You can have tremendous success in this life. You can be book smart and possess every ounce of common sense available, but if you die without knowing Jesus, every bit of it will be in vain. King Solomon wasted a lot of time thinking he was in the right place. Fortunately, he discovered this truth, repented, and left this world truly knowing God.

God’s intent with Proverbs 22:6 is two-fold. First, to encourage His children to raise their children in a righteous manner. And second, to see Him as your Heavenly Father, who through the work of His Son Jesus, and through the leading and guiding of His Spirit, stands as the parent who is training you.

This message is not to say you should never speak or think you should always keep your mouth shut. On the contrary, this message is a reminder that God wants us to use our words for encouragement and love and for helping advance the Kingdom.

Properly applying the wisdom of God as found in His Word can assure that we enjoy the blessings of good friends in this life and can help us look forward to enjoying these dear friends in eternity. You know… of all the friendships we could develop, none is better than the one we can have with the One who truly “sticks closer than a brother” – our Lord Jesus Christ!

King Solomon encourages us to stand in awe and reverence for the One who created everything. He also encourages us to allow that same awe and reverence to be the driving force behind our pursuit of knowledge, which will eventually result in wisdom.

Proverbs offers us a series of simple comparisons that teach us fundamental truths about life. King Solomon, the wisest man ever known shares with us the difference between pursuing a life of wisdom and pursuing folly. Wisdom being, instruction, knowledge, and understanding while folly is the opposite.