You are not (yet) wise

There is a temptation for a young man to think he is ready to take on the world.

The proverbs of Solomon begin by exposing a young man's lack of wisdom and calling him to humility.

'the proverbs of Solomon...to  give subtilty to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion.’

The point is that young men are in company with the simple in their need of wisdom. As things stand, they both are not wise … yet. That strikes me as an overdue reality check for us young men.

It's true. If someone is looking for a wise counsellor who really understands the issues, who can navigate the path ahead with skill, they will rarely turn to the young man in the room (sorry, to break it to you).

By nature, young men have much – strength, confidence, ambition. But not wisdom.

The second point immediately following on from the first is a more hopeful one. Solomon clearly believes any young man can get knowledge and discretion. And the way to wisdom is found in the pages of Proverbs.

Young men may not be wise now, but they path to wisdom is open to them.

Young men are thus welcome in the book of proverbs. But they must throw off the cockiness and arrogance before they begin. Wisdom will only be gained when a young man takes a humble place before His God.

‘The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge.’

This is the first step of the journey to becoming wise. A young man who seeks to become the man God made him to be must first realise that he is not yet that man.

He needs to humble himself. He needs to acknowledge that he is a fool – he is naive and simple, and lacking the understanding and discernment that wise men possess.

The second step is to come to the Lord ready to learn. Fools despise instruction. But young men on the path to wisdom love instruction.

If you seek to become wise through God’s word, you must have a teachable heart. You must be ready to be exposed, challenged and corrected. You must be ready to be a patient learner, to put in the work to dig and gather the treasures of wisdom found in Scripture.

But you can be confident that God will give wisdom to the humble and the faithful.

Solomon wouldn't have written the Proverbs if he didn't believe this. And the Lord leaves us in no doubt that wisdom is available, especially to those who know they need it.

If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. (James 1:5)

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