“The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” This is something of a motto in the wisdom literature of the Bible.

But what does it mean that fearing God is the “beginning” of wisdom?  Is the fear of God just a place to start?  Is it just a beginning stage that you eventually grow out of and then move on to other things as your wisdom matures? 

And what does it mean to “fear” God anyway?  How do we define this fear?  Stark terror?  Cringing?  Wincing?  Keeping him at arm’s length because you’re always apprehensive, nervous, and suspicious in his presence?

Let’s treat the second question first.

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When the long–expected King finally appeared in the flesh, he took his seat on the mountain and gave his people words of life.  “He opened his mouth and taught them, saying: ‘Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven’” (Matthew 5.1-3).

“Theirs is the kingdom of heaven!” That sounds very promising.  But what does Christ mean when he says that this kingdom will only be given to those who are “poor in spirit”?  What does spiritual poverty look like, and how does one enter into such a reality, acknowledge it, and begin to live it? 

Am I poor in spirit?  Are you?  Would we want to be?

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You may have heard of a guy named Martin Luther and the little stir that he caused back in 1517 when he published his 95 Theses (with hammer & nails) on the door of the Castle Church at Wittenburg, in Germany. 

The Castle Church housed more than 17,000 so–called “relics.” Among these relics in which Wittenburg boasted, they claimed to have four strands of the Virgin Mary’s hair, a piece of straw from the baby Jesus’ manger, a nail from the cross, and a piece of bread from the Last Supper.

People would come to venerate these relics, in great hope that in so doing they would earn eternal favor with God.  In fact, the pope had decreed that those who did so on All Saints Day (November 1) could reduce their time in purgatory by over one million years — as long as they also made a little donation while they were there.

Well there was a monk named Martin Luther who had been studying his Bible, and he had come to the conclusion that all of this sort of business was vain nonsense, darkness, and superstition.  “Christ alone can forgive sins,” he declared.  “The pope has no power to forgive or to free souls from purgatory.  If he had such power, why does he not release everyone from purgatory at once?  Why does he not do it free of charge?”

So, on October 31 (the eve of All Saints Day) he went public with his critiques by nailing 95 Theses to the Castle Church door.

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One of the most obvious but most difficult lessons for the growing Christian to keep in mind in a moment of temptation is the unpleasant aftertaste of sin.  The Apostle Paul, speaking about sins that were once “enjoyed” asks a telling question:  “But what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed?  The end of those things is death.” The aftertaste of sin is shame and death.  Yuck.  The book of Proverbs also describes sin’s aftertaste.

In Proverbs 9.17 the temptress seduces the simple young man with the promise that “stolen water is sweet, and bread eaten in secret is pleasant.” But read the next verse, Proverbs 9.18.  Quite a contrast between the enticement of the temptation and the pathetic reality of the story’s conclusion, huh?

But the aftertaste of “stolen water” and “secret bread” (which are evocative pictures of sin on many different levels) is perhaps more vividly portrayed in Proverbs 20.17.

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Think about the last argument or disagreement you had. The other person made a comment that evoked pain in you, and you responded with… what?

In the book of Proverbs, God is training his sons and daughters to live wisely and skillfully in everyday situations. It’s an eminently practical book; a mine full of treasures! In 15.1—picking up the theme of anger from 14.35—we are told this: “A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.”

By the way, if you’re like me, you have to read a Proverb at least four times slowly before it really starts to sink in. Try it and see what a difference it makes.

It takes a lot of discipline to give soft answers in the midst of an irritating or angry confrontation. It’s so much easier and self-pleasing to yield to your temper, to resort to childish sarcasm, to get defensive, and to start throwing around “hard” words.

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