Proverbs 4:1 Hear, ye children, the instruction of a father, and attend to know understanding. 2 For I give you good doctrine, forsake ye not my law. 3 For I was my father’s son, tender and only beloved in the sight of my mother. 4 He taught me also, and said unto me, Let thine heart retain my words: keep my commandments, and live. 5 Get wisdom, get understanding: forget it not; neither decline from the words of my mouth. 6 Forsake her not, and she shall preserve thee: love her, and she shall keep thee. 7 Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding. 8 Exalt her, and she shall promote thee: she shall bring thee to honour, when thou dost embrace her. 9 She shall give to thine head an ornament of grace: a crown of glory shall she deliver to thee. 10 Hear, O my son, and receive my sayings; and the years of thy life shall be many.
Solomon was older now. His son Rehoboam would reign after him. He would start out right but would end up the wrong way because he didn’t listen to the cautions here of his father. Before you pursue anything, be sure that you pursue wisdom and understanding. Find truth and go by it. Solomon also forsook wisdom and followed his own pursuits. He repented and now tried to instill what he had received from his father. David had done wrong and that had taught Solomon a lesson. Yet he did the same things. Now he wanted his son to avoid the pitfalls and not repeat the same mistakes he had made. He urged him to go by wisdom and understanding through God’s Word.
We try to avoid the wickedness of the day but we can’t. Sometimes we’re even startled by it but what scares me the most is the complacency of people. We’re moving too fast. Some even try to outdo technology. We’ll see a generation of people going to doctors for neck problems because of bending over a phone screen. If I’m going to have problems with that I’d rather it be bending over reading God’s Word! Whatever problems we see we cannot put all the blame on the kids. You cannot blame Capitol Hill. The openness of sin is the result of carelessness of generations before us.
In days gone by more people used to really try to live for and serve God. Not now. People used to say no to fashions and behaviors. Everything is labeled now–baby boomers, millennials. Who comes up with this? There were eight kids in my family. Many of my ancestors had much more than that yet baby boomers didn’t come along until well after that. What we did see was moms and dads giving up control and kids began to control the homes. Through the course of one decade in the 60’s we saw a huge change. The younger ones changed because the older ones became lax. The standard of the home even voted down by Congress a few years ago. Remember God set that standard back in the beginning and it’s a man and woman who marry and have children. The devil breaks that down and then there is no order. That’s why we see chaos today. The Bible tells us that “blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord.” The only way America can come back is for families to be what they should be. That’s what Solomon wanted Rehoboam to see.
Solomon had seen what his own brothers had done and watched them die because of it. Their home was destroyed by sin. Children need parents not to teach them how to be successful in this world but show them it’s not knowledge and degrees and succeeding by stepping on whoever is in the way that gets you ahead. Verse 5 reminds us Get wisdom, get understanding: forget it not; neither decline from the words of my mouth. Verse 7 goes on to say Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding. Children want a lot of things but wisdom and understanding are needed. You won’t get them unless you seek them. The source is the Word of God. For I give you good doctrine, forsake ye not my law. (verse 2) Solomon learned the hard way. You have to stick with one guide for life, the Word. It’s the success or failure of an individual, a family, a nation, mankind, of yours and my soul. What are you doing with the Word?
God is giving us a challenge on this father’s day. Listen to what he’s saying. Don’t compromise. Receive him and get what you need for a happy, successful, and fulfilled life. It will be exactly what you want and need. The best times of life are when we live close to the Word. Leave here with wisdom and understanding. Our goal should be more of Jesus to get more of both.
Adwolfe Freewill Baptist Church 