Your Bibles, if you would, turn to Proverbs chapter two. Proverbs chapter two. That's where we're camping out on Sunday nights here for the next, I suspect, about six months with a few breaks here and there. Alright? There are many subjects which Solomon hits on throughout the book of Proverbs, and we are going to hit many of them in our study.

I've entitled the message, The Great Pursuit. The Great Pursuit. People pursue a great many things with great vigor in this life. Some of them have a little bit of success. Some of them have no success at all.

They search, they pursue things like material wealth and possessions, like Scrooge in the Christmas Carol. They pursue power of self determination over others. They pursue fame and glory in the eyes of their fellow men, actors, musicians, athletes in particular. They pursue fulfill fulfillment through romantic relationships and in many sometimes promiscuous relationships. They pursue a feeling of euphoria and pleasure, often through drugs and alcohol.

They pursue secular education and advanced degrees and worldly knowledge to be the smartest person in the room. Now, not all of these are are wicked pursuits in themselves. Money is necessary, but the love of it, the Bible says, can be the root of all kinds of evil. Power rightly used can bring about good. However, what do they say?

Power oh, I can't think of the thing. There you go. Absolute power corrupts absolutely. Yeah. That's it.

Fame is generally does not turn out well because fame is all about who? Yourself. Yeah. Fame and pride kind of go together. Romance is certainly not wicked.

It is good if kept within the confines of a chaste relationship and marriage. Although, sadly, that is not portrayed in most of our entertainment today. Pleasure is not always a bad thing. We will enjoy the pleasures of heaven one day. But fulfilling the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the pride of life, those kind of pleasures, they do not lead to fulfillment in life.

Education is certainly good and laudable in many respects. Something to be pursued but not above who? Not about above the things that we're talking about this evening, particularly Christ. However, the knowledge of the Lord and a genuine relationship with God by faith are the reasons for which we were created and the most satisfying pursuits there are. The knowledge of the Lord and a genuine relationship with God by faith.

Paul declares that in Philippians three in verse 10 where he says that I may know him, that is that I may know Christ, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings being made conformable unto his death. Paul says, what I pursue, the greatest pursuit in life is not the pursuit of wealth, power, fame, but the pursuit of Christ, the pursuit of God, pursuit of the knowledge of God, of the service of God, of experiencing the power of God, saving power of God in our life. That is the greatest pursuit. We also see that mirrored here in Proverbs chapter two in verses one through nine. So let's read them.

My son, if thou will receive my words and hide my commandments with thee, so that thou incline thy ear into wisdom and apply thine heart to understanding. Yea, if thou criest after knowledge and lift us up thy voice for understanding, if thou seekest her as silver and searches for her as for hid treasures. Then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God. The Lord giveth wisdom. Out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.

He layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous. He is a buckler to them that walk uprightly. He keepeth the paths of judgment and preserveth the way of his saints. Then shalt thou understand righteousness and judgment and equity and, yea, every good path. In this passage, the teacher and father is giving commands, giving instructions, not the least of which is to seek to know the Lord, his wisdom, and his understanding.

And if his son will heed this command, he will not regret it. Do you regret anything in life? No doubt all of us that have lived long enough have some regrets. Praise the Lord. Through the grace of God, they may not only be forgiven, but to some extent forgotten.

And one day altogether, praise the Lord for his infinite grace, his wonderful patience, his mercy toward us. But when it comes to things we regret, they they all have one thing in common. They most likely occurred when we were not walking in the spirit. They most likely occurred when we were not following the Lord. They most likely occurred when not searching out the wisdom and the will of God.

Let me give an example from the book of Joshua. Two examples from the book of Joshua. So when when Joshua went up against Jericho, he had first spent time hearing the instructions of the captain of the Lord's host. And so he did what the Lord had told him to do, and he had a glorious victory over Jericho. The next town that they came to was a little town, much smaller, smaller walls, smaller number of people, smaller number of troops defending it, a place called Ai.

And Joshua, well, he didn't really need. It would seem that's not recorded that he went to the Lord to seek God's wisdom and instruction. He thought, hey, this is this is a cinch. Send his army out. Guess what?

They came running with their tails tucked behind him and 36 of his soldiers met their death. And then he went to the Lord. And then they got the sin out of the camp with Achan. And then they went back and guess what? They conquered the city of Ai without any trouble at all.

Maybe if Joshua had taken a moment to pray, God would have told him about Achan and the sin in the camp before he went to Ai Ai the first time. And then there was the time Kate, my wife was teaching this to the kids and children's church this morning. A group called the Gibeonites. Does anybody remember the Gibeonites? Okay.

So, Joshua was supposed to either run out or kill all of the Canaanites. They weren't supposed to be left in the land. They didn't finish the job. Therefore, they were a problem to Israel later, some of them. But he was supposed to do that and they were they started out well with Jericho and Ai and some other battles.

They won glorious battles over the Canaanites. They did as God had told them to do. And then came this little band of people. They had been traveling, it would seem, on horseback or or walking for for for months in order to get to Joshua. Their their bread was stale.

Their clothes were tattered. They were weary and they were warm, but they finally made it to see Joshua and Israel. And they convinced Joshua they'd come from a far country. They didn't live there. They weren't Canaanites.

Actually, they were just from two hills over and they fooled him. And Joshua once again didn't seek whose instruction, didn't seek whose wisdom. He didn't seek God's. He said, well, hey, well, you know, well, you're not Canaanites, so, you know, we we can make a treaty with you. And he did in the name of the Lord.

And then he found out he had been fooled. And then he now he's between a rock and a hard place because if he doesn't attack them, doesn't run them out, kill them as God had said, then he's not keeping the commandment of the Lord. If he does, then he's breaking a treaty that he made with them in the name of the Lord. And there was no really perfect way out of that situation. You see, the regrets we have is often when we're not walking in the spirit, not following the Lord, and not searching out the wisdom and the will of God and we see that portrayed in the life of Joshua.

As great as he was, Joshua had to learn some lessons the hard way. And sadly, it seems we have to as well. But the sooner we lose we learn the lesson to seek the Lord's wisdom first, to make that a pursuit of our heart and our life, the better off we will be. There is great reward in the search for God's wisdom. His understanding of life and knowledge of the holy, which is the theme of Proverbs and also, in many cases, the theme of Paul.

This passage, Proverbs two one through nine, can be divided into the first four verses and the last five verses as an if then statement. If is the first four, then is the last five. If you do this, if you do this, if you do this, if you do that, then this will happen, then that will happen, then this will happen. If you do this, then this will occur. So we start out with the if.

Okay? The search in verses one through four. The search for wisdom that God desires. These verses are written in, I think I think couplets is a word. Anyway, there's there's two parallel phrases in each verse.

One adds to and repeats and adds to the the phrase before it. So you'll notice there in verse one, my son, if thou receive my words and hide my commandments with thee. Words and commandments are basically the same. There is a little difference there and receiving and hiding. In verse two, so that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom and apply thine heart to understanding.

Wisdom and understanding are similar. And first, we're to incline our heart and and incline our ear, then apply our heart. In verse three, if thou criest after knowledge and lift us up thy voice for understanding, you see the couplet there again, two similar phrases, one that builds on the other. If thou seekest her as silver and searchest for her as for hid treasure, this is a common grammatical method in Hebrew poetry. And so we see this often in Psalms and in in Proverbs.

So we'll take them as couplets here in the message. The search, the ifs. If you incline your ear to wisdom and apply your heart to understanding. If you strain to hear God's wisdom. Incline your ear.

You know, listen what? Listen close, but because you don't wanna what? You don't wanna miss it. Okay? It's like trying to hear a whisper.

Or maybe maybe you're in a in a room with a lot of people talking and somebody's talking to you from catty corner at the table over here and there's other people at the and you're trying to what? You're inclining your ear trying to hear that person over all the other conversations. Now, a lot of conversations going on in our world, a lot of voices striving to be heard. Yes. What do we need to be doing?

We need to be inclining our ear to receive the words of the Lord because they're the most important words over the noise of everything else in this life. If you strain, incline your ear to hear God's wisdom and God's word, if you you make it your purpose to increase in his understanding, if you apply your heart, if you purposefully choose to hide the commandments, to thine heart to the understanding of the Lord. Purpose to increase in your understanding of who God is, your understanding of yourself, your understanding of life, your understanding of eternity. All those things are where? They're all here in in God's word.

We just have to purpose. We the Bible says Daniel purposed in his heart. To apply our heart is to purpose in our heart to make this important to us. If you strain to hear the word of God, if you listen close, if you apply your heart purposefully to the understanding that God has to give about life. In verse three, if thou criest after knowledge and lift us up thy voice for understanding.

In other words, as it's passing by, you what? Cry out. Maybe you're maybe you're in New York City and you're trying to get a cab. How many of you have have taken cabs? How many of you have been, like, in a place where you had to cry out to get a cab?

Okay. I never have, but I'm glad somebody has. So maybe you understand this better than I do. But I've seen all, you know, times on on TV and stuff. People crying out for a cab, you know, Trying to catch it before it go before it does what?

Before it goes by. Because you really need that cab to get where you're going. And here is the picture. If you cry out after knowledge and you lift up your voice for understanding, to grasp it before it gets away, To cry out, to say here, here I am. I I please, please impart your wisdom and understanding to me.

It reminds me of a fellow in the New Testament. We call him blind Bartimaeus. And why do we call him blind Bartimaeus? Because his name was Bartimaeus and he was blind. That's why he's called blind Bartimaeus.

But in the end, you might call him seeing Bartimaeus because he starts out blind in our story, but he doesn't stay blind. And why is it that Bartimaeus doesn't stay blind? Well, he's in the city. I think it's in Jericho, And Jesus is passing through the city with some other people. And blind Bartimaeus is sitting off the side of the the road, off the footpath.

And Jesus is passing by, and he was blind, but he wasn't what? He wasn't deaf. And he heard that Jesus was there and he heard the voice of Jesus and he began crying out for the son of David to have mercy upon him. And people that were nearby him said, be quiet. Be quiet.

You're you're aggravating us. You're you're aggravating be quiet. But did that stop Bartimaeus? No. He cried out all the more.

Why? Because Jesus was passing soon Jesus was gonna be what? Gone. And with it his hope of ever getting to see. And so he cried out and Jesus heard.

And Jesus came to him. And Jesus healed him and gave him sight. Why? Because he cried out. He cried out to Jesus.

He cried out for something that he desperately needed. Do we do we desperately need the wisdom of God? Do we desperately need the understanding and the fear of the Lord? We do. Though sometimes we don't act that way.

And the writer says, if you will incline your ear, if you will ply your heart, if you will cry out for knowledge and lift up your voice, I'm here. I'm here. Showing your desire and your need. It goes on to say in verse four, if thou seekest her as silver I cannot talk tonight. Maybe that'll help.

If thou seekest her as silver and searches for her as for hid treasures. If you seek for her as silver and search for her as hid treasure. Reminds me right away of the parable of the pearl of great price and the the hidden treasure in Matthew chapter 13. Mound man found this hidden treasure in the field and he went and sold everything he had so he could come back to buy the field where the treasure was. Because it was just of that much value that nothing else compared.

He sold everything else he had for that treasure because it was of that greater value. Is the wisdom and the word and the knowledge of God. Is that that great of a treasure that we would seek for the silver and search for her as hidden treasure. In Psalm nineteen ten Psalm nineteen ten, we read, more to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold, sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. What is the writer in Psalm 19 talking about?

He's talking about the words and the precepts and the commandments and the instructions of God. They are more to be desired than gold and sweeter also than honey. The most valuable possession you could own in that day was gold. The sweetest thing you could put to your lips was honey. And as as wonderful as they were and valuable as they were.

They are not to be compared to the wisdom and the word and the knowledge of the Lord. In Philippians three eight, Paul writes, yea doubtless and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ. In the preceding verses, Paul talked about all of the the merits that he had earned in life and the privileges that were his as a Jew, as a Roman, as a Pharisee. All of the laws that he had kept better than most of his peers, and yet he counted them as completely what? Completely without value, completely worthless, as something that was tantamount to garbage to be cast out that he may have instead the knowledge of Christ Jesus, his Lord.

That was a far greater value. That is the silver and the gold. In Colossians two three back here. Colossians two one through three, we read these words. For I would not I would that she knew what great conflict I have for you.

This is Paul writing Colossians. That their hearts might be comforted, being knit together in love and unto all riches of the full assurance of understanding to the acknowledgment of the mystery of God and of the Father and of Christ in whom are hid all the treasures of what? Wisdom and knowledge. Wisdom and knowledge. Paul said, most of all, I I pray that you would experience the comfort and the love and the full assurance of understanding in Christ Jesus in whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.

Who is wisdom? Jesus is wisdom. You want to know God? Get to know who? Get to know Jesus.

Where do we learn about Jesus? Well, we learn about Jesus where? In his word. But we also get to know him not only through reading his word but by spending time with him in prayer, talking with him. You want to get to know somebody?

Have a conversation with them. And we can have a two way conversation with Christ. We can hear his words and we can share ours with him. Jesus said in Matthew seven, he said, for the one who hears my words and doeth them will be like a man who builds his house upon a what? On a rock.

Rains come, winds blow, and it stands firm because he has built his house, his life upon a rock. It is more valuable than silver or gold or hid treasure that one might search for. So he says again, he says, if thou will receive my words and hide my commandments with thee, so if thou incline thy ear into wisdom and apply thine heart to understanding, yet if thou criest after knowledge and lifteth up thy voice for understanding, If thou seekest her as silver and searches for her as hid treasures, the first word in verse five. What is it? Then, if then.

Okay? God makes it simple for us. If you do this, then this will follow. What will follow? We see the search followed by the what?

By the rewards. By the rewards. Hebrews eleven six. But without faith, it is impossible to please him. For he that cometh to God must believe that he is and that he is a what?

Rewarder of them that what? Diligently seek him. Now, does the writer of Hebrews agree with the writer of Proverbs? I think he does. For in seeking after the Lord in faith, there is great what?

There is great reward. There's great reward indeed. Psalm nineteen eleven, read Psalm nineteen ten a a moment ago, it is more to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold, sweeter also than honey in the honeycomb. It's followed by this verse. Moreover, by them is thy servant worn and in keeping of them, there is what?

There is great reward. K? Why should we seek after the wisdom and the word and the will and the knowledge of God? Because it is our duty? Yeah.

Yeah. Because we love him and want to get to know him and please him? Yes. But also because there is what? There is great reward for us.

See, God doesn't want us to be all proud and selfish and doing everything for our own good or glory. But at the same time, God does want us to enjoy the blessings of life and God does want to be able to reward us specifically at the Bema seat one day. And so he does remind us that there are rewards. There are rewards. There are crowns to be earned to lay at his feet.

And there are blessings in this life for those who will search for and seek after that which is most valuable. Now, gold is valuable and honey is sweet. But gold is not as valuable as the wisdom of God, and honey is not as sweet as fellowship with the Lord. It does not compare. And most people sadly don't get that.

They're seeking after all the wrong things. They're putting all their eggs in the wrong basket. Let's put our pursuit after that which is most valuable because if we will, then then there is great reward. In verse five, then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God. Then will you understand the fear of the Lord.

There is a lost and dying world out there that does not understand the fear of the Lord. It is foolishness unto them. As Paul states, his preaching is to them as well because they do not understand it. The fear of the Lord is not a negative. Over and over again in the Old Testament and some in the New Testament, it refers to the fear of the Lord not in a negative light, but in a what?

Positive light. It's not the the terror of the Lord. It's it's it's it's not something that causes you to cower and hide. It's something that draws you to him. It's something that drives you to obey him.

And is that good or is that bad? That's good. That's good. God created us. He created us with a purpose.

And knowing that purpose and knowing to whom we're accountable is not a negative. It's a positive. Because how many people in this world don't know why they're here? And they don't know right from wrong. And they they have no purpose in life.

They're like a termite and a yo yo, if you know what that means. Just spinning and not going anywhere. Confused. That we who know the Lord, we know the fear of the Lord. We know why we're here.

We know where we're going. And if you will search for the Lord, he will help you to find it. This understanding that God gives by his spirit and his word to them that seek him by faith is of greater value here on earth than all the earthly treasures that other people are seeking that do not bring the reward they think they do. He will grant us the understanding of the fear of the Lord. He will grant us the knowledge of God.

The knowledge of God. Now, the knowledge of man is can be useful. The pursuit of the knowledge of man is profitable oftentimes. They allow me to use a iPad so that you can see the verses on the screen. And and lights, so they'll light the the things so you can auditoriums so you can read or or plumbing in your house.

It can be really cool, but it doesn't compare to the knowledge of who? It doesn't compare to the knowledge of God. And the knowledge of God is at the disposal of his children and those who seek it because he said, if you will seek it, if you will cry after it, if you will receive it and hide it and incline your ear and your heart to it, then you shall what? You'll find it. Ask and it shall be given.

I think I quoted this this morning but I'll quote it again. Ask and it shall be given, seek and you shall find, Knock and it shall be opened to you. For he that ask and perceiveth, he that seeketh what? Findeth and to him that knocketh it shall. It shall be opened.

The knowledge of God. To know God is the only thing that really matters. And it is not just knowing God, but it is the impartation of the wisdom of God into the heart of man of wisdom that is greater than the wisdom of the world. The world has to offer much wisdom, but the beginning of knowledge and wisdom is the fear of the Lord. We go on to the next verse.

It says in verse six, for the Lord giveth wisdom. Out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding. Yes. He gives it to us. In James one five, it says, if any man, what, lack wisdom, let him ask of God.

You need wisdom today? God says ask. If you genuinely, sincerely desire the wisdom of God to know the will of God, God says, I'll help. I will. Too oftentimes, I'm afraid we don't ask sincerely from the heart.

God, please give me your wisdom. I already know what I'm gonna do. You know, if if you don't want me go doing what I know I wanna do, then slam the door shut. Otherwise, that's the place I'm going to. That's not exactly the right way to approach God.

If you wanna know his will, what does he say? Ask. You want you need his wisdom? Ask. He goes on to say in verse seven, he layeth up sound wisdom for the righteous.

He is a buckler to them that walk uprightly. That is he gives what is essential for living and provides safety for those who love him and love his word and seek his wisdom. Matthew six thirty three, but seek ye first the, what? The righteousness of God and all these things shall be added unto you. Psalm eighty four eleven says, for the Lord God is a sun and a shield.

The Lord will give grace and glory. No good thing no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly. If you're walking with the Lord, God says no good thing will he uphold from you. If you're seeking his will, his wisdom, his word, if you cry out for it, if you seek it as silver and gold, if you incline your ear to hear it, if you hide it in your heart, then he will not withhold it. He guards the way of the righteous.

He keepeth the paths, verse eight, of judgment, and he preserveth the way of his saints. Reminded me, if you go back a few pages to Psalm one twenty one, one twenty one where it says, I will lift up mine eyes into the hills from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth. He will not suffer thy foot to be moved. He that sleepeth he that keepeth thee will not slumber.

Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is thy keeper. The Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand. The sun shall not smite thee by day nor the moon by night. The Lord shall preserve thee from all evil.

He shall preserve thy soul. The Lord shall preserve thy going out and thou coming in from this time forth and even forever forevermore. He guards the way of the righteous. He quenches the fiery darts of the what? Of the wicked.

He is there to guide, to provide, and to protect. We don't always see his hand at work, but that doesn't mean it isn't there. How many times have I looked back at situations later on and thank and thank the Lord for his guidance, for his protection, for his provision? And that leads again to verse nine where he says, then shalt thou understand righteousness and judgment and equity, yea, every good path. It's this simple.

If you seek, the writer says, the Lord says, if you will receive his words, hide his commandments, incline your ear to his wisdom, apply your heart to understanding. If you will cry after knowledge, you will seek her as silver, then What you're seeking, you will what? You will find. If, then. If, then.

Then you shall have understanding. Understanding in righteousness. You will know right from wrong. You will be able to see clearly the way that is right and the way that is wrong. The thing that is right and the thing that is wrong.

You will have a how many times have you read something in the news and thought, how can these people be so foolish and so stupid? Why can't the world see this thing? We live in a world today where you've still got people saying girls can be boys and boys can be girls. How ignorant and foolish is that? And yet, the smartest people on earth are saying that's the case.

Why can't they see it and why can we? Why can we see it when they can't? Well, because we have the wisdom what? The wisdom and the understanding of God. It's not because you have a higher IQ than they do.

It's not because you have a greater education than they do. It's not because you have a better gene pool than they have. It's because you have the understanding of the Lord, And they don't. And they're floundering. And they're grasping after straws.

And they can't see the forest for the trees. But the better you get to know God and his word, the more you seek it as treasure. The more you cry after it, the more you receive it and the wiser you get. It doesn't take a whole lot of that to be wiser than the world. You will understand all our duties to God and man in the way that is right and blessed.

What does he say in Micah six eight? He has showed thee, o man, what is good. What doth the Lord require of thee but to do justly? To do that which is right, to love mercy, be of a merciful heart towards others as God has been merciful to you, and to walk humbly and not in pride. With who?

With God. That is the duty of man and it is good. If then, if you seek it, pursue it, apply it, believe it, hide it, The wisdom and understanding the knowledge of God that comes from him, that is about him, that can be found in his word, you will be what? You will be blessed, and you will find it, and you'll be blessed by it. We just got to remind ourselves that which we need to be pursuing most of all in life and set out to find it.

If we do, God says, if you do in faith, you will. And you will never what? You will never regret it. Let's close. Lord, thank you for your word.

Thank you, Lord, for revealing to us this wonderful gift, the word of God. Thank you for the reminder this evening that if we'll we'll hide it in our heart, if we'll seek it as silver, if we'll incline our ear, we'll cry after it. If it's really that important to us, that we will pursue after it, then you will reward us with the finding of it and bless us in following after him. Lord, thank you for what you've given to us, that which we too often take too much for granted. Keep it before our eyes, I pray this week, and give us wisdom from above.

In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.