Sep 10, 2006: The Call of Woman Wisdom
The Call of Woman Wisdom: September 10, 2006
In his moving novel, The Kite Runner, the author Hosseini tells the story of Amir a boy who grows up in Afghanistan and his relationship with his father, Baba.
When Amir was in the fifth grade…. Amir comes home and raises an issue that his Mullah, i.e. his Muslim Holy teacher brought up regarding a particular sin…
And Baba the father responds…
There is only one sin, only one. And that is theft. Every other sin is a variation of theft. Do you understand that?’
“‘No, Baba jan,’ I said, desperately wishing I did. I didn’t want to disappoint him again…
“‘When you kill a man, you steal a life. . . you steal his wife’s right to a husband, rob his children of a father. When you tell a lie, you steal someone’s right to the truth. When you cheat, you steal the right to fairness. Do you see?’
“‘There is no act more wretched than stealing, Amir,’ Baba said.”
What Baba was seeking to do was to help his son choose the path of wisdom.
This, of course, is not uncommon.
Most fathers or mothers, most mentor figures, want the young people under their care to choose wisdom…
This fall we’re going to be exploring the book of Proverbs which was given as a kind of manual for parents and mentors in Israel to instruct their young in the ways of wisdom…
The opening words of the book tell us that these are the proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel and they are for gaining wisdom and instruction…
1 The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel:
2 for gaining wisdom and instruction;
for understanding words of insight;
3 for receiving instruction in prudent behavior,
doing what is right and just and fair;
4 for giving prudence to those who are simple,
knowledge and discretion to the young—
We read in vs. 2 that Proverbs are for gaining wisdom…
Wisdom as it’s defined in the Proverbs involves more than a knowledge of certain rules.
Wisdom in Proverbs involves a deep, heart understanding of moral order that comes from God.
The book of Proverbs teaches that this deep understanding of this moral order comes from both a keen observation of life and the wisdom given directly into our hearts from God.
In verse 2 we also read that the Proverbs are given so that we might have “insight.” Insight involves having an understanding of how things really are/how they work.
Jill Briscoe defines wisdom as “spiritual street smarts.”
OT scholar Bruce Waltke defines wisdom in Proverbs “as life mastery based on experience,” having “skill or expertise” in life.
The book of Proverbs give us pithy statements, that offer us representation of how the world works.
The individual proverbs are so short that they cannot represent all of reality of the how world works, but they a slice of how the world works, in a particular context.
If you work hard, you’ll be prosperous.
If you answer gently, you’ll defuse anger.
These Proverbs offers a slice of reality, but not comprehensive statements about how the world. Generally speaking if you work hard you’ll prosper, generally speaking if you answer gently you defuse anger… but at the book of Proverbs later notes there are all kind of exceptions. When you take the Proverbs and note the exceptions, together we get a better understanding of how the world works.
Vs. 3 tells us the Proverbs are for gaining instruction.
(The Proverbs are) 3 for receiving instruction in prudent behavior,
doing what is right and just and fair;
People don’t become wise accidentally.
Solomon points we all need in instruction and hence this book.
In chapter 1-9 helps us prepare our heart so that will be able to receive wisdom.
4 for giving prudence to those who are simple,
knowledge and discretion to the young—
But, though this book was written primarily for the young person, for a parent to use with a child or a mentor to use with mentor, whether we are young or old, male or female if want to be wise, God tells us to get the wisdom through the book Proverbs…
Because whether we are young or old, male or female, we have choices that lie before us…that require wisdom…
There are some decisions in life that can be guided by simple rules: “Don’t drink and drive.” “Don’t buy things on your credit card that you can’t pay off.”
But there are many areas in life that require more than simply rules: they require wisdom, understanding of how things are to make a choice…
Where to go to school, what life-work to pursue, how and when to confront something, if to marry, whom to marry, how to raise children, where to live…
A rule can give us a general guide, wisdom can help know in what situation to apply the rule.
The book of Proverbs calls us become people who embrace wisdom.
And it calls through a metaphor.
In the book of Proverbs, Solomon introduces us to the image of a father who wants his young his son to date and wed wisdom (the image could have easily been that of a mother or daughter, but in part because Solomon, himself, is a man and father, he uses the image of a father and a son).
This father he seeks to introduce to his son to a woman, the woman’s name is wisdom… for she is wisdom, wisdom personified.
In Proverbs 1 vs. 20 we see this picture of woman wisdom… She is strong. She is bold. She takes initiative…
Notices vss. 20-21
20 Out in the open wisdom calls aloud,
she raises her voice in the public square;
21 on top of the wall she cries out,
at the city gate she makes her speech:
Wisdom calls out…
She says in Proverbs 9:
1 Wisdom has built her house;
she has set up its seven pillars.
2 She has prepared her meat and mixed her wine;
she has also set her table.
3 She has sent out her servants, and she calls
from the highest point of the city,
4 "Let all who are simple come to my house!"
To those who have no sense she says,
5 "Come, eat my food
and drink the wine I have mixed.
6 Leave your simple ways and you will live;
walk in the way of insight."
Woman wisdom invites the young man to dine with her…
She has prepared meat and mixed the wine and set her table….
Wisdom is offer wine, she’s anything boring, she’s make your head spin in good way…
This is very a sensual image…
In the Ancient Near East to dine with someone meant something. It meant you received that person as a friend, it meant you wanted to enter into deep and intimate relationship with that person.
The invitation is from woman wisdom to dine with her—the invitation is to come to know her deeply.
Parker Palmer in his book To Know as We are Known points out that true knowledge is not just about knowing “facts”—it is about knowing something internally and deeply and personally… Palmer says that true knowing involves a relationship.
The woman wisdom invites us to know her intimately and deeply to have relationship with her.
In Proverbs 4 Solomon calls his son to honor and cherish and embrace woman wisdom…
This is the language of intimate relationship. Solomon hopes that his son will commit to woman wisdom and wed her.
He knows (according to Proverbs 3) that this woman wisdom offers a delightful and satisfying path… and (according to Proverbs 8) that she will lead him to life and prosperity…
So, Solomon hopes his son will fall in love with woman wisdom, because he knows what Augustine would understand centuries later, that key to change is not the acts of the will, but the loves of the heart.
But, Solomon knows that woman wisdom has her rival.
There is woman folly.
Woman wisdom is beautiful.
Woman folly she “hot” but in a different way.
Listen to her bio in Proverbs 9…
Chapter 9:
13 Folly is an unruly woman;
she is simple and knows nothing.
14 She sits at the door of her house,
on a seat at the highest point of the city,
15 calling out to those who pass by,
who go straight on their way…
16 "Let all who are simple come to my house!"
To those who have no sense she says,
17 "Stolen water is sweet;
food eaten in secret is delicious!"
18 But little do they know that the dead are there,
that her guests are deep in the realm of the dead.
Woman folly’s allure is the way of easy pleasure…
She represents easy sex.
In vs. 17 the image of “stolen water” is a metaphor for illicit sex…
There is a kind attractiveness to woman folly…
There’s an appeal to music and message of Nelly Furtado’s hit song Promiscuous:
The guys sing:
Promiscuous girl (song)
Wherever you are
I’m all alone
And it's you that I want
Nelly sings:
Promiscuous boy
You already know
That I’m all yours
What you waiting for?
There’s is an appeal to woman folly, to male folly, to promiscuous girl to promiscuous boy…
There’s something appealing for an adolescent… when a girl will let go as far as he wants.
There’s something appealing to a man when a woman, makes it known she’s wholly available.
The woman folly is also the way of easy money.
In Proverbs 1:18-19 Solomon warns his son against getting involved in schemes that involve quick, easy, illicit money.
There’s a great to appeal to easy money… there’s an appeal on a different number of levels for an adolescent to stealing, to sell drugs… there’s an appeal to an adult about not being truthful on our return, an appeal with getting privileged, inside, illegal information on how a stock will likely perform…
But chapter 9 vs. 18 tells us that woman’s folly guests are deep in the realm of death…
People who chose… easy sex… sex outside of God’s design, life-long covenant relationship marriage, find their souls are torn apart, people easy money find their soul shrivels, for woman folly leads to death…
Proverbs 16:25 tells us that there is a way that seems right to a person, but in the end it leads to death.
There is a way that seems right to person, but in the end, it destroys the soul.
The father urges his son to choose to dine and wed woman wisdom, for she leads to life, but woman folly leads to death…
So who is woman wisdom?
Listen, if you will, to her autobiography:
Chapter 8:22
22 "The LORD brought me forth as the first of his works,
before his deeds of old;
23 I was formed long ages ago,
at the very beginning, when the world came to be.
24 When there were no oceans, I was given birth,
when there were no springs abounding with water;
25 before the mountains were settled in place,
before the hills, I was given birth,
26 before he made the world or its fields
or any of the dust of the earth.
Renowned OT scholar, Bruce Waltke points out that in the Hebrew this text pronounces that wisdom is not made by God, but is begotten or birthed by God…
Wisdom is birthed from the very nature of God and is organically related to God in its nature.
Woman wisdom that birthed by God was present at the very beginning of creation.
There are ancient myths that about came to be describe the world come into the being because of a conflict between the gods. One god defeats another and makes the earth from the body of the defeated God.
But Bible’s account of creation is unique story in that it suggests the creation of the world is built with wisdom, not the result of a power struggle or some random fluke…
Therefore, if the world is founded with wisdom, it means there is a kind “order,” symmetry, beauty, to reality to it.
When I was working in Tokyo, I met a young man who I remember well. He was Ph.D in physics at University of Tokyo… He was doing some ground breaking researching on how to take measurement of a sphere… I remember him approach me asking me to get together for lunch… he wanted to talk about something…. We met and he said, you’re a Christian right? I’ve research on the waves sphere as far no has done before… it seems to me it not random, design… it makes me wonder if there’s something that’s designed the universe…
Leading scientists who are not necessarily religious have talked how as they observe the there seems to be this order, symmetry, this appearance of design.
The world reflects the design of God…
As God has designed a world with certain physical like the lay of gravity (drop a ball)…
As there are physical laws so there are certain social and spiritual laws at work in the universe… free sexs tear your soul, easy money will shrivel your soul…
Because woman wisdom has been present from the beginning she knows how the world works, she knows not just physical, but the social and spiritual laws as well and therefore she is knows reality, therefore she leads us to life.
The Wright brothers were about to we’re able to fly the first airplane because they figured out the laws of aerodynamics.
Wisdom is about learning to “fly in life” because we understand the “aerodynamics” of the world God has designed.
If understand the Gods laws we can fly.
Woman wisdom helps us to understand the nature of reality and guides us through it… and leads us to life.
I am beginner sailor.
But, I have someone in my life who is a master sailor. He understands, the wind, the wave, the current, the nature of sail boats… so he helps guide me on the water, he helps me to realities of the wind, wave and current… so I will learn sail the boat and not capsize it.
Woman Wisdom guides through so we can understand the nature of what God has made, honor the design, so we sail, fly, so be led to life.
God wants us to meet, to fall love with, and wed woman wisdom.
Will you dine with her? Will you love her, will you commit to her?
Some of you may have thought…
This talk of wisdom as a woman is really a literally device…
But if wisdom were a person?
Some of you have wistfully thought, if I only had a wise father or mother…
Or if only I had had a wise mentor…
But what if wisdom were a person you could know?
Some of you have wistfully thought, if I only had had a wise father or mother…
Or if only I had had a wise mentor…
But what if wisdom were a person you could know?
In Gospel chapter 1, we have a section that similar to the Proverbs at 8 description of wisdom. In John we read about the how in the beginning was the word, and in the Greek there word connotes a kind of certain of logic/ knowledge/wisdom… so in rough paraphrase you could say in the beginning was wisdom and wisdom was with God and wisdom was God… then the wisdom became flesh, a human being and dwelt and we beheld his glory, the glory of the one and only son who came from the father, full of grace and truth.
Jesus said Jesus says 28 "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."
Jesus who is wisdom itself, invites on journey where we learn from, his yoke is perfectly made for us, and we will find rest.
Solomon in Proverbs 4 says honor and cherish and embrace wisdom… if we wed lady wisdom, if we wed Jesus Christ… honor, cherish, and embrace wisdom… we will know the path to life and fullness of joy…
(The sermon can be heard online at: http://www.tenth.ca/audio.htm)
In his moving novel, The Kite Runner, the author Hosseini tells the story of Amir a boy who grows up in Afghanistan and his relationship with his father, Baba.
When Amir was in the fifth grade…. Amir comes home and raises an issue that his Mullah, i.e. his Muslim Holy teacher brought up regarding a particular sin…
And Baba the father responds…
There is only one sin, only one. And that is theft. Every other sin is a variation of theft. Do you understand that?’
“‘No, Baba jan,’ I said, desperately wishing I did. I didn’t want to disappoint him again…
“‘When you kill a man, you steal a life. . . you steal his wife’s right to a husband, rob his children of a father. When you tell a lie, you steal someone’s right to the truth. When you cheat, you steal the right to fairness. Do you see?’
“‘There is no act more wretched than stealing, Amir,’ Baba said.”
What Baba was seeking to do was to help his son choose the path of wisdom.
This, of course, is not uncommon.
Most fathers or mothers, most mentor figures, want the young people under their care to choose wisdom…
This fall we’re going to be exploring the book of Proverbs which was given as a kind of manual for parents and mentors in Israel to instruct their young in the ways of wisdom…
The opening words of the book tell us that these are the proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel and they are for gaining wisdom and instruction…
1 The proverbs of Solomon son of David, king of Israel:
2 for gaining wisdom and instruction;
for understanding words of insight;
3 for receiving instruction in prudent behavior,
doing what is right and just and fair;
4 for giving prudence to those who are simple,
knowledge and discretion to the young—
We read in vs. 2 that Proverbs are for gaining wisdom…
Wisdom as it’s defined in the Proverbs involves more than a knowledge of certain rules.
Wisdom in Proverbs involves a deep, heart understanding of moral order that comes from God.
The book of Proverbs teaches that this deep understanding of this moral order comes from both a keen observation of life and the wisdom given directly into our hearts from God.
In verse 2 we also read that the Proverbs are given so that we might have “insight.” Insight involves having an understanding of how things really are/how they work.
Jill Briscoe defines wisdom as “spiritual street smarts.”
OT scholar Bruce Waltke defines wisdom in Proverbs “as life mastery based on experience,” having “skill or expertise” in life.
The book of Proverbs give us pithy statements, that offer us representation of how the world works.
The individual proverbs are so short that they cannot represent all of reality of the how world works, but they a slice of how the world works, in a particular context.
If you work hard, you’ll be prosperous.
If you answer gently, you’ll defuse anger.
These Proverbs offers a slice of reality, but not comprehensive statements about how the world. Generally speaking if you work hard you’ll prosper, generally speaking if you answer gently you defuse anger… but at the book of Proverbs later notes there are all kind of exceptions. When you take the Proverbs and note the exceptions, together we get a better understanding of how the world works.
Vs. 3 tells us the Proverbs are for gaining instruction.
(The Proverbs are) 3 for receiving instruction in prudent behavior,
doing what is right and just and fair;
People don’t become wise accidentally.
Solomon points we all need in instruction and hence this book.
In chapter 1-9 helps us prepare our heart so that will be able to receive wisdom.
4 for giving prudence to those who are simple,
knowledge and discretion to the young—
But, though this book was written primarily for the young person, for a parent to use with a child or a mentor to use with mentor, whether we are young or old, male or female if want to be wise, God tells us to get the wisdom through the book Proverbs…
Because whether we are young or old, male or female, we have choices that lie before us…that require wisdom…
There are some decisions in life that can be guided by simple rules: “Don’t drink and drive.” “Don’t buy things on your credit card that you can’t pay off.”
But there are many areas in life that require more than simply rules: they require wisdom, understanding of how things are to make a choice…
Where to go to school, what life-work to pursue, how and when to confront something, if to marry, whom to marry, how to raise children, where to live…
A rule can give us a general guide, wisdom can help know in what situation to apply the rule.
The book of Proverbs calls us become people who embrace wisdom.
And it calls through a metaphor.
In the book of Proverbs, Solomon introduces us to the image of a father who wants his young his son to date and wed wisdom (the image could have easily been that of a mother or daughter, but in part because Solomon, himself, is a man and father, he uses the image of a father and a son).
This father he seeks to introduce to his son to a woman, the woman’s name is wisdom… for she is wisdom, wisdom personified.
In Proverbs 1 vs. 20 we see this picture of woman wisdom… She is strong. She is bold. She takes initiative…
Notices vss. 20-21
20 Out in the open wisdom calls aloud,
she raises her voice in the public square;
21 on top of the wall she cries out,
at the city gate she makes her speech:
Wisdom calls out…
She says in Proverbs 9:
1 Wisdom has built her house;
she has set up its seven pillars.
2 She has prepared her meat and mixed her wine;
she has also set her table.
3 She has sent out her servants, and she calls
from the highest point of the city,
4 "Let all who are simple come to my house!"
To those who have no sense she says,
5 "Come, eat my food
and drink the wine I have mixed.
6 Leave your simple ways and you will live;
walk in the way of insight."
Woman wisdom invites the young man to dine with her…
She has prepared meat and mixed the wine and set her table….
Wisdom is offer wine, she’s anything boring, she’s make your head spin in good way…
This is very a sensual image…
In the Ancient Near East to dine with someone meant something. It meant you received that person as a friend, it meant you wanted to enter into deep and intimate relationship with that person.
The invitation is from woman wisdom to dine with her—the invitation is to come to know her deeply.
Parker Palmer in his book To Know as We are Known points out that true knowledge is not just about knowing “facts”—it is about knowing something internally and deeply and personally… Palmer says that true knowing involves a relationship.
The woman wisdom invites us to know her intimately and deeply to have relationship with her.
In Proverbs 4 Solomon calls his son to honor and cherish and embrace woman wisdom…
This is the language of intimate relationship. Solomon hopes that his son will commit to woman wisdom and wed her.
He knows (according to Proverbs 3) that this woman wisdom offers a delightful and satisfying path… and (according to Proverbs 8) that she will lead him to life and prosperity…
So, Solomon hopes his son will fall in love with woman wisdom, because he knows what Augustine would understand centuries later, that key to change is not the acts of the will, but the loves of the heart.
But, Solomon knows that woman wisdom has her rival.
There is woman folly.
Woman wisdom is beautiful.
Woman folly she “hot” but in a different way.
Listen to her bio in Proverbs 9…
Chapter 9:
13 Folly is an unruly woman;
she is simple and knows nothing.
14 She sits at the door of her house,
on a seat at the highest point of the city,
15 calling out to those who pass by,
who go straight on their way…
16 "Let all who are simple come to my house!"
To those who have no sense she says,
17 "Stolen water is sweet;
food eaten in secret is delicious!"
18 But little do they know that the dead are there,
that her guests are deep in the realm of the dead.
Woman folly’s allure is the way of easy pleasure…
She represents easy sex.
In vs. 17 the image of “stolen water” is a metaphor for illicit sex…
There is a kind attractiveness to woman folly…
There’s an appeal to music and message of Nelly Furtado’s hit song Promiscuous:
The guys sing:
Promiscuous girl (song)
Wherever you are
I’m all alone
And it's you that I want
Nelly sings:
Promiscuous boy
You already know
That I’m all yours
What you waiting for?
There’s is an appeal to woman folly, to male folly, to promiscuous girl to promiscuous boy…
There’s something appealing for an adolescent… when a girl will let go as far as he wants.
There’s something appealing to a man when a woman, makes it known she’s wholly available.
The woman folly is also the way of easy money.
In Proverbs 1:18-19 Solomon warns his son against getting involved in schemes that involve quick, easy, illicit money.
There’s a great to appeal to easy money… there’s an appeal on a different number of levels for an adolescent to stealing, to sell drugs… there’s an appeal to an adult about not being truthful on our return, an appeal with getting privileged, inside, illegal information on how a stock will likely perform…
But chapter 9 vs. 18 tells us that woman’s folly guests are deep in the realm of death…
People who chose… easy sex… sex outside of God’s design, life-long covenant relationship marriage, find their souls are torn apart, people easy money find their soul shrivels, for woman folly leads to death…
Proverbs 16:25 tells us that there is a way that seems right to a person, but in the end it leads to death.
There is a way that seems right to person, but in the end, it destroys the soul.
The father urges his son to choose to dine and wed woman wisdom, for she leads to life, but woman folly leads to death…
So who is woman wisdom?
Listen, if you will, to her autobiography:
Chapter 8:22
22 "The LORD brought me forth as the first of his works,
before his deeds of old;
23 I was formed long ages ago,
at the very beginning, when the world came to be.
24 When there were no oceans, I was given birth,
when there were no springs abounding with water;
25 before the mountains were settled in place,
before the hills, I was given birth,
26 before he made the world or its fields
or any of the dust of the earth.
Renowned OT scholar, Bruce Waltke points out that in the Hebrew this text pronounces that wisdom is not made by God, but is begotten or birthed by God…
Wisdom is birthed from the very nature of God and is organically related to God in its nature.
Woman wisdom that birthed by God was present at the very beginning of creation.
There are ancient myths that about came to be describe the world come into the being because of a conflict between the gods. One god defeats another and makes the earth from the body of the defeated God.
But Bible’s account of creation is unique story in that it suggests the creation of the world is built with wisdom, not the result of a power struggle or some random fluke…
Therefore, if the world is founded with wisdom, it means there is a kind “order,” symmetry, beauty, to reality to it.
When I was working in Tokyo, I met a young man who I remember well. He was Ph.D in physics at University of Tokyo… He was doing some ground breaking researching on how to take measurement of a sphere… I remember him approach me asking me to get together for lunch… he wanted to talk about something…. We met and he said, you’re a Christian right? I’ve research on the waves sphere as far no has done before… it seems to me it not random, design… it makes me wonder if there’s something that’s designed the universe…
Leading scientists who are not necessarily religious have talked how as they observe the there seems to be this order, symmetry, this appearance of design.
The world reflects the design of God…
As God has designed a world with certain physical like the lay of gravity (drop a ball)…
As there are physical laws so there are certain social and spiritual laws at work in the universe… free sexs tear your soul, easy money will shrivel your soul…
Because woman wisdom has been present from the beginning she knows how the world works, she knows not just physical, but the social and spiritual laws as well and therefore she is knows reality, therefore she leads us to life.
The Wright brothers were about to we’re able to fly the first airplane because they figured out the laws of aerodynamics.
Wisdom is about learning to “fly in life” because we understand the “aerodynamics” of the world God has designed.
If understand the Gods laws we can fly.
Woman wisdom helps us to understand the nature of reality and guides us through it… and leads us to life.
I am beginner sailor.
But, I have someone in my life who is a master sailor. He understands, the wind, the wave, the current, the nature of sail boats… so he helps guide me on the water, he helps me to realities of the wind, wave and current… so I will learn sail the boat and not capsize it.
Woman Wisdom guides through so we can understand the nature of what God has made, honor the design, so we sail, fly, so be led to life.
God wants us to meet, to fall love with, and wed woman wisdom.
Will you dine with her? Will you love her, will you commit to her?
Some of you may have thought…
This talk of wisdom as a woman is really a literally device…
But if wisdom were a person?
Some of you have wistfully thought, if I only had a wise father or mother…
Or if only I had had a wise mentor…
But what if wisdom were a person you could know?
Some of you have wistfully thought, if I only had had a wise father or mother…
Or if only I had had a wise mentor…
But what if wisdom were a person you could know?
In Gospel chapter 1, we have a section that similar to the Proverbs at 8 description of wisdom. In John we read about the how in the beginning was the word, and in the Greek there word connotes a kind of certain of logic/ knowledge/wisdom… so in rough paraphrase you could say in the beginning was wisdom and wisdom was with God and wisdom was God… then the wisdom became flesh, a human being and dwelt and we beheld his glory, the glory of the one and only son who came from the father, full of grace and truth.
Jesus said Jesus says 28 "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."
Jesus who is wisdom itself, invites on journey where we learn from, his yoke is perfectly made for us, and we will find rest.
Solomon in Proverbs 4 says honor and cherish and embrace wisdom… if we wed lady wisdom, if we wed Jesus Christ… honor, cherish, and embrace wisdom… we will know the path to life and fullness of joy…
(The sermon can be heard online at: http://www.tenth.ca/audio.htm)
posted by Shigematsu at 8:06 AM
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