Posted on 03/18/2020 6:55:18 AM PDT by Pilgrim's Progress
“Through desire a man, having separated himself, seeketh and intermeddleth with all wisdom. A fool hath no delight in understanding, but that his heart may discover itself” (Proverbs 18:2 KJV).
In verse 1, we read, “Through desire.” It is a fleshly want to justify flesh, or comfort the flesh, or to feed the flesh. “. . . having separated himself, seeketh” What is he seeking? We see the answer to that here in verse 2. He is trying to discover his innate potentialities—his self-realization. In other words, he wants to know how he can perfect that sin in his life.
“A fool hath no delight in understanding,” our heart is said to be wicked and evil above all things (Jeremiah 17:9), and it brings forth evil thoughts and actions as in Matthew 15. If a man wants to seek out what his heart is really like, this is what it is really like. You go up to these kids in college and ask them what they are there for, they’ll say, “Oh, I’m trying to discover myself, I am trying to find out who I really am.” Well, what they are is a sinner bound for hell. It doesn’t need to cost a student $15-20,000 and four years of study to find that out. You can find that out with a single reading of the Book of Romans.
But fools have no delight in understanding the truth, because for them ignorance is truly bliss. But what does he have delight in? He delights in that his heart might discover itself. Is he interested in discovering God? Nope, no way. What does he need to discover? Romans 3:23, “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.” He needs to discover that “the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ” (Romans 6:23). He really needs to discover that “God commended his love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).
But he is not interested in those things. The rich man was sure enough interested in them when he found himself in the pit. He was interested enough to beg Abraham to send some soul-winning preacher to his brothers’ house to tell them how to escape that place, but what did Abraham tell him? “They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent. And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead” (Luke 16:29-31).
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Speaking for myself, one understanding of this verse is that if a person is interested in understanding/knowing more than his own personal opinion about himself, about others, about reality - he will seek out answers beyond himself and his current sphere.
In my BC life, I sought answers and love in all the wrong places. Feeding the flesh; transcendental meditation, religion. The search for meaning to my life ended in receiving a person and His Spirit into my life - His name is Jesus.
There comes a point in man’s life where he realizes that all his self-actualization methods come up short as to any real answers. This is when the Holy Spirit nudges us and gently tells us, “I’ve been here all the time.” He then directs us to the word where we read, “Come unto me all ye that labour . . .”
Well said. This might also be known as, "coming to the end of oneself". A mystery to me is that the Lord allowed me to recognize my brokenness and subsequently my need for Him while at the same time there are millions who have heard the gospel for decades and not come to see their need for Christ. Why did I see my need and not them? I probably sound a bit Calvinistic but I'd be lying if I said I understand this mystery.
We are what we are by the grace of God. When we see the lost, we must know that except for His grace - there go I.
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