Proverbs 25:1 These are also proverbs of Solomon, which the men of Hezekiah king of Judah copied out.
Common Sense
I do not think it pleases God for God’s people to be clueless. I think God wants me to have at least the good sense that He would give a turnip. The truth is that common sense is anything but common. Common sense is spiritual.
When we speak of common sense, we are really talking about supernatural wisdom for common things, not supernatural wisdom that is common. In our lives, we need to ask God for the wisdom that He alone gives. From whence comes wisdom, that common sense for common things?
Well, most importantly, common sense comes from God. Proverbs 25:1 says, “For these are also proverbs of Solomon, which the men of Hezekiah king of Judah copied out.” Solomon was a man who needed wisdom, knew Whom to ask, and got it because he did. He asked God for wisdom, and wisdom comes from God.
It is worthy of note that Solomon had great wisdom for the kingdom but almost no wisdom for his own home. When he asked God for wisdom, it was for wisdom to govern God’s people, Israel. He did not ask God for wisdom to govern his own house. If he had done that, God would have given him wisdom for his home just as He had given him wisdom for his kingdom.
Nonetheless, Solomon is a man who had the wisdom for which he asked, and that is because wisdom comes from God. It is found in His Word. A lot of the wisdom you find in Proverbs 25 is about kingly matters. In any event, God’s wisdom comes from God’s Word.
God’s wisdom also comes as we learn from Him through our experience. In the previous chapter, God gives us a lesson about laziness and the sluggard. Proverbs 24:30 says, “I went by the field of the slothful.” Verse 32 says, “Then I saw, and considered it well: I looked upon it, and received instruction.” We are talking about experience.
God’s people are not to go through life with their eyes closed. We are to pay attention, to observe, and to learn. The lesson is found in Proverbs 24:34 which says, “So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth.” This is a lesson from God that we learn as we observe life.
I have to wonder how spiritual I really am if I don’t have the good sense to come in out of the rain. I can have great command of theology and know a lot about the Bible, but if I don’t have the good sense to know how to work or how to treat my wife, my kids, and other people, my knowledge is no good. Wisdom is, after all, not just knowledge, but skill to use the knowledge we have. What good is knowledge or skill if it is not good for right now, right here, real life.
Common sense is something that is available. God owns it; God gives it. We should ask for it, and thank Him that He gives it. Common sense is not common; it is spiritual. What we need today is supernatural wisdom for common things.