Wisdom Saves Us
Introduction
A. Proverbs 2:1-9
1. Wisdom is something to seek as silver, v. 4
2. Wisdom makes us understand the fear of the Lord, v. 5
3. The LORD gives wisdom to the righteous and guards the paths of righteousness, preserving the way of his saints, v. 6-8
4. Only then will a man understand every good path, v. 9
B. Proverbs 2:10 When wisdom enters the heart, discretion shall preserve you.
1. Discretion is the capacity of well-considered action, the capacity in the case of opposing rules to make right choices.
2. When wisdom dwells in the heart, it has an effect on our lives.
a. It makes us discrete both in what we say and in what we decide to do.
b. It makes us understand the cause and effect; the why and the wherefore; the truth and the therefore.
c. Wisdom in the heart delivers us from the consequences of devious living, whether it be lies, excuses, or hypocrisy.
3. Wisdom is different from smarts or knowing the facts... even as there are a lot of really dumb smart people. They may know the facts really well without the slightest clue of what they should be doing about it. We live in times when many ordinary smart people have not a clue about what is really right or wrong.
4. Wisdom reaches the affection, passion, motivation, faith and love, as well as righteousness.
5. There are three ways that wisdom works in the heart of a righteous man.
I. "To deliver thee from the way of the evil man"
A. "Deliver" implies the intent to ensnare
1. He speaks froward things.
a. That is, he misrepresents the things that are good and true.
b. You might say, he is devious and calculating both in what he does and in the lies and deceit of his words
c. He might impress you with his manhood and strength as coarse, vulgar, and irreverent language: cursing, swearing and speaking of his prowess at conquering lovely women as if a wild animal stalking and pouncing on his prey. The need to constantly use vulgar language is calculated to impress you with his virility and dominance. It is a false manhood, a froward and twisted concept of adult manhood. Like the men of Sodom.
2. He rejoices to do evil.
a. In stead of being ashamed, smitten by his conscience, and reluctant to dare to do evil. 1 Timothy 4:2. Rejoices in what he ought to shun. Maybe at first he shrunk from evil but began to give himself up to deceit, and then finally at home in it began to delight and rejoice in it.
b. Some men are predators and feel no more remorse that a lion as it feeds on a gazelle.
c. They brag to their friends the next about the young lady they seduced with false words and false promises and false pretences of love and flattery. They will brag about the feelings they stirred up and share every sordid detail with their friends.
d. They brag about swindling a good hearted and trusting soul and laugh with delight at the pain and sorrow that the innocent would feel upon learning they had become victims.
e. They brag about winning a debate at church using a false argument. "But they are too ignorant to know any better!"
f. He celebrates winning the majority support of brethren knowing that the righteous man stood alone. It is all a great sport! Proverbs 10:23 "It is sport to a fool to do mischief: but a man of understanding hath wisdom."
g. This is what the Scriptures call "darkness" because one thinks that God does not see him. Isaiah 29:15: "Woe unto them that seek deep to hide their counsel from the LORD, and their works are in the dark, and they say, Who seeth us? and who knoweth us?"
II. To deliver thee from the strange woman
A. "Strange woman" can mean alien, foreign, or one that does not belong to a certain class: the person not belonging to me.
1. Sacred prostitution was partly sanctioned by the Moabites and Syrians and other neighbors.
2. In Israel, it was prohibited as part of idolatry as well as contrary to the basic laws of marriage. Therefore, most prostitutes were foreigners, Proverbs 23:27.
3. This was especially true in the latter years of Solomon, with the general ungodliness attendant to idolatry. As polygamy was legal, fornication or adultery was easy to excuse.
B. "even from the stranger which flattereth with her words."
1. "For the lips of a strange woman drop as a honeycomb, and her mouth is smoother than oil." Proverbs 5:3. "With her much fair speech she caused him to yield, with the flattering of her lips she forced him." Proverbs 7:21
2. Nothing distracts the understanding like praise from a pretty woman! She is smiling and you are smiling: and both are signs of acquiescence or agreement as well as consent.
3. Strong men like Samson seem to fall easily to the feminine charms and the fair speech of a lovely Delilah.
4. Only the discretion of wisdom can break such charms. Proverbs 9:10-18.
C. "Which forsaketh the guide of her youth, and forgetteth the covenant of herGod."
1. Her guide is her companion: the man she married in her youth... but now is unfaithful to him.
2. The covenant of her God describes the vows she made to God when she married. Such a covenant would censure not only adultery and divorce but also polygamy.
3. This woman is an adulteress. All adultery destroys the home and leaves the children fatherless, orphans, and marked for life. How can you do this?
-- Joseph shows us the reaction of a discrete man: "how then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?"
D. "For her house inclineth unto death..."
1. Death is a pit called Sheol in Hebrew and Hades in Greek.
2. This house is sliding downward toward death. This alluring woman and all of her beloved ones are headed down a road to pain and misery -- will a wise man consider a tryst with her?
3. There is no return. It is so difficult to bring back a libidinous person to chastity, that it is like bringing a dead man back to life. This has led some to declare that the sin of adultery was an unpardonable sin.
III. That thou mayest walk in the way of GOOD MEN. Proverbs 2:20
A. Wisdom in the heart enables us to act like good men.
1. Cannot be a good man if not walking in the path of righteous men.
2. The upright and perfect men dwell in the land and remain in it. They are the survivors. They enjoy the blessings that God intended for His beloved saints.
B. Psalm 37 tell us four groups that shall dwell in the land or inherit the land.
1. Psalm 37:9 Those that wait on the Lord shall inherit the earth.
a. "Wait" means hope and trust. Frequent theme in Isaiah and the Psalms
2. Psalm 37:11 The meek shall inherit the earth, and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace
a. Quoted by Jesus and placed in the beatitudes, Matthew 5
3. Psalm 37:22 For such as are blessed of Him shall inherit the earth
a. Ephesians 1:3 Every spiritual blessing is found in Christ Jesus
4. Psalm 37:29 The righteous shall inherit the land, and dwell therein forever. The mouth of the righteous speaketh wisdom, and his tongue talketh of judgment.
a. God's land is for the righteous.
b. They shall dwell in the land because they are wise.