Looking for life in all the wrong places
I don't know if I'm smart enough to actually define "life," but what I know for sure is that we can't define it until we have Wisdom.
For whoever finds me finds life and receives favor from the Lord. But those who miss me injure themselves. All who hate me love death. (Proverbs 8:35-36)
How would you define life?
See I’ve got to be careful with this one. In my heart of hearts, I’m a science fiction writer, and this is one of those questions I could wax eloquent on (and have) for hours. But when it comes to talking about Life, do any of us even know how to define it?
Is it sentience? Is it awareness? Is it conscience? Is it having a soul, having a spirit, taking a breath? Does it mean that you have a body? Does it mean that you have a full bank account? Does it mean that you can experience all of your favorite things to their fullest extent?
Is life an emotional state of being? Is it a mental existence that is only dictated by what your impulses can communicate? Is it a spiritual connection with another person or the universe as a whole?
I don’t know if I’m smart enough to define life. I don’t know if I have the right credentials to be able to extrapolate all the potential definitions. But what I can tell you about life is that you aren’t going to find it unless you have wisdom.
As with so many other things in life, Wisdom is the key. But if you want to find life, you can’t just get wisdom; you have to love wisdom. You have to put wisdom into practice. You have to make wisdom part of your everyday life, your daily habits, your very lifestyle if you want to reap the benefits of it.
Why? Well, did you see the rest of the passage?
Today’s verses are a special kind of Proverb, one of the variations that offers a comparison and contrast.
Whoever loves wisdom and seeks it and finds it and applies it will find life. But whoever avoids wisdom, whoever doesn’t want it, whoever hates? At the very least they will damage themselves. At the worst, they are actively seeking death.
Wow. That escalated kind of quickly, didn’t it? But what does it mean? How does this affect us today in Twenty-First Century America?
Most of the time, in Proverbs, the idea of Life is pointing to abundance and blessing. It’s the idea of living a full life, content and satisfied and happy. Isn’t that what all of us want on some level?
This passage is telling us that in principle if you seek wisdom and intentionally make wise choices, abundant life will find you.
The word for find used in this verse is the Hebrew word matsa (Strongs Hebrew 4672), which generally means exactly what’s on the tin. It means to find something, to discover it or encounter it, and in definition it can be something you find accidentally or as a result of diligent search.
But the cultural connotation of this word, matsa, means something important in both the physical realm and the spiritual one. Yes, finding something can be a result of intentional pursuit and study; but just as often finding something is a blessing from God, divine guidance from the Lord Himself.
And when you consider that connotation, finding wisdom is more than applying a few of God’s principles and hoping for the best. No, with this connotation in mind, applying God’s wisdom in your life is the key that allows God to bless you with MORE life, more abundance, just more in general.
Yes, be intentional about increasing your wisdom. Make wise choices. Build wise relationships. Take wise roads. But don’t forget that the benefits of wisdom aren’t always obvious; sometimes they are hidden gifts God is waiting to give us until we’re ready to receive them.
For Deeper Study
Read Matthew 10:39. What is the ironic truth stated in this verse? Why do you think Jesus chose to include this statement in His message?
Read John 10:6-10. Based on this passage, how do you think Jesus would define Life?
Read 1 John 5:11-12. After reading this passage, how do you now define life? Using this definition, can you say that you have life?
For Reflection
Fill in the blank: Life is _____. What did you put?
What has led you to that belief?
Why do you think that God desires so deeply to give us a full, abundant life?
