Proverbs 8:1-4, 22-31
The eighth chapter of Proverbs is all about what it looks like to seek guidance from all that God has revealed. (While a case can be made that wisdom here is symbolic of Christ pre-incarnation, I believe it’s stretching the original author’s intent to make that the basis of a sermon on the text.)
Every generation differs from the one before in terms of values, technological advances, and power. But wisdom is timeless. A principle of wisdom that would have guided an ancient patriarch to make a healthy, holy decision will still guide a teenager in the best possible direction today.
James, the brother of Jesus, echoed the universality of the offer of wisdom to any who seek it (James 1:6). Wisdom is freely available, but how often do we bypass this precious resource and rely on our broken instincts, popular opinion, or ideologies that have repeatedly strayed from God’s path?
And how do we collect wisdom? It’s popular to say that the only true source of wisdom is the Bible itself, but this would be selling short the value of the world God created. We can observe and learn. We can reason. We can apply logic. We can see certain principles at work in nature and in typical patterns of human interaction.
My Other Favorite Source of Sermon Ideas
MinistryPass offers excellent sermon series ideas, graphics, and resources for pastors and teachers, including expository, topical, textual, and lectionary-based ideas, plus calendars for organizing it all. MinistryPass is, in my opinion, the best all-around, complete sermon series planning resource on the web.