True Wisdom
Series: WISDOM FOR LIFE
Speaker: Steve Jeffrey
Date: 21st August 2016
Passage: Proverbs 8:1-36
00:00:00 --> 00:00:00 Amen, everyone.
00:00:01 --> 00:00:04 Father's Day is fast approaching, in case you weren't aware of that,
00:00:05 --> 00:00:08 and haven't made that all-important purchase.
00:00:08 --> 00:00:10 So I'm going to make a recommendation for you here.
00:00:11 --> 00:00:14 It's called, it's a book called
00:00:14 --> 00:00:17 The Worst Case Scenario Survival Handbook.
00:00:18 --> 00:00:19 It's a great recommendation.
00:00:20 --> 00:00:21 It's a great book to gather.
00:00:21 --> 00:00:27 It's a book that lists a number of dangerous situations
00:00:27 --> 00:00:28 that you can find yourself in
00:00:28 --> 00:00:31 and how to deal with those dangerous situations.
00:00:32 --> 00:00:36 It's a great blokey book to stick on a bookshelf or something like that.
00:00:36 --> 00:00:39 It's actually a serious book.
00:00:40 --> 00:00:42 These guys are not having a lend to themselves.
00:00:42 --> 00:00:45 They're serious sort of survival trainer kind of guys.
00:00:45 --> 00:00:49 And when I say dangerous situations, I mean dangerous situations.
00:00:49 --> 00:00:50 For instance, page 46.
00:00:51 --> 00:00:53 How, this is full of wisdom, right?
00:00:54 --> 00:00:55 How to fend off a shark.
00:00:57 --> 00:00:58 We all need to know that.
00:00:59 --> 00:01:00 Page 64.
00:01:01 --> 00:01:02 How to deal with a charging bull.
00:01:04 --> 00:01:05 Page 57.
00:01:06 --> 00:01:08 How to wrestle free from an alligator.
00:01:09 --> 00:01:11 Which includes the immortal line.
00:01:11 --> 00:01:12 I love this.
00:01:12 --> 00:01:17 If its jaws are closed on something that you want to remove.
00:01:18 --> 00:01:19 For example, a limb.
00:01:21 --> 00:01:24 Tap it or punch it on the snout.
00:01:24 --> 00:01:26 Now that's really helpful information.
00:01:26 --> 00:01:28 This book, as I said, is totally serious.
00:01:28 --> 00:01:34 It gives you instructions on how to deal with a bunch of worst case scenarios you find yourself in day by day.
00:01:34 --> 00:01:36 Or in most cases, I think none of us find ourselves in those situations.
00:01:36 --> 00:01:38 Such as page 54.
00:01:38 --> 00:01:40 How to escape from a mountain lion.
00:01:40 --> 00:01:44 Apparently, it suggests take your coat off and wave it up really big.
00:01:44 --> 00:01:46 And it makes you look bigger than it is.
00:01:46 --> 00:01:47 And it runs away like a pussycat.
00:01:48 --> 00:01:49 And it goes on and on.
00:01:49 --> 00:01:50 How about this one?
00:01:50 --> 00:01:54 How to leap from a motorbike into a car.
00:01:54 --> 00:02:02 But there's a key footnote.
00:02:02 --> 00:02:04 There's a key footnote to this one.
00:02:04 --> 00:02:12 And it says, remember that in many newer cars, only the front windows roll all the way down.
00:02:13 --> 00:02:15 Key bit of information there.
00:02:15 --> 00:02:17 If you're hoping to get all the way into the car.
00:02:17 --> 00:02:17 Okay.
00:02:18 --> 00:02:19 How about this one?
00:02:20 --> 00:02:22 How to manoeuvre on the top of a train.
00:02:24 --> 00:02:32 And again, a very, very helpful tip in the footnotes.
00:02:32 --> 00:02:36 If a tunnel is approaching, lie down flat quickly.
00:02:38 --> 00:02:41 Like, who hadn't thought of that?
00:02:41 --> 00:02:45 And apparently, it's how to manoeuvre on the top of a train in order to get inside the train.
00:02:45 --> 00:02:49 I find standing at the platform when the doors open the easiest way.
00:02:49 --> 00:02:51 Personally, I'd recommend that.
00:02:51 --> 00:02:52 Or how about this one?
00:02:52 --> 00:02:55 Page 114.
00:02:55 --> 00:02:57 How to land an aeroplane.
00:02:58 --> 00:03:02 And it begins with the rather disconcerting sentence.
00:03:02 --> 00:03:11 If the plane has only got one set of controls, it recommends you push, pull, drag, or carry the pilot out of the pilot seat first.
00:03:12 --> 00:03:14 And then take the controls of the aeroplane.
00:03:14 --> 00:03:16 Really helpful bits of information here.
00:03:16 --> 00:03:19 I can imagine this is great bedtime reading.
00:03:20 --> 00:03:22 This is a sort of wisdom that you want to pass on to your children.
00:03:22 --> 00:03:27 So I'm thinking that it would be great to read to my kids.
00:03:27 --> 00:03:28 And I could just...
00:03:28 --> 00:03:30 And so, you know, how to deliver a baby in a taxi.
00:03:30 --> 00:03:31 There's another one.
00:03:32 --> 00:03:34 How to perform a tracheoctomy.
00:03:34 --> 00:03:39 I could just imagine, you know, my girls, just tell me the tracheoctomy one again.
00:03:40 --> 00:03:41 You know, just in case I might need to know that.
00:03:41 --> 00:03:43 How to do it with a biro.
00:03:43 --> 00:03:45 You can do that with a biro, apparently.
00:03:45 --> 00:03:46 Anyway.
00:03:46 --> 00:03:49 It's all the stuff that you need to survive.
00:03:50 --> 00:03:56 And I've got to suggest that the book deals with situations that most of us will never, ever face.
00:03:57 --> 00:04:02 By contrast, the book of Proverbs, which we're launching into for the next 10 weeks,
00:04:02 --> 00:04:06 deals with things that we face every single day.
00:04:07 --> 00:04:10 It's a book that is full of wisdom for living.
00:04:10 --> 00:04:16 So if you're going to make it through life without making a total mess of it, we need wisdom.
00:04:17 --> 00:04:18 That's what Proverbs is saying.
00:04:18 --> 00:04:25 And every one of us, in fact, will make a mess of life if we don't find and we don't grow in wisdom.
00:04:26 --> 00:04:27 That is, if we don't...
00:04:27 --> 00:04:30 We can have love, but not wisdom.
00:04:31 --> 00:04:36 And if we do have love, but not wisdom, we will harm people with the very best of intentions.
00:04:37 --> 00:04:39 If we have courage, but not wisdom,
00:04:39 --> 00:04:41 we will blunder boldly.
00:04:42 --> 00:04:46 Such as jumping from a motorbike into the front window of a car.
00:04:47 --> 00:04:49 You know, it takes wisdom not to do that sort of thing.
00:04:49 --> 00:04:51 If you have technology, but not wisdom,
00:04:51 --> 00:04:55 you will use the very best of ever communications ever invented
00:04:55 --> 00:04:57 in order to broadcast stupidity.
00:04:57 --> 00:05:00 If you have biblical truth, but not wisdom,
00:05:00 --> 00:05:05 we will make the glorious gospel of the Lord Jesus look ugly to people.
00:05:05 --> 00:05:10 If you have revival in the church, but not wisdom,
00:05:10 --> 00:05:15 you will use the power of God to put the church in reverse gear.
00:05:16 --> 00:05:17 Wisdom is essential.
00:05:18 --> 00:05:23 And so I would recommend the complete worst case scenario survival book for a laugh.
00:05:24 --> 00:05:28 And I would also recommend it if you're planning on camping beside the East Gallagher River
00:05:28 --> 00:05:29 sometime in the near future.
00:05:29 --> 00:05:34 But Proverbs deserves our endless attention.
00:05:37 --> 00:05:42 The great Billy Graham used to read a proverb a day every month.
00:05:44 --> 00:05:46 Every month he'd read through the whole book of Proverbs.
00:05:46 --> 00:05:50 And he did that for years and years and years
00:05:50 --> 00:05:51 because he wanted to grow in wisdom.
00:05:51 --> 00:05:57 So I think it deserves our endless attention.
00:05:57 --> 00:05:59 And yet for most case, for most Christians,
00:05:59 --> 00:06:02 what we tend to do with the book of Proverbs is we dive in
00:06:02 --> 00:06:04 and we grab one proverb here, a proverb there, a proverb there,
00:06:04 --> 00:06:06 our particular favourite proverbs.
00:06:06 --> 00:06:08 And we pin everything on those.
00:06:08 --> 00:06:09 We actually look at the whole book
00:06:09 --> 00:06:14 and investigate what the entirety of wisdom is saying.
00:06:14 --> 00:06:17 T.S. Eliot spoke to our times, I think,
00:06:17 --> 00:06:18 when he asked these three questions.
00:06:18 --> 00:06:22 He said, where is the life that we have lost in living?
00:06:23 --> 00:06:26 Where is the wisdom that we have lost in knowledge?
00:06:26 --> 00:06:30 And where is the knowledge that we have lost in information?
00:06:32 --> 00:06:33 Just sound bites of information.
00:06:33 --> 00:06:35 That's the way we operate at the moment.
00:06:35 --> 00:06:36 We get on our phones, we look at Wikipedia
00:06:36 --> 00:06:41 and just particles of information floating across us.
00:06:41 --> 00:06:47 And I think what we need is we need Proverbs to counsel us
00:06:47 --> 00:06:48 in how to live well.
00:06:50 --> 00:06:51 And that's what's at stake here.
00:06:51 --> 00:06:55 It's not just about surviving and it's not just about dying,
00:06:55 --> 00:06:58 but in fact about how do we live and how do we live well.
00:06:58 --> 00:06:59 That's what Proverbs is about.
00:06:59 --> 00:07:03 This book works well, I believe, when we slow down
00:07:03 --> 00:07:09 and we think and we listen and we journal and we pray.
00:07:11 --> 00:07:12 I think we need to do that.
00:07:13 --> 00:07:15 It's time to get off the information high,
00:07:15 --> 00:07:17 Googling stuff all the time,
00:07:17 --> 00:07:19 and just to pick up the Bible, go deep and grow in wisdom.
00:07:20 --> 00:07:21 That's what we're seeking to do in the next 10 weeks
00:07:21 --> 00:07:22 and hopefully beyond this.
00:07:23 --> 00:07:26 So let's first of all, Proverbs chapter 8 just read out to us.
00:07:26 --> 00:07:31 In verses 10 to 11, it reveals for us the importance of wisdom.
00:07:31 --> 00:07:32 It says,
00:07:32 --> 00:07:34 Choose my instruction instead of silver,
00:07:34 --> 00:07:35 knowledge rather than choice gold,
00:07:36 --> 00:07:38 for wisdom is more precious than rubies
00:07:38 --> 00:07:42 and nothing you desire can compare with her.
00:07:43 --> 00:07:44 Notice the progression.
00:07:45 --> 00:07:47 Wisdom is speaking and wisdom says,
00:07:47 --> 00:07:49 I am more important than silver.
00:07:49 --> 00:07:50 Then it progresses and says,
00:07:50 --> 00:07:51 I'm more important than gold.
00:07:52 --> 00:07:54 And then it says, I am more important than rubies.
00:07:54 --> 00:07:57 And then finally, wisdom gets down to being greater than anything
00:07:57 --> 00:08:00 than you could ever possibly desire.
00:08:02 --> 00:08:03 That's a pretty high call.
00:08:04 --> 00:08:07 Wisdom is infinitely more important
00:08:07 --> 00:08:11 than all the wealth and the fame and the power in the world.
00:08:12 --> 00:08:16 Far more important than the greatest of circumstances in this world
00:08:16 --> 00:08:19 where you've got all the wealth and the power
00:08:19 --> 00:08:21 and the influence and the beauty and everything else.
00:08:21 --> 00:08:25 Far greater than having all the greatest circumstances in the world
00:08:25 --> 00:08:28 is in fact the ability to handle and to grow
00:08:28 --> 00:08:31 and to flourish whatever life circumstances are.
00:08:32 --> 00:08:34 And why is that important?
00:08:34 --> 00:08:38 Because only a tiny, tiny minority of people
00:08:38 --> 00:08:41 in fact get their life circumstances
00:08:41 --> 00:08:42 where they actually want them to be.
00:08:43 --> 00:08:47 And absolutely no one ever keeps them there.
00:08:48 --> 00:08:48 No one.
00:08:49 --> 00:08:50 Not a single person.
00:08:50 --> 00:08:55 Wisdom is infinitely more important.
00:08:56 --> 00:08:58 There are plenty of people in this world
00:08:58 --> 00:09:00 who have got talent and wealth and intellect
00:09:00 --> 00:09:02 and charisma and credentials and beauty
00:09:02 --> 00:09:04 and their lives have unraveled
00:09:04 --> 00:09:06 and there are people who have got very little
00:09:06 --> 00:09:08 of all of those things
00:09:08 --> 00:09:11 and in fact they have lived life very, very well
00:09:11 --> 00:09:13 and the difference is wisdom.
00:09:14 --> 00:09:17 Wisdom is not the same as moral goodness.
00:09:17 --> 00:09:21 It's related to it but it's not identical to it.
00:09:21 --> 00:09:26 It's obvious that to be unethical is stupid in the long run.
00:09:26 --> 00:09:29 Wisdom is not being less than ethical
00:09:29 --> 00:09:32 but it is far more than just being ethical.
00:09:33 --> 00:09:37 For example, it is good and right to help a person
00:09:37 --> 00:09:40 from a position of poverty, to help them out of their poverty.
00:09:40 --> 00:09:43 It's noble, it's good, it's right
00:09:43 --> 00:09:48 and you can do that completely, totally ethically
00:09:48 --> 00:09:51 and still completely screw up their life at the same time.
00:09:52 --> 00:09:53 That is, you can do it with a lack of wisdom.
00:09:55 --> 00:09:57 If you do not understand all the complexities
00:09:57 --> 00:10:00 that are associated as to why people might be in poverty
00:10:00 --> 00:10:02 you can screw it up.
00:10:03 --> 00:10:06 See, it's not even good enough to be people
00:10:06 --> 00:10:07 of high principles and morals.
00:10:07 --> 00:10:08 We need to be people of wisdom
00:10:08 --> 00:10:12 or we will ruin our lives and the lives of other people.
00:10:12 --> 00:10:13 We need wisdom so much.
00:10:15 --> 00:10:17 You know, to make a bunch of decisions in this world
00:10:17 --> 00:10:22 it is, all you basically need is knowledge.
00:10:24 --> 00:10:26 That is, with the right knowledge
00:10:26 --> 00:10:27 you can pick the right car.
00:10:28 --> 00:10:29 It's a Toyota Prado.
00:10:30 --> 00:10:32 You know, it's straightforward.
00:10:35 --> 00:10:36 With the right sort of knowledge
00:10:36 --> 00:10:39 you can, you know, get the right medication.
00:10:39 --> 00:10:41 You can build a bridge.
00:10:41 --> 00:10:43 You can fill out the form correctly.
00:10:43 --> 00:10:47 But what about the decisions that we face every day
00:10:47 --> 00:10:49 across all of our lives
00:10:51 --> 00:10:54 such as, who should I marry?
00:10:54 --> 00:10:55 Who should I date?
00:10:55 --> 00:10:57 Who, you know, should I, in fact, break up?
00:10:58 --> 00:10:59 What career should I go into?
00:11:00 --> 00:11:01 What school should I enroll into?
00:11:02 --> 00:11:03 Should I buy this house?
00:11:03 --> 00:11:05 Should I move to that house?
00:11:05 --> 00:11:06 Where do I live?
00:11:06 --> 00:11:08 What church do I go to?
00:11:09 --> 00:11:10 Should I change jobs?
00:11:11 --> 00:11:13 Should I confront the person right now
00:11:13 --> 00:11:15 or should I just hold back a little bit?
00:11:15 --> 00:11:17 Should I take that risk or just play it safe?
00:11:18 --> 00:11:20 That's the multitude of decisions
00:11:20 --> 00:11:21 that we make every day.
00:11:21 --> 00:11:24 And the rules don't apply.
00:11:24 --> 00:11:26 There's no rules that says
00:11:26 --> 00:11:29 that person is the person you should marry.
00:11:32 --> 00:11:35 And a wrong decision in some or any of those things
00:11:35 --> 00:11:36 can be a real disaster.
00:11:38 --> 00:11:40 And the moral rules don't cover them.
00:11:40 --> 00:11:41 They might give you a broad framework,
00:11:42 --> 00:11:43 but they don't cover the specifics.
00:11:43 --> 00:11:46 And knowledge and facts and principles aren't enough.
00:11:47 --> 00:11:48 I'd go as far as to saying
00:11:48 --> 00:11:51 that the reason why so many of us
00:11:51 --> 00:11:54 are so stuck and anxious and stressed
00:11:54 --> 00:11:57 is because we don't have the wisdom
00:11:57 --> 00:12:00 that we need to deal with the situations
00:12:00 --> 00:12:01 we're currently facing.
00:12:03 --> 00:12:05 It's not just a matter of knowledge.
00:12:05 --> 00:12:07 It's not a matter of IQ or moral principles.
00:12:07 --> 00:12:08 It's a matter of wisdom.
00:12:08 --> 00:12:12 And we are perishing for the lack of wisdom.
00:12:13 --> 00:12:14 It's more important than silver,
00:12:14 --> 00:12:16 more important than gold and jewels,
00:12:17 --> 00:12:19 more important than anything you could possibly imagine.
00:12:19 --> 00:12:20 So what is it?
00:12:21 --> 00:12:25 Verses 8 to 16, we have wisdom speaking again.
00:12:25 --> 00:12:27 And we get a few clues as to what wisdom is here.
00:12:27 --> 00:12:28 It says,
00:12:28 --> 00:12:30 I, wisdom, dwell together with prudence.
00:12:30 --> 00:12:32 I possess knowledge and discretion.
00:12:32 --> 00:12:34 To fear the Lord is to hate evil.
00:12:34 --> 00:12:36 I hate pride and arrogance,
00:12:37 --> 00:12:38 evil behaviour and perverse speech.
00:12:39 --> 00:12:40 Counsel and sound judgment are mine.
00:12:41 --> 00:12:42 I have insight, I have power.
00:12:43 --> 00:12:45 By me, kings reign and rulers,
00:12:45 --> 00:12:46 issues, decrees that are just.
00:12:47 --> 00:12:48 By me, princes, governors, nobles,
00:12:49 --> 00:12:51 all who rule on earth.
00:12:51 --> 00:12:53 So there are at least three things here
00:12:53 --> 00:12:56 that wisdom speaks about
00:12:56 --> 00:12:58 and gives us an idea of what wisdom is.
00:12:58 --> 00:13:02 Notice firstly that wisdom has insight in verse 14.
00:13:02 --> 00:13:06 The word insight there is translated from a Hebrew word
00:13:06 --> 00:13:11 which basically means to know how things really are.
00:13:12 --> 00:13:16 It's understanding of how things really are.
00:13:17 --> 00:13:20 Secondly, it also says that wisdom dwells with prudence.
00:13:21 --> 00:13:22 That's not an old-fashioned girl's name.
00:13:23 --> 00:13:25 In verse 12, so it's not,
00:13:25 --> 00:13:26 she's hanging out with prudence,
00:13:26 --> 00:13:27 wisdom's with prudence.
00:13:27 --> 00:13:31 It's actually not probably the best English translation.
00:13:32 --> 00:13:35 A better translation is the word shrewdness.
00:13:36 --> 00:13:37 Shrewdness, not prudence.
00:13:37 --> 00:13:39 Shrewdness here,
00:13:39 --> 00:13:41 we often regard it as a negative thing,
00:13:41 --> 00:13:44 but here shrewdness is positive.
00:13:44 --> 00:13:45 It's not scheming and plotting.
00:13:46 --> 00:13:48 It's a resourceful cunningness about life.
00:13:49 --> 00:13:52 Wisdom here is knowing how things not just are,
00:13:52 --> 00:13:55 but how life works,
00:13:56 --> 00:13:59 how things happen in life.
00:14:00 --> 00:14:02 And thirdly, verse 15, it says,
00:14:02 --> 00:14:05 by me kings reign and rulers issue decrees that are just.
00:14:06 --> 00:14:09 So wisdom is not just about how things are
00:14:09 --> 00:14:12 and how things actually work,
00:14:12 --> 00:14:14 but it's knowing what to do about it.
00:14:15 --> 00:14:16 It's very practical.
00:14:16 --> 00:14:18 So wisdom is very, very practical.
00:14:18 --> 00:14:19 It's not just theoretical.
00:14:19 --> 00:14:23 Think of the difference
00:14:23 --> 00:14:27 between the great English detective Sherlock Holmes
00:14:27 --> 00:14:31 and his sidekick, Dr. Watson.
00:14:32 --> 00:14:34 A client would walk into Holmes' apartment
00:14:34 --> 00:14:37 in 221B Baker Street,
00:14:38 --> 00:14:40 and he could...
00:14:40 --> 00:14:41 Holmes would take one look at the person
00:14:41 --> 00:14:43 and know 19 things about them,
00:14:43 --> 00:14:44 just like that.
00:14:45 --> 00:14:46 And he'd always say to Watson,
00:14:46 --> 00:14:49 it's elementary, elementary, my dear Watson, elementary.
00:14:50 --> 00:14:53 And Dr. Watson would see the same person
00:14:53 --> 00:14:56 but not have the same insight or the same shrewdness.
00:14:56 --> 00:15:00 The not obvious, the non-obvious,
00:15:00 --> 00:15:02 was obvious to Holmes,
00:15:02 --> 00:15:04 whereas it wasn't so much to Watson.
00:15:05 --> 00:15:06 Holmes sees clues.
00:15:07 --> 00:15:09 Watson sees a blur.
00:15:10 --> 00:15:12 Holmes sees distinctions.
00:15:13 --> 00:15:15 Just had more clarity.
00:15:15 --> 00:15:18 So what is wisdom?
00:15:19 --> 00:15:20 Gerhard von Rad,
00:15:21 --> 00:15:23 a 20th century German theologian,
00:15:23 --> 00:15:24 you have to be German to have a name like that,
00:15:24 --> 00:15:27 wrote a book called Wisdom in Israel,
00:15:28 --> 00:15:30 and it's a pretty hard, difficult book,
00:15:30 --> 00:15:31 so you just read the conclusion,
00:15:31 --> 00:15:32 that gives you the answer.
00:15:32 --> 00:15:34 And in it,
00:15:34 --> 00:15:36 he gives a definition of wisdom
00:15:36 --> 00:15:37 according to Proverbs.
00:15:38 --> 00:15:40 And it's a great definition.
00:15:40 --> 00:15:40 He says,
00:15:40 --> 00:15:42 wisdom is becoming competent
00:15:42 --> 00:15:44 with regard to the realities of life.
00:15:45 --> 00:15:46 I love the word becoming.
00:15:46 --> 00:15:48 It's saying there that wisdom
00:15:48 --> 00:15:49 is something that you grow in.
00:15:49 --> 00:15:50 It's becoming competent
00:15:50 --> 00:15:53 with regard to the realities of life.
00:15:53 --> 00:15:55 It's knowing how things really happen,
00:15:55 --> 00:15:57 how things really are,
00:15:57 --> 00:15:59 and knowing what to do about them.
00:16:01 --> 00:16:02 So it's intensely practical.
00:16:03 --> 00:16:03 It's not theoretical.
00:16:04 --> 00:16:05 Kind of ironic,
00:16:05 --> 00:16:06 me doing a sermon like this.
00:16:06 --> 00:16:09 It is the art of being successful
00:16:09 --> 00:16:12 across all of life.
00:16:14 --> 00:16:16 It's knowing how life works
00:16:16 --> 00:16:18 and living it well.
00:16:18 --> 00:16:22 And wisdom finds its seat,
00:16:22 --> 00:16:22 its centre,
00:16:23 --> 00:16:25 not in the mind,
00:16:25 --> 00:16:27 but in the centre of the being,
00:16:27 --> 00:16:28 what the Bible calls
00:16:28 --> 00:16:29 the heart of the individual,
00:16:30 --> 00:16:32 the soul of the individual,
00:16:32 --> 00:16:34 which incorporates the intellect
00:16:34 --> 00:16:36 and everything else,
00:16:36 --> 00:16:39 it's the centre of,
00:16:39 --> 00:16:40 the heart of the person
00:16:40 --> 00:16:42 is the centre of the person's
00:16:42 --> 00:16:44 moral and intellectual decision-making.
00:16:47 --> 00:16:51 But there's this huge problem
00:16:51 --> 00:16:53 in gaining wisdom.
00:16:55 --> 00:16:56 The problem is highlighted
00:16:56 --> 00:16:58 in verses 22 onwards.
00:16:59 --> 00:17:00 And here we have wisdom speaking.
00:17:01 --> 00:17:04 And wisdom says,
00:17:04 --> 00:17:05 I was there
00:17:05 --> 00:17:07 when this world was made.
00:17:08 --> 00:17:09 That's the bottom line.
00:17:09 --> 00:17:10 So let me have a read through here.
00:17:10 --> 00:17:11 It says,
00:17:11 --> 00:17:12 The Lord brought me forth
00:17:12 --> 00:17:13 as the first of his works
00:17:13 --> 00:17:15 before his deeds of old.
00:17:15 --> 00:17:16 I was formed long ago,
00:17:17 --> 00:17:17 ages ago,
00:17:17 --> 00:17:18 at the very beginning
00:17:18 --> 00:17:20 when the world came to be.
00:17:21 --> 00:17:23 When there were no watery depths,
00:17:23 --> 00:17:24 I was given birth.
00:17:24 --> 00:17:25 When there were no springs
00:17:25 --> 00:17:26 overflowing with water,
00:17:26 --> 00:17:28 before the mountains were settled
00:17:28 --> 00:17:28 in the place,
00:17:28 --> 00:17:29 before the hills,
00:17:29 --> 00:17:30 I was given birth.
00:17:31 --> 00:17:32 Before he made the world
00:17:32 --> 00:17:33 or its fields
00:17:33 --> 00:17:34 or any of the dust of the earth,
00:17:35 --> 00:17:35 I was there
00:17:35 --> 00:17:37 when he set the heavens in place,
00:17:37 --> 00:17:39 when he marked out the horizon
00:17:39 --> 00:17:40 on the face of the deep,
00:17:40 --> 00:17:42 when he established the clouds
00:17:42 --> 00:17:44 above and fixed securely
00:17:44 --> 00:17:45 the fountains of the deep,
00:17:45 --> 00:17:47 when he gave the sea its boundary
00:17:47 --> 00:17:48 so the waters
00:17:48 --> 00:17:49 would not overstep its command,
00:17:49 --> 00:17:50 when he marked out
00:17:50 --> 00:17:52 the foundations of the earth,
00:17:52 --> 00:17:54 then I was constantly at his side.
00:17:54 --> 00:17:56 I was filled with delight
00:17:56 --> 00:17:57 day by day,
00:17:57 --> 00:17:59 rejoicing always in his presence,
00:17:59 --> 00:18:02 rejoicing in his whole world
00:18:02 --> 00:18:05 and delighting in mankind.
00:18:05 --> 00:18:08 And so what we have here
00:18:08 --> 00:18:09 in Proverbs 8
00:18:09 --> 00:18:11 is wisdom being there
00:18:11 --> 00:18:13 as God creates
00:18:13 --> 00:18:15 the created order,
00:18:16 --> 00:18:17 brings everything into being.
00:18:17 --> 00:18:19 And the creation account here
00:18:19 --> 00:18:21 is a unique creation account.
00:18:22 --> 00:18:22 You see,
00:18:22 --> 00:18:24 most ancient societies
00:18:24 --> 00:18:25 either regarded the creation
00:18:25 --> 00:18:27 of the material world
00:18:27 --> 00:18:28 as an accident
00:18:28 --> 00:18:30 of the gods,
00:18:30 --> 00:18:32 it's like they lend against something
00:18:32 --> 00:18:34 and the universe is made,
00:18:34 --> 00:18:35 that was a bit of a mistake,
00:18:35 --> 00:18:36 didn't mean that to happen.
00:18:37 --> 00:18:38 Or it's a result
00:18:38 --> 00:18:40 of the gods having a battle
00:18:40 --> 00:18:43 and they create the world
00:18:43 --> 00:18:44 for some strange reason.
00:18:46 --> 00:18:48 And here it says
00:18:48 --> 00:18:49 the creation account
00:18:49 --> 00:18:52 is based on the wisdom of God.
00:18:53 --> 00:18:54 It was deliberate.
00:18:55 --> 00:18:55 There's a sense here
00:18:55 --> 00:18:57 of this overwhelming joy
00:18:57 --> 00:18:59 where God designed the world
00:18:59 --> 00:19:00 to be a place of beauty
00:19:00 --> 00:19:02 and power and order
00:19:02 --> 00:19:03 and joy and peace.
00:19:03 --> 00:19:05 God made the world
00:19:05 --> 00:19:06 with wisdom.
00:19:08 --> 00:19:09 And that's why
00:19:09 --> 00:19:12 the wise of Israel
00:19:12 --> 00:19:15 said that wisdom worked.
00:19:16 --> 00:19:18 Because it aligned,
00:19:18 --> 00:19:19 wisdom is just simply
00:19:19 --> 00:19:20 being aligned
00:19:20 --> 00:19:22 with the wisdom of God
00:19:22 --> 00:19:22 in creation.
00:19:23 --> 00:19:24 That's why it works.
00:19:25 --> 00:19:27 If God created the world
00:19:27 --> 00:19:28 according to wisdom,
00:19:28 --> 00:19:29 then there is a pattern
00:19:29 --> 00:19:32 to all that he's made.
00:19:32 --> 00:19:33 It's connected.
00:19:33 --> 00:19:33 That is,
00:19:34 --> 00:19:35 reality's not random.
00:19:37 --> 00:19:39 And if wisdom made the world,
00:19:39 --> 00:19:42 then wisdom can be perceived.
00:19:43 --> 00:19:44 And to a great degree,
00:19:45 --> 00:19:47 can be lived in accordance with.
00:19:48 --> 00:19:50 Now, it's obvious for most people
00:19:50 --> 00:19:52 that there are physical patterns
00:19:52 --> 00:19:52 patterns
00:19:52 --> 00:19:55 in the reality
00:19:55 --> 00:19:57 of our physical world.
00:19:57 --> 00:19:58 There are patterns there,
00:19:58 --> 00:19:59 such as
00:19:59 --> 00:20:01 the pattern
00:20:01 --> 00:20:02 of aerodynamics.
00:20:03 --> 00:20:04 If an object
00:20:04 --> 00:20:05 fits with the pattern
00:20:05 --> 00:20:06 and the rules
00:20:06 --> 00:20:07 of aerodynamics,
00:20:07 --> 00:20:09 it will fly.
00:20:09 --> 00:20:11 If it doesn't fit
00:20:11 --> 00:20:11 with the pattern
00:20:11 --> 00:20:12 of aerodynamics,
00:20:12 --> 00:20:14 it won't fly.
00:20:15 --> 00:20:16 Such as
00:20:16 --> 00:20:18 falling off a ladder.
00:20:18 --> 00:20:20 You won't fly.
00:20:23 --> 00:20:24 You will crash and burn.
00:20:25 --> 00:20:26 If you disregard
00:20:26 --> 00:20:27 the patterns
00:20:27 --> 00:20:29 of aerodynamics,
00:20:29 --> 00:20:31 you will crash and burn.
00:20:32 --> 00:20:34 And the wise of Israel
00:20:34 --> 00:20:35 also concluded
00:20:35 --> 00:20:37 that there is
00:20:37 --> 00:20:38 a relational fabric
00:20:38 --> 00:20:39 to reality
00:20:39 --> 00:20:41 that if you don't follow
00:20:41 --> 00:20:43 those patterns,
00:20:44 --> 00:20:46 you will relationally
00:20:46 --> 00:20:47 crash and burn.
00:20:48 --> 00:20:50 And they also
00:20:50 --> 00:20:50 concluded
00:20:50 --> 00:20:51 that there is
00:20:51 --> 00:20:53 a spiritual fabric
00:20:53 --> 00:20:54 to the created order
00:20:54 --> 00:20:56 that God has made.
00:20:56 --> 00:20:57 And if you don't follow
00:20:57 --> 00:20:59 those spiritual patterns,
00:21:01 --> 00:21:02 you spiritually
00:21:02 --> 00:21:03 will crash and burn too.
00:21:04 --> 00:21:04 That's the wisdom
00:21:04 --> 00:21:05 of Israel.
00:21:05 --> 00:21:05 That's what we see
00:21:05 --> 00:21:06 in Proverbs.
00:21:06 --> 00:21:07 And so what
00:21:07 --> 00:21:09 foolishness is,
00:21:09 --> 00:21:11 is going against
00:21:11 --> 00:21:11 the grain,
00:21:11 --> 00:21:12 going against
00:21:12 --> 00:21:12 the weave,
00:21:12 --> 00:21:13 going against
00:21:13 --> 00:21:13 the pattern,
00:21:13 --> 00:21:14 going against
00:21:14 --> 00:21:14 the structure
00:21:14 --> 00:21:16 that God
00:21:16 --> 00:21:17 has put in place
00:21:17 --> 00:21:18 in his created order
00:21:18 --> 00:21:19 that he made
00:21:19 --> 00:21:20 with wisdom.
00:21:20 --> 00:21:21 It's going against
00:21:21 --> 00:21:22 wisdom.
00:21:22 --> 00:21:23 That's what foolishness
00:21:23 --> 00:21:23 is.
00:21:25 --> 00:21:25 But,
00:21:25 --> 00:21:26 and here's the problem
00:21:26 --> 00:21:27 in gaining wisdom,
00:21:28 --> 00:21:29 there are two things
00:21:29 --> 00:21:31 that you must know
00:21:31 --> 00:21:32 about these patterns
00:21:32 --> 00:21:34 in order to be wise.
00:21:34 --> 00:21:34 And you must hold
00:21:34 --> 00:21:35 both of these things
00:21:35 --> 00:21:36 together equally.
00:21:38 --> 00:21:38 Equal weight.
00:21:39 --> 00:21:39 Firstly,
00:21:39 --> 00:21:42 you have to see
00:21:42 --> 00:21:42 and admit
00:21:42 --> 00:21:43 that there is
00:21:43 --> 00:21:44 a pattern.
00:21:45 --> 00:21:45 God has made
00:21:45 --> 00:21:46 the world
00:21:46 --> 00:21:48 and there is
00:21:48 --> 00:21:49 a pattern to it.
00:21:50 --> 00:21:51 There are principles
00:21:51 --> 00:21:52 in life
00:21:52 --> 00:21:54 which customarily
00:21:54 --> 00:21:54 work.
00:21:56 --> 00:21:56 Secondly,
00:21:57 --> 00:21:58 you've got to see
00:21:58 --> 00:21:58 and know
00:21:58 --> 00:22:00 that you cannot
00:22:00 --> 00:22:01 see
00:22:01 --> 00:22:02 the entire
00:22:02 --> 00:22:02 pattern.
00:22:04 --> 00:22:05 You can't see
00:22:05 --> 00:22:06 the entire
00:22:06 --> 00:22:06 pattern.
00:22:06 --> 00:22:09 much of the pattern
00:22:09 --> 00:22:10 is in fact
00:22:10 --> 00:22:11 hidden from us.
00:22:12 --> 00:22:14 And that's the problem
00:22:14 --> 00:22:14 of gaining wisdom.
00:22:16 --> 00:22:17 For instance,
00:22:18 --> 00:22:18 in chapters
00:22:18 --> 00:22:20 10 to 15
00:22:20 --> 00:22:21 of Proverbs,
00:22:21 --> 00:22:22 you get
00:22:22 --> 00:22:22 Proverbs
00:22:22 --> 00:22:24 about the principles
00:22:24 --> 00:22:25 of how life
00:22:25 --> 00:22:26 normally works.
00:22:26 --> 00:22:27 And they say
00:22:27 --> 00:22:28 things like,
00:22:28 --> 00:22:29 if you work hard,
00:22:29 --> 00:22:30 you'll prosper.
00:22:30 --> 00:22:31 If you're lazy,
00:22:31 --> 00:22:32 you'll be poor.
00:22:32 --> 00:22:33 If you
00:22:33 --> 00:22:34 raise a child
00:22:34 --> 00:22:36 in the right way,
00:22:36 --> 00:22:36 they will love you
00:22:36 --> 00:22:37 when they get older.
00:22:38 --> 00:22:39 And if you read
00:22:39 --> 00:22:40 those chapters
00:22:40 --> 00:22:41 with a
00:22:41 --> 00:22:42 conservative,
00:22:43 --> 00:22:43 moralistic
00:22:43 --> 00:22:44 bent,
00:22:46 --> 00:22:47 and you believe
00:22:47 --> 00:22:47 that there is
00:22:47 --> 00:22:47 order,
00:22:48 --> 00:22:48 you believe
00:22:48 --> 00:22:49 there's a pattern
00:22:49 --> 00:22:49 in the created
00:22:49 --> 00:22:50 life,
00:22:50 --> 00:22:51 you will say
00:22:51 --> 00:22:52 things like,
00:22:52 --> 00:22:52 yeah,
00:22:52 --> 00:22:52 that's right,
00:22:52 --> 00:22:53 I knew there was
00:22:53 --> 00:22:54 a rule for everything.
00:22:56 --> 00:22:56 There's a rule
00:22:56 --> 00:22:57 for everything.
00:22:59 --> 00:23:00 And then you get
00:23:00 --> 00:23:01 to chapter 16.
00:23:02 --> 00:23:03 And you get
00:23:03 --> 00:23:03 to chapter 16
00:23:03 --> 00:23:04 and suddenly
00:23:04 --> 00:23:06 there are exceptions
00:23:06 --> 00:23:07 to the principles
00:23:07 --> 00:23:08 of how life
00:23:08 --> 00:23:09 normally works.
00:23:10 --> 00:23:10 For instance,
00:23:10 --> 00:23:11 some people
00:23:11 --> 00:23:11 who live
00:23:11 --> 00:23:12 according to
00:23:12 --> 00:23:13 God's moral
00:23:13 --> 00:23:14 absolutes
00:23:14 --> 00:23:15 have a fairly
00:23:15 --> 00:23:16 lousy life.
00:23:16 --> 00:23:17 Some people
00:23:17 --> 00:23:18 who work hard
00:23:18 --> 00:23:19 but stay poor
00:23:19 --> 00:23:20 because of oppression.
00:23:20 --> 00:23:21 And some people
00:23:21 --> 00:23:22 raise their child
00:23:22 --> 00:23:23 right but they
00:23:23 --> 00:23:24 go off the rails
00:23:24 --> 00:23:25 at some point
00:23:25 --> 00:23:25 in life.
00:23:26 --> 00:23:26 And so if you
00:23:26 --> 00:23:28 read that
00:23:28 --> 00:23:29 section
00:23:29 --> 00:23:31 with a
00:23:31 --> 00:23:32 liberal bent,
00:23:32 --> 00:23:32 that is you
00:23:32 --> 00:23:33 don't believe
00:23:33 --> 00:23:33 that there's
00:23:33 --> 00:23:34 an order
00:23:34 --> 00:23:34 that you
00:23:34 --> 00:23:35 need to
00:23:35 --> 00:23:35 abide by,
00:23:36 --> 00:23:36 you go,
00:23:36 --> 00:23:37 yeah,
00:23:37 --> 00:23:37 that's right,
00:23:37 --> 00:23:38 life's messy,
00:23:38 --> 00:23:39 always said it
00:23:39 --> 00:23:39 was messy,
00:23:40 --> 00:23:41 can't predict
00:23:41 --> 00:23:41 anything.
00:23:44 --> 00:23:45 And yet wisdom
00:23:45 --> 00:23:46 is holding
00:23:46 --> 00:23:47 the both
00:23:47 --> 00:23:47 together.
00:23:47 --> 00:23:48 It's a matter,
00:23:49 --> 00:23:49 it's admitting
00:23:49 --> 00:23:50 that there is
00:23:50 --> 00:23:50 a pattern
00:23:50 --> 00:23:51 that I must
00:23:51 --> 00:23:51 submit to
00:23:51 --> 00:23:54 and that I
00:23:54 --> 00:23:54 can't make up
00:23:54 --> 00:23:55 the rules
00:23:55 --> 00:23:56 for myself.
00:23:56 --> 00:23:56 I don't
00:23:56 --> 00:23:57 define reality
00:23:57 --> 00:23:58 for myself.
00:24:01 --> 00:24:02 But if I
00:24:02 --> 00:24:03 live like that
00:24:03 --> 00:24:03 then Proverbs
00:24:03 --> 00:24:04 says I'm a fool.
00:24:06 --> 00:24:06 But wisdom
00:24:06 --> 00:24:07 is also
00:24:07 --> 00:24:07 acknowledging
00:24:07 --> 00:24:08 that I can't
00:24:08 --> 00:24:09 see the whole
00:24:09 --> 00:24:09 pattern.
00:24:10 --> 00:24:10 There are
00:24:10 --> 00:24:11 hidden things.
00:24:13 --> 00:24:14 And if I
00:24:14 --> 00:24:14 think that I
00:24:14 --> 00:24:15 can see all
00:24:15 --> 00:24:15 the pattern
00:24:15 --> 00:24:16 and if I
00:24:16 --> 00:24:16 think I
00:24:16 --> 00:24:17 know how
00:24:17 --> 00:24:18 all of life
00:24:18 --> 00:24:18 works
00:24:18 --> 00:24:21 then I'm
00:24:21 --> 00:24:22 a fool
00:24:22 --> 00:24:23 according to
00:24:23 --> 00:24:24 Proverbs.
00:24:24 --> 00:24:26 So you
00:24:26 --> 00:24:27 can be a
00:24:27 --> 00:24:28 conservative
00:24:28 --> 00:24:29 fool or
00:24:29 --> 00:24:30 you can be
00:24:30 --> 00:24:30 a liberal
00:24:30 --> 00:24:31 fool.
00:24:31 --> 00:24:31 You can be
00:24:31 --> 00:24:32 a moralistic
00:24:32 --> 00:24:32 fool, you
00:24:32 --> 00:24:33 can be a
00:24:33 --> 00:24:33 relativistic
00:24:33 --> 00:24:34 fool.
00:24:35 --> 00:24:36 We are
00:24:36 --> 00:24:37 all one
00:24:37 --> 00:24:37 or the
00:24:37 --> 00:24:38 other depending
00:24:38 --> 00:24:39 on our
00:24:39 --> 00:24:40 ideology and
00:24:40 --> 00:24:41 our personality
00:24:41 --> 00:24:41 I suspect.
00:24:43 --> 00:24:43 So in a
00:24:43 --> 00:24:44 nutshell if
00:24:44 --> 00:24:44 you're a
00:24:44 --> 00:24:46 person who
00:24:46 --> 00:24:46 thinks that
00:24:46 --> 00:24:47 if you have
00:24:47 --> 00:24:47 a good
00:24:47 --> 00:24:49 life, live
00:24:49 --> 00:24:49 a good
00:24:49 --> 00:24:50 life, it
00:24:50 --> 00:24:50 will go
00:24:50 --> 00:24:51 well for
00:24:51 --> 00:24:52 you, then
00:24:52 --> 00:24:53 you are a
00:24:53 --> 00:24:53 conservative
00:24:53 --> 00:24:54 fool.
00:24:55 --> 00:24:55 But if
00:24:55 --> 00:24:56 you're the
00:24:56 --> 00:24:56 kind of
00:24:56 --> 00:24:56 person who
00:24:56 --> 00:24:57 says I
00:24:57 --> 00:24:58 can decide
00:24:58 --> 00:24:58 my own
00:24:58 --> 00:25:00 reality, I
00:25:00 --> 00:25:00 can decide
00:25:00 --> 00:25:01 what is
00:25:01 --> 00:25:01 right and
00:25:01 --> 00:25:01 wrong for
00:25:01 --> 00:25:02 me and I
00:25:02 --> 00:25:02 don't believe
00:25:02 --> 00:25:03 there's any
00:25:03 --> 00:25:03 divine order
00:25:03 --> 00:25:04 that I have
00:25:04 --> 00:25:05 to submit
00:25:05 --> 00:25:06 to, then
00:25:06 --> 00:25:07 you're a
00:25:07 --> 00:25:07 liberal
00:25:07 --> 00:25:07 fool.
00:25:08 --> 00:25:09 And we're
00:25:09 --> 00:25:09 all fools
00:25:09 --> 00:25:10 one way or
00:25:10 --> 00:25:10 another.
00:25:10 --> 00:25:10 Let's just
00:25:10 --> 00:25:11 close the
00:25:11 --> 00:25:11 sermon there.
00:25:11 --> 00:25:12 No, we'll
00:25:12 --> 00:25:13 keep going.
00:25:13 --> 00:25:14 We're all
00:25:14 --> 00:25:14 fools one way
00:25:14 --> 00:25:15 or another.
00:25:15 --> 00:25:16 And we as
00:25:16 --> 00:25:17 a society
00:25:17 --> 00:25:19 are split on
00:25:19 --> 00:25:19 this.
00:25:19 --> 00:25:20 We are pushing
00:25:20 --> 00:25:21 each other
00:25:21 --> 00:25:22 more and more
00:25:22 --> 00:25:23 into areas
00:25:23 --> 00:25:24 of foolishness.
00:25:26 --> 00:25:27 The same
00:25:27 --> 00:25:28 sex marriage
00:25:28 --> 00:25:28 debate is a
00:25:28 --> 00:25:29 classic example
00:25:29 --> 00:25:30 of this.
00:25:30 --> 00:25:31 Church goes
00:25:31 --> 00:25:32 all moralistic
00:25:32 --> 00:25:34 and over
00:25:34 --> 00:25:35 here the
00:25:35 --> 00:25:36 liberals go
00:25:36 --> 00:25:38 whatever.
00:25:39 --> 00:25:40 It's all
00:25:40 --> 00:25:40 relative,
00:25:40 --> 00:25:40 there's no
00:25:40 --> 00:25:41 order.
00:25:43 --> 00:25:43 And we're
00:25:43 --> 00:25:44 pushing ourselves
00:25:44 --> 00:25:45 more and more
00:25:45 --> 00:25:45 into foolishness.
00:25:45 --> 00:25:48 So what's
00:25:48 --> 00:25:48 the solution?
00:25:50 --> 00:25:51 There is a
00:25:51 --> 00:25:51 solution.
00:25:52 --> 00:25:52 Did you
00:25:52 --> 00:25:53 notice that as
00:25:53 --> 00:25:54 chapter 8 was
00:25:54 --> 00:25:55 read out to
00:25:55 --> 00:25:57 us that
00:25:57 --> 00:25:58 wisdom is
00:25:58 --> 00:25:59 personified?
00:26:01 --> 00:26:02 Wisdom is
00:26:02 --> 00:26:02 I, me,
00:26:03 --> 00:26:03 my.
00:26:03 --> 00:26:04 You see that
00:26:04 --> 00:26:04 right through
00:26:04 --> 00:26:05 chapter 8.
00:26:05 --> 00:26:06 Wisdom is not
00:26:06 --> 00:26:06 an abstract
00:26:06 --> 00:26:08 quality but in
00:26:08 --> 00:26:09 fact a
00:26:09 --> 00:26:10 person.
00:26:11 --> 00:26:12 That's how
00:26:12 --> 00:26:12 wisdom is
00:26:12 --> 00:26:13 perceived in
00:26:13 --> 00:26:14 Proverbs.
00:26:14 --> 00:26:15 And as
00:26:15 --> 00:26:16 hopefully we've
00:26:16 --> 00:26:17 seen in the
00:26:17 --> 00:26:18 introductory video
00:26:18 --> 00:26:18 which we saw
00:26:18 --> 00:26:19 last week and
00:26:19 --> 00:26:19 hopefully you've
00:26:19 --> 00:26:20 seen it throughout
00:26:20 --> 00:26:20 the course of
00:26:20 --> 00:26:21 this week,
00:26:21 --> 00:26:22 wisdom in that
00:26:22 --> 00:26:23 little video as
00:26:23 --> 00:26:23 it is in
00:26:23 --> 00:26:24 Proverbs is
00:26:24 --> 00:26:25 depicted as a
00:26:25 --> 00:26:26 woman.
00:26:27 --> 00:26:28 A woman in
00:26:28 --> 00:26:28 fact who
00:26:28 --> 00:26:29 calls, lady
00:26:29 --> 00:26:30 wisdom who
00:26:30 --> 00:26:32 calls, calls,
00:26:32 --> 00:26:32 calls.
00:26:33 --> 00:26:33 And interestingly
00:26:33 --> 00:26:35 enough that the
00:26:35 --> 00:26:35 Proverbs were
00:26:35 --> 00:26:38 originally a
00:26:38 --> 00:26:40 manual, a
00:26:40 --> 00:26:41 wisdom manual for
00:26:41 --> 00:26:42 the young men
00:26:42 --> 00:26:46 of Israel
00:26:46 --> 00:26:46 which is why
00:26:46 --> 00:26:47 most of the
00:26:47 --> 00:26:47 Proverbs are
00:26:47 --> 00:26:48 addressed to
00:26:48 --> 00:26:48 my son.
00:26:50 --> 00:26:51 They were
00:26:51 --> 00:26:51 four.
00:26:51 --> 00:26:51 They were a
00:26:51 --> 00:26:52 wisdom manual for
00:26:52 --> 00:26:53 the old men of
00:26:53 --> 00:26:54 Israel training the
00:26:54 --> 00:26:55 younger men in
00:26:55 --> 00:26:56 Israel and so
00:26:56 --> 00:26:57 you want to get
00:26:57 --> 00:26:58 their attention?
00:26:58 --> 00:26:59 Make wisdom a
00:26:59 --> 00:26:59 woman.
00:27:00 --> 00:27:00 You know, who's
00:27:00 --> 00:27:01 calling you?
00:27:02 --> 00:27:02 Of course their
00:27:02 --> 00:27:03 attention is there
00:27:03 --> 00:27:03 all the way
00:27:03 --> 00:27:04 through.
00:27:05 --> 00:27:06 So wisdom
00:27:06 --> 00:27:07 here is not so
00:27:07 --> 00:27:08 much a matter of
00:27:08 --> 00:27:09 mastering a bunch
00:27:09 --> 00:27:10 of rules and
00:27:10 --> 00:27:10 principles.
00:27:10 --> 00:27:11 wisdom is in
00:27:11 --> 00:27:12 fact a love
00:27:12 --> 00:27:13 affair in
00:27:13 --> 00:27:14 Proverbs.
00:27:14 --> 00:27:15 It's a love
00:27:15 --> 00:27:15 affair.
00:27:15 --> 00:27:16 We need to
00:27:16 --> 00:27:16 long for
00:27:16 --> 00:27:17 wisdom.
00:27:17 --> 00:27:17 We need to
00:27:17 --> 00:27:18 love wisdom.
00:27:18 --> 00:27:18 We need to
00:27:18 --> 00:27:19 pursue wisdom.
00:27:19 --> 00:27:22 But what if
00:27:22 --> 00:27:23 wisdom in
00:27:23 --> 00:27:24 fact was a
00:27:24 --> 00:27:25 person?
00:27:26 --> 00:27:27 What if you
00:27:27 --> 00:27:28 got into a
00:27:28 --> 00:27:28 relationship with
00:27:28 --> 00:27:29 this person and
00:27:29 --> 00:27:30 they made you
00:27:30 --> 00:27:30 wise?
00:27:31 --> 00:27:31 They helped
00:27:31 --> 00:27:31 you to see a
00:27:31 --> 00:27:32 pattern to the
00:27:32 --> 00:27:33 world and they
00:27:33 --> 00:27:33 helped you to
00:27:33 --> 00:27:34 see your
00:27:34 --> 00:27:35 limitations that
00:27:35 --> 00:27:35 you don't know
00:27:35 --> 00:27:36 the entire
00:27:36 --> 00:27:36 pattern of the
00:27:36 --> 00:27:37 world and so
00:27:37 --> 00:27:37 they called you
00:27:37 --> 00:27:38 to trust them
00:27:38 --> 00:27:39 because they knew
00:27:39 --> 00:27:39 the entire
00:27:39 --> 00:27:40 pattern of the
00:27:40 --> 00:27:40 world.
00:27:40 --> 00:27:42 What if this
00:27:42 --> 00:27:43 person made you
00:27:43 --> 00:27:45 competent with
00:27:45 --> 00:27:46 regard to the
00:27:46 --> 00:27:47 realities of
00:27:47 --> 00:27:47 life?
00:27:48 --> 00:27:48 Helped you to
00:27:48 --> 00:27:50 know how
00:27:50 --> 00:27:51 things actually
00:27:51 --> 00:27:52 are, how
00:27:52 --> 00:27:53 things actually
00:27:53 --> 00:27:54 work and what
00:27:54 --> 00:27:55 to do about it?
00:27:56 --> 00:27:57 This at least
00:27:57 --> 00:27:58 means that those
00:27:58 --> 00:27:59 of us who have
00:27:59 --> 00:28:01 never had wise
00:28:01 --> 00:28:02 parents, never
00:28:02 --> 00:28:03 had wise
00:28:03 --> 00:28:04 counsellors, never
00:28:04 --> 00:28:05 had wise guides,
00:28:05 --> 00:28:06 never had the
00:28:06 --> 00:28:07 wise mentors,
00:28:07 --> 00:28:09 would have
00:28:09 --> 00:28:10 someone who
00:28:10 --> 00:28:10 could make us
00:28:10 --> 00:28:11 wise even if
00:28:11 --> 00:28:12 we were into
00:28:12 --> 00:28:13 our 80s and
00:28:13 --> 00:28:13 90s.
00:28:14 --> 00:28:15 It's not too
00:28:15 --> 00:28:15 late.
00:28:15 --> 00:28:15 The wisdom
00:28:15 --> 00:28:16 train had
00:28:16 --> 00:28:17 left and you
00:28:17 --> 00:28:18 weren't on it
00:28:18 --> 00:28:19 but it's not
00:28:19 --> 00:28:19 too late.
00:28:22 --> 00:28:23 What if there
00:28:23 --> 00:28:24 was still a
00:28:24 --> 00:28:25 chance to get
00:28:25 --> 00:28:25 on the wisdom
00:28:25 --> 00:28:26 train because
00:28:26 --> 00:28:27 wisdom was a
00:28:27 --> 00:28:28 person who you
00:28:28 --> 00:28:29 could have a
00:28:29 --> 00:28:30 relationship with,
00:28:30 --> 00:28:31 someone like a
00:28:31 --> 00:28:32 wonderful counsellor?
00:28:32 --> 00:28:37 What's
00:28:37 --> 00:28:38 interesting is
00:28:38 --> 00:28:38 there's a lot
00:28:38 --> 00:28:39 of other
00:28:39 --> 00:28:40 wisdom literature
00:28:40 --> 00:28:41 in ancient
00:28:41 --> 00:28:42 Israel apart
00:28:42 --> 00:28:42 from what we
00:28:42 --> 00:28:43 have here in
00:28:43 --> 00:28:44 Proverbs and
00:28:44 --> 00:28:44 in the rest of
00:28:44 --> 00:28:45 the Bible.
00:28:45 --> 00:28:46 Another piece
00:28:46 --> 00:28:47 of wisdom
00:28:47 --> 00:28:47 literature in
00:28:47 --> 00:28:49 ancient Israel
00:28:49 --> 00:28:50 is called the
00:28:50 --> 00:28:51 wisdom of the
00:28:51 --> 00:28:52 son of Syriac
00:28:52 --> 00:28:54 and in it
00:28:54 --> 00:28:54 there's this
00:28:54 --> 00:28:55 interesting call
00:28:55 --> 00:28:56 and challenge.
00:28:56 --> 00:28:56 The son of
00:28:56 --> 00:28:57 Syriac says
00:28:57 --> 00:28:58 this,
00:28:58 --> 00:28:59 turn unto me
00:28:59 --> 00:29:00 you who are
00:29:00 --> 00:29:01 untaught,
00:29:02 --> 00:29:02 why do you
00:29:02 --> 00:29:03 say you are
00:29:03 --> 00:29:03 lacking in
00:29:03 --> 00:29:04 these things?
00:29:04 --> 00:29:05 Why are
00:29:05 --> 00:29:06 your souls so
00:29:06 --> 00:29:07 thirsty?
00:29:08 --> 00:29:09 I say to
00:29:09 --> 00:29:09 you find
00:29:09 --> 00:29:10 wisdom,
00:29:11 --> 00:29:12 put your
00:29:12 --> 00:29:13 necks under
00:29:13 --> 00:29:14 its yoke and
00:29:14 --> 00:29:14 bear its
00:29:14 --> 00:29:15 burden.
00:29:15 --> 00:29:16 If you are
00:29:16 --> 00:29:16 intent you
00:29:16 --> 00:29:17 can find
00:29:17 --> 00:29:17 wisdom,
00:29:18 --> 00:29:18 see with
00:29:18 --> 00:29:19 your eyes
00:29:19 --> 00:29:19 that I
00:29:19 --> 00:29:20 have laboured
00:29:20 --> 00:29:20 for it and
00:29:20 --> 00:29:21 I have found
00:29:21 --> 00:29:23 for my soul
00:29:23 --> 00:29:24 much rest.
00:29:26 --> 00:29:26 Now that
00:29:26 --> 00:29:27 is a typical
00:29:27 --> 00:29:28 invitation to
00:29:28 --> 00:29:29 pursue wisdom
00:29:29 --> 00:29:29 in ancient
00:29:29 --> 00:29:31 Israel but
00:29:31 --> 00:29:32 can you imagine
00:29:32 --> 00:29:33 the listener
00:29:33 --> 00:29:34 who,
00:29:35 --> 00:29:37 how they
00:29:37 --> 00:29:38 would have
00:29:38 --> 00:29:38 responded a
00:29:38 --> 00:29:39 couple of
00:29:39 --> 00:29:39 centuries later
00:29:39 --> 00:29:40 when a
00:29:40 --> 00:29:40 rabbi and
00:29:40 --> 00:29:42 a teacher and
00:29:42 --> 00:29:42 a wise man
00:29:42 --> 00:29:43 got up and
00:29:43 --> 00:29:43 said these
00:29:43 --> 00:29:44 words,
00:29:45 --> 00:29:46 come to me,
00:29:46 --> 00:29:47 come to me,
00:29:47 --> 00:29:48 come to me,
00:29:48 --> 00:29:48 come to me,
00:29:48 --> 00:29:49 all who are
00:29:49 --> 00:29:50 weary and
00:29:50 --> 00:29:50 burdened and
00:29:50 --> 00:29:51 I will give
00:29:51 --> 00:29:52 you rest.
00:29:52 --> 00:29:53 Take my yoke
00:29:53 --> 00:29:54 upon you and
00:29:54 --> 00:29:54 learn from me
00:29:54 --> 00:29:55 for I am
00:29:55 --> 00:29:55 gentle and
00:29:55 --> 00:29:56 humble in
00:29:56 --> 00:29:57 heart and
00:29:57 --> 00:29:58 you will find
00:29:58 --> 00:29:59 rest for your
00:29:59 --> 00:29:59 souls.
00:29:59 --> 00:30:00 for my
00:30:00 --> 00:30:01 yoke is
00:30:01 --> 00:30:01 easy and
00:30:01 --> 00:30:02 my burden
00:30:02 --> 00:30:03 is light.
00:30:04 --> 00:30:05 Similar
00:30:05 --> 00:30:05 statements.
00:30:07 --> 00:30:07 In fact,
00:30:07 --> 00:30:08 most biblical
00:30:08 --> 00:30:09 scholars think
00:30:09 --> 00:30:09 Jesus was
00:30:09 --> 00:30:10 actually quoting
00:30:10 --> 00:30:10 the son of
00:30:10 --> 00:30:11 Syriac.
00:30:14 --> 00:30:14 The son of
00:30:14 --> 00:30:15 Syriac says
00:30:15 --> 00:30:16 put your head
00:30:16 --> 00:30:16 into the yoke
00:30:16 --> 00:30:17 of discipline
00:30:17 --> 00:30:18 and training
00:30:18 --> 00:30:18 and you
00:30:18 --> 00:30:19 work hard,
00:30:19 --> 00:30:20 you work hard,
00:30:20 --> 00:30:20 you work hard,
00:30:20 --> 00:30:21 you work hard
00:30:21 --> 00:30:21 and you pursue
00:30:21 --> 00:30:22 wisdom and
00:30:22 --> 00:30:23 you will get
00:30:23 --> 00:30:23 rest for your
00:30:23 --> 00:30:24 souls.
00:30:24 --> 00:30:25 And Jesus
00:30:25 --> 00:30:25 says come to
00:30:25 --> 00:30:25 me,
00:30:26 --> 00:30:27 come to me,
00:30:27 --> 00:30:27 take my
00:30:27 --> 00:30:28 yoke upon
00:30:28 --> 00:30:28 you,
00:30:28 --> 00:30:28 learn of
00:30:28 --> 00:30:29 me and
00:30:29 --> 00:30:30 I will
00:30:30 --> 00:30:31 give you
00:30:31 --> 00:30:31 rest for
00:30:31 --> 00:30:32 your souls.
00:30:32 --> 00:30:33 You see,
00:30:33 --> 00:30:33 what Jesus
00:30:33 --> 00:30:33 is saying
00:30:33 --> 00:30:34 there in
00:30:34 --> 00:30:34 that moment
00:30:34 --> 00:30:36 and Israel
00:30:36 --> 00:30:36 would have
00:30:36 --> 00:30:37 realised this
00:30:37 --> 00:30:38 in that
00:30:38 --> 00:30:38 moment is
00:30:38 --> 00:30:38 that Jesus
00:30:38 --> 00:30:39 is saying
00:30:39 --> 00:30:39 I am
00:30:39 --> 00:30:40 wisdom.
00:30:40 --> 00:30:41 I am
00:30:41 --> 00:30:41 wisdom
00:30:41 --> 00:30:42 personified.
00:30:42 --> 00:30:43 Wisdom
00:30:43 --> 00:30:43 is not a
00:30:43 --> 00:30:44 body of
00:30:44 --> 00:30:45 knowledge that
00:30:45 --> 00:30:45 needs to be
00:30:45 --> 00:30:46 mastered,
00:30:46 --> 00:30:46 it's not a
00:30:46 --> 00:30:46 body of
00:30:46 --> 00:30:47 principles to
00:30:47 --> 00:30:48 be memorised,
00:30:48 --> 00:30:48 it is
00:30:48 --> 00:30:50 knowing Jesus,
00:30:50 --> 00:30:50 coming to
00:30:50 --> 00:30:51 Jesus.
00:30:51 --> 00:30:52 That's where
00:30:52 --> 00:30:53 wisdom begins.
00:30:54 --> 00:30:55 And that's
00:30:55 --> 00:30:55 what John
00:30:55 --> 00:30:55 chapter 1
00:30:55 --> 00:30:56 affirms too.
00:30:56 --> 00:30:57 There are
00:30:57 --> 00:30:58 so many
00:30:58 --> 00:30:59 parallels between
00:30:59 --> 00:31:00 Proverbs
00:31:00 --> 00:31:00 chapter 8
00:31:00 --> 00:31:01 and John
00:31:01 --> 00:31:02 chapter 1
00:31:02 --> 00:31:03 and this is
00:31:03 --> 00:31:04 how John
00:31:04 --> 00:31:04 chapter 1
00:31:04 --> 00:31:05 starts,
00:31:05 --> 00:31:05 it says
00:31:05 --> 00:31:05 in the
00:31:05 --> 00:31:06 beginning
00:31:06 --> 00:31:06 was the
00:31:06 --> 00:31:07 word.
00:31:07 --> 00:31:08 Now the
00:31:08 --> 00:31:09 word there
00:31:09 --> 00:31:09 is translated
00:31:09 --> 00:31:10 from the
00:31:10 --> 00:31:10 Greek word
00:31:10 --> 00:31:12 logos which
00:31:12 --> 00:31:14 has massive
00:31:14 --> 00:31:15 connotations for
00:31:15 --> 00:31:16 wisdom attached
00:31:16 --> 00:31:17 to it.
00:31:17 --> 00:31:18 So without
00:31:18 --> 00:31:19 too much
00:31:19 --> 00:31:19 paraphrasing,
00:31:20 --> 00:31:21 you could
00:31:21 --> 00:31:21 read it like
00:31:21 --> 00:31:22 this,
00:31:22 --> 00:31:23 in the
00:31:23 --> 00:31:23 beginning was
00:31:23 --> 00:31:24 the wisdom
00:31:24 --> 00:31:25 and the
00:31:25 --> 00:31:25 wisdom was
00:31:25 --> 00:31:26 with God
00:31:26 --> 00:31:27 and the
00:31:27 --> 00:31:28 wisdom was
00:31:28 --> 00:31:28 God,
00:31:28 --> 00:31:29 he was
00:31:29 --> 00:31:29 with God
00:31:29 --> 00:31:29 in the
00:31:29 --> 00:31:30 beginning
00:31:30 --> 00:31:30 and through
00:31:30 --> 00:31:30 him,
00:31:30 --> 00:31:31 that is
00:31:31 --> 00:31:31 through the
00:31:31 --> 00:31:31 wisdom,
00:31:31 --> 00:31:32 all things
00:31:32 --> 00:31:33 were made.
00:31:34 --> 00:31:34 Without
00:31:34 --> 00:31:34 him nothing
00:31:34 --> 00:31:35 was made
00:31:35 --> 00:31:35 that has
00:31:35 --> 00:31:36 been made,
00:31:36 --> 00:31:36 in him
00:31:36 --> 00:31:37 was life
00:31:37 --> 00:31:37 and the
00:31:37 --> 00:31:38 life was
00:31:38 --> 00:31:38 the light
00:31:38 --> 00:31:38 of all
00:31:38 --> 00:31:39 mankind.
00:31:39 --> 00:31:39 Then down
00:31:39 --> 00:31:40 into verse
00:31:40 --> 00:31:40 14,
00:31:41 --> 00:31:41 the wisdom
00:31:41 --> 00:31:42 became flesh
00:31:42 --> 00:31:42 and made
00:31:42 --> 00:31:43 his dwelling
00:31:43 --> 00:31:44 among us
00:31:44 --> 00:31:45 and we have
00:31:45 --> 00:31:45 seen his
00:31:45 --> 00:31:45 glory,
00:31:46 --> 00:31:46 the glory
00:31:46 --> 00:31:47 of the
00:31:47 --> 00:31:47 one and
00:31:47 --> 00:31:47 only Son
00:31:47 --> 00:31:48 who came
00:31:48 --> 00:31:48 from the
00:31:48 --> 00:31:49 Father full
00:31:49 --> 00:31:50 of grace
00:31:50 --> 00:31:50 and truth.
00:31:50 --> 00:31:53 John is
00:31:53 --> 00:31:53 telling us
00:31:53 --> 00:31:54 here what
00:31:54 --> 00:31:54 the secret
00:31:54 --> 00:31:54 of wisdom
00:31:54 --> 00:31:55 is.
00:31:55 --> 00:31:56 John reveals
00:31:56 --> 00:31:57 that Jesus
00:31:57 --> 00:31:58 is the
00:31:58 --> 00:31:58 wisdom of
00:31:58 --> 00:31:59 God to
00:31:59 --> 00:31:59 us.
00:32:01 --> 00:32:01 He is the
00:32:01 --> 00:32:02 wisdom of
00:32:02 --> 00:32:02 God on
00:32:02 --> 00:32:03 display.
00:32:05 --> 00:32:05 So those
00:32:05 --> 00:32:06 of us who
00:32:06 --> 00:32:07 are potentially
00:32:07 --> 00:32:07 even gathered
00:32:07 --> 00:32:08 here now
00:32:08 --> 00:32:09 waiting for
00:32:09 --> 00:32:09 an airtight
00:32:09 --> 00:32:11 argument about
00:32:11 --> 00:32:12 God before
00:32:12 --> 00:32:12 they would
00:32:12 --> 00:32:13 believe in
00:32:13 --> 00:32:13 God,
00:32:14 --> 00:32:15 I think you
00:32:15 --> 00:32:15 need to be
00:32:15 --> 00:32:16 encouraged just
00:32:16 --> 00:32:16 to think again
00:32:16 --> 00:32:17 a little bit.
00:32:18 --> 00:32:18 When Jesus
00:32:18 --> 00:32:19 says I am the
00:32:19 --> 00:32:20 wisdom of
00:32:20 --> 00:32:21 God to
00:32:21 --> 00:32:22 you, he
00:32:22 --> 00:32:23 is saying
00:32:23 --> 00:32:24 that he is
00:32:24 --> 00:32:25 the ultimate
00:32:25 --> 00:32:26 argument for
00:32:26 --> 00:32:27 the existence
00:32:27 --> 00:32:28 of God.
00:32:29 --> 00:32:30 What if God
00:32:30 --> 00:32:30 did not send
00:32:30 --> 00:32:31 an airtight
00:32:31 --> 00:32:32 argument but
00:32:32 --> 00:32:32 he sent an
00:32:32 --> 00:32:33 airtight
00:32:33 --> 00:32:33 person?
00:32:36 --> 00:32:37 What this
00:32:37 --> 00:32:38 means is
00:32:38 --> 00:32:38 that it
00:32:38 --> 00:32:38 doesn't matter
00:32:38 --> 00:32:40 who you
00:32:40 --> 00:32:41 are or
00:32:41 --> 00:32:41 where you
00:32:41 --> 00:32:42 are in
00:32:42 --> 00:32:42 your faith
00:32:42 --> 00:32:43 journey or
00:32:43 --> 00:32:43 how much
00:32:43 --> 00:32:44 you or
00:32:44 --> 00:32:44 how little
00:32:44 --> 00:32:45 you believe
00:32:45 --> 00:32:45 or whether
00:32:45 --> 00:32:46 you believe
00:32:46 --> 00:32:46 nothing at
00:32:46 --> 00:32:46 all,
00:32:47 --> 00:32:48 sit down
00:32:48 --> 00:32:49 with a
00:32:49 --> 00:32:49 group of
00:32:49 --> 00:32:50 people and
00:32:50 --> 00:32:51 go through
00:32:51 --> 00:32:51 the life
00:32:51 --> 00:32:52 of Jesus.
00:32:54 --> 00:32:55 Read about
00:32:55 --> 00:32:56 him, work
00:32:56 --> 00:32:56 through his
00:32:56 --> 00:32:57 life, his
00:32:57 --> 00:32:57 teaching, his
00:32:57 --> 00:32:58 accomplishments and
00:32:58 --> 00:33:00 his promises and
00:33:00 --> 00:33:00 you will be
00:33:00 --> 00:33:02 shocked because
00:33:02 --> 00:33:02 it will be the
00:33:02 --> 00:33:04 first time in
00:33:04 --> 00:33:05 your life that
00:33:05 --> 00:33:05 you've ever met
00:33:05 --> 00:33:06 someone who's
00:33:06 --> 00:33:07 perfect.
00:33:10 --> 00:33:11 No one, no
00:33:11 --> 00:33:13 wise person ever
00:33:13 --> 00:33:14 makes a guy like
00:33:14 --> 00:33:15 Jesus up.
00:33:19 --> 00:33:20 He is the
00:33:20 --> 00:33:21 ultimate argument
00:33:21 --> 00:33:21 for the
00:33:21 --> 00:33:22 existence of
00:33:22 --> 00:33:22 God in the
00:33:22 --> 00:33:23 form of a
00:33:23 --> 00:33:23 person.
00:33:23 --> 00:33:24 He is
00:33:24 --> 00:33:24 wisdom
00:33:24 --> 00:33:26 personified but
00:33:26 --> 00:33:26 he is also
00:33:26 --> 00:33:28 the wisdom
00:33:28 --> 00:33:28 of God
00:33:28 --> 00:33:29 for us.
00:33:30 --> 00:33:31 Jesus is like
00:33:31 --> 00:33:32 in many ways
00:33:32 --> 00:33:33 like a whole
00:33:33 --> 00:33:33 heap of
00:33:33 --> 00:33:34 wise guys that
00:33:34 --> 00:33:35 came before
00:33:35 --> 00:33:35 him and after
00:33:35 --> 00:33:36 him and they
00:33:36 --> 00:33:37 all say he is
00:33:37 --> 00:33:38 the wise way
00:33:38 --> 00:33:38 to live.
00:33:39 --> 00:33:40 Jesus did
00:33:40 --> 00:33:40 that like a
00:33:40 --> 00:33:41 bunch of
00:33:41 --> 00:33:41 other guys
00:33:41 --> 00:33:42 did but no
00:33:42 --> 00:33:43 other wise
00:33:43 --> 00:33:44 person in the
00:33:44 --> 00:33:44 history of the
00:33:44 --> 00:33:45 world apart
00:33:45 --> 00:33:46 from Jesus ever
00:33:46 --> 00:33:47 said but I've
00:33:47 --> 00:33:48 come to live
00:33:48 --> 00:33:49 that wise life
00:33:49 --> 00:33:49 for you.
00:33:50 --> 00:33:51 No one's ever
00:33:51 --> 00:33:52 done that.
00:33:53 --> 00:33:54 Otherwise people
00:33:54 --> 00:33:55 say this is how
00:33:55 --> 00:33:56 you should live
00:33:56 --> 00:33:57 do it and you
00:33:57 --> 00:33:58 will live well
00:33:58 --> 00:33:58 and you will
00:33:58 --> 00:33:59 flourish.
00:34:01 --> 00:34:01 Jesus is the
00:34:01 --> 00:34:02 only one who
00:34:02 --> 00:34:02 says this is how
00:34:02 --> 00:34:03 you should live
00:34:03 --> 00:34:05 but I've lived
00:34:05 --> 00:34:06 it the way you
00:34:06 --> 00:34:06 should have lived
00:34:06 --> 00:34:08 and not only
00:34:08 --> 00:34:08 lived the life
00:34:08 --> 00:34:08 you should have
00:34:08 --> 00:34:09 lived I've
00:34:09 --> 00:34:09 actually died the
00:34:09 --> 00:34:10 death you should
00:34:10 --> 00:34:11 have died because
00:34:11 --> 00:34:11 of your failure
00:34:11 --> 00:34:12 to live the
00:34:12 --> 00:34:12 way you should
00:34:12 --> 00:34:13 have lived
00:34:13 --> 00:34:14 because of
00:34:14 --> 00:34:15 your foolishness
00:34:15 --> 00:34:17 and that's
00:34:17 --> 00:34:18 why Jesus
00:34:18 --> 00:34:19 says here my
00:34:19 --> 00:34:20 yoke is the
00:34:20 --> 00:34:22 only yoke which
00:34:22 --> 00:34:24 is light my
00:34:24 --> 00:34:25 burden is the
00:34:25 --> 00:34:26 only easy
00:34:26 --> 00:34:29 one and
00:34:29 --> 00:34:30 what's more
00:34:30 --> 00:34:32 Jesus is the
00:34:32 --> 00:34:32 wisdom of God
00:34:32 --> 00:34:34 with us in a
00:34:34 --> 00:34:35 very confusing
00:34:35 --> 00:34:37 world where the
00:34:37 --> 00:34:38 patterns don't
00:34:38 --> 00:34:38 always make
00:34:38 --> 00:34:39 sense.
00:34:39 --> 00:34:42 and they
00:34:42 --> 00:34:42 don't always
00:34:42 --> 00:34:43 make sense.
00:34:45 --> 00:34:45 They're the
00:34:45 --> 00:34:46 source of great
00:34:46 --> 00:34:47 anxiety for us
00:34:47 --> 00:34:48 in life when
00:34:48 --> 00:34:49 the patterns
00:34:49 --> 00:34:49 don't work the
00:34:49 --> 00:34:50 way that we
00:34:50 --> 00:34:50 think they're
00:34:50 --> 00:34:51 going to work
00:34:51 --> 00:34:52 and we think
00:34:52 --> 00:34:53 in those moments
00:34:53 --> 00:34:53 that God's
00:34:53 --> 00:34:54 abandoned us
00:34:54 --> 00:34:54 he's got no
00:34:54 --> 00:34:55 idea what he's
00:34:55 --> 00:34:57 doing but
00:34:57 --> 00:34:58 Jesus is wisdom
00:34:58 --> 00:34:59 of God with
00:34:59 --> 00:35:01 us because the
00:35:01 --> 00:35:02 tragedy and the
00:35:02 --> 00:35:03 injustice of Jesus
00:35:03 --> 00:35:04 dying on the
00:35:04 --> 00:35:05 cross followed
00:35:05 --> 00:35:07 by the triumph
00:35:07 --> 00:35:07 and the
00:35:07 --> 00:35:09 victory of
00:35:09 --> 00:35:09 the resurrection
00:35:09 --> 00:35:12 is the
00:35:12 --> 00:35:17 clarity and
00:35:17 --> 00:35:17 it's the
00:35:17 --> 00:35:18 ultimate example
00:35:18 --> 00:35:19 and the most
00:35:19 --> 00:35:20 brilliant clarity
00:35:20 --> 00:35:21 of how even
00:35:21 --> 00:35:22 though we can't
00:35:22 --> 00:35:23 see that there's
00:35:23 --> 00:35:24 wisdom at play
00:35:24 --> 00:35:26 wisdom is in
00:35:26 --> 00:35:27 fact at work
00:35:27 --> 00:35:28 in and through
00:35:28 --> 00:35:29 the same event
00:35:29 --> 00:35:31 that's the
00:35:31 --> 00:35:32 wisdom of God
00:35:32 --> 00:35:33 the death and
00:35:33 --> 00:35:33 resurrection of
00:35:33 --> 00:35:33 Jesus the
00:35:33 --> 00:35:34 wisdom of God
00:35:34 --> 00:35:35 on full display
00:35:35 --> 00:35:36 knowing that
00:35:36 --> 00:35:37 even though it
00:35:37 --> 00:35:38 doesn't look
00:35:38 --> 00:35:39 right God's
00:35:39 --> 00:35:41 at work and
00:35:41 --> 00:35:41 the patterns are
00:35:41 --> 00:35:45 in play and
00:35:45 --> 00:35:46 this is the
00:35:46 --> 00:35:47 wisdom of God
00:35:47 --> 00:35:48 and Jesus calls
00:35:48 --> 00:35:49 us to it and
00:35:49 --> 00:35:50 so as we begin
00:35:50 --> 00:35:51 these ten weeks
00:35:51 --> 00:35:52 in Proverbs
00:35:52 --> 00:35:54 hear the call of
00:35:54 --> 00:35:55 Jesus on your
00:35:55 --> 00:35:55 life come to
00:35:55 --> 00:35:57 me come to
00:35:57 --> 00:35:58 me come to
00:35:58 --> 00:35:59 me all who are
00:35:59 --> 00:36:00 weary and
00:36:00 --> 00:36:00 burdened and I
00:36:00 --> 00:36:01 will give you
00:36:01 --> 00:36:03 rest take my
00:36:03 --> 00:36:03 yoke upon upon
00:36:03 --> 00:36:06 you and you
00:36:06 --> 00:36:07 learn from me
00:36:07 --> 00:36:08 for I am gentle
00:36:08 --> 00:36:08 and I am humble
00:36:08 --> 00:36:10 in heart and
00:36:10 --> 00:36:10 you will find
00:36:10 --> 00:36:11 rest for your
00:36:11 --> 00:36:13 souls for my
00:36:13 --> 00:36:13 yoke is easy
00:36:13 --> 00:36:14 and my burden
00:36:14 --> 00:36:15 is light
00:36:15 --> 00:36:23 numbers
00:36:23 --> 00:36:23 for you and I
00:36:23 --> 00:36:36 and I have