THE BEGINNING OF WISDOM

PSALMS 111:1

A. "THE FEAR OF THE LORD IS THE BEGINNING OF WISDOM"
  1. The aphorism expresses the sentiment of the Bible:
    1. "The fear of the Lord is wisdom" - Job 28:28
    2. "The fear of the Lord is clean" - Ps. 19:9
    3. "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge" - Prov. 1:7
    4. "The fear of the Lord is to hate evil" - Prov. 8:13
  2. The fear of the Lord defined:
    1. To fear the Lord is to reverence Him - Ps. 111:9; 99:3
    2. To fear God is to keep His commandments - Eccl. 12:13
    3. Finally, to fear God is to love Him - John 14:15; 15:10; I John 5:4-5 B. THE BEGINNING OF WISDOM
  3. Wisdom:
    1. Wisdom must be distinguished from mere knowledge or cleverness. Knowledge may be gained from the accumulation of learning. A man may be very clever but that is far from being wise
    2. Knowledge is information about facts; but wisdom is the ability to apply knowledge. One may know certain facts of life; yet unless he has the wisdom to appropriate that knowledge, it is of no purpose
    3. Plato spoke of wisdom as the supremacy of reason over spirit and appetite, the vision of the true end of man, for the sake of which the lower passions must be kept in check
  4. The fear of the Lord:
    1. The fear of the Lord is to appreciate His holiness and reverence it - Is. 6:1-9; ancient Israel lived in awe when the word Jehovah was spoken
    2. Evil or wrong doing is viewed in the light of God's abhorrence of sin; and for that reason "The fear of the Lord is to hate evil"; Examples: Said Joseph, who loved God, "How then can I do this great wickedness, and sin against God?" - Gen. 39:9; Daniel and his three friends were motivated by the same principle - Dan. 1:8; 3:16-17; 6:10 C. LET US NOTE BRIEFLY THE DEEPER MEANING OF THE FEAR OF THE LORD
  5. The fear of the Lord is the basis, the groundwork, the foundation of all right living:
    1. It governs the relationship of the unfallen worlds to their Maker and to each other; note the depth of truth in these inspired Bible passages - Ps. 103:20; Is. 6:3-4
    2. To write the law of the ten commandments upon the table of our heart is to plant the fear of God into our nature - Is. 48:18; Ps. 119:165
    3. This is the great secret of being partakers of the divine nature - 2 Pet. 1:4
  6. To fear God is to give glory to Him, and to give glory to Him is to do honor to His holy will:
    1. That is the keynote of the first angel's message - Rev. 14:6-7
    2. Before Christ comes the second time, humanity will have to make a final choice whether men will be guided by the fear of God or by the fear of men - Rev. 13:3-11; 14:8-11
  7. We realize the importance of first principles:
    1. They are like the foundations of a house upon which the whole structure depends - Matt. 7:24-28
    2. Unless the foundation be well and truly laid all the subsequent building is in vain. Here is need for wisdom for all who seek to be in God's kingdom - Matt. 7:21-22
  8. "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom":
    1. Dear reader, does the fear of the Lord motivate your every thought, word, and action? - I Cor. 10:31
    2. Does your faith in Jesus Christ, in the Bible, in the great second advent movement inspire you with the fear of the Lord - Rev. 14:12
    3. Are you applying the accumulated light of present truth to your personal experience to live by the fear of God
    4. Naked knowledge of the revealed will of God is not sufficient to save us; we must be possessed of the wisdom from above to utilize this knowledge for a closer walk with God, and for more efficient service in God's cause


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