What is a Wise Man?
Jonathan L. McCarthy
There were once two men who worked at the same factory. They were both around the same age, and came from middle-class homes. For fifty years they worked at the factory earning equal wages and receiving equal raises. The first man spent every paycheck almost immediately. He always had the nicest car in the parking lot, the most in-style sneakers and even the prettiest girl-friends. The second man married early and began saving. He paid his bills, saved and invested. He lived a modest life, drove what ran and wore mid-line shoes. Both men came to the end of their careers at the same time. The retirement plan at the factory was lousy, just enough to pay for the bare necessities. The first fellow had nothing saved, and was forced to live out the rest of his years in poverty. His cars gave out on him, his shoes wore quickly and his friends disappeared. The second man, however, lived comfortably, was able to go on vacations and enjoyed the love of his large family.
This is a made-up story to demonstrate a real point. The first man was a fool, the second was a wise man. Our world today defines the ‘wise man’ as the one who has the newest and greatest things, who is always looking out for his immediate pleasures. In the end though, the world’s wise-man is a fool.
Scripture has a lot to say about the wise man. The book of Proverbs is dedicated to the study of wisdom, written by the wisest man of all, Solomon. Solomon had more wisdom than any other human, yet he lived like a fool. The book of Ecclesiastes is Solomon’s confession of his foolishness. So there are two men. You can choose to be the man of Proverbs or the man of Ecclesiastes.The man of wisdom, according to the Proverbs, is characterized first of all by his fear of God. Proverbs 1:7 states:
The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge. Fools despise wisdom and instruction. (NASB)
The fear of the LORD is a very misunderstood concept in the Christian church. Many people reduce it simply to a ‘reverence’ for God. That only begins to scratch the surface of what it means to fear God.
Ecclesiastes 12:13-14 sheds some light on what it means to fear the LORD.
The conclusion, when all has been heard is: fear God and keep His commandments, because this applies to every person. For God will bring every act to judgment, everything which is hidden, whether it is good or evil. (NASB)
This is the conclusion of the book of Ecclesiastes. Solomon has contemplated on all of the vanities he dabbled in throughout his life. He tried to find happiness in knowledge, gardens, parks, riches and sex and he draws this conclusion. Everything we try to find satisfaction in outside of God is vanity (Paul calls it dung). The only way to have a successful life is to fear God and obey Him. Verse fourteen brings out exactly what we are to fear – judgment. We are to literally fear, tremble, be afraid of God’s judgment because He will expose everything we’ve ever done. All of us must realize how horribly embarrassed we will be when God makes open what we’ve done.
Fearing God, though is only the beginning of the road that the wise man begins to travel. Proverbs 15:33 and 20:4 both tie fear of the LORD, honor and humility together.
The fear of the LORD is the instruction for wisdom, and before honor comes humility. (NASB)
The reward of humility and the fear of the LORD are riches, honor and life. (NASB)
Fearing the LORD is knit very close to humility. After we have seen our own sin and shortcomings, we should be abased before God. We need to realize that there’s no way we can become good enough for Him. This is where Christ comes in.
But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. (Romans 5:8-9 NASB)
The Fear of the LORD then leads us into obedience. We have already seen that Ecclesiastes 12:13 teaches obedience. Job 28:28 also highlights this concept of the Fear of the LORD:
"And to man He said, ‘Behold, the fear of the LORD, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.’ "
Quite simply the fear of the LORD leads us to the salvation process! We must first learn to tremble over our sin, then to humble ourselves and accept God’s grace, realizing we can’t do anything to earn heaven, and finally begin to obey His commandments.
The wise man must first realize that in and of himself, he can’t be wise. He’s fallen into sin, he deserves to be punished in Hell for his sins, but he also understands and accepts Jesus Christ’s death as his payment. He knows that if he accepts this payment, that God will rule him innocent of his crimes.
Before we can even enter into the path of wisdom, we have to get through this gate. The gate is small and narrow, and proud people can’t get in. Only those people who aren’t interested in self-strength and personal ego may enter. The gate is Jesus Christ, and the sign of the cross overhead isn’t just a cute little symbol. It represents death to self, the world and sin. A brutal, rugged road lies ahead of you. It is the only way to happiness. Will you go through the gate?
Coming Soon: What is a Wise Man part 2
Labels: wisdom
posted by Jonathan M @ 1:29 PM
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