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Living Wise: The Path of Righteousness

Proverbs 2
Cascades Fellowship CRC
February 10, 2002

Archeology is a fascinating science of discovery. The dedication, the time, the

skills necessary to be a good archeologist are a rare find in combination. One has to have

a real fascination with discovering the hidden – a fascination so deep that it is not

frustrated by the mole-hills of failure a practitioner must go through to get to the

mountain of success. To walk among the hallowed in the field of archeology, you have to

be a real gold-digger. A treasure-seeker in every sense of the world.

How many here have seen an archeological dig? A dig is a fairly precise

procedure. Once a likely sight is determined to hold archeological riches – another

arduous process we will talk about in a moment – it is segmented into numbered plots for

record keeping purposes. Then with the finest tools possible to get the work done – often

using hand troughs and brushes – each numbered plot is sifted through with extreme care.

You go to a dig and you can find reasonable, rational adults on their bellies, playing

quietly in the dirt. Or at least that’s what it looks like – in reality, they are carefully

checking each stone or shard for the thumbprints on man.

The world of archeology began fascinating me after watching Raiders of the Lost

Ark. Harrison Ford played the intrepid Indiana Jones, mild-mannered Professor of

Archeology and swashbuckling adventurer. He looked for new archeological quests to

excuse himself from the classroom and to go in search of great historical treasures

thought to be lost forever. In this movie, his target was the Ark of the Covenant.
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Now I don’t pretend for a moment that the adventurous life of Indiana Jones is the

life of an archeologist. The sort of cloak and dagger stuff that he found himself

enmeshed in most likely never occurs in the world of archeology. And I sincerely doubt

that many archeologist run about the ancient ruins with a bullwhip – with which they are

incredibly proficient – and a side-arm the size of a howitzer – again, with which they are

strangely proficient. But the process which Indiana Jones goes through to find the Ark

may have a few shadows of reality.

The investigative process used to determine where a likely place to dig is time-

intensive and just as exacting as the actual digging. There are ancient records and

histories to decode and harmonize to get a clear picture of location, size, what to look for

– you name it. There are traditions and myths to sift through to find the kernel of truth.

There might even be ancient keys, trap doors or other barriers to sacred spaces that have

to be deciphered and used properly to find real archeological treasure. If you are going to

be an archeologist, you must be persistent, you must be precise, and you must be patient.

If you are going to find the treasure, then you’re going to have to dig.

Proverbs 2 calls us to a treasure hunt. Like an archeologist, we are told if you are

going to find treasure, then you’re going to have to dig. This morning we are to take a

closer look at Proverbs 2 based upon the conditional statements found in our text – If this

… then this. To do this we want to ask ourselves a couple of questions. The first is what

is it we are looking for? What hidden treasure are we pursuing with dogged persistence?

The second is what means do we have to find this treasure? What are the procedures for

making sure that we don’t just dig right past the treasure we are seeking? Finally, our
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third question is what do we hope to gain by digging? How does what we find enrich us

or does it enrich us?

Let me read for you Proverbs 2 vv.1-5 in the New American Standard Version,

because it captures most clearly the idea of treasure-seeking.

My son, if you will receive my words and treasure my commandments

within you, make your ear attentive to wisdom, incline your heart to
understanding; for if you cry for discernment, lift your voice for
understanding – if you seek her as silver and search for her as hidden
treasures – then you will discern the fear of the Lord and discover the
knowledge of God.

After the last two weeks, I don’t think I am going to surprise anyone by saying that the

treasure we are looking for is wisdom. But what I love about this text is that it so closely

ties wisdom to the fear of the Lord. Proverbs 1:7 is once again echoed here. The

foundation for all true knowledge is the recognition that God is the Creator and we are

the creatures. If you want to enter into the realm of the wise – the truly wise – years of

philosophical training will not necessarily get you there. Not unless your training is cast

in the mold of Proverbs 1:7 – the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge. No

amount of theological training, no amount mathematical training, no amount of scientific

training or humanities training can make you truly wise unless the foundation is already

laid – the fear of the Lord; in other words, a real and vibrant relationship with the Lord

Jesus Christ. Remember the wise man builds his house upon the Rock.

John Calvin developed a model for true knowledge. I am sure I have mentioned it

before, but it is something that bears repeating. Boiled down to its essentials, Calvin said

that if you want to know yourself, you must first know God – the fear of the Lord. If you
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want to know God, you must know yourself – the fear of the Lord is the beginning of

knowledge. When we know ourselves for who we are in relation to God – we begin to

discern the fear of the Lord. We begin to discover the knowledge of God and that

knowledge colors everything else we learn – or at least it should.

In the Book of Job, Job offers us a little insight into this treasure hunt we are

speaking of. In chapter 28 he begins speaking about how man mines the earth for

treasure. To make a long discourse short, Job essentially says of all of creation, only man

walks the deeps of the earth in search of treasure. He places himself at great risk and

goes where no other creature would to find these riches – baubles really. Man is willing

to give up everything in pursuit of these treasures, including his life.

Then in v.12 of that chapter he asks, “Where can wisdom be found?” Again he

sets off on a journey of discourse, questioning all of creation. The deep places of the

earth, the ocean, even death and the grave cannot answer him. All the baubles and ore

that come from the earth cannot purchase it. In vv. 22-28, it is God who finally provides

the answer. The Lord answers “…Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to

depart from evil is understanding.”

People of God, the invaluable treasure that we seek is nothing short of our

relationship to God, through Christ the Son. The real treasure is the initiation of that

relationship if it is absent or deepening that relationship if it is present. Our relationship

to God should never be in static. We should be gold-digging every single day.

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So what are our tools for digging? How do we know where to dig so that we don’t

miss the treasure? To answer I would like us to pay special attention to vv. 1-3 of our text

this morning.

In vv. 1 and 2 of our text, the father exhorts the son to “receive his words” and to

“treasure his commandments within.” He calls on the son to make, to incline, to

predispose his ear to attend to wisdom and his heart to attend to understanding. What the

father is asking for is a teachable spirit and heart open to instruction.

I suspect many of you were expecting me to once again go for “the-make-sure-

you-are-spending-time-with-God’s-Word” angle. Let your expectation suffice as

instruction. But before we can get to the place where by spending the time we are able to

mine the riches of the Scriptures, there is something else. In truth, it goes back to

realizing that we are the creatures and God is the Creator.

There are few things that hinder knowledge and insight like pride. Pride makes

the heart arrogant in its knowledge and fills the spirit with disdain for the instruction of

others. After a lifetime of catechism, table-side devotions, Sunday school instruction,

sermons and – hopefully – personal devotions, it is so easy to believe we have read it all,

heard it all, and memorized it all before. People of God, let me submit to you that this is

not so easily dismissed by the saying “Familiarity breeds contempt.” It is more than just

boredom. It is the heart, which the Scriptures say is deceitful above all things, saying that

we have nothing left to learn. If familiarity breeds contempt, it is only because we have

come to believe that we know God’s Word so well that it can no longer instruct us. In

other words our hearts have become arrogant, elevating itself to the place of the arbiter of
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all truth. Our hearts have placed themselves above the Scriptures – in a very real sense,

in our boredom we are saying that the pupil has become greater than the master.

I realize these are hard words and I am by no means guiltless. This is the constant

temptation of those given the exceptional blessing of being afforded the opportunity to be

theologically trained. But I walked with Christ before I was theologically trained and I

know that this temptation is not exclusive to my ilk, it pervades the church. It is only

intensified for the seminarian.

Regardless, the truth that I am trying to communicate is that we must always be

aware of who and what we are dealing with. There is no place for pride, yet somehow it

slips in. Never forget that as you approach the Scriptures, you are coming to the Words

of life given to us by the Creator of the universe. This is not just a cool story book

handed down to us by some peculiar faction of the Jews, it is God’s message of

redemption for his creation. And never forget that the mysteries buried between the

covers would remain locked away from you if it were not for the illuminating power and

presence of the Holy Spirit. The fact that you can read the Scriptures and understand its

message and know with certainty its truth is the result of divine grace, not superior

intellect. When we keep these things in mind – when we remind ourselves that we are

creatures who have received exceptional grace from the Omnipotent, Awesome God of all

creation – we forsake the pride of knowledge and become open to instruction. We

develop a teachable spirit.

That is what the father is calling the son to in these first two verses – humbleness

of heart, a teachable spirit. He wants the son to realize that truth does not begin with him.
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The wise man remains open to instruction. Then in v.3 he says there is one other thing

necessary before the digging begins – to call out for insight and to cry aloud for

understanding.

Okay, this point is what you think it is. James 1:5 says that “…if any man lacks

wisdom let him ask God, who gives generously and without reproach, and it will be

freely given.” Remember the picture of wisdom calling out in all the places of public

interaction and raising her voice above the crowd? Well, here the son – and we – are

called upon to cry out as well. Let me tell you the picture that came to mind when I read

this passage in light of the previous passage.

There was a story in a Readers Digest feature called “All in a Day’s Work.” It was

about one of these contemporary office settings – a maze of cubicles that you have to

jump to see over. One person was looking for a coworker among the cubicles. The

continual hubbub of business was going; the free enterprise machine was at full hum.

When the one person got to the cubicle of the person they were looking for he found that

the person was out looking for him. Suddenly, his name was called. He tried to jump up

and see, but unless the other person jumped at the same time, one would never see the

other. So what did he do? MARCO! POLO! The two played Marco Polo until they

found one another.

People of God, wisdom stands in the street, in all the places of public discourse

calling us away from the path of wickedness and onto the path of righteousness. Let’s

answer POLO! Prayer is an incredibly effective tool as we begin to dig into the

Scriptures. Call out for wisdom. God gives generously and without reproach. With a
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humble heart and a word of prayer, you will be amazed at how profitable your digging

will be as you seek wisdom.

So if you maintain humbleness of heart and a teachable spirit and if you call out

for wisdom, then what? If you go seeking treasure with the right tools and you find gold,

what good will it do you?

The first gain is found in v.5. We seek wisdom – the fear of the Lord – and our

first gain is that we find it spades. For God is the giver of wisdom, from his mouth

comes knowledge and understanding. When we go digging for wisdom, remember that

the ground we are digging in is holy ground. As we seek wisdom, because where we

seek it is in God’s Word and God is the giver of wisdom, the natural outcome is a

deepened, unshakable, vibrant faith. Our knowledge of God grows and so does our trust

of him. As we walk the path of righteousness, his Word guards our way. He preserves us

from walking into fields of reproach.

What this means practically then is that as we grow in the knowledge of God, we

also grow in our knowledge of what pleases him. What is according to his good and

perfect will for us. As we grow in this understanding, it shapes our decisions – our

choices. We make fewer of the decisions that are morally stupid. We begin to walk the

path of righteousness with a steady gait instead of a belly crawl.

The second gain is that because the wisdom we gain has such a profound impact

on our choices, we will begin to discern what is right and just and fair – every good

course. You know what the best part of that is? Look at v.11. Discretion will protect

you and understanding will guard you.

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Let me offer you just one of the practical benefits of discretion. By wisdom, you

will learn when and where to keep your mouth shut. Maybe that’s not a problem for you.

For me, it’s a problem. Maybe you want another benefit of discretion. Okay, how about

this one – you will know when to say no.

The wisdom gained in earnestly, doggedly searching for it – by calling out POLO!

to wisdom’s MARCO! will guard you from the ways of the wicked man – the path of the

wicked. That steady gait that you have picked up on the path of righteousness will be

protected from turning to stumbling. Because understanding is departing from evil, you

will not walk the paths of darkness or delight in doing evil or rejoice in perversity.

O the perversity that is at our fingertips. People of God, it is so easy for us to

rejoice in perversity and to delight in evil. The juicy tidbit of gossip, the television show

that shows more skin than sense – and I have to mention this because it is just such a

blatant example of it, shows like Playmate Fear Factor. How about the quasi-legal tax

deduction or the flirtatious relationship with someone other than your spouse. Wisdom

can keep us from going after the one who has abandoned his or her covenant with his or

her spouse and God – keeps us from going after the way that leads to death. The list of

opportunities to walk along the edge of the path of darkness, where the risk of stumbling

is the greatest, appears limitless. But wisdom…wisdom can guard us from even toeing

the edge of the path of wickedness.

Instead, we learn to walk the paths of righteousness. The riches we gain by

diligently seeking out wisdom with all the right tools lead us to walk as God has called us
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to walk. He has showed, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you?

To act justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.

So let us pursue wisdom with the same fervor that Indiana Jones pursued the Ark

of the Covenant. We know what the right tools are – a humble heart and a teachable

spirit; a willingness to cry out POLO! to wisdom’s MARCO! Let’s use them to do some

treasure-seeking in the Scriptures. It may not lead to swashbuckling adventure, but the

wisdom we gain will deepen our love and trust of God. It will teach us to walk in his

ways. It will lead us to walk the path of righteousness.