“The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.”
~ Proverbs 9:10
Hi James and Ellen,
Do you like to build things? Would you want to someday build your own houses? If you were to decide to build your own houses, would you ask for help from an architect? If you were to decide to build your own houses, would you follow a blueprint? If you were to decide to build your own houses, would you ask guys and gals who you know as friends to help you build them? If you were to decide to build your own houses, how long do you think that it would take for you to build them? Your grandpaa is not very good at building and repairing things. When your grandpaa puts a piece of furniture together, your grandpaa does not like to read the instructions on how to do it. When your grandmaa and grandpaa are putting a piece of furniture together, your grandmaa reads the instructions while your grandpaa puts the piece of furniture together. If you were to decide to build your own houses, would you name your houses? Would you call your houses wisdom or would you call your houses folly? You are into building houses at this time. The houses that you are building at this time are your lives. Your lives can be houses of wisdom or they can be houses of folly. You are making life decisions all the time as to what kind of houses define your lives. The Proverbs Book author knew all about wisdom and folly houses.
The Proverbs Book author – in Proverbs 9, explains the difference between a wisdom house and a folly house. A wisdom house will have seven hewn pillars to keep it strong and secure. Seven is symbolic of a perfect number. Seven pillars are symbolic of a wisdom house. The nails that are used to build a wisdom house are symbolic of a fear of God. The exterior and interior walls that make up a wisdom house are symbolic of moral and ethical values. The banquets that are served in a wisdom house include meat and wine and the food that is served on the table have different spices in it to make it tastier are symbolic of God’s written word. The invitations to join a large banquet in a wisdom house are personally taken by maids to everyday kind of guys, gals and kids who are living in the city and a call is made from the city’s highest point at the time for these guys, gals and kids to join together to enjoy some wonderfully prepared food are symbolic of God inviting and bringing His adopted kids into heaven. A folly house has no pillars. No meat, wine and other kinds of food is served in a folly house. The owner of a folly house is a gal. The gal who owns a folly house is a mocker. A mocker is a self-seeker. A mocker does not fear God. A mocker suffers alone in her misery and wretchedness. A mocker never accepts correction. A mocker abuses guys, gals and kids. A mocker knows only how to hate. A folly house gal is loud. A folly house gal is not disciplined with her life. A folly house gal distains knowledge. A folly house gal is a wayward gal. A folly house gal fulfills her life with stolen pleasures and secret liaisons which for a moment satisfies her inner physical cravings but which ultimately never begins to satisfy the lifestyle of a base, sordid and corrupt mocker. A folly house gal only offers perfumed beds for guys who are breaching personal moral virtues and/or defying personal ethical values. The owner of a wisdom house is a guy who is wise. A guy who is wise wants correction. A guy who is wise wants to be rebuked. A guy who is wise becomes wiser because he listens to instruction. A guy who is wise is a learner. A guy who is wise is righteous, honorable and honest. A guy who is a wise fears God. A guy who is wise is rewarded with a longer life.
The Proverb’s Book author explains what it is like to live in a wisdom house and in a folly house. Living in a wisdom house will have a guy, gal or kid comprehending and internalizing what verse 10 says, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” If a guy, gal or kid has not grasped and embraced what the fear of the Lord is, he or she is living in a folly house. Your grandmaa and grandpaa have a reverent fear of their Father God. Your grandmaa and grandmaa were blessed by their Father God for having them grow up in wisdom houses and each having a dad and ma who had a reverent fear of their Father God. To fear God is not to be scared or frightened of God. To fear God is to know that there is a consequential punishment out there for a guy, gal or kid if or when he or she sticks his or her head into a folly house. To fear God is knowing that there is a difference between black and white – between evil and good. A folly house represents blackness/darkness. A wisdom house represents whiteness/purity. Guys, gals and kids who are doing bad things, think bad things and look at bad things are living in folly houses. Guys, gals and kids who are doing good things, think good things and only look at good things are living in wisdom houses. Only wisdom houses are found in the Body of Christ that is made up of Christ-follower guys, gals and kids. No wisdom houses can be found outside the Body of Christ that is made up of Christ-follower guys, gals and kids. Only folly houses are located outside the entrance that goes into the Body of Christ that is made up of Christ-follower guys, gals and kids. Passing through the faith/grace door into the Body of Christ has a guy, gal or kid giving up his or her folly house for a wisdom house. God – as God the Spirit, can only live in wisdom houses. Wisdom houses beg to be cleaned and kept cleaned. Folly houses want to be dirty and kept dirty. Every guy, gal and kid has to be a folly house first before he or she can become a wisdom house. Only the guys, gals and kids who God specially elected before He created planet Earth will be able to enter into and forever remain in the Body of Christ. If you like to draw and/or build things, your grandpaa would like to encourage you to draw and/or build replicas of wisdom houses that you see yourselves living in today as God’s adopted kids.
Proverbs 9 (514)