December 5, 2022 -- Proverbs 4:5-9 & Luke 4:1-3 -- A Journey to Christmas through Proverbs and Luke

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Get wisdom; get insight;
do not forget, and do not turn away from the words of my mouth.
6 Do not forsake her, and she will keep you;
love her, and she will guard you.
7 The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom,
and whatever you get, get insight.
8 Prize her highly, and she will exalt you;
she will honor you if you embrace her.
9 She will place on your head a graceful garland;
she will bestow on you a beautiful crown.”
Proverbs 4:5-9 ESV

And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness 2 for forty days, being tempted by the devil. And he ate nothing during those days. And when they were ended, he was hungry. 3 The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.”
Luke 4:1-3 ESV

As you journey to Christmas through reading Proverbs and Luke, pay attention to details. Earlier in Luke it was noted that “Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and with man” (Luke 2:52). He received the instruction of His parents. He highly prized the teaching of the LORD His God and in the day of temptation Jesus was armed with wisdom. Even when He was hungry, and tired from fasting, and lonely after forty days in the wilderness, He has wisdom from on high which saw Him through the hard days of assault at the hands of the devil.

No doubt some readers will scoff and say, of course Jesus resisted temptation, He is divine. True. But He is also fully human. The same Spirit that rested on Jesus is the Spirit of wisdom given to all who believe. When a believer prizes wisdom he will be protected against the day of trouble.

Look at verse 6, the student of wisdom will not forsake her, that is, he will not lose her or leave her. Wisdom is to be courted and treasured, wisdom is to be pursued and wooed. When we read the Bible, we are not merely putting a check mark beside some duty we have to perform in order to make a distant deity happy. Not a chance! When we read the Bible, we are wooing wisdom and pursuing her, aware that God's blessing is poured out on those seeking His wisdom.

In our weaknesses and failures, we realize once again the greatness of the work of Jesus Christ, to be fully righteous, fully obedient to the Father, fully wise. What a glorious Savior He is. In the journey to Christmas, treasure Jesus and receive the garland of His grace to protect you against the onslaughts of the devil, your own flesh and the trials the world would hurl at you. Wisdom is a beautiful crown—one which, when we see Jesus in eternity, we will throw at His feet in adoration and thanks and worship.

Our Father in heaven, blessed and honoured be Your Name! May Your Word of Wisdom brace my heart and attitude so that in the powerful Name of Jesus I can resist temptation. Faithful Father, thank You for the joy of Christmas and the deep awareness that You truly do keep Your promises and equip believers with Your Spirit guarding them in all that is truly and good and holy. Forgive me for the laxity with which I have been attending to wisdom and stir up in me a strong desire for Your gift of wisdom. Help me to chase after wisdom with the ardor of a young lover chasing the woman of his dreams. Thank You, Father of all Compassion and Steadfast Love, Amen.

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