these things from the wise

"Pursuing Wisdom" {Prov1:1-7}
* Intro: Lots of wordly cliches that purportedly teach you about life; only Word can truly do that -- esp. Prov
* What are proverbs?
- All cultures have own set
- Short memorable sayings w/ meaning relevant to many diff situations
- Prov, Eccl, and Job are wisdom books
- Prov originally began as parental strategies handbook of sorts
- There is diff twixt promise and generalizations (which many proverbs are)
* Author of Prov
- Solomon (v1)
- 1King4 tells us he wrote 3000 or so
- Not all contained in Prov, and not all are his
* What is wisdom?
- Skill to live life according to God's plans
- Diff twixt wisdom & knowledge
* Purpose of Prov
- To acquire & apply God's wisdom in our lives
- Result of acquiring wisdom? Will change our character.
- To develop fear of Lord {v7, Deut5:29}
- To determine to get God's wisdom {Prov2:1-5}
* Fear of the Lord
- Taking God seriously
- Devotion to God
- Dread of sin {Heb12:5-7}
* How can I pursue wisdom?
- Devote self to God's Word
- Decide wisdom worth the sacrifice {Prov4:7}
- Dedicate self to Jesus Christ
- If you don't know God, impossible to understand or practice wisdom in Prov
- Knowing God results in every other understanding