HOW BAD DO YOU WANT IT?

June 08, 2023

Wisdom is a product of insatiable desire. Solomon, who at least at one point was the wisest man on the face of the earth, gave instructions to his son and all of us about how to gain wisdom. A foolish man could care less about this type of instruction because he thinks he is wise on his own. He does not know that wisdom is something that must be gained. And it is gained only when it is sought with aggressive tenacity.

To fail to gain wisdom in this life is to remain in your foolishness. Wisdom is more than knowledge. It is the God-infused ability to apply truth to the right situation. To be the right one doing the right thing at the right time for the right purpose. A wise man or woman is a treasure. They have what everyone else needs. The wise man speaks in a meeting and cuts through the fog, bringing Divine clarity. They are our counselors and spiritual leaders.

In his fourth chapter of Proverbs, Solomon uses 36 imperative commands in 27 verses to try to drill into the mind of his son and all of us that wisdom must be aggressively pursued. It is not gained casually. Only those who long for wisdom—who long for God Himself—will gain it.

Pull these 36 commands out, and you will be overwhelmed by their urgency. The wisdom, even of this call, is found in the repetition and intensity of God’s commands.

• HEAR the instruction
• GIVE ATTENTION
• DO NOT ABANDON
• HOLD FAST my words
• ACQUIRE wisdom
• ACQUIRE understanding
• DO NOT FORGET
• DO NOT TURN AWAY from my words
• DO NOT FORSAKE her
• LOVE her
• ACQUIRE wisdom
• PRIZE her
• EMBRACE HER
• HEAR and ACCEPT my sayings
• TAKE HOLD of instruction, and DO NOT LET GO
• GUARD her
• DO NOT ENTER the path of the wicked; DO NOT PROCEED, AVOID, DO NOT PASS BY, TURN away, PASS on
• GIVE ATTENTION to my words
• INCLINE your ear
• DO NOT LET THEM DEPART from your sight
• KEEP them in the midst of your heart
• WATCH over your heart
• PUT AWAY a deceitful mouth; PUT devious speech far away
• LOOK DIRECTLY ahead
• FIX YOUR GAZE straight ahead
• WATCH the path of your feet
• DO NOT TURN to the right or left
• TURN your foot from evil

It would seem that wisdom (which is synonymous in the Proverbs with Christ Himself, who IS wisdom) is gained through intense desire. Only those who are so aware of their own foolishness and inadequacies that they pursue Christ and His words with passion will gain that which is life indeed.

So, how bad do you want it? How bad do you want Him? And what adjustments will you make in your life right now to find that which is life indeed?

 

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