By Proverbs 1:1-7 The proverbs of Solomon, son of David, king of Israel: To know wisdom and instruction, to understand words of insight, to receive instruction in wise dealing, in righteousness, justice, and equity; to give prudence to the simple, knowledge and discretion to the youth— Let the wise hear and increase in learning, and the one who understands obtain guidance, to understand a proverb and a saying, the words of the wise and their riddles. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.
How did the world begin? How did I get here on this earth? How do I play baseball? How do I build a house? How do I drive a car? How do I know where I will go after death?
All of these questions are beginning questions. How you answer these questions will determine what road you will travel, and what your destination and outcome will be. I am reminded of Christian heading through the wicket gate to get to the celestial city. If Christian did not begin by entering this gate, he would not gain access through the door of the city at the end. Beginnings matter.
How do I become wise? How do I learn righteousness, justice, or equity? How do I gain real knowledge, or find discretion? The Proverb tells us the beginning of all these things is the fear of the Lord. The fear of the Lord is a a reverential submission to the Lord’s will. It is placing oneself under the authority of God and his Word, and then acting accordingly.
The first step in having reverential submission to the Lord’s will is taking God at his Word as to who he is and what he is like. Then it is believing what he says about the state we as humans are in. We are fallen, depraved, and sinful. Then we believe that God sent his Son to earth as the remedy for our sinfulness. And finally we turn from our sin, and trust in Jesus as our only hope because that is the Lord’s will for each one of our lives.
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; and faith is the beginning of fear^.
^note: faith in the right object (Jesus), and not simply faith
Leading Family Devotions 