Sunday School Lesson for March 4, 2012: Wisdom’s Origin (Proverbs 8:22-35)

James 1:5
If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.





Ephesians 1:17
I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know

him better.





Proverbs 3:19
With Lady Wisdom, God formed Earth; with Madame Insight, he raised Heaven. They knew when to signal rivers and springs to the surface, and dew to descend from the night skies.







I’ve always had trouble teaching Proverbs 8 mainly because it deals with the personification of what we would deem a ‘character’ trait: Wisdom. Furthermore, rather than being personified as a ‘man’, Wisdom is personified as a woman in these passages. This created something of a dilemma for me, in that, I’m always looking for ‘Christ’ in Scripture. At first glance, this passage seemed to be the perfect compliment to John 1:1-2 where Jesus is identified as the Eternal Word: The Logos of God. It didn’t seem to line up. Why would God refer to yet to be revealed ‘Christ’ in the feminine person here in Proverbs? He didn’t. Not on the way you think. It’s OK. I didn’t get it for a long time either. Allow me just a few observations. First of all, in the time of the writing of the Proverbs, the worship of male and female deities was quite common. Baal and Asheroth, Ra and Isis: major deity ‘pairs’ that were worshipped in the countries surrounding Israel. Yet, uniquely, the God of Israel revealed Himself consistently as ‘One God’; singular and supreme. From the beginning he represented Himself as the singular source of all creation. However, throughout the Old Testament He provided glimpses of His Triune nature: God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit, both three and one. The Trinity stands as the great revealed ‘mystery’ of Scripture. You have to take the concept by faith.

So when ‘Lady Wisdom’ makes her appearance here in Proverbs, God is revealing something of His ‘nurture’ (play on words). After all, in creation, both male and female came from Him. Beloved, Eve came out of Adam. What might Adam have ‘looked’ like in the Spirit before that happened? In Genesis 17, when God cut covenant with Abraham, He revealed Himself to Abraham as ‘God Almighty’, in the Hebrew: ‘El Shaddai”, which some have given to mean literally: ‘Father Mother God’.

So, back to Jesus; I’m still trying to find Him in here. If you will allow me a little ‘sanctified liberty’, I think I found Him. What if God, enthroned in Heaven, remained so during the very creation? What would the implications be? One postulate might be that… When ‘Lady Wisdom’ references the ‘’Lord’ in the latter parts, the reference may have been to our Lord, Jesus: The Living Word. The Logos : the very Power of the Living God. Might ‘Wisdom’ have been revealing Jesus to us? I believe so, the same as John does in the very beginning of his Gospel. I’m just saying. It would make some sense, in that the Spirit of God, or the ‘Holy Spirit’ was hovering over the waters in Genesis 1:1 and did not act creatively until the Logos came forth, “Let there be light!’. So then, might ‘Lady Wisdom’ be revealed then as the Holy Spirit; the third person of the ‘Godhead’? If so, it would absolutely establish the Holy Spirit of God as the origin source of heavenly wisdom and the provider of it. The primary role of the Holy Spirit in the Church is to magnify Jesus.

Subsequently, those who find ‘Wisdom’ find life. They find ‘Blessing’. Those who follow after her, who practice her ‘way’ become reflections of her, or rather ‘Them’, or rather, Him (Christ). Beloved, in the same way that ‘Lady Wisdom’ reveals the majesty and preeminence of the Lord here in Proverbs, may the Holy Spirit manifest the Glory and Power, Grace and Mercy of our Lord Jesus, the Christ, in your hearts. May you grow in the knowledge of Him and find Favor and Blessing under the shadow of the Almighty. May He cause His face to shine upon you!





Blessings,



.wb



p.s. Thanks Eric! J (giving honor to whom honor is due).





John 1:1-2
[ The Eternal Word ] In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God.







1 Corinthians 1:30
It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption.





Proverbs 14:33
Lady Wisdom is at home in an understanding heart