Do you know when disciples of Jesus were first called Christians? It's in the book of Acts. In Acts 11 verse 26, the text says that in Antioch, the disciples were first called Christians. They had already been known as disciples, which means that word disciple, a learner or a student. There's another phrase in the book of Acts, in addition to disciples or in addition to Christians. It's found in Acts 9. I'm intrigued by this statement. We're told in Acts 9, 1, that Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, he went to the high priest and he asked them for letters to the synagogues of Damascus. So that if he found, and here's the phrase, if he found any belonging to the way, Men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. Christians were those belonging to the way. That's not an innovation of Luke as he writes the Gospel of Luke in the Book of Acts. The word way is a wisdom word. It's a wisdom background that helps us see ways of foolishness and wisdom, ways of blessing and curse, ways of life and death. The way. Jesus himself claimed to be the way, the truth, and the life in John 14, 6. All of these are wisdom words. So in Acts, when Christians are called followers of the way, that's another description of followers of Jesus. He is the sage. He's the wise one in the Gospels, whose teaching with authority would leave people stunned in his midst. He's the wise son of David, and his words lead to life. The Gospels teach this. There was a time in the Gospel of John when Jesus was instructing the crowds, telling them hard things, and after he was finished, there were people in the crowds turning away and walking away. And in John 6, 67, he looks to his disciples and he says, do you want to go away as well? But Peter said, Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. And we've believed and have come to know that you're the Holy One of God. And I hope you'd resonate with Peter's words, the words of Scripture. do have strong, hard teachings for us. Words of wisdom that call us to the radical life of devotion to blessing and life in Christ, and to turn from wickedness and evil. Wisdom's words are life. But if we were to turn from the Lord Jesus Christ and go our own way, we don't have words of life left. Not in those other alternative paths, only in Christ. And those who followed Christ were followers of the way in the book of Acts. So when you see Jesus speaking in the gospels, he's the voice of wisdom. That voice of wisdom that calls and summons and pleads. And one of the ways Jesus fulfills the book of Proverbs is that he's that divine voice among sinners, speaking in real time and space to them. He's that incarnate wisdom of God. So in multiple places of Proverbs, there is this voice figure that is literarily and strategically placed. She's called Lady Wisdom, and that's probably because the original word and the original language is a feminine noun, and so a feminine figure is fitting with that, but also, Solomon, the father, knows his son might be seeking a relationship with someone of the opposite sex in the years to come, and before he would go after just any lady, the father wants his son to have a relationship with Lady Wisdom above all, and to be faithfully committed to her all his life long. And yet, what we know is that the words of this figure are the words of Solomon and ultimately from the Lord to his son. This is a word of God to the reader and to the hearer. And that means when we think about the powerful, authoritative summons of this wisdom figure in Proverbs, ultimately this is fulfilled in the divine word of Christ to us. We arrived this morning in Proverbs 8. Proverbs 8's the longest poem in the book of Proverbs. We're gonna take two weeks to go through it. And it has heightened depth. It's profound as a chapter, especially the second part. And we're gonna hear once more from this personified figure, this wisdom figure who calls and summons. We see that she's strategically placed because last week in Proverbs 7, we heard from a foolish woman, a seductress. who successfully lured a gullible man to his destruction at the end of Proverbs 7. And so the Solomonic father here, he is calling to his son, and even through the divine voice of this lady wisdom figure, pleading with his son not to just listen to any voices. We've seen that in chapter one of Proverbs, there will be guys who tempt his son to join them in what is wrong. And Solomon's warning his son against joining with them. And we've seen the figure of the adulteress, whose words of temptation and snares will seek to lure him. And the son is not to heed her voice either. So whose voice should he heed? In the midst of all the confusing, alluring voices, the wisdom figure stands out. It's that voice that should be focused upon and trusted. So Proverbs 8 depicts wisdom as a person calling for people to hear her, calling for people to follow her. Wisdom is looking for disciples. And that's why this teaching and this divine figure is ultimately fulfilled in Jesus Christ. Wisdom is looking for you. Wisdom is calling for you, and I wonder if you will embrace the words of wisdom that you hear. In verses one through three, we're gonna look at where wisdom calls. Where wisdom calls. In verses one to three, he opens with questions. And this is still the voice of Solomon to his son. Before giving this personified figure's teaching, he says in verse one, does not wisdom call? Does not understanding raise her voice? And these are phrased in such a way that the son can rightly know the answer without it even being given to him. Does not wisdom call? Yes it does. Does not understanding raise her voice? Of course she does. The teachings of the Father to the Son have been thorough enough and consistent enough that the Son knows wisdom is out calling and raising Her voice for people to hear. Wisdom is not quiet. Wisdom is not subtle. Wisdom is not unassuming. Where does She go though? Where does wisdom call? Verses 2 and 3 tell us where the people are. That's where wisdom goes. Wisdom goes where the people are, on the heights beside the way in verse two. That might be referring to walls or towers of a city. There goes wisdom to those places where somebody could be seeing them. Might not see someone amid the crowd, but if you climb up on a wall or climb up in a tower, all of a sudden you're more visible. So there goes wisdom up the heights. At the crossroads, well those were important places of trade and travel. Roads were converging, they would be very busy in the ancient world. And that's where wisdom goes, because the people are there. In verse 3, beside the gates in the front of the town, well people are going to be leaving the city, entering the city, and those gates at a city are a crucial strategic spot. So that's where she goes. Wisdom's at the gates in front of the town, at the entrance of the portals, and she's crying out. So verses one to three give us where wisdom calls, but what is she saying? Or more importantly, what is she commanding? In verses four through 11, we're gonna look together at what wisdom commands, and then in verses 12 to 21, what wisdom possesses. What wisdom commands and what wisdom possesses. In verse 4, the address is, to men I call my cry to the children of man. This means the male gender is not the focus, but to men and the children of men is a way of speaking of mankind in general. Verse 4 is an all-encompassing call. When wisdom scales the walls, or when wisdom goes to the gates, or when wisdom goes to the crossroads, everybody ought to stop what they're doing to hear what she has to say. And this is still true for the whole earth. No matter what's going on with the citizens in Africa, or Europe, or Australia, you can think of all the continents and all the countries in the world. They ought to all, everyone, everywhere, stop what they are doing if wisdom has something to say. It is that crucial, it is with that divine authority that wisdom speaks. And she says in verse five, oh simple ones, learn prudence. Oh fools, learn sense. She wants people to be wise. The first group she mentions, they're the simple ones and they're vulnerable and gullible. Someone says, hey, we should go do this. And they say, okay, we should go over here. Okay. And there's no thoughtfulness or discretion exercised in the way they think about the steps they take in life. They're careless, vulnerable, and they're led this way and that way by wooing voices like waves in the ocean. They're tossed to and fro in life and by companions. They have no moral grounding and compass and conviction that steals their spine, and I mean S-T-E-E-L, not that it's like a thief, that strengthens their heart. Rather, they are vulnerable and gullible in a way that ought not be. So to the simple one, she says, learn prudence. That's a way of saying learn wisdom and instruction in the way you conduct yourself. Learn to be thoughtful and cautious in the way you are approaching decisions and the steps ahead of you. Don't just rush in and plunge in forward, headlong in life. Oh fools, that's a category that's even more hostile than someone who's gullible. The fool is more calloused when it comes to instruction and wisdom. We're told in Proverbs 1.7 that the fool despises wisdom and instruction. And they have a hostility and they recoil against the wisdom of God. So fools need sense. A few times now I've reminded us that biblical wisdom is not about street smarts. It's not about just having a natural agility and instinct about this in life or that in life where you could give general quips about how to live well. This is about biblical wisdom in the fear of God that's not natural to the human heart, that we need instruction in and to grow in wisdom in. And so we're told here in verse 5 that the fools need to learn sense, and that means biblical sense, in order to navigate life in a way that honors God and doesn't lead to self-destruction and harm of neighbor. In many cases, foolishness is connected to roaming with foolish companions. And so we know that in Proverbs, we're taught that the one who walks with the wise will grow wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm. And so when he talks about learning prudence and learning sense, growing in wisdom is not an individual task. It's a communal one. It's something we do walking together in the body of Christ under the word of God for the glory of God. Someone who says, me and Jesus, we're gonna be just fine. I'm just gonna walk and I'm gonna try to follow Jesus and I don't need the body of Christ, that is not a path of wisdom. That is not a path of wisdom. That is contrary to the Old and New Testaments. Wisdom and learning sense and discretion and pursuit of God and the fear of the Lord is something we do together under the Word of God. Something we do with one another in this life. We need one another because we need to grow in wisdom. And this is the design of God, the good, gracious design of God. That is because as we join together with the body of Christ that submits to the Word of God, we are in companionship with the wise. And we are not left to ourselves and to our own accord, but rather together we are growing. In verse 6, she says, That's the kind of hearing that Jesus does in the Gospels. Let he who has ears, let him hear, like really hear. Hearing and hearing, right? Two different kinds. This hearing is a hearing ready to receive, submit to, and obey. But why? I mean, a parent has the right to say to the child, I want you to do this. And the child might say, well, why? And a legitimate appeal to the authority and honor due to a parent is to say, I have told you so. I'm your mom or I'm your dad. This is the instruction. And wisdom need not explain all the commands that are given. But there are times when we do receive a grounding for the command. And these are helpful reasons. And this is very gracious of God to highlight for us and to exalt for us the beauty of wisdom so that we can see, yes, so that command makes total sense. I ought to pursue wisdom, I ought to receive the words of God, especially if they're like this. So what is the word of wisdom like? In verses six and seven, the figure says here, for I will speak noble things and from my lips will come what is right. From my mouth will utter truth. Wickedness is an abomination to my lips. All the words of my mouth are righteous. There is nothing twisted or crooked in them. So looking at these verses together, wisdom is describing her speech, the content of what's coming, so that you shall know why you should listen. Hear, for I speak noble things. One of the reasons we listen to wisdom is because what she says is good or worthy. That's what the word noble means, worthy or noble. What she says is right. In verse seven, what she says is true. It's like wisdom has royal treasures to share with you. Let me tell you noble things. In verse seven, my mouth will utter truth and wickedness is an abomination to my lips. We should ask this question, is there a chance? that the word of God would ever speak wickedness to us or lie to us or mislead us or corrupt us. Wisdom says wickedness is an abomination to my lips. That will never come forth for what I say to you. You can trust the goodness and righteousness of everything I declare. That's incredibly relieving. Because who else in the universe is like that? The true and noble right words of wisdom lay out for us a life, a path that is noble, right, and true as well. I love that the goodness, the worthiness, the nobility of wisdom's teachings are highlighted here. Because there are a lot of things that can be reported accurately and that are true, that are not good. It's a thrilling thing that we declare of the Word of God that it is both true and good. That His commands for us and His revelation of Himself to us is both true and good. We need to embrace and believe and proclaim the goodness of God's word. Not just his authority. A lot of people have authority who aren't good in the world. We want to declare the authority of God's word, the truthfulness of God's word, and that from beginning to end, what God commands is good. It's worth obeying. Noble treasures to share with his image bearers. That's not true though for the adulteress in chapter 7. Her words were smooth talk. She just said what she needed to say to get that young gullible man to do what she wanted him to do. She was pragmatic with her speech. If she needed to manipulate him, well then that's what's required before she destroys him. Sin never presents itself honestly. Here's Lady Wisdom. She has nothing to hide. Her words are noble, right, and true. There's no double talk. You can embrace her words every time, fully, without hesitation. Wisdom doesn't have a hidden agenda. Wisdom's agenda is open and clear to lead you into everlasting life in fellowship with God. That's wisdom's agenda. It's not sneaky, there's nothing around the corner that you're not gonna see, that you're gonna say, oh wait, wait a second, I didn't see this coming. Wisdom is open and declaring and truthful about the noble good commands that are part of a sinner having fellowship with God. In verse eight, all the words in my mouth are righteous. Let's add together everything you and I have ever said. If somebody could catalog all of our speech, all our lifelong, I'm 36, 36 years of speech. You know what you couldn't say about 36 years of speech in my life or in yours? All the words in my mouth are righteous and there's nothing twisted or crooked in them. My goodness, to be able to say this though about that speaker, This is a set-apart figure here. There's nobody else like this. All my words are righteous. There is nothing twisted, nothing crooked in them. Every utterance, every pronouncement, the sum of our words is not an unmixed righteousness, but it is from wisdom's words. What she says is true. And the reason that's such a relief is because in this world, You've got to know who to trust. In this world, you can feel suspicious of people who have an agenda that's subtle and beneath the surface for you. Phone calls that you get, sales pitches that you receive, and you think, what's this person really want? What's this really going to mean? One of the great things about the Word of God is that it is open and clear and truthful and good, and God is not trying to bait and switch you. That's sin. I love what Ray Ortlund says. He pastors in Tennessee and this comment on this verse, he says, God has never said anything he had to be ashamed of or take back. The problem for us is that he's willing to tell us hard things. God doesn't flatter us. He can be blunt. So we have to decide if we're going to listen enough so that we change. I love that quote because God has never said anything he has to take back. All His words are righteous. Every word of wisdom, every pronouncement and utterance, none of it is twisted or crooked. In verse 9, they, the words of wisdom, are all straight to Him who understands and right to those who find knowledge. So there's a perspective that's highlighted here. Not everybody would declare that or affirm that about the Word of God. So imagine you're telling somebody with glasses, here's the sunset. Look at that sunset. Behold the beauty of that sunset. And they say, I don't really see the beauty of it. You look over at their lenses and you realize, oh, well, no wonder. Their glasses are filthy. They're covered in grime. They're splotchy and smudged. That person can't see anything well through those lenses, much less the sunset. What the words of scripture do are renew our lenses, because our natural sin-bent selves do not see the wisdom of God for the beauty that it is. So notice in verse nine, the words of wisdom are all straight to him who understands. The words of wisdom are right to those who find knowledge. You might say those who have their spectacles renewed and cleansed, those who have their vision revived, those who are given eyes to see what's true all along and what's true whether they see it or not. So Lady Wisdom has been saying, hear my instruction because I'm saying noble and right and true things. What she's saying are straight and right to those who will come to see it for themselves by the work of God. And now she's going to compare the value of her teaching. Everything she said is true, but what about all this other stuff that I could desire and pursue? Is what she's saying, is what's so noble, is what's so right, how does that compare with other things? Verse 10. is amazing. Take my instruction instead of silver. So if you had to choose, wisdom says, take my instruction instead of silver. My knowledge rather than choice goal for wisdom is better than jewels. And all that you may desire cannot compare with her. This is such an all encompassing statement. All that you desire. Think of everything that you might desire. Not just one thing you desire over against wisdom. I'm saying leverage everything that you desire over against wisdom. It's not even close. It's not even close. All that you desire cannot compare with her. Imagine coming across the purest gold in all the world. The value of that material would be great It would be widely desired. People would make great costs or count great costs to get it. There's not enough choice gold in all the world for everyone everywhere that measures up to wisdom. Anyone who diligently seeks the wisdom of God will find it. Do you see the surpassing value of wisdom in God's word? If you look at verse 10, here's what you have to ask. Do I believe wisdom is better than jewels and that nothing I could possibly desire in all the world together even comes close to the greatness of biblical wisdom. And that kind of equation doesn't make sense to you. If you look at the language about verses 10 and 11 and you say, yeah, I'm not buying it, then you need to hear and heed the voice of wisdom today. People desire what they value, and people value what they desire. And the world's true Lord has put before us today the noble, right, and true words of Lady Wisdom. And they're greater than anything and everything that you could desire in the world. The question is, will you receive and embrace God's words for you in Proverbs 8? that you would look at verses 10 and 11 and say, on my own, it might be difficult to see the truth of this, but Lord, help my eyes to see, because maybe the problem isn't with the truthfulness of those verses, but with my lenses. Maybe I'm getting and seeing and reading these truths that I can't yet see in the way I should. God, help me. We should pray and plead for the Lord to work within our hearts and eyes and those around us so that we would see the wisdom of God the way it is. Proverbs 8 is just calling us to get on board with reality, to embrace the world that God has made and the God who has reigned over it. So we've looked together at what wisdom commands and why. Wisdom calls us to take her instruction, to hear what she's got to say, and she's so gracious and kind to tell us reasons why. Because if we knew the value and the treasure of the wisdom of God, we would say like Paul in Philippians 3, that whatever I had to my gain, whatever was to my credit, it's a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord! It's rubbish! Somebody else without eyes to see might say, oh, but that gold, it's so valuable, so choice, that silver, so pure and desirous. In verses 12 to 21, let's look at what wisdom possesses. One of the reasons wisdom wants us to receive her teachings and to submit to the authority of God's Word and good, true commands is because of what wisdom has. Wisdom possesses multiple things, the fruit of wisdom and the possessions of wisdom, here in verses 12 to 21. I wisdom dwell with prudence and I find knowledge and instruction. So if the simple needed to learn prudence, well wisdom is going to help them here because wisdom has it. You have this figure pictured as living, this personified figure wisdom, she conducts her life with prudence. I find knowledge and discretion. So do people need knowledge, discretion, and prudence in life? Wisdom says, hello, get me. You get all of that. That's a package deal. It all comes together. These things are not sold separately. Wisdom has prudence and discretion and wisdom. All of this, God says, receive wisdom. This is what you need for life. Biblical wisdom helps us see life and make decisions that honor the Lord. One of the things that we will see is we'll grow more sensitive to what God hates. As the Word of God shapes us, we'll become more competent to see the snares of temptation and sin, and to do what is wise. We will be able to see beneath the veneer and the superficiality of sin, like in Proverbs 7. When the adulteress described her house one way, and Solomon said, let me tell you what her house really is. Sheol and the chambers of death. Being able to see the hook beneath the bait. One of the things that's developed with knowledge and discretion and prudence is in verse 13. The fear of the Lord. It's the hatred of evil. Pride and arrogance in the way of evil and perverted speech. I hate. Wisdom says. Well, this is what a believing heart should desire then at the beginning of verse 13, a fear of the Lord. And that means as we come to fear God, there is a posture toward evil that is true for the people of God. Evil is not something we are indifferent to. Sin is not something we want to rejoice in, but rather a hatred of evil. As we seek to live out a love for God in all of life, I need to love what God loves and I need to hate what God hates. I can't love everything. There are things I should hate. I should hate evil. When we hear about tragedy that happens in Dayton, Ohio or El Paso, Texas, we should hate that. We should hate it because it's wicked and it's evil. The tragic effects of sin include a love for what God hates and an indifference and a hatred of what God loves. So here's what we have to consider. If you don't delight in what God delights in, that should trouble you. It should alarm you. If you don't love what God loves, do you feel the horror of that disconnect? Why would we claim to be somebody who knows God and reverences God and fears the Lord? And then God says, here's what I delight in, and you say, that's not really what I delight in, though. Or God says, here's what I hate, and you think, I kind of gravitate and live according to that, though. The disconnect should alarm you and deeply trouble you. Do you see how extensive then the problem of sin is? It has affected our affections. It has affected us to the level of our loves. So we need our hearts to properly respond to evil. And if my heart's to respond the way it should toward evil, then I need to know Christ. And I need to worship and treasure Christ, grow in the wisdom of God, so that in verse 13, the fear of the Lord will mean a hatred of what is evil. And he doesn't just leave examples of evil entirely to our imagination. even though the taking of human life that I alluded to all ago is certainly examples of that. Look in verse 13 at some specifics. Pride and arrogance, the way of evil, perverted speech, I hate that! So those who fear the Lord should look at this and say, I don't want that in my life. The pride and the arrogance, the way of evil, the perverted speech, these are things God hates, wisdom hates. So if I say wisdom, I want to embrace your teaching, submit my life to fear God, then I must see a sensitivity to these things as well in my heart. Pride and arrogance and the way of evil and perverted speech. Self-exaltation. is not what we were made for. The world doesn't revolve around us, and so self-exaltation is an abandonment of reality. It's a way of saying, this is not the way the world was made, but I'm gonna live as if the world revolves around me. My glory, my fame, myself. Jesus says, if anyone wants to come after me, he must deny himself. and take up your cross. The cross is the instrument that's the opposite of self-exaltation. It's an instrument of death to self. Self-exaltation leads to judgment. It's the path pursued by those who reject Christ. Wisdom, though, hates the way of evil. It hates the pride and arrogance of our human hearts. It hates perverted speech. Now this doesn't mean speech that's simply morally filthy, though it would include that. It just means speech that's crooked when it ought to be straight speech. It means lying and manipulating. It's twisting words. Again, there's reality, but rather than speaking in line with reality, twisted speech seeks to bend reality. Reality doesn't bend to the will of the speaker. Wisdom here says I hate twisted speech. Wisdom's speech is different. In verse 14, I have counsel, sound wisdom, insight, and strength. I think that's the opposite of what verse 13 ends with. If wisdom hates these things, then what does wisdom love? What kinds of dispositions of heart and mouth are found with wisdom? Wisdom says, here it is, counsel, sound wisdom, insight, strength. These are all overlapping terms, I think. Wisdom says, I have the guidance that you need. I have what you need. Not just what you think you need, what you really need. Underneath all of what you think you need. We need to submit our lives to the Son of God and the Word of God. Wisdom has what we need. But apart from the Spirit's work in our hearts, our wayward hearts are steeped in the foolishness of sin, and we need the correction of God's Word, and we need the light of His Word to lead us. And so wisdom says, I have counsel. We have foolishness all around us, voices seeking to allure us, and these are unsound voices. Wisdom says, I have sound speech. We need insight in living a life to please the Lord, so that the snares of sin and the destruction of foolishness will be clear to us. And wisdom says, I have that insight. And in terms of the strength to persevere, Wisdom has that power and strength as well. All of it is from the Lord. The counsel that the heart needs, the sound understanding and insight and strength, wisdom says to us, trust me, I have all of those things. The claim of verse 14 fits best on the mouth of Jesus. Can you imagine Jesus saying to his disciples, I have counsel and sound wisdom, I have insight and strength? That's because the voice of wisdom is best embodied in the New Testament Gospels in Christ. Consider the words in Isaiah 11 that were about the coming of Messiah. In Isaiah 11 1, there shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, a branch from his roots shall bear fruit, and the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him. And what will characterize it? Spirit of wisdom and understanding. Spirit of counsel and might. Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. In other words, wisdom was born in Bethlehem, grew up in Nazareth, died outside Jerusalem, rose from the dead, reigns with all authority in heaven and earth, and so when wisdom says, I have these things, and the reader says, where will I find them? The Bible says, you gotta go to Jesus! The Spirit of God came upon him with all of these things. And He could say these with a straight face and say, all my words are righteous. There is nothing twisted or crooked in them. You can take everything I say. You can believe all my words and teachings. When we read the stories in the four Gospels, these truths are confirmed over and over again with the authority and gentleness and wisdom of Christ. Human beings can occupy the highest positions of earthly power. So verse 15 says, by me, wisdom speaking, by me kings reign and rulers decree what is just. By me princes rule and nobles, all who govern justly. People in highest positions of political and social power and influence, what do they need in order for people to flourish and for justice to be established? They need wisdom. says wisdom, by me kings reign and rulers decree what is just. They need wisdom to legislate what is just and govern justly. So when wisdom calls to the children of man in Proverbs 8, it doesn't matter what your status or position of influence, nobody gets an exception. If anything, the kings and the rulers should listen most closely of all. They're in a position of political or social influence. Lean to the voice of wisdom who calls with divine authority to you. By me kings ring. This is very significant because Solomon is a king. So in Proverbs one to nine, here are the teachings of this king. Here are the teachings of this one who is saying to his son who will be king, with the words of wisdom, by me kings ring. Solomon needs the wisdom of God and received it. Solomon's the son of David. And how will he rule? How all kings and rulers should, if they're interested in what is just and right. The wisdom of God. How will Solomon's son rule? A son of Solomon who will still descend and be a son of David? His son will one day rule and need wisdom. What do princes need? Nobles, the same thing. The son of David needs the wisdom of God to establish justice. Now I want you to listen to Isaiah 9. I quoted earlier from Isaiah 11. Isaiah 9, we hear this a lot around Christmas time. Here's one for August 4th. For to us, a child is born. To us, a son is given. And the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. And of the increase of his government and of peace, there will be no end. On the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and uphold it with justice and righteousness, from this time forth and forevermore. How will that king reign? Kings reign by wisdom and the king of kings will do it the best. He is the wise one and the son of David and the mighty God and the prince of peace. Wisdom is not just ready to receive you, wisdom is ready to love you. Look in verse 17. I love those who love me. Proverbs 8, 17, I love those who love me and those who seek me diligently find me. Wisdom is full of love for us if we will seek wisdom. If you will seek and love wisdom, you will find wisdom loving you in return. This is a way of stating, let's commit ourselves to wisdom. And you know what's true about wisdom? Wisdom will not forsake you. Wisdom is a faithful partner. Wisdom will not avoid you or reject you. You want to seek after wisdom? Fear not, wisdom will love you. You will find wisdom. This is similar to Jesus' words in John 14, 23. If anyone loves me, he will keep my word. And my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. Whoever doesn't love me doesn't keep my words. The word that you hear is not mine, but the Father's. So Jesus is speaking with divine authority and promising that for those who receive his words, who not just hear, but really hear, who seek to diligently follow and keep the words of Christ, they can trust that they are loved by God. They sought after wisdom and found Christ. Ray Ortlund says once more, we are hearing the language of love here. Christ is promising us his fullness from his very heart. When we seek after Christ, Ortlund says, we cannot come up empty handed. If we seek him with a diligent heart, God honors an earnest heart. This is such good news in Proverbs 8, 17. I love those who love me. Wisdom doesn't say, I only have so much love to pass around. So people who come after me and who seek me, I mean, I can't be faithful to all of you. I can't have enough love for all of you, no matter what your earnestness and no matter what your heart, first come, first serve. No, in verse 17, you come to Christ, he never runs out of love for his people. It doesn't deplete Him. It doesn't diminish Him. It magnifies His glory. So you come to Him. He says in verse 18 in Proverbs 8, 18, riches and honor are with me, enduring wealth and righteousness. It's interesting to hear about wealth and riches. You might be expecting that earlier when wisdom is better than gold and better than silver, that we were going to leave material stuff behind altogether. But I do think this is more than just spiritual provision. I think we can understand that if we embrace wisdom, God's provision and sustenance is faithful, so that people say, give us this day our daily bread, as Jesus teaches them to do. Let's seek first the kingdom of God, and all these other things are added to us. God will supply what we need. Our responsibility is to be faithful stewards, and the reason wisdom has these things with wisdom is because foolishness can extinguish riches. Foolishness is often paired with wickedness and living in desperate need because of lack of faithful stewardship or integrity or work. So I think riches and honor here are best rooted in Proverbs 6, where we were taught to work faithfully and with integrity and diligently so that we cultivate trust and responsibility and honor before others. That's living a life of wisdom. And that means as we work faithfully and with integrity, we're pursuing God's honorable path to building financial stability. Wisdom manages money, stewards it well. And this means enduring wealth is paired best with wisdom, whereas foolishness and then a lack of or quick extinguishment of money is often paired together too. In verse 19, Let's be clear on what the priority is. My fruit is better than gold. Even fine gold in my yield better than choice silver. We've seen the similar language in verses 10 and 11. The fruit of wisdom is what wisdom possesses and gives. So some bullet points here. Wisdom gives prudence, knowledge, discretion, counsel, insight, strength, justice, honor, financial security, righteousness. It looks like wisdom is the best thing I can pursue for my soul, all my days, my whole life. That must be what we seek. In verse 20, wisdom says, I want you to look at where I'm walking. Let's just picture if wisdom is walking a path, what's it look like? In verse 20, I walk in the path of righteousness, in the paths of justice. Wisdom is saying this path or direction in life is righteousness and just. It makes me think of Psalm 23 when David says, that the Lord leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. The way the Lord leads us on paths of righteousness is not by us embracing foolishness, but by rejecting foolishness and embracing the wisdom of God, because wisdom walks the path of righteousness. Take her word for it, verse 20. So if you take all this teaching and make a beeline to the four gospels, If wisdom walks the way of righteousness, Jesus says in John 14, 6, I'm the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father but by me. And in verse 21, wisdom says, I'm granting an inheritance to those who love me, filling their treasuries. We become heirs. So wisdom's disciples become wisdom's heirs. And I think we can see this working out in the New Testament that the followers of Christ are co-heirs with Christ to the promises of God. The treasuries are once more evoked here, evoking a material or earthly possession. Now this is not a promise that believers become millionaires. This instead is in keeping with as you work faithfully and with integrity that produces income. But it doesn't end there. The ultimate inheritance is not the things that moth and rust destroy. Ultimate inheritance is resurrection life, and Christ is the pioneer here. Because he rises from the dead on the third day after the cross, he lives in glorified resurrection, ascended to the right hand of the Father, where he sits with all authority over all things, always. Ultimate inheritance is resurrection life and new creation. This is clear from the Psalms and the prophets. Listen to Daniel 12, beginning in verse two. Those who sleep in the dust shall awake, some to everlasting life and some to everlasting shame. Those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky. Speaking about the glorified resurrection of the saints of God. It anticipates our resurrection life in store and promised. Christ is the down payment, the installment of this hope. He lives now with everlasting glorified life. His fruit is better than gold and choice silver. He has all discretion and prudence and counsel and knowledge. Who is wiser than Christ? This is why in Matthew 12, 42, Jesus says to his hearers that something greater than Solomon is here. And all the people around there, if they had ears to really hear that, they ought to say, wait a second, what did he just say? Something greater than Solomon is here? If Solomon was the wisest king, if he was the son of David speaking the truths we're reading in Proverbs, then the greater son of David, Jesus Christ, is the one whose heart is always sound, always righteous, and whose ways are always just and noble. Christ says to us this morning from Proverbs 8.8, all the words in my mouth are righteous. There's nothing twisted or crooked in them. He says to us in the words of Proverbs 8.10, take my instruction, take my yoke upon you. It's better than silver, better than choice gold. The question is not just will you receive wisdom, but will you receive Christ who is the wisdom of God? The question is not will you believe what wisdom says about evil and rebellion, but will you turn your feet from it? The question is not just do you hear the noble and good and true words of Christ, but will you submit to Christ? Jesus puts it this way, plainly. In Matthew 7, 24, everyone who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain fell and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house. It didn't fall because it had been built on the rock. Everyone who hears these words of mine and doesn't do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. The rain fell and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell. And great was the following. Friend, what will you do with Jesus Christ? Let's pray.