How did we get here? It is often useful to look at how things began and perhaps see the seeds of that which would develop to what is seen in the present.
The Bible makes a remarkable statement about the reason for so much foolishness in the world.
The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.”
Psalm 14:1 (ESV)
They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds,
there is none who does good.
Foolishness is often associated with a lack of intelligence. The type of foolishness referred to here, though, is more about lacking a proper moral basis for action. Having said that, there should not need to be a division made between intelligence and morality. Intellect can be connected and related to what is right, true and proper in the world.
Nevertheless, the case as seen in the rest of the Psalm reflects the tendency of humanity that rejects God and looks to set itself up as its own source of morality. Whether we say it overtly or express it through actions, denying or rejecting God is a sure sign of foolishness and leads to the foolish mess that is so common in the world that has denied and rejected Him.
The foolishness is even seen where people look to make themselves intellectual and flaunt their intellect in a way that suggests they don’t need God and don’t want to be restricted by Him, but to live as they please by their own standards. As they do this, they fail to appreciate again and again that they set a standard that says it’s alright to do whatever is right in your eyes and if anyone should dare criticise you, they should be hounded for such sacrilege. If that works for you, it’s got to apply to others ad if it does apply to others, the result is usually chaos and disorder. Wherever we look to set up arbitrary standards to get people to agree with it by persuasion or force, it doesn’t take long to reject it and bring about conflict. Peace and harmony is not the result of letting people do whatever they see fit. It certainly is not experienced by rejecting the Creator who knows the purpose for which we were created and knows how we can truly be at our best.
This is why the Bible goes on to establish a fresh beginning available to us,
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,
Proverbs 9:10 (ESV)
and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight.
The antidote to foolishness and the foolish mess it always produces is found in the fear of the Lord. People squirm at the concept. Some of those who follow Jesus may think that such a term is no longer relevant because of Jesus. If anything, however, the revelation of Jesus actually sharpens the concept for believers. His obedient submission to the Father and the way His followers were as much about the awe and wonder of God as they were about intimacy through Jesus Christ.
The fear of the Lord acknowledges how awesome He is and worthy as a result He is to be the Supreme Judge of what is right. The fear of the Lord puts things into perspective by allowing us to know that if anyone is worthy of being the standard and setting the standard it is the Creator. If anyone is ill-suited for the task it is a creation that rejects and denies its Creator.
Consider the rest of what the wise man says in the first part of Proverbs 9 and you see a depiction of wisdom as an invitation for the simple to turn away from being simpletons and embrace the wisdom that gives life. It is a way that offers good judgement. It is the path to a life worth enjoying because it is with reference to the Author of life whose script for living is a lot better than the alternatives put forward by those who scoff at wisdom. Notice the choice at hand in the statement made after the thought on where wisdom begins,
Wisdom will multiply your days
Proverbs 9:11-12 (NLT)
and add years to your life.
If you become wise, you will be the one to benefit.
If you scorn wisdom, you will be the one to suffer.
Wisdom begins with the right approach to God. Not an approach that scorns and dismisses. Neither is it an approach that cowers and hides from Him. It is an approach that reveres and celebrates Him in His greatness and sees it writ large in a world created in wisdom.
This is a relational dynamic, this is not about the intake of information from reading words and reciting those words. (Reading is important, but it is not sufficient.) Relate with God in praise, prayer, study and engagement with what God wants. He is talking and expecting an interaction with that. Interaction that’s not blind obedience. Rather, it’s applying all that He’s given to figure out, process and work out what He’s saying in a way that pursues the righteous standards He’s set for the world He created for us to enjoy in harmony.
That harmony will never be experienced or realised as long as we maintain the wrong approach to God. Whether that is to keep our backs turned to Him or to think that He expects us to look down on His feet all the time, rather than hear what His heart says about the nature of the relationship.
Wisdom and foolishness can be traced to the beginnings of our attitude to God. Even then, however, if we do find ourselves in a foolish mess because of the wrong approach, there’s still time today for new beginnings.
For His Name’s Sake
Shalom
C. L. J. Dryden
Life With CD 