Imagine that someone offered you anything you asked for. What would you do? What do you really want? I think a lot of people would ask to be rich or beautiful, to get an education and career of their dreams, to be a super athlete, rock star, or actor. But how many would ask to be wise? You may recall that this is what Solomon asked for in 1 Kings 3 when the LORD came to him in a dream: “Ask for whatever you want me to give you.” Not many people are like Solomon.

What is wisdom? It’s not just knowing a lot of stuff. Wisdom means you take what you know and you use that to follow the best course of action possible. In other words, you do the right thing. People who are wise might not be rich or popu­lar or have outstanding abilities. But they have a clear and wonderful goal in their life, and they accomplish it. And that goal is to love God and their neighbour. The climax to Psalm 111 is exactly that point: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.”

This is a “hallelujah” psalm. That’s how it starts in the original Hebrew, and it means: “Praise the LORD.” The psalmist is so thankful that he says, “I will extol the Lord with all my heart.” It quickly becomes ap­parent what excites him so much. He speaks about the “works” and “deeds” of the LORD his God. This is a refer­ence to God’s mighty deeds of salva­tion in history. The psalmist writes in verse 9, “He provided redemption for his people.” Literally that means God paid the ransom to liberate his people from slavery. This is when the LORD liberated Israel from certain death in Egypt, taking them through the wilderness, and leading them to the Promised Land where homes, cities, and vineyards were waiting for them.

But there is something very open-ended about God’s saving acts in history. We read the law every Sunday with these words, “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.” The Israelites understood this verse wasn’t just looking back at deliver­ance from Egypt, but looking forward to the Redeemer who would deliver them from Satan, sin and death. But that would come at a cost. The Re­deemer would crush Satan, but with the striking of his heel. Redemption for God’s people would come with the payment of the Redeemer shedding his blood. Think of 1 Peter 1:18-19 which speaks about being redeemed “with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.” This is where Psalm 111 shines: What an awesome God we have, that he pays the ransom that sets us free from slavery to Satan, sin and death! And what is the ransom? It is the blood of God’s own Son.

This leads the psalmist to con­clude in verse 10: “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow his precepts have good understanding.” He is saying that absolutely foundational to achiev­ing wisdom is having this fear of the LORD. To fear the LORD means to hold God in deep respect and reverence. It means to study his Word with its pre­cepts and commandments. It means to take God’s Word to heart and to live by it. That leads to wisdom – to a life that has meaning and purpose.

As I am writing this, Canada’s highest court is considering the case that will decide if Canada’s assisted suicide laws will stand. There are many who want to legalize mercy killing. That’s one thing. On the other end of the spectrum you can kill a baby in the womb without breaking a law. Many will praise you for it. Where is the wisdom in this? How is our country moving forward when you can kill the unborn, and quite possibly soon the elderly? But it is simple really. If there is no fear of God, no reflecting on his Word, no living in true love for God and neigh­bour, what can you expect?

We have an awesome, gracious God. He not only saved us, but he made a covenant with us that in­cludes his Word to guide our lives. To love him and respect him is to grasp that Word with all our heart, and to live by that Word in true wis­dom. Then our life would be clearly laid out before us and we would know the path to take. It will be a beauti­ful one. It will lead to a Paradise Re­stored. Praise the LORD!