Characteristics of the Wise. I. Wisdom begins with the fear of the Lord.

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1 1 Characteristics of the Wise Often when we think of being wise, we imagine intellectual accomplishment, academic brilliance, or even applied knowledge to solve human problems by science and technology. That sort of wisdom is valuable. But when the Bible uses the word wisdom it means the ability to live life wisely, justly, uprightly, so that life is eternally rewarding. Wisdom is skill in living life. It may help to contrast the wise and the fool. Proverbs presents the wise person in contrast to the foolish person. The comparisons yield a lot of helpful information. Proverbs 13:20 states, He who walks with wise men, will be wise. What is a wise man or woman like? What are the characteristics of a wise person? How do you and I become wise? This morning, we would like to examine four major characteristics of the wise person found in the book of Proverbs and the steps to becoming that wise individual. I. Wisdom begins with the fear of the Lord. Proverbs 1:7 states the fundamental requirement to be a wise person. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction. The purpose of Proverbs is found in the first seven verses of the book. You read these Proverbs and you will receive instruction in wise behavior. These Proverbs will teach you how to distinguish righteousness, justice and equity. In verse four, it says they will give prudence to the naïve, to the youth they will give knowledge and discretion, even a wise man will hear and increase in learning, and a man of understanding will acquire wise counsel. God is speaking to us through these Proverbs and he is telling us how to live life effectively. God tells us here how to avoid the pitfalls of life. Proverbs warns us where the landmines are, and there are plenty of them. And it all begins with the fear of the Lord. It begins at the assumption level. Wisdom starts with our assumptions. The Bible says, The fool has said in his heart there is no God. He starts with the assumption that there is no God; that God doesn t even exist, and builds his life based on that false foundation. And the building is no better than its foundation. We began to understand something in this world when we begin to fear God. ut fools despise wisdom and instruction. That s the characteristic of the fool; he won t bow his arrogant heart before God. The fear of the Lord is not the terror of the Lord. It is not simply being afraid of God. The fear of the Lord is a reverence for God a deep abiding concern about what God thinks about the way I live; about my behavior and attitude. To fear God is to turn from evil. You can t love evil and God at the same time. To fear God is to listen to him and obey him. Proverbs 2:6 says, For the Lord gives wisdom; from his mouth come knowledge and understanding. But we don t get it without cost. It doesn t come easily. Chapter 2 verse one says, if you will receive my sayings, and treasure my commandments within you, if you will make your ear attentive to wisdom, and incline your heart to understanding;... If you seek her as silver, and search for her as hidden treasures then you will discern the fear of the

2 Lord, and discover the knowledge of God. Wisdom, the way the Bible defines it, starts with God. It starts with conversion. It starts with entering our relationship with God through Jesus Christ that results in a changed life and a changed heart. Without God at the center of our lives we will never know wisdom and we will never live effectively in this world, because although we succeed in this world - - that s as far as it will go. A person follows these principles will most likely succeed in life but fail in eternity if he does not begin with the fear of the Lord. What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and lose his own soul. II. A wise person is teachable By far the most frequently mentioned attribute of a wise person in Proverbs is his teachability. Often the wise and the fool are contrasted in the same verse. Proverbs 12:15, the way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man is he who listens to counsel. In fact, the inability to listen to the council of others is the earmark of a fool. Fredericksburg, Virginia was the scene of a great battle in the Civil War, December I have stood on Marye s Heights beside the stonewall which rebel troops had used as their defense that day. The Union general, Ambrose E. Burnside, ordered his army to attack that stonewall and take it. Against the advice of every corps commander, Burnside stubbornly persisted. Not once, but 14 times he threw his divisions of men against that wall and watched them be mowed down (8000 men in one day). They were uselessly wasted because of the ineptitude of their commander. Burnside had the ability to be wrong when everyone else was right and the dogged determination to remain that way. He was right in his own eyes and no one else s counsel mattered at all! That day Burnside acted the part of the fool; He lost the battle. He lost his army and he lost his command. The wise person listens to good counsel. Proverbs 8:33 says, Heed instruction and be wise, and do not neglect it. The wise person is open. He is teachable. He is ready to learn from both God and others. And he especially learns from his mistakes. The wise person is more ready to hear than to tell what he thinks he knows. Proverbs 10:8 the wise of heart will receive commands, but a babbling fool will be thrown down. The wise learn to listen more and talk less. An engineer who used to work in the company where my dad was employed used to say, it ain t so much of what you know, as what you know that ain t so. The problem with the fool is you can t tell him anything. He thinks he knows it all and he can t wait to tell everyone. So when he opens his mouth he exposes his folly. Closely connected to teachability is the characteristic of humility. The wise person is not so cocksure that he s always right, so he is open to give others a hearing. Proverbs 11:2 says, When pride comes, then comes dishonor, but with the humble is wisdom. The wise are characterized by their humility and their teachability, but fools possess supreme 2

3 confidence in their own ability. They re like the person who has his mind made up so we don t want to confuse him with the facts. But let us pause and do some self- evaluation. Children or young people, are you teachable? How open are you to receive your parents commands and suggestions? How about mom s suggestions on the clothes you should wear? Do you listen? Boys, do you listen to your dad when he gives you advice? Do you honor your father and mother or despise their counsel? Husbands how teachable are you if your wife is giving you advice? Ladies can you accept advice from your mother- in- law? The wise person is not too proud even to learn from his kids. So being teachable is one of the most outstanding characteristics of the wise. III. The wise person is temperate We don t hear much about this virtue anymore, but temperance means being self- controlled and restrained. It means that we are in control of our appetites, passions and desires. The emphasis in our culture today is hardly on temperance! The television encourages us to do whatever we want; to follow our inclinations, and fulfill our desires no matter who gets hurt. Hardly anyone exhibit self- control. A. A wise person controls his temper Proverbs 12:16 a fools vexation is known at once. A quick temper is the sign of a fool. Proverbs 29:11 a fool always loses his temper, but a wise man holds it back. George Sweeting was the president of Moody Bible Institute for some time. A student once said to him, I lose my temper, but it s all over in a minute. Sweeting replied, so is the hydrogen bomb, but think of the damage it does! Someone has said, anger is a wind that blows out the lamp of the mind. Blind emotion takes control and we lose our ability to think and react sanely. A wise person controls his temper. Most of us have a lot of work to do to be wise. Next time you feel the surge of anger, say to yourself, Is this really worth what it s going to cost me? I m going to make a fool of myself and hurt others that I love. B. A wise person controls his tongue. The tongue and the temper are linked. You may lose your temper but you will always find your tongue. You will likely live to regret the words you speak in anger. Proverbs 12:18 says, there is one who speaks rashly like the thrusts of the sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing. Proverbs 18:21 says, death and life are in the power of the tongue. The tongue is merely a tool. As scalpel can be a deadly instrument in the hand of a murderer or a healing instrument in the hand of the skilled surgeon; so your tongue can be. A wise person controls not only his temper and his tongue but his tummy. He has his appetites under control. C. A wise person controls his appetites. 3

4 Proverbs 20:1 reminds us, wine is a mocker, strong drink a brawler, and whoever is intoxicated by it is not wise. Wise people don t get drunk. Wise people control their appetites and their desires. Scripture warns against being ruled by our appetites. Over drinking, over eating, or indulging ourselves feed the appetite and make us slaves to our lusts. Wise people are moderate in all things. The wise person controls his sexual appetite too. Proverbs has a lot to say about avoiding immorality. The fool is the one who falls prey to adultery or sexual immorality. Proverbs 5:15 23 speak directly about this subject. Let your fountain be blessed, and rejoice in the wife of your youth. Be exhilarated always with her love. Why should you, my son be exhilarated with an adulterous, and embrace the bosom of another woman. The person who does this will die for lack of instruction, and in the greatness of his folly he will go astray. The apostle Paul said the sin of immorality is utter foolishness because it is a sin, unlike others, against your own body. God says marriage first, sex second. Violate that rule at your own peril. And the cost is extremely high. IV. The wise person is prudent. Finally, the fourth characteristic of a wise person is prudence. The fool is rash while the wise person is careful. Fools rush in where angels fear to tread. To conduct yourself wisely is to conduct yourself cautiously and carefully so as to save yourself from mishap and disaster. Many people actually perish because they do not pay attention to the dangers that surround them. My dad likes to tell the story in World War II when he served on an aircraft carrier in the South Pacific. Planes landed on the carrier and their wings were folded up on the flight deck which meant that the 50 caliber machine guns were, at that moment, pointed down. One day an accident happened and someone accidentally fired those machine guns in the down position. The bullets went right through the flight deck to the hangar deck below where sailors were all lined up to get their food. A number of them were killed and wounded in that accident. After that, dad reminded me, that he never stood in that line again but simply waited till the line was gone and he could quickly get his food. Those who are wise learn from the mistakes of others. Perhaps I am here today because he was careful! Proverbs 22:3 says, the prudent sees the evil and hides himself, but the naïve go on and are punished for it. Life is like walking through a minefield. There are so many opportunities to make a mistake and really blow it! The wise person is cautious and takes time to watch for danger. How many highly touted business opportunities or investment opportunities are nothing but another scam designed swindle you out of your hard earned cash? The 4

5 prudent person doesn t take the salesman s word for it. He reads the fine print for himself. If he can t understand what it says, he asks questions until he does! The prudent person knows that if you have to buy it right now in order to get the best deal- - it s probably not the best deal. If Acme furniture has a 60% sale that ends today and you must buy by 8 PM tonight or you re going to miss it- - look out! You might ask, how often does the sale come on? About every three weeks. Maybe you can wait three more weeks and check the prices on Craigslist! Proverbs 13:16 says, Every prudent man acts with knowledge, but a fool displays folly. The fool doesn t even bother to find out. He doesn t know the prices. He doesn t know the product. He just acts impulsively. In this world you pay for what you don t know! When in doubt, check it out! Don t assume anything! This is why a prudent person is hard to deceive. He is on guard and he is cautious. But don t get me wrong, prudence doesn t mean procrastination and caution is not paralysis. The wise individual takes the initiative with a minimum exposure to risk. He will take a risk but it must have a greater potential for reward than loss. The wise person is prudent. In conclusion, what is the secret to becoming wise? We started out this sermon with the fear of the Lord, and that is where we must end it. In the book of Proverbs wisdom shouts to us in the street, she lifts her voice in the square. God calls to us where we live to turn to his reproof. He promises, Proverbs 11:23, behold, I will pour out my Spirit on you; I will make my words known to you. You have a treasure in your hands more valuable than silver and more precious than gold. If you will but pay attention to what it says, it will deliver you from the way of evil and grant you tremendous success. Proverbs 3:13 says, how blessed is the man who finds wisdom, and the man who gains understanding. For its profit is better than the profit of silver, and its gain more than fine gold. She is more precious than jewels; and nothing you desire compares with her. Choose the best. Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor. Her ways are pleasant ways, and all her paths are peace. She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her, and happy are all who hold her fast. 5