Listening to Wisdom’s Rebuke

Proverbs 1-3; Romans 7 

“If you had responded to my rebuke, I would have poured out my heart to you and made my thoughts known to you. But since you rejected me when I called and no one gave heed when I stretched out my hand, since you ignored all my advice and would not accept my rebuke, I in turn will laugh at your disaster; I will mock when calamity overtakes you -.”

Proverbs 1:23-26

Wisdom requires humility. The grace to listen to rebuke, to engage with ideas that aren’t ours, and to receive unsolicited advice and counsel are all essential to living with wisdom. The emotional intelligence to engage well with others, even when their counsel differs from our perspective, does not come to us easily or naturally. Growing in wisdom requires ongoing growth in humility, teachability, and courage. The consequences of ignoring wisdom are disaster and calamity. Marriages and families are destroyed, ministry teams are divided and discouraged, and our personal lives are devastated. Rescuing society from the consequences of sin through government intervention means we collectively fail to learn wisdom and grow in God’s ways.

What counsel, rebuke, or advice is wisdom offering us in this stage of life?

Are we listening?

“Lord Jesus, I am listening to your rebuke and counsel, for your glory.”