5. Get wisdom, get understanding; do not forget my words or turn away from them. 6. Do not forsake wisdom, and she will protect you; love her, and she will watch over you. 7. The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding. 8. Cherish her, and she will exalt you; embrace her, and she will honor you. 9. She will give you a garland to grace your head and present you with a glorious crown.”

From today, this Sunday worship I want to share some topics with the book of Proverbs. We can derive out many topics, but today I want to talk about the wisdom. Do you know what is the main topics of the book of Proverbs? Of course Wisdom is the main topics of Proverbs. So I think it is appropriate to start this sermon series by looking at the benefits of wisdom.

Wisdom is something we all desire to have. Who does want to be foolish? May be everyone of you here has done something foolish at least one time in your life. So everyone needs wisdom. Proverbs wasn't written to amuse us, but to pass wisdom down from generation to generation in our lives. Today's verse 5 says...

"Get wisdom"

We aren't born wise. So we need to get wisdom. By the way... Why do we have to get wisdom? And what kinds of benefit can we get from wisdom?

First of all, the benefit of wisdom is training us. Wisdom is necessary for us to discipline us, train us, and give us more understanding. Studying the word of God, memorizing Scripture, seeking answers from God, are the ways God is training us for the future. We will have to make difficult decisions in the future, but with wisdom, these decisions will not be difficult so much. With wisdom, we will be able to solve any problem. Nothing will be too hard for us with wisdom.

Secondly, The benefit of wisdom is Protecting us from the evil. When we choose the way to be wise, when we follow God’s roads, from that time on God will protect us. In 2:12, it says,

‘wisdom will save you from the ways of wicked men…’

We are all sinners, but there are truly wicked people, who desire to do anything contrary to God, and who have no fear of God.

In vs. 14 it says,

"they enjoy doing wrong and rejoice in evil."

If we desire to live a godly life, we need to pray that God will give us the wisdom to keep away from such people, and protect us from such people. If there are people around you who try to pull you down, or insult you, ask for wisdom to avoid these kind of people. Confrontation is not the only way to handle problems. We can avoid problems by avoiding people. We can ask for God’s protection from these people.

If we seek wisdom, we will not have to be afraid, because we know that God will keep us from harm. Our confidence lies in the fact that whatever happens, God is always leading the way. God will give us peace and rest from our enemies and from any situation. If we keep God’s words in our hearts, and if we seek wisdom, we have the reassurance that God is helping us, and protecting us.

Thirdly, The benefit of wisdom is Blessing us.

Wisdom blesses us When we have wisdom. First of all we will be blessed with a long life. Proverbs 3:1-2 said that

“My son, do not forget my teaching, but keep my commands in your heart, for they will prolong your life many years and bring you prosperity.”

The word ‘prosperity’ is actually shalom in Hebrew. We know that the word shalom means peace. It is a combination of spiritual, physical, material and mental joy. Long life and prosperity is promised over and over again to the Israelites, as long as they did as the Lord commanded.

And wisdom blesses us with good relationships. In 3-4, it says

"let love and faithfulness never leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart. Then you will win favor and a good name in the sight of God and man.”

Of course love and faithfulness come from wisdom. When you are with wisdom God promises us to earn favor and a good name. Here a good name means reputation. There may always be people who dislike us, no matter what we do, but there will be many more people who honor us and respect us. A good reputation means that people will want to be your friend and want to get to know you.

In Proverbs 3:27-35, it talks about ways we can be kind to our neighbor. Proverbs says here, be happy, be at peace, and be content with yourself. Wisdom is not only about having a good relationship with God, but also about having good relationships with others around us: our family members, our neighbors, our coworkers, our members of church. Wisdom will teach us how to treat different people. It doesn't matter how different we may be, God will give us the wisdom to get along with everyone.

And wisdom blesses us with honor: At Prov 4: 8-9 it says

"Esteem her and she will exalt you; embrace her, and she will honor you. She will set a garland of grace of your head and present you with a crown of splendor."

If we live by honoring God, and following what He has taught us, if we make an effort to remember what we have learned and put it into practice, we will be honored. We will be honored by other people, as well as God. Because we can make good decisions and because we put our trust in God, then the things that we do will be blessed.

Lastly. the benefit of wisdom Wisdom is warning us.

Another benefit of wisdom is the fact that we can be prevented from falling into sin. Proverbs Chapter 5 talks about sexual promiscuity. And throughout proverbs, you will have more verses about the adulteress. If you read these chapters carefully, the things that the Bible mentions are very specific. The warnings and the consequences are written in detail so that we can fully understand the ways that we are easily tempted. At Solomon's times Prostitution was allowed in the neighboring countries of Israel and it influenced Islael for bad. Prostitution and adultery were condemned by God. Adultery is taken seriously in my country. I love the fact that any body can put their husband or wife in prison for cheating on them. However, though this is the law, we take this concept lightly. Look at all the television shows and movies that we watch, they’re all about adultery. I wonder if adultery is really so common. I wonder if sexual immorality is really that common. Weather the answer is yes or not, once we have sex outside of marriage, we are breaking the promise we made before God to love, and honor each other forever. I heard there is a popular trend to exchange husbands and wives to have sex. Some times I was so shocked seeing people talking it without a shame. Society may has been changing, but God has not changed. Though our ideas of one woman and one man seem old-fashioned, wisdom will teach us that this old-fashioned way, is the best way. So we are warned to keep away from prostitutes, keep away from adultery, keep away from those who will turn our hearts from God and focus on immoral things. When we are tempted in any way, whether it is through internet, magazines, or through people, wisdom teaches us to fight against these temptations.

Chapter 8 talks about wisdom in the first person. Wisdom is saying, ‘find me, look for me.’ Wisdom doesn't wait for us. We must seek wisdom. Wisdom is not found in some book or on the internet, but true wisdom comes from God. Whether you are a king, a president, a salesman, or a truck driver, everyone needs wisdom. Wisdom is universal. Wisdom is not just important for leaders. There is no limit to wisdom. Wisdom is eternal. We have the choice to be wise or foolish every day. We have the choice to consider my way or God’s way. So we know wisdom is a matter of life and death. I pray that when people look at us, they will consider us as the wise. I pray that we can counsel others and encourage others with the wisdom that God gives us. Amen.

[Pray after sermon]

Heavenly Father we thank you for giving us your knowledge and wisdom. We learned through today's message that many benefits come from wisdom you give us. So as it is written in the Bible, may we call out and cry aloud and search for wisdom as for hidden treasure. So may wisdom train us, teach us, bless us, protect us, honor us. In Jesus name I pray. A-men