We are continuing our examination of wisdom in these introductory chapters of the book of Proverbs. We are in chapter one, and we are at verses 24 through 27 this afternoon. If you'll stand with me, I'll read those verses in your hearing. This is God's very word. holy, infallible, and inerrant in all its parts, let us hear, and with reverence, let us heed. Proverbs chapter one at verse 24. Because I have called and you refused, I have stretched out my hand and no one regarded. Because you disdained all my counsel and would have none of my review, I also will laugh at your calamity, I will mock when your terror comes, when your terror comes like a storm and your destruction comes like a whirlwind, when distress and anguish come upon you. Let's read one more verse. Then they will call on me and I will not answer. They will seek me diligently, but they will not find me. Let's ask God's blessing on his word. Holy Father, bless to us the hearing and preaching of your word. We pray this for Christ's honor and glory. and our good, amen. You may be seated. In this portion of scripture, Solomon has taken up the poetic device of personification. He's treating wisdom, that unique attribute of God which he has embedded in his creation and which is needful for us to walk in a way that glorifies him, he takes wisdom and treats wisdom as though wisdom had a voice of her own, as though wisdom were a person. And wisdom then is described as crying out and going to the busiest places of the marketplace, and to the places of judgment, to the lowly places and the high places, and broadcasting an offer. Wisdom cries out loudly and intensely with vigor and energy, openly and publicly in every place, low and high, crying out to the simple, to the scoffer, to the fool, And we considered previously how these are our natural conditions. We have these as our hindrances to hearing and receiving wisdom. We have a simple mind in our natural condition. We may even in our sinfulness develop a scoffing attitude or become even foolish in rejecting wisdom. Wisdom is calling out in all those ways, loudly and intensely with great vigor, crying out to turn at the rebuke that wisdom gives. We noted the ways that wisdom might reprove us, how we should be struck by the call of wisdom and turn so that we'll hear, heed, and learn, and receive wisdom. We noted that we might be reproved through hardships that arise from a lack of wisdom. And we went through how that might occur with the simple, with the scoffer and with the fool. We should note that not every hardship in life is necessarily a reproof for some foolish decision or stubbornness in sin. Nevertheless, every hardship is an opportunity for growth in the ways of wisdom. It's an opportunity to be turned towards wisdom and to grow in what wisdom offers. Indeed, the reflection of the character of Christ, in whom is all wisdom. We consider how this offer is really a very gracious offer. as it holds out a very redemptive language as wisdom reflects that character of Christ. Colossians 2 verse 3 speaks to this. Christ is the one in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. So when wisdom cries out, we have the opportunity to have the character of Christ if we will turn at that rebuke, if we will hear and heed for this We must know Christ savingly to have that character wrought within us. But there is a natural response. There is a response if we are, in fact, unconverted, if we are, in fact, not trusting in Christ. When the rebuke comes, when the call goes out loudly, vigorously in the marketplace, the natural inclination to that generous offer of wisdom, is a rejection of wisdom. And here, Solomon turns from that generous broadcast, that vigorous broadcast of wisdom, calling to the rejection of wisdom. And as we describe that, there's a twofold meaning there. There's a natural rejection on the part of the hardened heart of man. But then, when the hard heart of man rejects wisdom, wisdom terms in rejection, and it's really terrifying. Let's consider the rejection of wisdom. First, there's a rejection described. In the face of persistent calling, we see described a refusal. Recall all the places where wisdom was crying out with a loud and positive appeal. Recall how frequently the reproofs of wisdom may call out to mankind, making a visible, the consequences of all judgments that fall on the foolish and evildoer. We can see it. If it didn't happen to us, we can see the consequences of foolishness round about us. Those constitute means of reproof, ways that should call us. Wisdom is not wanting in a generous offer. It's been vigorously given, and yet there is what Solomon describes as a response of refusal. The word there, because I have called and you refused, the word describing that refusal speaks not only of rejecting it, but an utter and purposeful rejection. We're again reminded of how absurd this response is as we were taught in the section immediately prior. that in the pursuit of wickedness, there is a snare set. So when wisdom calls out and warns away, why would one continue into destruction? It'd be absurd, and yet there's this natural, hard-hearted response of a diligent refusal and rejection of the call and offer of wisdom. Wisdom stretches out the hand, we're told, But no one regards this. Matthew Poole points out that the language here of the stretched out hand describes a gesturing or a motioning that would accompany the call. It's describing wisdom with ever intensifying desire, as it were, to get your attention. Wisdom not only cries out with great vigor, but wisdom is waving the hands. So even if you didn't quite hear, you'd see wisdom's over there signaling to you. What? The vigor and earnestness of the call of wisdom is not lacking in any way. It's abundant. We're reminded of how gracious that gesture is. Think about how God describes himself in those ways in Isaiah 65, talking about how he treated his people. 65 verse two of the book of Isaiah, I have stretched out my hands all day long to a rebellious people who walk in a way that is not good, according to their own thoughts. You see, wisdom, as it is in the fullness of Christ, really holds out a redemptive call. But in hard-heartedness, it is persistently and purposefully refused. Again, we see this generosity, the abundance of wisdom's call, but the hard-hearted and persistent response in the ordinary hardness of heart, rejecting that call. We should be concerned here. Note that the description of who answers the call is not hopeful. I have called and you refused. I have stretched out my hand and no one regarded me. That's how desperate the situation of the hardness of heart is for us. Wisdom can be presented with great vigor, great abundance, and yet no one responds. All wisdom's counsel is disdained. The counseling words of wisdom that would guide to life these, Solomon says in personifying wisdom, these are disdained. The word there describes the natural heart that turns away from rebukes in a conscious, unknowing dismissal, as though that call weren't worthy of my attention. This is just. Crazy, and yet it's the condition of our heart in its native natural state. The natural heart makes nothing of wisdom's rebukes, considers them as though they weren't even given, not worth the time. This rejection is clearly a high-handed rebellion. We need to understand that this is our native condition. We are not disposed naturally to hear That abundant, generous, vigorous call of wisdom, our natural response is described here. It's why we're told no one responded. We need to understand what desperation is our condition. We see an emphasis here that is unmistakable, complete rejection of wisdom. And so that rejection is described, then there are consequences. of that rejection described. It says here, because I have called, verse 25, because you disdain, there's a result. Something will happen precisely because of the way the hard heart responds. And a list of things are described there that should horrify us. What are the things that befall those who have rejected because they've rejected, because it wasn't worth their time, because they disdained it? Well, calamity means disaster, falling upon someone. And unexpected is that terror, fear that brings shaking, terror, fear that brings trembling, terror like a storm, destruction like a tempest. The description here is of a whirlwind, a tornado. We've seen a few of those around here. We know what that's like. Those who've experienced them describe something absolutely horrifying. Wisdom says, that's what awaits you in your life, that kind of terror, that kind of calamity, that kind of destruction, utter anguish and distress. The rejection of wisdom. brings all these awful things upon the head of those who have disdained the call. Wisdom's just judgment in response to this rejection is not just to notice those things happen. Wisdom is such that those things come about precisely because wisdom is orchestrated. Wisdom orders life so that that's the just dessert. of those who have disdained the generous call of wisdom. Instead of that generous call now, wisdom turns, and there is no comfort for the one suffering under calamity, terror, utter destruction, trembling under the tempest in anguish and distress. Rather, wisdom is described as one who will, in fact, mock. There is laughter. Understand, this is like what is described in Psalm 2. Those who reject wisdom's call, those who disdain wisdom, who consider wisdom not worth the time, they array themselves as enemies of the rule of God. And as such enemies, Psalm 2 describes, God's disdain for those who disdain him. He who sits in the heavens will laugh. Wisdom will mock. Those who have mocked the call will bear the judgment that is just, that is deserved. There is a scorn that comes as a just judgment against those who have hated wisdom. This is the sure and certain outcome of rejecting wisdom. And apart from the redemptive awakening and livening power of redemption through the Holy Spirit, it's our condition. We will naturally reject wisdom in this way. Were it not for Christ's work to awaken us, to empower us, to give us the ears to hear the call of wisdom, the eyes to see wisdom flagging us down, Let us then be as those enlivened by Christ to avoid these awful judgments of destruction coming like a whirlwind, distress and anguish coming upon us. We don't want to then be crying out and have nothing but rejection. We want to be heard in our cry because we have heard the call of wisdom. We may hear that call if we've embraced the source of wisdom in Jesus Christ. Let us pray. Holy Father, as we consider our own natural condition, what an awful thing that we should reject the marvelous provisions that are open to see, wisdom crying out. And yet we see that we have naturally hard hearts. Heal us by the power of the salvation that is in Christ Jesus. We repent of that hardness of heart. We trust in Christ to give us ears to hear and eyes to see, that we may acquire wisdom and not bring upon our heads the horrifying, tragic, but just consequences of those who defy the one who rules in heaven. How delightful that we have all our hope in Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. We can be rescued from our natural destiny of destruction. We may receive wisdom. We ask that that wisdom should be made abundantly available to us, that we may walk in a way that honors our Savior. We pray that we may then have wisdom glorify our Creator and Redeemer in growing the mastery of the ways appointed by Him to honor Him in this life. We ask these things for His glory, for His honor. Amen.