Wisdom: More Valuable Than Gold

1. Value Wisdom Lesson 2

3. Introduction • More Valuable Than Gold • Lesson Context

4. More Valuable Than Gold • Swimmer Michael Phelps electrified the sports world when he won a record eight gold medals at the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics. • But he had made a different kind of impact in the 2004 games in Athens, Greece. • There Phelps, who had earned a spot in the 4x100-meter medley relay, decided to give up his spot to Ian Crocker.

5. More Valuable Than Gold • Crocker was swimming in what he thought was his final Olympics, and he had yet to earn gold thus far in Athens. • The American team won the relay, and Crocker received the gold medal that had eluded him. • Phelps’s gesture of withdrawing from a race for the sake of a teammate identified him as a gold medalist in more than swimming.

6. More Valuable Than Gold • Olympic athletes are known for their highly disciplined training in pursuit of world-class excellence and of winning the gold medal. • In today’s Scripture, Solomon encouraged his son (and all readers of his words) to pursue something far more valuable than any precious medal.

7. Earthly Father’s PleaProverbs 2:1-5 • Search for Wisdom (vv. 1-4) • Find Wisdom (v. 5)

8. Fill It In • Solomon uses four key words in today’s text from Proverbs 2:1-11. • While the four words are similar, they have slightly different meanings. • Read the definitions to find these words.

9. Fill It In • Read the definitions to find the four key words from Proverbs 2:1-11. 1. __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ • The ability to plan with a purpose that preserves and protects a person (v. 11a).

10. Fill It In • Read the definitions to find the four key words from Proverbs 2:1-11. 1. D I S C R E T I O N • The ability to plan with a purpose that preserves and protects a person (v. 11a). 2. __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ • A familiarity with facts and people that allows one to experience them intimately (v. 6b).

11. Fill It In • Read the definitions to find the four key words from Proverbs 2:1-11. 1. D I S C R E T I O N • The ability to plan with a purpose that preserves and protects a person (v. 11a). 2. K N O W L E D G E • A familiarity with facts and people that allows one to experience them intimately (v. 6b).

12. Fill It In • Read the definitions to find the four key words from Proverbs 2:1-11. 3. __ __ __ __ __ __ • The ability to discern the right attitude, belief, or course of action (v. 6a).

13. Fill It In • Read the definitions to find the four key words from Proverbs 2:1-11. 3. W I S D O M • The ability to discern the right attitude, belief, or course of action (v. 6a). 4. __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ • The faculty to process data reasonably to accomplish a task (v. 11b).

14. Fill It In • Read the definitions to find the four key words from Proverbs 2:1-11. 3. W I S D O M • The ability to discern the right attitude, belief, or course of action (v. 6a). 4. U N D E R S T A N D I N G • The faculty to process data reasonably to accomplish a task (v. 11b).

15. Fill It In • Let’s put all four words together on a grid to reveal a word that will tell us how to treat these four attributes.

16. Fill It In D I S C R E T I O N R K N O W L E D G E A W I S D O M U U N D E R S T A N D I N G E

17. Fill It In D I S C R E T I O N R K N O W L E D G E A W I S D O M U U N D E R S T A N D I N G E

18. Fill It In • The most important treasure hunt we can go on is to search God’s Word for the teachings that will lead us to discretion, knowledge, wisdom, and understanding.

19. What Do You Think? • How do we go about being more receptive to wisdom? • Digging Deeper – How do texts such as Acts 17:18;1 Corinthians 1:20; and Colossians 2:8 caution and challenge you in this regard?

20. What Do You Think? • Who could be your role model as one who lives out the implications of Proverbs 2:4? • Digging Deeper – To initiate a mentor-protégé relationship, what questions would you ask this person?

21. What Do You Think? • How would you explain to a new believer the relationship between fear and knowledge as those terms are used in Proverbs 2:5? • Digging Deeper – How would your explanation differ for an unbeliever, if at all? Why?

22. Heavenly Father’s WordProverbs 2:6-11 • Source of Wisdom (v. 6) • Protection for the Wise (vv. 7, 8) • Preservation in Wisdom (vv. 9-11)

23. What Do You Think? • What steps can we take to acknowledge more consistently the reality of God’s constant protection? • Digging Deeper – What should others see in us when that happens?

24. What Do You Think? • Should you set a goal to gain more discretion so that understanding may result, or should you set a goal to gain more understanding so that discretion may result? • Digging Deeper – How do the various uses of these same terms in Proverbs 1:4; 2:2, 3, 6; 3:13, 19; 5:2; 8:1; 10:23; 11:12; 14:29; 15:21; 17:27; 18:2; 19:8; 20:5; and 24:3 influence your response?

25. Conclusion • Seekers for Life • Prayer • Thought to Remember

26. A Real Lifesaver • What is the purpose of a flotation device or life preserver? • It prevents us from being pulled under the water. • How do we use phrases like “being a real lifesaver” in a figurative way? • Something or someone keeps us from experiencing negative consequences in a potentially dangerous situation.

27. A Real Lifesaver • When has godly wisdom been a lifesaver to you? In other words, what are some times when applying Bible truth helped you avoid disaster? • How could keeping a journal of occasions when godly wisdom has “preserved” you be beneficial?

28. Thought to Remember God’s wisdomnever depreciates in value.

29. Receive Wisdom’s Gifts Next Week’s Lesson