Proverbs 2:1-2

I wonder what you treasure most of all. Perhaps it’s your car, some jewellery or something precious that a friend gave you. Perhaps you would point to your relationship with your family or a special friend. Whatever it is, you will naturally be inclined to protect this treasure. You will make sure that it doesn’t get spoilt, and you will devote attention to thinking about it.

Here, the writer of Proverbs encourages us to treasure God’s commands. That’s interesting language. He is not merely inviting us to listen to these commands, or to love them even, but to treasure them. That is to say, we need to see them as being of supreme value.

The challenge we all face is that wisdom isn’t the only voice we hear. There are innumerable other voices and many of them are tempting and attractive.

When I lived in India, one of the most challenging moments in the day was when I tuned in to hear the news on BBC World Service. It was impossible to get the station precisely tuned in and so, throughout the programme, I would be tweaking the dial. I think that’s a very good illustration of life. As we face continual challenges, we need to listen to God’s voice through the Bible, sermons, books, friends and many other sources. And when we have heard what we believe to be wisdom, we must tune our lives into it, by seeing how it applies to us practically.

The writer of Proverbs does everything he can to convince his readers that wisdom is supremely attractive. He says that “wisdom is more precious than rubies; nothing you desire can compare with her. She offers you long life in her right hand, and riches and honour in her left” (Proverbs 3:15-16). No wonder he encourages us to treasure it before anything else.

QUESTION
Do you treasure wisdom? If so, in what way?

PRAYER
Lord God, I thank you for the gift of wisdom. Help me to seek it with all my heart. Amen

Released on 5 Jul 2023