Synopsis: This first sermon in our Proverbs series serves as a bit of a setup for the entire series. As we explore the opening verses of Proverbs we’ll gain a sense for what biblical wisdom is all about. Biblical wisdom is fundamentally distinct from the wisdom of the world. In fact, Proverbs 1:7 will go so far as to say that “the fear of God is the beginning of knowledge” (knowledge being a synonym for wisdom in this verse). In other words, unless a person comes through Christ, and enters into a relationship of grace with the one true and living God, they cannot every truly gain wisdom.

Text: Proverbs 1:1-7
Date: September 13, 2026

Introduction

General Opening: Where do you turn when you need wise counsel? Over the years that I have pastored, I have watched patterns emerge among folks. Some people have very good and wise counsel in their life, mature and faithful Christians who help navigate challenges in life, who don’t only help them make decisions, but who form them into more godly men and women through the decision making process. Very consistently, those people flourish. There is another group of people I have pastored over the years who rather consistently have bad counsel in their ears. Sometimes it is a friend who is either not a Christian, or not a mature Christian, and I hear the counsel they’re giving and I just think “Oh, that’s not going to end well.” Very often its a non Christian friend, or family member, or therapist. Unfortunately sometimes it is another Christian, who has not yet learned real wisdom. That can be the most dangerous kind.

Personal: The truth is, we are all regularly in need of wisdom. We develop habits and mechanisms in our life for gaining that wisdom. We choose the voices we listen to. And we personally become either a wise voice of counsel, or a voice of folly. It ought to be the desire of every Christian, to mature in such a way that others seek you out for your wisdom. Are you that person today?

Context: Today we begin a new sermon series in a book of the Bible called Proverbs. Proverbs is a book all about wisdom. It’s a book that is designed to train God’s people, not just to know God’s word, but to be able to apply God’s word in this world in a way that gives life, that builds up, that honors God, and that multiplies life in others.

Main Idea: Today we are simply beginning our series, and so I have some work to do setting this book up and explain where we’re going. I’ve organized this opening sermon in this series around three c’s: the context, the content, and the conviction of Proverbs. By considering these three aspects, we will be setup for the entire journey in this book.

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.”

Meaning & Application

THE CONTEXT

First, let’s consider the context of this book.

Proverbs 1:1 “The proverbs of Solomon, son of David, king of Israel:”

What Are Proverbs (SAY IT): Let’s start with the simplest question “What is a Proverb?” The easiest way to say it is that a Proverb is a short sentence of ethical and practical wisdom. Modern culture has our own set of proverbial statements.

An early bird gets the worm. Now, I could instead of saying that proverb, lay out a full paragraph explaining that in life it is best to wake up early and get a head start on the day so that you will have a competitive advantage over others both in the marketplace as well as in various personal spheres. But nobody would remember that. An early bird gets the worm is memorable. It’s punchy. That’s the point of a proverb.

When life gives you lemons, make lemonade: Again, I could say that from time to time in life we will be confronted by hardship. Rather than sit and mope in our hardship, we should seek out ways to make the most of it, and maybe even turn our difficulty into an opportunity. But that’s not memorable. When life gives you lemons, make lemonade is easy to remember. You can recall it when you need it. You can pass it on to the next generation simply.

Proverbs provide wisdom for situations that arise in life often enough that its helpful to have a quick way to size up the situation and give guideance for how to navigate it.

Biblical Examples: So proverbs are 1-2 sentence short memorable nuggets of wisdom, that are intended to form an ethical operating system within us. The book of Proverbs that we are beginning to study today is full of short ancient proverbs. Let me a few examples.

Proverbs 10:21 “The lips of the righteous feed many, but fools die for lack of sense.”

Here we have a bit of wisdom comparing a righteous man to a fool. It shows us that a righteous man doesn’t only build himself up, but lifts everyone else around him up as well. Fools on the other hand, don’t only help others, but they drown themselves.

Or perhaps:

Proverbs 11:12 “Whoever belittles his neighbor lacks sense, but a man of understanding remains silent.”

Here we have a bit of wisdom about how we use our tongue towards others around us. And it gives instruction for us that there are times to keep quiet, even when we might feel justified in speaking our mind about another person’s actions.

Longer Sections As Well: The second half of this book is full of these little one or two verse golden nuggets of wisdom, called Proverbs. Then there are other sections, the opening eight chapters for example, that also provide wisdom but do it in the form of lenthier poetry, in the form of a father training a son into adulthood.

Who Wrote Proverbs?: That first verse also tells us the author, Solomon. Solomon is not the only author, in fact at certain sections throughout the book we are introduced to a few other voices. Yet Solomon is hte primary author and collector of this wisdom. solomon’s story is important for us because he was no ordinary man. For starters he was the son of King David. And so he got to sit underneath his father’s teaching, and listen to his father tell him about who God was, and the triumphs he had experienced as king of Israel and the failures he had experienced as King of Israel. But not only was he David’s son, but when it comes to wisdom, Solomon was blessed. We read in 1 Kings 3, the story of Solomon’s beginning with wisdom. When he was a young king, the Lord appeared to him. The Lord asked Solomon, who was just a young man who had suddenly been thrown into kingship, what he needed. And Solomon looked back up to God, and asked for wisdom in order that he might be able to discern between good and evil and to govern God’s people well. We’re told in that passage how much God loved that request.

1 Kings 3:10–12 “It pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this. And God said to him, “Because you have asked this, and have not asked for yourself long life or riches or the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern what is right, behold, I now do according to your word. Behold, I give you a wise and discerning mind, so that none like you has been before you and none like you shall arise after you.”

In Solomon’s early career as King, he was renowned for his wisdom. Leaders from other nations would come to him because they had heard of his great wisdom, and they would leave impressed.

1 Kings 4:29–30 “And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding beyond measure, and breadth of mind like the sand on the seashore, so that Solomon’s wisdom surpassed the wisdom of all the people of the east and all the wisdom of Egypt.”

The Very Wisdom of God: Why? Why did the nations come to Israel to hear the wisdom of Solomon. It is because the wisdom Solomon had, and the wisdom Solomon recorded, was unlike any of the wisdom the world had to offer. This is the opportunity before us. We get to be those who sit underneath the teaching of Solomon, to soak up God’s the understanding of God’s operating system for this world. National leaders would travel the world to learn from this man. And here we are, thousands of years later, with the wisdom that God gave him, written down for us as if he were our personal teacher. Who doesn’t need wisdom? I do! We would all do well to take to heart the counsel give in verse 5-6,

Proverbs 1:5–6 “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.”

This is the context of Proverbs.

THE CONTENT OF PROVERBS

Let us now consider the content of Proverbs.

Proverbs 1:2–4 “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—”

Wisdom and Instruction: The bible has four different books in it that are commonly referred to as Wisdom Literature: Proverbs, Job, Ecclesiastes, and parts of Psalms. Wisdom Literature is not only concerned with what one believes, but it is primarily concerned with what one does with what they believe. Wisdom is all about developing discernment and character.

Wisdom & Instruction (2): This is why verse 2 begins with “wisdom and instruction.” Elsewhere that word “instruction” is translated “discipline.” This books wants to forge us into a kind of person. It wants to form habitual disciplines in our life that produce the kind of person that knows how to handle the various situations of life properly.

Sorely Lacking: Our education system in America is very good (supposedly) at communicating knowledge. But it has no means of forming wisdom. There are no classes that elementary students must take called ‘wisdom.’ There is no training, within our education system, to train children on all the soft skills of life, and how to make important decisions in a way that will bless them, and produce wealth, and prosperity, and joy. Discernment and character are vital components of wisdom. The reason wisdom literature like Proverbs is in the Bible is because God is just as interested in the kind of person we are becoming, than in simply what we do and what commands we obey.

It is one thing to come to Church on Sunday, it another to how to make choices that will set you up for financial stability and success.

It is one thing to read your Bible, it is another to know how to find a good spouse that will bring you joy and blessing all the days of your life.

It is one thing to know about God, it is another to know the secrets of how to influence others.

It is one thing to memorize scripture, it is another to be noble.

It is one thing to build a prayer life, it is another to know when to speak and when to stay silent

It is one thing to join a small group, it is another to be able to identify a fool or a foolish proposition and to steer clear.

Wisdom will teach you how lead effectively, how to manage a household well, how to listen well, how to maintain friends,how to deal with temptation, how to approach our work, and so much more.

This is the content of Proverbs. Even the most mature and wise among this room, need a refresher on these things from time to time. We need training in righteousness, as the Apostel Paul would put it.

The Risk: This series is going to be incredibly practical! Moreso than just about any series I’ve ever taught, and that is saying somethign because I lean heavily into application. I am going to be very clear! I am so excited! But the trap for each person in this room, is that somewhere in our sin-filled hearts, we forget that we might not be as wise as we think we are. Maybe we’ve got a lot to learn. Maybe I’ve got a lot to learn.

Three Postures: And so, to guard us against this, verses 2-4 suggest three postures we can take to make the most of this series, to be those who really do learn wisdom.

Posture of Humility: First, accumulating real wisdom requires a posture of humility. Verse 3 says very clearly that we are to “receive instruction in wise dealing…” The prophet Isaiah teaches us

Isaiah 5:21 “Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, and shrewd in their own sight!”

If we want to make the most of Proverbs, we have to assume a posture of humility. Some of us may have thought for many years that we are centers of wise counsel, only to realize that maybe some of the wisdom we have offered, sounded good, but it wasn’t really God’s wisdom. Maybe there is some confession and repentance that will be needed along the way.

Posture of Love towards One’s Neighbor: Second, verse 3 particularly highlights “righteousness, justice, and equity,” as core elements of wisdom. These are ideas that describe our love towards others. So much of wisdom literature is outwards towards other people. Wisdom will train us to fulfill the second greatest commandment, to love others.

Hunger for Maturity (4): Third, real wisdom requires a posture of intentionality. verse 4 says that these proverbs here “to give prudence to the simple, and knowledge and discretion to the youth.” The “simple” are the gullible and naive. Like a dog returning to its vomit, the simple just keep making the same mistakes, and they don’t learn. They don’t mature. I was speaking with a young man on a college campus two weeks ago about Jesus. And after sharing Christ with him I pressed him, “Why would you walk away from this offer of grace.” He said, “Oh maybe one day when I’m more mature.” I said, “How old are you?” I think he said he was 20. I looked at him, and said, “You’re a grown man! More mature?! You read the Bible and some of the best kings had already been ruling for years by the time they were your age. Our culture has this false idea that our teenage years and early twenties are our immature years. What a lie! Learn wisdom early!

This is the content of Proverbs. It will guide us through all of life if we permit. But we we must approach it as the very words of God.

THE CONVICTION OF PROVERBS

Lastly I want to speak on the conviction of Proverbs. At the end of our passage today is one verse that serves as a sort of core and driving foundation for the entire book. It is verse 7.

Proverbs 1:7 “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.”

This verse is using a form of parallelism where the first half and the second half speak about the same issues from different perspectives. The word “knowledge” is therefore something like a synonym for wisdom. “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” This idea is repeated in some way at least 20 times throughout Proverbs. According to this book of wisdom, the foundation, the basic presupposition underneath all real wisdom in this world is the “fear of God.”

Important: This is going to be so important for us as we study this book, because many of the Proverbs if isolated can appear on the surface to be basic worldly wisdom. “Don’t cut others down. Manage your money wisely.” But this verse is the foundation of the entire book reorients every bit of wisdom we uncover through a theological lens.

Fear of the Lord:What do we mean by the Fear of the Lord. The Fear of the Lord is a description of a person who has submitted themselves unto God. There is a very real sense about them of the nature of God, that he is awesome, and Holy, and just, and righteous. Truly…

Hebrews 12:29 “for our God is a consuming fire.”

According to Proverbs, only a fool would not be afraid of a being who has the power over life and death and eternity. Such a person does not understand their place in this cosmos, and thus they don’t know how to act in it. All other wisom in this world builds upon this basic premise.

YHWH: But it is not just any God. This is not argument that wisdom originates with some general sense of religion. Or that all religions have equal access to real wisdom. It is also significant that this verse uses the personal name of God, YHWH. This is the name given to Moses when he spoke with God on the mountain. It means “I am what I am.” This is not the general term for God (Elohim). Proverbs roots all wisdom, not in a general sense of the divine, not in any religion, but in the name of the one true and living God, YHWH. This is the exact name that Jesus took upon himself, “I am.” All wisdom begins and is founded upon the tri-une God of scripture. Unless a person goes through Christ, there is no wisdom to be had.

Why: This is a shock to many, if not most. When we think of wisdom, even as Christians, we often don’t always think that one must begin with Christ to attain wisdom.

Professional Class: After all we have those who are in the professional class. They are learned. They have great knowledge on specific subjects.

Life Comes Easy: We also see non-Christians who seem to have their life in solid order. They manage their affairs well. They seem to be able to give counsel to others.

Street Smarts: Then of course, we even have a common phrase for folks who know the way world works. They’ve been around the block a little bit and they know how to get things done. We call it street smarts.

Thebook of Proverbs looks at all of this and says, “Unless you go through God, you haven’t even started down the path of wisdom.” Why?

Two Reasons: Let me give you two reasons.

Fullness of Truth: First, is what I would refer to as the fullness of truth. A nonbeliever may know that 2+2=4. He may know understand the equations that govern gravity and cause the tides to rise. A nonbeliever might have studied the human body and be the leader in his field of medicine. But without the fear of YHWH, the one true and living God, in his life, he doesn’t know that mathematics exists because our creator God wove law and order into his universe. He can look at the swelling of the ocean and chart its path, but he cannot do the one thing above all other things that the swelling of the ocean was meant to do, form worship in us. Cause us to marvel at His goodness and provision.

Sin: But second, there is of course the problem of sin. The human mind outside of Christ is darkened by sin. The greatest intellects of history had hearts and minds that were corrupted and damaged due to sin.

Ephesians 4:17–18 “… you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart.”

Ever since sin entered the story, our minds have been corrupted and poisoned. We know this because the Scriptures reveal it, but common sense reveals this as well, for at least two reasons.

Always Changing: First, the wisdom of the world is always changing. Today’s immorality is yesterday’s morality. This is the defining characteristic of Philosophy (man centered wisdom). You can’t pin it down. One philosopher says all of life is just an illusion, and the universities take him seriously. Then another philosopher comes along, and says that all of life is not just an illusion, but it is real and meaningful. And all the universities take him seriously. Man made wisdom is always changing.

Wicked: Second, man made wisdom is often wicked. I know of folks who have had therapists tell them to have an affair or to get a divorce. I know of fathers who instruct their sons to cheat in order to get ahead because no one will find out about it. Friends who suggest taking out more and more credit cards because of the perks and benefits. Now you throw AI into the mix, and we have an entire new source of so called “wisdom.” The world is drinking it up.

Honest: If we are all honest with ourselves for a moment, we might get the courage to say the truth, that we have all made a lot of mistakes in life by relying on our own wisdom, or the wisdom of this world. Sometimes I look back at decisions I’ve made, or conversations I’ve had, or ways I’ve hurt others, and I just cringe. I have acted the fool more than I would care to admit to any of you.

Gospel: But this is why the Gospel’s promises are so extraordinary. In Christ, his mercies are new every morning. In Christ, I am not defined by the folly of my past, but I am defined by a new identity, as a child of the living God. All of my folly and all of my sin was pinned to Christ on the cross. His blood, the payment for my foolishness. His life the cost of my sin. But in Christ, the debt is paid in full. And in Christ, I am born again to a new and living hope, and I am granted a new mind, that for the first time is able to see and know God as He truly is, and is able to see and know wisdom that flows from his hand. The Christian, those who believe in Jesus as their Lord and Savior, is filled by the Holy Spirit who gives discernment. Though we still err in many ways, God’s mercy is neverending.

Despising Wisdom: This is why the second half of this verse is so instructive.

Proverbs 1:7 “… fools despise wisdom and instruction.”

The conviction of Proverbs is. The way of wisdom must enter through the narrow gate, of Christ and the gospel of grace. Only in submission to God can we see the world as God sees it. Do not be the fool who despises wisdom. Your life will be hard. You will find yourself constantly kicking against the goads. But come to Christ, and begin the journey of finding life and wisdom.

Conclusion

Today, we have started a journey together in the wisdom of Proverbs. We’ve gotten a taste of where we’re headed and a taste of why this is so important. I want to invite you into this journey. Together, with you, I want to grow in my wisdom. I offer you a path to become that man, and that woman, that not only walks deeply with God and personally gets the joy of fellowship with Christ, but even moreso to become that man or woman that others instinctively know, the counsel and care they give, and the way they give it, is of God.