The Starting Point ~ Proverbs 9
- Dan Potter
- 1 day ago
- 6 min read
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; and the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” Proverbs 9:10 NIV
There is a starting point for everything. Seqouia trees start as a tiny seed the size of a flake of oatmeal that will, after 500-700 years of growth, tower 250 feet over their surroundings. The blue whale starts as a calf born at around 3,000 pounds, to then over the next 10 years, grow to approximately 280,000 pounds. And yes, even the most complex mammal on the planet, the human, has a very distinct starting place. A start so advanced that a mere 5 weeks after fertilization, the tiny new human has a brain, spinal cord and other neural tissue that forms the central nervous system along with a tiny heart tube that pulses 110 times a minute. Yes, all of these amazing examples had a start. A beginning. A single point in time that dictated and allowed all future growth. And folks, get ready for it…the growth and maturity of the human soul has a starting place as well.
The world is ever so quick to admit the physicality of these human bodies. Our bodies exist in space, contain matter, consume food to create energy, and have physical needs driven by human instinct. I do not think you could encounter someone on this planet today that would argue this point, we humans clearly exist on a physical plane. We humans also exist on an emotional plane. We love, care, cry, feel joy, and can even have our “hearts broken” in an extreme display of the vulnerability of our emotion. But the ironic reality of recognizing the emotional versus the physical already rings aloud with contradiction. Can you touch the love you have for your spouse? Can you see and tactily feel the emotional pain from being betrayed by a dear friend? No sane person would deny the fact that a vast invisible world of emotion exists within every human on this planet. Yes, no one dares deny the factual existence of invisible human emotion. Which brings us to the third plane of human existence, the spiritual. And the spiritual, the most important of the three human spheres of existence, is the very one to see its existence denied by millions upon the planet today.
There is no doubt that all humans are born with an idea of God. Why? Well, because in Genesis 1:27 we are told that “God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness…”. Just as a son has the eyes, nose, and demeanor of his dad, all humans have the fingerprint of God impressed upon their DNA. And within that impression lies an innate desire for the created to know their Creator. And how does this innate desire manifest? Well, I can tell you that as I have had spiritual conversations with people all over this world, one common thread appears…they are desiring to find, understand, an unite with something bigger than themselves. They are desiring answers to questions that are well above their intellectual and spiritual pay grade. And for that, their lack of answers only generates more profound questions that then lack their own answers. So how is one to truly scratch this spiritual itch that lies within the human soul? How does one that is seeking God with all of their spiritual heart, find Him?
Twice now in the book of Proverbs we have seen the very same sentence. In only 9 short chapters, we have seen Solomon, the wisest man to have ever lived, instruct us in his tremendous wisdom using the very same words:
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” Proverbs 1:7a
“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” Proverbs 9:10a
God-gifted Solomon with the highest level of human wisdom this world has ever known. So as this juggernaut of human understanding tells us where to find wisdom, do you think it has great levels of merit and importance? Well, just as if Michael Jordan were giving me basketball lessons, yes, I would be listening ever so closely. And taking notes.
Solomon tells us that human wisdom has a starting point. A beginning. Just as our sequoia, whale, and human examples above, the human’s ability to gain knowledge and then forge it into wisdom, has a starting place. And we are told that starting place initiates with the Creator. It starts with the One that made us in His own image, the One that crafted us physically, emotionally, and yes, spiritually. And just as God promises to provide us physically with sustenance and emotionally with love, He promises to fill us in the most intimate human way…by filling our souls that He designed to live forever.
And in a glorious roadmap that points the way, do not miss the second part of our study verse; “and the knowledge (to know by experience) of the Holy One is understanding.” Folks, we see here the starting point of a lost human soul that is seeking answers…and they will find them in two simple steps. First, fear the Lord. The word “fear” in this context runs much deeper than our modern definition. It does mean to hold terror of God but instead extreme reverence. It means to first admit that God is exactly who He says He is in His Word, and then to act like it. To fear the Lord is to live each hour of your life knowing that He created you, knows you, has a way for you to know Him personally, and has a set of instructions for you to live your life by. And no, that is not rules and regulations to restrict your life, somehow keeping you from all the good, fun stuff, but to guide you to something better. You see, God’s life instructions are intended to steer you away from all the stuff that will harm you physically, emotionally, and spiritually, and instead guide you towards the abundant life He created for you. (John 10:10)
Today, if you are looking for God with all of your heart, He promises to be found by you. (Jeremiah 29:13). But for Him to be found, there must be a starting point, a beginning point within you. And you and you alone hold the keys to that point. If you desire it, that beginning starts in this way. First, admit that God is God and you are not. Fully and honestly admit that His ways are high and yours are low. Admit that His thinking is above all things, and yours well below. In this honest admission it must then lead you to confess that you have sinned against God in your life and this imperfect sin has separated you from a perfect, sin-free God. And my friend, there is no way in your own power or intent, you can erase, repair, or escape your sin against God. But, because God has such love for His created, He desires for all of them to be united with Him in heaven for eternity. Yet God will not force His creatures to love Him, for that would not be true love at all. God desires for His creatures to be driven to the end of themselves, only to arrive at the beginning of Himself. And it is here you will find your spiritual starting point.
Secondly, admit your sin to God, turn from continuing in that sin, and then admit that Jesus is the only Son of God who died and was raised three days later in the perfect plan of God to reunite all sinners with Him in heaven for eternity. And then simply believe. Place your faith in Christ, believing with all of your heart that He, being God Himself, has the power to redeem the broken, human spiritual condition that is destined for hell without Him. And if you want to extrapolate logic into God’s wisdom, would you not need the Creator to redeem His created?
I pray that if you do not have Jesus Christ as your personal Lord and Savior, that today would be a beautiful new starting point for you. A starting point that sees honest admission of your need for a Savior and then sees you living a rich and abundant life in reverence (fear) to Almighty God in all you do. And this, my friends, is the beginning of wisdom.
Blessings ~ Dan
“Blessed [gratefully praised and adored] be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant and boundless mercy has caused us to be born again [that is, to be reborn from above—spiritually transformed, renewed, and set apart for His purpose] to an ever-living hope and confident assurance through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” 1 Peter 1:3 Amplified Bible
