Sermons for the Month

Where's Wisdom
DATE: June 7, 1998
SERVICE: Sunday: Trinity
TEXT: Porverbs 8:1-4, 22-31

"To all of you Saints here this morning, grace and peace to you from God our Father, from His Son, Jesus Christ and His Holy Spirit. AMEN

There's a wonderful children's story about Alberic the Wise (Norton Juster, Alberic the Wise [Picture Book Studio, 1992]). Alberic (let's called him Albert) was a young man who knew nothing of the world other than the little village in which he lived. One day a stranger came to town, an old man with a large sack on his back. Out of curiosity Albert began a conversation with this traveler who told Albert tales of faraway places full of mystery and wonder. For several days after his encounter with this old man, Albert could think only of the larger world which lay outside his village. Eventually, the allure of the unknown proved greater than the comfort of the familiar, so he packed his belongings and set out for these faraway places in search of the wisdom they might offer.

Before long Albert came to a walled city more grand than anything he had ever imagined. This city was renowned for its manufacture of stained glass. Satisfying himself that beauty was the true aim of wisdom, Albert became an apprentice to an old craftsman for whom he worked for two years, doing everything he was asked to do and learning all he could about the art of stained glass making. Finally, the day came for Albert to prove his own skill and show what he had learned. He labored meticulously over his stained glass creation, but alas, the finished product was of inferior quality. He would never be a glassmaker.

Albert moved on from that city to another famous for its stonecutters and masons. "Beauty isn't everything," he thought. "The true measure of wisdom is utility. I'll do something useful." So, again he set about the task of learning a trade, this time as a stonecutter. But his ability at stonecutting was as lacking as his efforts at making stained glass and so he moved on to the next town.

"Usefulness isn't everything," he decided. "Innovation is surely the measure of wisdom. I'll do something original." And soon he arrived at a village where the goldsmiths crafted objects of unsurpassed beauty and elegance. But for Albert, this third attempt only produced a third failure.

And so it went, city after city, try after try, year after year. Still, wisdom and skill eluded Albert. Now old and alone, Albert reached the great, capital city where he stopped to rest with his accumulation of objects and memories. Intrigued by his strangeness, some of the youngsters of the town came up to him and inquired of him where he had been and what he had seen. Albert began to relate to them the stories of his pilgrimage. Each day brought more and more people to hear his tales of faraway places and to marvel at his knowledge. Even the king came to listen and seek advice. So impressed was the king that he moved Albert into a castle and gave him the title of Albert the Wise.

After the novelty and the newness of his recently acquired fame began to fade, Albert began to experience self-doubt. No matter what anyone else said or thought, Albert knew that he was not wise. On the contrary, he knew he was full only of knowledge. However, the more he tried to disown his reputation for wisdom, the wiser he was thought to be by the townspeople. Albert grew more and more sad and less at ease with himself.

Finally, to the utter astonishment of everyone, Albert packed up his belongings, gave up his palace, his wealth, his servants and his exalted position among the citizens of the town, and headed out on a journey for an unknown destination. Albert had discovered the one thing that for him was true wisdom. "It is much better," he said, "to look for what I may never find than to find what I do not really want."

We all, like Albert, are seekers of wisdom. Once upon a time, it was believed the older we were, the wiser we had become. But today, just when we thought we had it, along comes technology and the rapid march of time and we find the answers we have no longer fit the questions being asked. Too often, just when we find what we think is the source of wisdom, we end up disappointed when reality does not measure up to expectations.

So what is wisdom and where does one find it? A clue, but only a clue, is given in the chapter following the focus of our first reading this morning. Proverbs 9 reminds us that it is the fear (the awe, the reverence) of God that is the beginning of wisdom. The interesting word here, however, is the word "beginning." The author reminds us that holding God in awe or reverence is not the sum total of wisdom; it is just the beginning. Obviously, there is more that God would have us to know, but what is it? And where is it?

To find the answer today's text from Proverbs can leave a person somewhat frustrated. Just when you hope to find a simple one-two-three definition of wisdom, or even better, a Twelve-Step program on how to be wise, you can't find it. It's not there. After reading the text, you have the same feeling that you have after shopping for a car. After researching the various kinds of cars and deciding on the preferred options and extras, you know just the kind of car you want. All that is left to find out is how much the car will cost you and whether you can afford it. So you go to the auto dealer, find the car that meets your specifications and ask the salesperson the crucial question, "How much?" The rest of the conversation goes something like this.

Salesperson : She's a beaut, isn't she?
You: Yeah, but how much?
Salesperson: And the power of that engine is just awesome!
You: Yeah, but how much?
Salesperson: And did you notice how roomy it is?
You: Yeah, but how much?
Salesperson: How about a drive? She handles like a dream.
You: That's okay. How much?
Salesperson: Well then, I guess you want to know how much it costs.
You: Yeah, how much?
Salesperson: I don't know. I'll have to ask my manager and he is out for the day. Can you come back tomorrow?

Now compare that scene to the scene of our text:

You: What is wisdom?
Wisdom: I was created at the beginning of the world.
You: That's nice, but what is wisdom?
Wisdom: I was here before the waters.
You: Okay, but what is wisdom?
Wisdom: I was here before the mountains and hills took shape.
You: Good for you, but what is wisdom?
Wisdom: I was present at the formation of the heavens and at the groundbreaking ceremony of the earth.
You: I'm happy for you, but all I really want to know is WHAT IS WISDOM?
Wisdom: When you find me you will be very happy.
You: Aaargh

Do you see what I am talking about? So, if you are like most, you decide to take matters into our own hands and find wisdom for yourself like some Brad Pitt on your own personal Tibetan journey. The first part of our text says that Wisdom is standing at the crossroads in the city shouting at the top of her lungs for folks to heed her words of wisdom. So, what better place to go to find wisdom than to the city? The city is certainly alluring--so much to do; so much to see; so much to experience.

As you begin your search for Wisdom, the first thing you notice is how many voices there are in the city, each competing with the others for attention. There are the environmental voices: the wheezing of buses and trucks, unable in their off-and-on progress to find their full voice; the car horns encoding harsh words for the discourteous and careless; the ear-shattering speech of jack hammers as they insist on their way against layers of asphalt and concrete; rivet guns stuttering in their work high overhead; and added to all of this is disembodied music coming from everywhere and nowhere in elevators and restaurants and high rise shopping malls. Add to that the cacophony of human sounds: street vendors hawking their wares; scores of conversations being carried on simultaneously; and instructions being yelled from foreman to worker, from storeowner to delivery person, from teacher to her students on a field trip. One thing is for certain -- if you expect to hear the voice of Wisdom, you will need to listen carefully, for hers is not the only voice clamoring for your attention.

Just as challenging as the multitude of voices is the variety of crossroads. Which one should you choose? So you ask yourself, “If you were Wisdom, where would you set up shop in order to be heard?” The financial district seems a logical first choice. If there is one thing people care about the most, it is their pocketbook. And the terms 'wise,' 'prudent,' and 'investment' all seem to hang out a lot together, so perhaps this is the place to start. From the sidewalk outside a large brokerage firm, you watch as the message board reports continuously the movement of the stock prices such as the Cleveland Indians and its effect on the world markets. Share values move up sharply, hesitate, drop as sharply as when they rose, and then move back up again. Through the office windows you can see portfolio managers, telephone receivers to both ears, frantically trying first to understand and then to react to the erratic fluctuations. You look hard and listen intently, but Wisdom does not seem to be here. Negotiation; knowledge; shouting bids, yes. But Wisdom?

So, you move on to the commercial district of the city. After all, with its volume of traffic, this is a more likely crossroad than the financial district. You immediately notice a long line of folks atwitter with excitement queued up in front of a store called Sophie's. Everyone is shouting, "It's here! It's here!" You think to yourself, "Sophie is a form of Sophia and Sophia means wisdom and they're saying, 'It's here,' so maybe I'm right. This is the crossroad I've been searching for. Wisdom must be here." So you join the line as it moves slowly into the store. The closer you approach the focus of attention, the more excited the scene becomes. Then comes your turn to step forward and as you do, your heart falls. You aren't in line for wisdom after all -- only Beanie Babies.

Nevertheless, you stay a while to watch and listen. So many stores. So much to buy. Everywhere from buyer to seller, money is changing hands. A voice from the past reminds you that what you are seeing is the engine of growth -- the economic system at its best. Then you hear a baby crying. And suddenly you envision other babies in other lands crying, not in an opulent, gilt-laden bazaar, but in a desolate, nourishment-starved land. You ask yourself, "Could this place of frenetic spending for such things beanie babies in a world of need be the home of Wisdom? Could the whirring of cash registers be the voice of Wisdom?" You decide to look further.

At the university campus in the heart of the city where knowledge is celebrated and learning is prized, you are certain Wisdom can be found. As you walk through the hallways of the classroom buildings, you hear interesting, wonder-filled, exciting things: lectures examining the events of history, descriptions of the interrelatedness of the universe and the passions of the heart seeking expression in poetic words too inadequate to contain them. All of these are as the enchanted songs of the Muses bidding you to embrace them. But -- but is wisdom the same as knowledge? Is knowledge found in wisdom or is wisdom found in knowledge? Obviously, you have spent too much time in the philosophy lecture. It's time to move on.

You look for Wisdom in the halls of justice. You listen for her voice in the sports arena. You search out every crossroad imaginable, but she is not to be found. The day is spent, evening arrives, and you feel no wiser for your efforts than you did when the day began. Tired of body and spirit and with no other options presenting themselves, you sit down to reflect on your day. How could the writer of Proverbs have been so wrong? Wisdom is not in the city nor could her voice be heard at the crossroads. You feel cheated.

Then you remember the story of Albert and his journey and begin to alter the way you have evaluated the day just spent. What if Wisdom, unlike knowledge, is not a state of being, a destination at which one finally arrives or the result of the sum total of many facts. Rather, what if Wisdom, like faith, is merely bread for the journey -- a companion for one's pilgrim walk. Maybe wisdom is not something we possess, but something that possesses us, coming as it does at crucial moments of life providing guidance and direction -- a serendipitous gift delivered by the grace of God for the discernment of right living. If that is so, then perhaps we have been hearing the voice of Wisdom throughout the day and at every crossroad we encountered -- a voice whose silent murmurings kept us from falling prey to the enticements of competing voices; a voice that keeps calling us back, back to a reverence of God above all us, a reverence from which all Wisdom originates.

Perhaps this is the day, this morning, now, is the moment that instead of you finding Wisdom, for one brief instant, Wisdom has found you and His name is Jesus.

AMEN

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