As I was reading my Bible the other morning, a particular passage in Proverbs stood out to me and it was copied down into my notebook . . . and I thought I would also share it here:
"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 for hidden treasures; then you will discern the fear of the LORD and discover the knowledge of God." Proverbs 2:1-5
Notice all of the 'action' words that are given in these verses . . . receive . . . treasure . . . make your ear attentive . . . incline your heart . . . cry for discernment . . . lift your voice . . . seek . . . search . . . and then, as a result of these things, the fear of the Lord will be discerned and true knowledge of God will be discovered.
These verses describe a heart bent on following hard after the Lord, on truly knowing Him as He has revealed Himself in His Word . . . someone who is like the deer that "pants after the water brooks," and who can declare "my soul pants for You, O God. My soul thirsts for the living God;" (Psalm 42:1-2a) and again "O God, You are my God; I shall seek You earnestly; my soul thirsts for You, my flesh yearns for You, in a dry and weary land where there is no water" (Psalm 63:1.)
May this also be cry and earnest desire of our hearts! Above all else, seeking Christ first and seeking to have a heart as the one just described in Proverbs 2:1-5 . . . receiving God's words, treasuring His commandments, making our ears attentive to His wisdom, inclining our hearts to understanding His Word, crying for discernment and for understanding, seeking and searching for wisdom as for silver and hidden treasures . . . and then we will be able to discern what it is to truly fear the Lord and will grow in our knowledge of God.
"For the LORD gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding. He stores up sound wisdom for the upright; He is a shield to those who walk in integrity, guarding the paths of justice, and He preserves the way of His godly ones. Then you will discern righteousness and justice and equity and every good course. For wisdom will enter your heart and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul; discretion will guard you, understanding will watch over you . . . (Proverbs 2:6-11)
-Posted by Sarah
Oh, what a great verse ladies! I really enjoyed reading this post!
ReplyDeleteI can really see that you two girls are really seeking truth, and are serving God!
Keep up the good work!
Your Loving Sister in Christ,
Johanna
Thank you for your comment, Johanna, and for the encouraging words! We’re glad that the post was a blessing to you. :)
ReplyDeleteHello Sarah and Leah~this was written beautifully! I was very blessed by it today~In Him, Rose
ReplyDeleteSarah...this is a wonderful "call to action" from the Book of Wisdom.
ReplyDeleteCan you share one or two ways that you personally have applied this to your life? What was the end result?
~ Betsy O.
We were glad to hear that it was a blessing to you, Rose! And thank you for your comment. :)
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comment, Betsy! :) And I apologize for the long delay in getting back to you!
ReplyDeleteIn response to your questions, I am unsure how best to answer them as I hesitate to go into detail about how I personally am applying these things with the main reason being that I am not a standard to follow. While I am seeking to grow in these areas, I often err and fall short of where I should be. However, these areas that were mentioned in this section of Proverbs can be understood, and one can discover how to apply them to their lives and how to cultivate them as an outpouring of their heart, by following the best examples and instruction given . . . those being found in God’s word. Meanwhile, remembering and understanding that God’s word is not subjective (using our own opinions to define, etc.), but is indeed objective and tangible. Finding the scriptural meanings of the words used will also provide a deeper understanding of application and practice (such as looking up the words “treasure”, “cry”, “discernment”, “knowledge”, “wisdom”, “understanding”, etc.; and looking up other passages of Scripture that relate such as Deut. 4:5-6 and Job 28:28.) How wonderful it is to know that Scripture will have the answers for us, and within its pages lies the perfect example and instruction for us to follow . . . that being the Lord Jesus Christ and His word to us. What a blessing that is!
You had also asked what the “end result” was after applying these things that are mentioned . . . that question is answered in this same passage in Proverbs. To those who do those things mentioned (treasuring God’s commandments, crying for discernment, etc.), the promised result from the Lord is that then we will discern the fear of the Lord and discover the knowledge of Him. It is an “if, then” scenario . . . if “a” then “b” will follow. Yet this "end result" is one that is never completely realized until we are with the Lord in heaven . . . in this life, little by little we learn more from the word of God of what it is to fear the Lord and of the knowledge of Him. And both come as we continue to grow in Christ, seeking to grow in obedience to Him and in the knowledge and application of His word (like what was mentioned from Proverbs 2.)
I know that this doesn’t directly answer your questions, but I hope that it helps somewhat! :)