Scripture frequently uses the image of a tree to illustrate truths about the life of a man. Visible actions are fruit that identifies the type and condition of the person’s life. Roots are thoughts, beliefs, and desires in the heart that eventually cause the visible fruit that people observe. Of the two, which is more important: the root or the fruit? Certainly, the root is more fundamental to the life and health of the tree.

It feels as if every day there is an update about war or potential war. Tensions are rising in the US conflict with Iran and could erupt. China seems poised to invade Taiwan, and the US may intervene. Uktraine and Russia are still deploying drones against each other. Pick a part of the world and there is an ongoing war there.

There are at least two ideologies that American Christians have absorbed in the 20th century that have harmed our ability to think in biblical categories. These ideas seem innocent, but when placed against the standard of Scripture, they are revealed to be bankrupt. We have absorbed individualism and globalism.

How should one begin to get wisdom? Proverbs 9:10 answers this question: “the fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom.” Learn to fear the LORD, and you will learn to apply wisdom to life. Proverbs 14 speaks of fearing the Lord more than most proverbs. Four times in this chapter, Solomon speaks of the benefits of the fear of the Lord. For this reason, I have entitled Proverbs 14 “Wisdom’s Fear.”

Creation has a way of slowing a man down long enough for him to notice what has always been true. This truth is not the loud message the world repeats—about achievement, comfort, or control—but the quieter truth written into stone, water, and sky. Scripture says, “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork” (Ps. 19:1). That declaration does not require interpretation. It requires only that a man step outside and pay attention.