THE WAY OF WISDOM

Of course we all did foolish things when we were young, I know I did. But for as long as I live, I’ll never forget the moment I witnessed a very young, very drunk and foolish sailor, tragically misjudge the distance between the liberty boat he was disembarking, and the docking barge that was tied to the fantail of his ship. It was 1989 and we were at anchor in Victoria bay on the aircraft carrier, USS Constellation (CV-64). It was well after midnight, the seas were treacherous and the winds were howling fiercely. They really should have secured all transports to and from the ship for the night; but they didn’t, and the hard-charging sailors of the “Connie” were returning to her decks by the hundreds after a well-deserved night of liberty, among the towering sky-scrapers of Hong Kong. 

As my liberty launch approached the fantail of the enormous ship, I immediately noticed a backlog of sailors waiting to step off their boats and on to the barge. The seas were so rough that the boats could not remain alongside the barge, creating a rapidly opening and closing gap of two or three feet, which required the sailors to time their jumps very precisely. We were all dog tired at this point, but as my turn approached, I watched my shipmates intensely as they negotiated this precarious obstacle splashing menacingly before us. I believe we had even begun to start cheering as each sailor successfully leapt to safety, when without warning, one of them abruptly disappeared into that abyss right before our eyes, never to be seen alive again… or so we thought. 

We all stood there in shock with our jaws dropping, completely dismayed about what we had just seen, and desperately hoping to see his head bob back up again briefly so that we could snatch him up. But as the seconds passed, he never did and I personally believed that there was absolutely no hope for him. Then suddenly, without saying a word, a brave officer dove in to those foreboding waters, himself disappearing under that massive barge. To this day, I’ll never know just how he did it, (perhaps I was too drunk myself to remember the events clearly), but he saved the life of that silly young sailor, and they pinned a medal on his chest for it.

 I’ve often wondered about that young man – if he learned from that lesson and perhaps ‘wised up’ a bit – if he went on to make the most of his life as a result of that brush with death – or if he just got up the next morning wondering why he had sea salt in his hair, oblivious to the implications of his narrow escape. Winston Churchill once said that: “Men occasionally stumble over the truth, but most of them pick themselves up and hurry off as if nothing ever happened.” Such is the case with the wisdom of man and the folly of fools sadly. 

However, it need not be the case if we are willing to abide in the way of wisdom found in God’s word, specifically, the wisdom literature of the Old Testament. It has been said that the purpose for the book of Proverbs, “…may be summarized by, ‘a lifetime of knowing wisdom and instruction and learning the fear of the Lord.’” (H&W 441) which is based in large part on a reoccurring phrase in the book – “The way of wisdom”. Many images come to mind when considering ancient wisdom, but unlike some of the more cerebral and ethereal, philosophic wisdom of the Greeks, Israelite wisdom, “…seeks to instruct people in “right behavior.” As such it is practical or utilitarian wisdom rooted in the experiences of life common to human culture.” (H&W 442) Unlike the emptiness of modern humanistic philosophy, “The practical benefits of the way of wisdom are numerous for those disciplined enough to walk in the path of knowledge and understanding.” (H&W 445) Far from the self-indulgent and self-centered non-sense of new age spiritualism that passes for wisdom today, the biblical, “…way of wisdom results in understanding the fear of the Lord and finding the knowledge of God, thus fostering covenant relationship with Him… the fear of the Lord is a worshiping, reverent submission to the God of the covenant.” (H&W 445) 

So it’s not about us at all, it’s about Him. Wisdom doesn’t come from contemplating your navel in the Lotus position; it comes from confessing your sins and entering into a covenant position with our heavenly Father, putting Him in the Lord position in our lives. The way of wisdom says that, “The fear of the Lord is a right relationship to God, one of obedience to His covenant stipulations that prompts right method in thought and right behavior in action.” (H&W 445) Knowing all of the benefits that arise from living a life that is in submission to God’s wisdom, it is difficult to understand why we tend to stray from it so easily. After all, "The way of wisdom promotes the understanding of righteousness, justice, equity, and every good path… This preserves the wise from evil and delivers them from ruin and death. Conversely, the way of wisdom tends to safety, health, abundant welfare, peace and long life, prosperity and integrity, and righteousness. Finally, those who walk in the way of wisdom find favor and a good reputation in the sight of God and humankind." (H&W 445)

What could be better than that? The ancient Israelites sought to capture this wisdom and it was from this in-depth understanding of the fear of the Lord and godly wisdom that the Hebrew sages wrote their literature. Today we may view the book of Proverbs and the other non-proverbial wisdom forms, as the ultimate expression of advanced wisdom, as we should, but it’s interesting to note that, “…the book of Proverbs was very likely a “school textbook” and an important part of the curriculum in the education of Hebrew youth.” (H&W 445) This divinely inspired wisdom however, must be tempered with, “…the idea of the fear of the Lord” which, “…prevents proverbial wisdom from degeneration into a rigid and mechanistic system of cause and effect relationships. This keeps one from oversimplifying the complexities of life and offering pat answers to hard questions.” (H&W 447) Nevertheless, as with anything that man puts his hand to, God’s wisdom revealed in the Proverbs would only be effective if man was willing to apply that wisdom in a meaningful way in his own life.

Unfortunately, one of the wisest men in human history didn’t heed his on advice. We know that, “Solomon was dominated by sensuality… This character flaw was evidenced in the extravagance of his kingship and the size of his royal harem, and eventually proved to be his undoing… Ironically, the sage who counseled young men against the wiles of the “foreign” woman was trapped in her snares…” (H&W 470) This failure devastated Solomon and would later cause him to develop his own philosophy which essentially states that, “…there is nothing in life that is able to bring self-fulfillment or give meaning to life. Frustration and troubles are unavoidable, and we should not expect answers to why things happen. Rather than pursuing self-fulfillment, we should enjoy the good things of life as a gift from God.” (H&W 455) Solomon learned this the hard way, after a life of denying God’s wisdom in his own life, while preaching it to others, he arrived at the depressing conclusions that we find in Ecclesiastes. 

In my own life and ministry, I so desire not to end up as Solomon did, bitter and saddle-soar from a hard life of riding, not in the way of wisdom and the fear of the Lord, but in my own way, which is right in my own eyes. This will require a new commitment to the covenant relationship that I have entered into with the Lord, and a rededication of my will to serve His, for a lifetime of knowing wisdom and instruction and learning to fear the Lord. A brave carpenter’s son once jumped into the abyss to save my foolish life, and I desire to live the rest of my life in gratitude, walking in wisdom, and making His sacrifice worth it. How tragic it is when people, because of a lack of wisdom, misjudge the distance between heaven and hell, and submerge hopelessly into that abyss from which there can be no rescue. 

Works Cited:

Hill, Andrew and John Walton. A Survey of the Old Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan. 2010.

New King James Version. Holy Bible. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson. 2000. Print.