on bears, wisdom, and folly

“To search for wisdom apart from Christ means not simply foolhardiness but utter insanity.”

—John Calvin

May 31, 2024 Ever since Genesis 3 and the fall of man, humanity has been on a perpetual search for wisdom. Life in a fallen world proves difficult, vexing, and perpetually confusing. Full of fools and foolishness one might say. When you think about foolishness I would wager something akin to silliness pops into your head. Maybe some childish behavior or attitudes, maybe a juvenile sense of humor—something like that. We think about foolishness often in a sense of immaturity and lack of experience, maybe naivety. But if we were to think about this concept biblically we would see that foolishness is not a small thing, not a trivial thing, and not an insignificant yet inescapable result of youth. We would see that foolishness is nothing less than rejecting the shape of God’s design and his role as both Creator and Redeemer of the world. Foolishness is the willful pursuit of a life that does not recognize nor understand that God is the Lord of all, and fear of him is the beginning of wisdom (Prov. 9:10). There are several books of the Bible that comprise what scholars call “wisdom literature,” with Proverbs being the most prominent. Wisdom literature in the Bible generally contains God-centered sets of principles that when believed and followed generally move people toward or produce human flourishing via a right relationship and posture with God instead of rejecting him. Proverbs and other wisdom literature do not produce a guarantee for a great life, but they do contain general principles for living in a God-centered way, in submission to his will and design, which generally produce a degree of flourishing. Again, wanting to put forth a caveat, we live in a fallen world and so acting wisely is no guarantee to eliminate suffering, but are generally helpful to pursue.  Just as it is good to pursue wisdom via a fear of the Lord, it is also good to flee from foolishness in a biblically defined manner. Proverbs 17:12 gives us the statement It is better for a man to meet a she-bear without her cubs that a fool and his foolish ways. In a purely naturalistic sense, a mother bear separated from her cubs tend to be more aggressive in the attempt to defend her offspring. This would be a more dangerous bear than a bear of either gender without something to protect. The analogy here is that a fool and his foolish ways is nothing less that someone who will rob you of joy, distract you in life, and not be an agent the encourages flourishing in your heart and mind. A foolish person is more detrimental to a wise person’s life than an actual wild animal defending and protecting her offspring. This view of foolishness sharply contrasts with our modern notion of silliness or naivety.  Our natural state, unregenerate and unredeemed, is that of a fool. Fools who say in their hearts that there is no God (Psalm 14:1), and if there was he wouldn’t matter at all. And if it were up to us to discover ancient wisdom written in a book that would improve our lives, we would be unable to do such a thing. But the good news is that the Bible does not tell a story of a foolish people becoming wise by imbibing the words and principles held within. The story of the Bible is that God sent is own Son in the likeness of human flesh to BECOME the wisdom of God incarnate, who became for us our righteousness and redemption and salvation (1 Cor. 1:30).  It is in Christ that we can truly be wise, because it is only by faith in Christ that we can rightly submit to him and honor him as Lord. It’s only in Christ ca we rightly seek the wisdom from God’s Word and apply it to our lives by the power of the Spirit. It’s only in Christ that we escape the fruit of foolishness, which is not just folly—it’s the right condemnation of a sinner before a holy God. In that we realize that foolishness is not just inconvenient, it’s as dangerous to our lives and souls as a wild bear defending her cubs. So brothers and sisters, I would implore you to seek wisdom in Christ, through his Word, and by the power of his Spirit. We can do that by his grace, which is new every morning, and by his mercy which never ends.  See y’all on Sunday! In Christ, John D

—Summer Study of Ecclesiastes 
We will embark on a summer study through the book of Ecclesiastes beginning Sunday, June 23 at 5pm. This study will run for 10 consecutive weeks through the summer and the location is TBD.  

— CANCELLED Mercy Camping Trip 
Due to some unforeseen and difficult life circumstances for members of Mercy we are cancelling the camping trip. We’ll figure out another camping trip at a later date.

—Songs for Sunday
Here’s what we’re singing this Sunday if you’d like to familiarize yourself with tunes + lyrics!

Redeemed, Restored, Forgiven 
His Mercy Is More 
Stricken, Smitten, And Afflicted
All I Have Is Christ 
Jesus Paid It All

These are some links that I have read recently that I enjoyed, found helpful, made me think, or otherwise did good for my soul/heart/mind. 

The Methodist Surrender
Women and the “Most Diabolical Lie”
General Assembly Preview: Polity, Procedure & Personnel (this is a little bit of insider baseball, and I don’t agree with everything this brother says or how he says it, but it’s not a bad preview of our General Assembly for those who care about such things.)