Sermon Outlines . Volume 09 | Issue 02

The Value of God’s Wisdom

(This message is from a series entitled “Godly Wisdom for a New Millennium”.)

by Michael Catt

Proverbs 1:1-7

“Years ago, Daddy got me in the habit of reading a chapter of Proverbs a day. It is a delightful, practical, inexhaustible source of sound common sense, enabling us, if we but apply it to our own lives faithfully, to put shoes on our faith.” -Ruth Bell Graham

I. The Problems, Principles and People Addressed in Proverbs

 A. The Problems
      1) Who can you trust when it comes to finding wisdom?
      2) How do I make right adn wise decisions?
      3) How can we make life decisions in a world that questions every decision, challenges absolute truth and fosters indecision?

 B. The Principles
      What is wisdom? It is the attribute by which God creates, sustains and controls all things.

      "Wisdom means being skilluful and successful in one's relationships and responsbilities...observing and following the Creator's principles of order in the moral universe." -Roy Zuck

Three Approaches in Proverbs
A. Instructive Speeches (Chapters 1-9)
B. Wisdom Sayings (Chapters 10-15)
C. Godly Counsel (Chapters 16-31)

“Proverbial sayings played a role in Israel’s clan life from the beginning–conserving, organizing, packaging, and transmitting the lessons learned from apt observation and painful experience. But not until Solomon came along, with his divinely gifted skills at wisdom and his need to transmit it to those who managed his burgeoning administration, was there a means to collect, edit, and disseminate the varied sayings that had been used to train Israel’s young.” -David Hubbard

The Twofold Purpose of Proverbs:
1) Leadership Training
2) Ethical and Moral Guidance

The Steps to Interpreting Proverbs:
1) These statements aren’t out of a quote book, they are from the Lord.
2) Wisdom has to do with your heart as much as your head.
3) If you’re unsure of how to interpret a proverb, compare it to parallel passages and read it in context.
4) If a prover seems to contradict another Scripture, look for the deeper meaning.
5) The hinge verse is Proverbs 1:7.

The People Mentioned in Proverbs:

  • The Simple
  • The Fool
  • The Mocker
  • The Wise

“Wisdom is the right use of knowledge. To know is not to be wise. Many men know a great deal adn are all the greater fools for it. There is no fool so great a fool as a knowing fool. But to know how to use knowledge is to have wisdom.

II. The Principle Words to Understand in Proverbs If You Value God’s Wisdom

 A. Wisdom (vv. 2, 7)
 B. Instruction (vv. 2, 3)
 C. Understanding (vv. 2, 5, 6)
 D. Wise Behavior (v. 3)
 E. Knowledge (vv. 2, 4)
 F. Discretion (v. 4)
 G. Learning (v. 5)
 H. Wise Counsel (v. 5)

If I fear the Lord, I will:

  • Receive wisdom in my head (2:1)
  • Treasure wisdom in my heart (2:1b)
  • Listen to those who are wise. (2:2)
  • Surrender my mind to the mind of God (2:2b)
  • Ask God’s help in decision making (2:3)
  • Pursue God’s wisdom with a passion (2:4)

(Copyright Michael Catt)