Proverbs 1
Welcome to the book of Proverbs as we kick off the year 2022 on Jumpstart! The book of Proverbs is an awesome book to get us started in God’s Word. If you’ve ever read the book of Proverbs, you know that it is filled with practical wisdom about what it looks like to live out God’s design for your life. As you read, though, you might realize that it doesn’t flow in an argumentative style like a letter of Paul, or in a chronological order of events like a narrative. So how do we wrap our minds around what this book is talking about?
A few years ago, I did a Bible Study on the book of Proverbs that broke down the book in helpful ways. Here is how it breaks down the different categories. (Here is a link to the book; I recommend it if you are wanting to dive deep into God’s Word!)
As you can see, the book of Proverbs the whole gambit of what it looks like to live a faithful life in Christ. This is just part of what it means to be wholly devoted to obedience to God’s Word.
When we look at today’s reading in chapter 1, I want to focus specifically on verse 7.
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge,
but fools despise wisdom and instruction. (ESV)
What is the fear of the Lord? The primary connotation is that fearing God closely relates to holding God in proper reverence and awe. God being in His rightful place is the lynchpin to the rest of the list above being active in your life. Without properly fearing God, there is no hope of our lives lining up with God’s Word. But as we grow in our fear of God, we become more like Jesus (also known as progressive sanctification).
Discussion Questions:
1. Based on the list above, what are areas in your life that need to come in line with God’s design?
2. How do you practically fear God?
3. What are other things beside God that you give awe and reverence to?
By: Graham Withers
A few years ago, I did a Bible Study on the book of Proverbs that broke down the book in helpful ways. Here is how it breaks down the different categories. (Here is a link to the book; I recommend it if you are wanting to dive deep into God’s Word!)
- Wisdom’s benefits
- The futility of folly
- God and man
- Family
- Friendship
- Sexual purity
- Righteousness
- Humility versus pride
- Hard work versus laziness
- Proper speech
- Emotions
- Wealth and poverty
- Life and death
As you can see, the book of Proverbs the whole gambit of what it looks like to live a faithful life in Christ. This is just part of what it means to be wholly devoted to obedience to God’s Word.
When we look at today’s reading in chapter 1, I want to focus specifically on verse 7.
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge,
but fools despise wisdom and instruction. (ESV)
What is the fear of the Lord? The primary connotation is that fearing God closely relates to holding God in proper reverence and awe. God being in His rightful place is the lynchpin to the rest of the list above being active in your life. Without properly fearing God, there is no hope of our lives lining up with God’s Word. But as we grow in our fear of God, we become more like Jesus (also known as progressive sanctification).
Discussion Questions:
1. Based on the list above, what are areas in your life that need to come in line with God’s design?
2. How do you practically fear God?
3. What are other things beside God that you give awe and reverence to?
By: Graham Withers
2 Comments
Thank you for leading us off in the book of Proverbs, Graham. I have been, and will continue, working on bringing my relationships with family and friends more in line with how Christ wants me to interact with people.
Thank you Pastor Graham for taking the time to post and lead us in the study of Proverbs. 1) Family, friendships, sexual purity and Life and death.