Website owner: James Miller
Wisdom calls: Get wisdom! Get understanding!
Wisdom calls aloud outside; She raises her voice in the open squares. She cries out in the chief concourses, At the openings of the gates in the city She speaks her words: "How long, you simple ones, will you love simplicity? For scorners delight in their scorning, And fools hate knowledge. Turn at my rebuke; Surely I will pour out my spirit on you; I will make my words known to you. Because I have called and you refused, I have stretched out my hand and no one regarded, Because you disdained all my counsel, And would have none of my rebuke, I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your terror comes, When your terror comes like a storm, And your destruction comes like a whirlwind, When distress and anguish come upon you. "Then they will call on me, but I will not answer; They will seek me diligently, but they will not find me. Because they hated knowledge And did not choose the fear of the LORD, They would have none of my counsel And despised my every rebuke. Therefore they shall eat the fruit of their own way, And be filled to the full with their own fancies. For the turning away of the simple will slay them, And the complacency of fools will destroy them; But whoever listens to me will dwell safely, And will be secure, without fear of evil." Prov. 1:20-33
Get wisdom! Get understanding! Do not forget, nor turn away from the words of my mouth. Do not forsake her, and she will preserve you; Love her, and she will keep you. Wisdom is the principal thing; Therefore get wisdom. And in all your getting, get understanding. Exalt her, and she will promote you; She will bring you honor, when you embrace her. She will place on your head an ornament of grace; A crown of glory she will deliver to you. Prov 4: 5-9
Why is this advice from the book of Proverbs in the Bible so very important in life? It is important because we live in a world of lie, spiritual error, deception, illusion, and foolishness. We live in a world where truth is not out in the open and easily visible. It is hidden — and not easily seen or found. All the voices impinging on us all in this world are siren voices of lie, illusion and deception. And, as a consequence, most people are fooled. From the time they are born, through their childhood years when their characters are being developed, they are subjected to an unending barrage of lie and falsehood. As a consequence, the bulk of the people in this world is always deceived. The masses, the crowd, always lives in foolishness. Its ideas, assumptions, attitudes, values and ways are invariably in high error. The assumptions, outlooks and ways of the culture that we are immersed in. Mostly, they are foolishness. The expert opinions of the authorities of our world. They are not to be trusted. For the most part, the wisdom of this world is foolishness. The knowledge and assumptions of this world are not to be trusted. Why is this true? One reason is that mankind is just naturally inclined toward error and foolishness. He was just made that way. This is a fact that the great thinkers of all ages have understood. There are strong pulls in all of us toward things like laziness, dishonesty, pride, ego, selfishness, vanity, malice, hatred, vengeance, lust, self-indulgence, etc.. These basic inclinations are the problem. Our basic inclinations and instincts just mislead us, take us in wrong directions. We just naturally want the wrong things, desire the wrong things, pursue the wrong things, behave in wrong ways. In addition to this, man has another fault. It is his naive tendency to, instead of thinking for himself and seeking out truth, just follow the crowd. Thus he becomes like a blind man following the blind. The crowd thinks and lives foolishly and he just follows it in its foolishness.
There is a teaching found in the Bible that gives profound insight into why things are as they are in this world. It informs us about Satan. It tells us that Satan rules this world and is our enemy. Satan is referred to in the Bible by a number of different terms: the devil, evil spirit, father of lies, liar, lying spirit, old serpent, power of darkness, prince of this world, prince of demons, prince of the power of the air, spirit that worketh in the children of disobedience, tempter, the god of this world. These different terms give insight into who he is, what he is, and what he does.
The Bible tells us that we are all inclined towards spiritual error, all inclined toward sin, and that by some great and unchangeable law of the Universe, sin leads to punishment in a great, fiery hell. And it tells us that Satan is always around to tempt us or to induce us, in some way, to sin. It also instructs us on how we can avoid hell and go to heaven by repenting of our sin and turning to God and following in his way.
The ways of this world, the attitudes, outlooks and values of this world, lead to messed up lives and personal unhappiness. You can count on that. They lead to no good in this life. Sin has consequences in this life. I see it over and over. You can’t get away with it. People always pay in one way or another. And that is not even mentioning the final judgment and an eternity in hell. Most people are fools. They are hardheaded. They won’t listen. They just are not willing to believe in any hell and are just not interested in hearing about some abstract “religious foolishness” such as “truth”. Or they are just lazy. They don’t want to put in the effort to seek out the truth. So they just follow the path of the crowd. And they pay for it all. I personally think less than one person in a hundred thousand follows the advice given is the book of Proverbs and seeks truth.
What advice could I give to a serious young person who is confused and wants help in his life? Take the advice given by the book of Proverbs and seek truth. That is the most important thing a person can do in life. It will transform your life. You won’t find it if you don’t seek it. Where do you look for it? Go to the Bible. You will find it there.
See the following:
The Natural Way -- The Unnatural Way
June 2016
Jesus Christ and His Teachings
Way of enlightenment, wisdom, and understanding
America, a corrupt, depraved, shameless country
On integrity and the lack of it
The test of a person's Christianity is what he is
Ninety five percent of the problems that most people have come from personal foolishness
Liberalism, socialism and the modern welfare state
The desire to harm, a motivation for conduct
On Self-sufficient Country Living, Homesteading
Topically Arranged Proverbs, Precepts, Quotations. Common Sayings. Poor Richard's Almanac.
Theory on the Formation of Character
People are like radio tuners --- they pick out and listen to one wavelength and ignore the rest
Cause of Character Traits --- According to Aristotle
We are what we eat --- living under the discipline of a diet
Avoiding problems and trouble in life
Role of habit in formation of character
Personal attributes of the true Christian
What determines a person's character?
Love of God and love of virtue are closely united
Intellectual disparities among people and the power in good habits
Tools of Satan. Tactics and Tricks used by the Devil.
The Natural Way -- The Unnatural Way
Wisdom, Reason and Virtue are closely related
Knowledge is one thing, wisdom is another
My views on Christianity in America
The most important thing in life is understanding
We are all examples --- for good or for bad
Television --- spiritual poison
The Prime Mover that decides "What We Are"
Where do our outlooks, attitudes and values come from?
Sin is serious business. The punishment for it is real. Hell is real.
Self-imposed discipline and regimentation
Achieving happiness in life --- a matter of the right strategies
Self-control, self-restraint, self-discipline basic to so much in life