Day 7

So thus far in the book of Proverbs, the importance of wisdom is quite obvious. We've read verses of how instruction is thy life and how we are to keep our hearts with all diligence and yesterday we were reminded to bind the wisdom of the Word of God upon our hearts.

Today, we are given a great example of why we ought to hearken unto wisdom.

"Hearken unto me now therefore, O ye children, and attend to the words of my mouth. Let not thine heart decline to her ways, go not astray in her paths. For she hath cast down many wounded; yea many strong men have been slain by her." Proverbs 7:24-26

Proverbs 7 tells the tale of a young man who yielded to a harlot.

I am quite familiar with this chapter. I've heard sermons preached out this chapter and I have read over it and studied out. It's not exactly one of my favorite chapters in Proverbs but it does have a lot of good stuff to draw out.

As I thought about this chapter today, I began to ponder the scenario of what are we to do once we begin to obtain wisdom. You know, so far in Proverbs, we are told over and over and over again to get wisdom, to keep it, to bind it up our hearts and wear it around our necks. We're not to let wisdom go.

Great. But once I have some wisdom, what do I do with it?

Use it.

Use it to discern the right choice from the wrong choice, the right place from the wrong place.

Our young man from today's Proverb found himself in the wrong place. Actually, I think he knew exactly where he was, he simply chose the wrong place.

"Passing through the street near her corner; and he went the way to her house. In the twilight, in the evening, in the black and dark night; and behold, there met him a woman with the attire of an harlot, and subtil of heart." Proverbs 7:8-10

Verse 8 tells us the young man was near her corner and he went the way to her house. He knew where to find sin. We all know where to find sin. It isn't exactly hiding. We don't need to search it out. But this young fella, he went after it. He meandered in a place where he should not have been. He could have spared himself, had he used some wisdom to discern that he did not belong in that neighborhood.

I also thought of Solomon. God offered him anything and he chose wisdom. Great choice. He is the one who actually wrote the Proverbs. However, I thought to myself, "Where did all that wisdom get Solomon?" He didn't exactly end his life victoriously serving God.

He let his guard down. He stopped using the wisdom God had given him and he allowed his heart to be drawn away from God unto other idols. This, in large part, was a result of all the wives he had. Solomon allowed himself to be surrounded by people who did not seek after God's wisdom. Solomon found himself surrounded by the wrong people.

So what are we to do with wisdom, as we obtain it from God and His Word. We are to keep it. Use it. Allow it to work in us and guide us. If we don't, we allow our hearts to be unguarded and make ourselves vulnerable to sin.

Seek after wisdom and when you get it, put it to use right away, allow it to become your habit and your guide.