the real struggles
in our society
is religion
against religion.
It's faith
against faith.
That's the real struggle
in our society.
Including
the religion
of secularism.
A religion
is simply
a system of beliefs
that explains
where life comes from,
what life means
and how we as human beings
are meant to live.
And so,
Andrew Denton
stood in front
of the National Press Club
and
proclaimed
his religion
is what he did.
Everyone has
a faith view
of reality
because it is
the only way
to get a view
of reality
once you have
taken on
that faith view
all of your
reasoning
of how you
understand the world
flows from it.
And everybody
has to base
their entire life
and all of
their reasoning
on some view
about God
that they have
taken on by faith.
Whether you're
the committed
Christian
or you're
the atheist.
Even to say,
well,
no one really
knows in the end.
How do you know
that statement's true?
It's more true
to say,
well,
I hope
no one really
knows in the end.
We need faith
to reject God
and we need faith
to embrace God.
And the Christian
story that we're
beginning in with
the book of
Proverbs
is that the
beginning of
our knowledge,
the way things
actually are
and the way
things actually
work
and what we're
meant to do
about it
is God,
the God of
the Bible.
He is the
God of the
Bible who is
ultimate reality
in and of
himself.
God is the
beginning of
knowledge and
wisdom.
He is the
foundation of
knowing how
things actually
are, how
things actually
work and what
we are to do
about it.
That is how we
are to align
our lives,
live our lives
according to
reality.
And what this
means for you,
that if you are
a Christian,
is that your
relationship with
God, therefore,
is absolutely
central to your
life.
It's not just
something that
you do on
Sundays.
It is
absolutely
central.
It means that
God is not
an add-on to
your life.
God is not
something else
that you have
in your
backpack to
help you live
a better
kind of life.
Your
relationship
with God
is the
most central
thing in
your life.
Jesus
influences and
flavours and
shapes and
determines
everything you
think and
do in this
world.
Everything.
That's the
book of
Proverbs.
Notice,
though, that
it's not just
that God is
the beginning
point or
the foundation
of knowledge
and wisdom,
but the fear
of the Lord
is the
foundation.
It's a
theme, this
idea of
theme of the
Lord is a
theme that
runs through
the whole
Bible, not
just in
Proverbs.
There are
over 120
occasions in
the Old
Testament and
New
Testament where
this statement
occurs.
It is, if you
like, the sum
of everything
that we're
meant to be
and do.
There is a
place in
Job where
God shows
how important
the term
is when
he says,
have you
considered my
servant Job,
there is
none like
him in
all the
earth, a
man who
fears God
and shuns
evil.
But the
concept of
fear of God
raises negative
connotations for
it's a sense
of dread,
you know,
be scared,
be very,
very, very
scared of
the Lord.
And this
is not what
the sense
is when
it's used
here or
in fact in
other parts
of the
Bible.
It's a
little bit
of it but
it's not
the entire
sense.
Deuteronomy
10.12
says,
and now
Israel,
what does
the Lord
your God
ask of
you but
to fear
the Lord
your God,
to walk
in obedience
to him,
to love
him,
to serve
him,
serve
the Lord
your God
with all
your heart,
with all
your soul,
and to
observe
the Lord's
commands
and decrees
that I'm
giving you
today for
your own
good.
Notice it
doesn't say
you either
fear God
or love
God.
They're not
put up
against one
another.
The more
in fact
you fear,
the more
you love
him and
the more
you love
him,
the more
you will
fear him.
They are
actually
connected and
they roll
together.
Sinclair
Ferguson
in his
book Grow
in Grace
describes
the fear
of God
as the
indefinable
mixture of
reverence,
fear,
pleasure,
joy,
and awe
which fills
our hearts
when we
realise who
God is
and what
he has
done for
us.
Fear of
God does
include some
sense of
dread.
There is a
very real
sense that we
should dread
God's
judgement.
You see,
after Adam
sinned,
he was
afraid in
Genesis 3.10.
It's a
right response.
It's an
appropriate
response.
It would
be a
presumption
for him
not to
be afraid.
When Paul
describes the
abject
depravity of
humanity
which they've
fallen into,
he says in
Romans 3.18,
there is no
fear of
God before
their eyes.
That is,
people are
neither in
awe of God
nor afraid of
his judgement.
And so,
fear,
dread is an
appropriate
response.
But it
doesn't explain
the entire
picture of
the Bible
when it
talks about
the fear
of the
Lord.
The Bible
tells us
that in
his grace
and his
mercy,
God
allows
himself to
be our
place of
refuge.
So,
get this
from Proverbs
14,
verse 26.
Whoever
fears the
Lord,
has a
secure
fortress.
And for
their
children,
it will
be a
refuge.
The God
we fear
is our
refuge and
our
fortress.
Ferguson
makes a
distinction,
I think,
quite helpfully,
between servile
fear and
filial fear.
The word
servile comes
from the
Latin word
service,
which means
slave,
and filial
is from
filius,
which means
son.
And so
servile fear
is the
sort of
fear
a slave
would have
towards a
harsh and
unyielding
master.
And Christians
fall into
servile fear,
in fact,
too often,
if we don't
understand the
grace of God
and his
acceptance of
us in the
Lord Jesus.
If we
believe that
we're in a
performance
relationship
with God,
then he
will always
appear to be
a hard
taskmaster
who we
can never
please.
He will
be the
divine ogre
ready to
judge us
for our
failure to
live up to
his standards.
That is,
if your
relationship
with God
is a
slavish
fear,
then any
obedience
is somewhat
reluctant.
I'm always
looking for
the bare
minimum.
When it
comes to
radical
generosity,
you know,
what's the
limit on
radical?
always
looking for
the bare
minimum,
rather than
desiring to
please a
loving
father.
See,
filial fear,
on the
other hand,
is the
loving fear
of a
child towards
his father.
And what
is central,
I think,
to this idea
of fear is
the sense of
reverential
awe, just
awe at
God.
Now, it's
unfortunate that
we have robbed
the word
awe of some
of its
impact these
days.
It's been
lost through
a lot of
flippant use,
something that
I do way
too often and
my children
do.
Drove into
the car park
at Chats
with Chase
the other
day and
one of the
kids pointed
out a car
and said,
oh, Dad,
that is an
awesome car.
And my
immediate
response was,
yes.
I said,
why is it
awesome?
It's
orange.
Now, it
just so
happens it
was a
half million
dollar
McLaren.
And orange
wasn't the
first thing
that came
into mind
when I
saw it.
I did
agree it
was an
awesome
car.
You know,
there is a
sense of
dread.
You get
behind the
wheel of a
McLaren and
put your
foot onto
the floor,
there is
going to be
an element
of fear
that's going
to come
to mind,
I think,
and you're
going to
feel that
in a way
that I
don't
feel it
in my
Ford
territory.
So there
is a
sense of
awe,
but even
then I
think a
McLaren is
pushing the
boundary of
the definition
of the
word
awe.
A
tornado
is awesome.
It's
something you
want to
look at,
but it's
something that
you're afraid
of.
A burger
is not
awesome.
It's
tasty,
it's not
awesome.
Niagara
Falls is
awesome.
A music
CD might
sound
great,
but it's
not
awesome.
You see,
a fear
of God
acknowledges
the greatness
of God,
that he
is unfathomably
great.
He is
infinitely
greater than
the tornado
of Niagara
Falls.
He is
infinitely
greater than
the most
significant
of nations.
He controls
all rulers.
He puts
the heavens
in place.
He spreads
out the
earth.
He holds
all things
together by
the power
of his
word.
He is
a God
of transcendent
holiness.
He is
glorious
perfection,
more than
moral purity,
no darkness,
no evil,
no brokenness
at all.
He is
awesome.
He is
worthy
of our
awe.
That's
why you see
throughout the
Bible,
whether anyone
is confronted
with God
at all,
they fall
down on
their face
and say,
I'm not
worthy to
be in your
presence.
fear of
the Lord
is
trusting
God.
A
relationship
where you
trust God
is what it
looks like
to fear
God.
Proverbs
3,
verses 5
and 6,
trust in
the Lord
with all
your heart,
lean not
on your
own
understanding
and in
all your
ways submit
to him
and he
will make
your path
straight.
You see,
fear of
the Lord
means
unconditional
trust,
not relying
on how
we think
the world
works,
not relying
upon our
knowledge
and our
wisdom
of what
we think
the patterns
are and
what the
patterns
should be,
but trust
in God's
revelation
of how
things actually
are and
how things
actually work
and what
we're meant
to do
as a result
of it.
In
Isaiah 40
we get a
glimpse of
God's
infinite
greatness
in holding
the vast
waters of
the earth,
all the
oceans,
it says
he holds
them in
the hollow
of his
hand and
he weighs
the
mountain
ranges
on a
scale.
End of
Isaiah
talks about
God,
the earth
is God's
footstool
and in
Isaiah 40
when he's
talking about
the greatness
of God
Isaiah says
this,
who can
fathom the
spirit of
the Lord
or instruct
the Lord
as his
counsellor?
Whom did
the Lord
consult to
enlighten
him and
who taught
him the
right way?
Who was
it that
taught him
knowledge and
showed him
the path
of understanding?
In other
words,
so,
who was
God's
advisors?
Who
served as
his
advisors?
You?
Me?
No,
Isaiah,
you're
ridiculous.
Who was
there when
he was
plotting out
the design
of a
DNA and
said,
actually,
God,
you need
to do it
this way?
Anyone?
Everyone?
Point of
Isaiah 40
is God
wants your
trust,
not your
advice on
how the
world works.
It's absurd
to think that
we can add
anything,
and yet so
often we want
to be his
advisors.
We continue
to tell him
how certain
circumstances
should be
changed,
and we
question his
wisdom when
we don't
understand what
he's doing.
every area
of life.
There are
two questions
for us.
Firstly,
are you
willing to
do whatever
God says
in the
Bible on
issue,
whether you
agree with
it or not,
because his
wisdom is
infinitely greater
than yours?
Are you
willing to
trust that
he and
only he has
the whole
pattern of
the way the
world works?
trust?
And second
question is,
are you
willing to
accept anything
that God
sends to
any area
of your
life,
whether you
understand it
or not?
Because he
is worthy
and he
is wise
and he
knows what's
best.
He knows
how to
grow you
in wisdom.
See,
the fear
of the
Lord is
a life
of trust
even
through a
life of
discipline.
One of
the key
things we
need to
see and
to lean
on is
what God
says about
the times
when the
patterns of
life don't
make sense
for us.
Those times
when we
can't see
what God
is doing.
Now I
think that
if we're
to hold
on to
this,
that even
when the
bad times
come and
the suffering
hits,
I believe
this turbo
charges our
growth in
wisdom.
It's
right there
in verses
11 and
12 of
Proverbs 3,
my son,
do not
despise the
Lord's
discipline and
do not
resent his
rebuke because
the Lord
disciplines those
he loves.
As a
father,
the son,
he delights
in.
You see,
what a
father does
at times
is that
they bring
things into
a child's
life which
are painful.
We actually
bring them
into a
child's
life which
are painful
in order
for the
child to
grow and
to flourish.
And I'm
assuming that
every parent
wants their
child to
make the
right choices
in life and
so therefore
discipline is
essential.
People who
live charmed
lives live
shallow lives.
Our
strengths and
our weaknesses
become obvious
when they are
tested.
God's
discipline shapes
us in the
same way.
You see,
we don't often
really trust
God until we
are drowning.
We don't
often come
to see that
Jesus is
all that we
need until
Jesus is
all that we
have.
God's
discipline is
designed to
grow us in
wisdom.
It
turbocharges
all the
things that
move us
towards wisdom.
Bible reading,
prayer,
the community
of believers,
all that sort
of thing.
You see,
it's also
true that
suffering can
have exact
opposite effect
on someone.
It can
make you
prouder.
Suffering can
in fact make
you prouder.
You know,
you don't
understand,
Steve,
what I've
had to go
through.
You've just
never had what
I've had to
go through.
Make you
feel better
than other
people,
more noble
than other
people.
Suffering can
also make you
a coward
because you
become so
broken you
couldn't face
another thing.
You know,
I've had so
many disappointments
with people
in life,
I'm just
going to
completely
withdraw away
from people.
That's a
cowardly
response.
Suffering can
make you
quite bitter.
And so
God's
discipline
that comes
from his
all-knowing
wise hand
pushes you
in two
different
directions.
Either in
growth in
wisdom and
greater trust
in God,
or it pushes
you further
and further
towards foolishness.
One or the
other.
One or the
suffering is
inevitable.
It will
make you
wise,
it will
make you
stupid.
The fear
of the Lord
is the
key.
God's
wisdom,
the
God's
wisdom,
the
God's
wisdom,
the
God of
tremendous
wisdom,
this God
who is
awesome,
is the
God who
delights in
you when
it happens.
It's so
essential for
us to know
this,
know this,
know this.
The Lord's
disciplines
those he
loves.
As a
father,
the son,
he delights
in.
You have
to be
absolutely
sure that
he loves
you and
delights in
you when
the bad
things happen
or the
suffering is
going to
harden you
and it's
going to
make you
turn away
from God
and life
and make
you arrogant
and proud
because you
think you
know better
than God.
Discovering
the love
and the
mercy and
the delight
and the
grace of
God is
the key
to the
life of
fearing
God,
which is
the beginning
of wisdom
and the
key to
growth in
wisdom.
In
Proverbs
3.3
it says
let love
and faithfulness
never leave
you,
bind them
around your
neck,
write them
on the
tablet of
your heart.
The words
love and
faithfulness
there are
very specific
in the
Hebrew Old
Testament.
They are
referring to
God's
covenant
love and
God's
faithfulness
and they're
about his
never giving
up,
never dying,
always and
forever love
for his
people.
The grace
of God,
his delight
in us
because of
Jesus is
the key
to suffering,
softening
us and
humbling
us and
growing us
in wisdom.
So how
can you be
sure that
God delights
in us?
In
Hebrews 12
in the Old
Testament,
sorry,
in the New
Testament,
back towards
the back,
these verses
from
Proverbs
3,
verses 11
and 12
are picked
up and
they're
dumped into
Hebrews 12
and they
go like
this,
just before
it in
Hebrews 12
it says
this,
let us
fix our
eyes on
Jesus,
the pioneer
and perfecter
of faith,
for the joy
set before
him endured
the cross,
scorning its
shame and
he sat
down at the
right hand
of the
throne of
God.
right there,
right there
in Hebrews
12 is the
confidence that
we need.
We get the
confidence there,
right there,
that we are a
child of God
when we see
what Jesus
has done for
us.
You see,
the baptism
of Jesus,
you might
remember this
back right at
the beginning,
baptism of
Jesus,
the spirit
of God
descended on
him and
a voice
came from
heaven and
said,
this is my
son with
whom I am
well pleased,
or this is
my son,
I delight in
him.
And right
throughout his
life,
whenever Jesus
turns to
God,
he says,
Father,
when the
disciples say,
Jesus,
teach us how
to pray,
he says,
Father,
begin with
our Father,
except for
one place,
it's at the
cross.
Jesus cries
out,
my God,
why have
you forsaken
me?
why have
you abandoned
me?
And the
reason he
cries out that
is because he
was being
expelled,
he's being
rejected.
He was
getting what
we deserve
from God
so that when
we put our
trust in
him,
our sins
are forgiven.
He took
the punishment
from God
that we
deserve so
that when
we believe
in him,
our sins
are dealt
with.
But not
just that.
In John
chapter 1,
which we
looked at
last week,
where Jesus
is the
wisdom of
God,
it says
this about
those who
put their
trust in
the wisdom
of God.
Jesus, it
says,
to all
who did
receive
him,
to those
who
believed in
his name,
he gave
the right
to become
children of
God.
Children
born not
of natural
descent nor
of human
decision or
of a husband's
will,
but born
of God.
God,
Jesus
faced
rejection,
suffering,
rejection,
so that we
can be
included as
sons of
God,
sons to
whom he
delights
him.
Through what
Jesus done,
we adopted
as sons of
God,
brought into
God's
family,
Jesus lost
his sonship
so that we
can be
children of
God,
and therefore
we can trust
him in
suffering because
he himself
has suffered.
let me tell
you that
that story
just there
is the
story that
rewrites
everything
for our
world.
And that's
the story
that is
the story
that rewrites
your story.
Totally
changes
everything.
It
reorientates
your whole
worldview.
It
reorientates
every way
that you
view this
world.
It's the
starting point
and the
foundation of
a life of
wisdom.
Amen.