Overview:

Visiting any new destination in a foreign country, we are desperate for the necessary navigational support and guidance to enjoy all the destination has to offer. Yet also we need a guide to avoid all the dangers of that city. In a similar way, Proverbs is like a travel guide, helping us navigate life's complexities not in a new destination, but in God’s world. Within it are many blessings and benefits to enjoy, yet also many pitfalls, traps, dangers, and temptations to avoid. Proverbs shows us how to walk in wisdom in a fallen word. Everyone, whether they realize it or not, is on a quest for wisdom. The question becomes, “So what is are the navigational resources you are using?” Proverbs 1:1-7 outlines the trajectory of the book in offering a way that wisdom guides and where the journey begins.

Sermon Big Idea:

Wisdom is our guide to navigate life and the starting place begins with the fear of the Lord.

Application and Study Questions

1. Where is a proper fear of God lacking in your life?  How do you define the "fear of the Lord," and why is it considered the beginning of knowledge?
2.  Can you share a time when you experienced the fear of the Lord in your life?
3. Is there a constant awareness of the fear of Lord in your daily choices? How does growing in the fear of the Lord allow you to experience the wisdom of God?
4. What are some practical ways we can cultivate a reverent fear of the Lord in our daily lives?
5. In what areas of your life do you need God's wisdom the most right now?
6. How can we support each other in our quest for wisdom?
7. What does it mean to you that Jesus is described as the embodiment of God's wisdom? ( 1 Corinthians 1:30)