American Reformation Church Prayer Journal 95
ARC Prayer Meeting:
This past Sunday at the American Reformation Church we covered the preamble to the book of Proverbs, 1:1-7. A preamble, you may recall, states its purpose, aims, and justification for what is written.
The preamble first told us who wrote it. In this case, it was King Solomon. He did, however, mention that he is the son of David. We covered what that meant from the New Testament’s command to fathers to raise their children in the training and admonition of the Lord, “And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath, but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:4).
The next purpose for the preamble comes down to why it was written and what it aims to produce. The preamble is Wisdom’s mission statement. It is the divine curriculum for living under God's covenant rule in God’s world and according to God’s ways. To achieve those lofty goals, Solomon lists five objectives for penning the book of Proverbs.
Obviously, these enduring truths that come from ancient dust started with a godly prayer from the author of Proverbs, King Solomon. Solomon desired an understanding heart, discernment to know the difference between good and evil, and wisdom to lead well the nation of Israel.
We learned last week that it was King David, father of Solomon, who prepared the way of the Lord for his son to seek wisdom. King David was cut from a similar cloth as he prayed, “Show me Your ways, O Lord; Teach me Your paths. Lead me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; On You I wait all the day” (Psalms 25:4, 5). David demonstrated one of many key virtues of wisdom, which is a hunger and humility to seek God’s truth. And as the preamble affirms, “A wise man will hear and increase learning, and a man of understanding will attain wise counsel” (Proverbs 1:5). Certainly, that could be said of this father and son dynamic duo.
David prayed in Psalm 119:33–34, “Teach me, O LORD, the way of Your statutes… Give me understanding, and I shall keep Your law.” This prayer resonates with Proverbs’ emphasis on teachability and obedience to wise instruction.
In Psalm 86:11, the Psalmist prays. “Teach me Your way, O LORD… unite my heart to fear Your name.” This is perhaps the clearest prayer expression of Proverbs 1:7’s central theme: “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge.”
Lastly, let’s look at Daniel 2:20-23. Daniel acknowledges that wisdom comes from God alone. “He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding.” Daniel highlights God as the source of wisdom and that He alone grants insight and revelation. Daniel also demonstrates gratitude rooted in reverence which echoes Proverbs 1:7 — wisdom starts with the fear of the Lord.
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