Keith Battle - God's Benefit Package - Part 6

So, let me read that. Then, I’m also going to read from Proverbs 4, and then you may be seated. In James 1:5, it says, «If you need wisdom—and we all need it—ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind.» When you come to God for wisdom and you’re unsure about whether or not he has it, you will be all over the place when it comes to making a decision that’s right.

Now, go to Proverbs chapter 4. Is that black? What’s up, buddy? In Proverbs chapter 4 (I don’t have my glasses on), it’s good to see you. Verse five of Proverbs chapter 4 says, «Get wisdom.» Tell someone beside you, «Get it! Get wisdom and insight. Do not forget or ignore what I say.» Forgetting wisdom is a detriment; do not forget his benefits. Verse six says, «Do not abandon wisdom, and she will protect you. Love her, and she will keep you safe.» Getting wisdom is the most important thing you can do. «Whatever else you get, get insight.» Love wisdom, and she will make you great. Embrace her, and she will bring you honor; she will be your crowning glory. Amen. You may be seated.

Wisdom! I want to start by talking about the benefits of wisdom found in Proverbs chapter 4. This particular benefit is part of God’s benefits package. We’ve talked about the benefits of forgiveness, healing, peace, and provision. This specific benefit has advantages within it, and it’s really cool. One of the benefits that God gives from the benefit of wisdom in Proverbs 4:6 is protection. Look at Proverbs 4:6; it says, «Don’t abandon wisdom; she will protect you.» There’s protection. If you love her, she will keep you safe. Wisdom brings protection, and that is a blessing. We need protection in our lives, and the measure of how safe your life is correlates directly to how much wisdom you walk with.

So one of the things that wisdom does is mentioned in verse 7: «Make sure you’re getting wisdom. Make sure you get all the wisdom. It is the most important thing you can get.» The next benefit of wisdom is in verse 8: «Not only will wisdom protect you, it will promote you.» If you love wisdom, she will make you great. Embrace her, and she will bring you to honor. Verse 9 says, «She’ll be your crowning glory.» Not only does wisdom promote you and protect you, but wisdom gives you answers to life. We just need wisdom in life. Life is easier when you’re wise; it’s harder when you don’t have wisdom because the wisdom of God provides answers to the things you’re dealing with. You have to grow in wisdom; you will never arrive at a peak of wisdom where you don’t need anymore, because life will thrust you into circumstances where the wisdom you have is not enough to handle this level of life.

Who understands what I’m saying? So you say, «God, I’m in a situation where the wisdom I have is not enough.» This is what the Bible calls in Psalm 42: «Deep is calling unto deep.» What that actually means is that when problems come at you in waves—ever had it come at you in waves? It’s one thing to have one problem. How many know what it’s like when everything’s coming at you? If it isn’t one thing, it’s another. What it puts you in is a situation where God says you need wisdom for this so that you can manage it, because you don’t want to operate at this level of problems and trials with this level of wisdom.

By the way, in James 1:5, when it says, «If you need wisdom, ask God,» the context of James 1:5 is in verses 2 to 4, where it discusses going through various trials: «Count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the trying of your faith works patience,» etc. Then it says, «And if you need wisdom, ask God,» because God knows that when we’re in trials and tests, that’s when we need wisdom the most. You understand what I’m saying?

One of the things that it gives us is the wisdom of God to handle life. One thing I like—hey, what’s up, Zion from Washington? Shout out to your pastor, Pastor Sean. He said something two weeks ago that I can’t forget: In the Bible, we are not called the adults of God; we are always called the children of God. Now that’s very humbling because some of you have children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, and you feel very adult-like. But in the Kingdom, you’re just a child. One thing we know about children is that they need wisdom, particularly when they reach an age where they think they know everything. That’s why one of the things we should be praying for our children is for wisdom. God, give them wisdom to know which car to get into and which ride to avoid.